Precedence System: I Take My Rewards In Advance

Zishan stared at the baby dragon in his arms for several seconds after the barrier around Skyforge flickered again.

The little creature seemed completely unaware of what it had just done. She was pressed against his chest with one tiny claw resting against his clothes, her grayish-silver eyes moving between him and Elinox as though calling them Papa and Mama had been the most natural conclusion anyone could possibly reach.

Elinox said nothing, and it somehow made the situation even more awkward than it already seemed, though Zishan doubted her saying anything would make it better.

Zishan cleared his throat and crouched before slowly lowering the hatchling onto the floor. Both of his hands remained around her tiny body until her four little feet found the surface, and even then, he kept one hand near her side in case she lost her balance. ”There you go, little one.”

The baby dragon looked up at him.

Zishan smiled despite the strange pressure he could feel from several steps away.

”We’ll talk later,” she suddenly said.

His smile disappeared.

Elinox had spoken in the same calm voice she normally used, yet Zishan felt a chill travel across his back.

He turned his head toward her.

Elinox was standing near the sofa with one hand controlling the Mana barrier around Skyforge. Her face looked perfectly composed.

For some reason, it made him feel worse.

Zishan looked back at the little dragon. ”You stay here for a bit, okay? Papa will be out for a while. He needs to slay those enemies outside, and I’ll come back as soon as possible.”

The hatchling tilted her head.

Zishan pointed toward the sofa. ”You can stay with Ollie. He’s nice. Don’t bite him.”

”Big Brother!”

”I’m protecting you.”

Ollie looked offended from where he sat.

Zishan ignored him and turned back toward the dragon. ”And if you can... stay close to your...”

His mouth stopped.

Elinox’s eyes moved toward him.

Zishan suddenly stared at the baby dragon as though he did not feel anything from Elinox’s stare.

He had no idea why saying the next word felt so strange. The hatchling had already decided on her own, and correcting a creature that had been alive for less than several minutes seemed unnecessarily cruel.

He took a deep breath. ”Stay close... to... I mean... to your mama.”

Elinox’s eyes narrowed into slits.

Zishan pretended not to notice.

The baby dragon’s little face brightened. ”Mama!”

”Yes, yes. Mama.” Zishan stood before Elinox could say anything. ”Anyway, there are Wyverns outside trying to destroy this very expensive flying house, so I should probably deal with them.”

”Zishan.”

”I’ll be back!”

He moved toward the nearest exit, ignoring her call.

Elinox watched him leave with suspicion growing in her eyes. ’He’s acting weird.’

There was something about the way he had hesitated before saying mama that made her wonder whether the dragon was the only reason he had said it.

She decided not to think about that while the Wyverns were still throwing themselves against Skyforge.

Something bumped against her leg.

Elinox lowered her eyes.

The hatchling had already crossed the small distance between them and wrapped both front legs around her calf.

”Mama...”

Elinox stared down at her.

The dragon rubbed the side of her little head against Elinox’s leg before looking up with those large grayish-silver eyes.

”Mama smells so good...”

Elinox’s expression softened before she could stop it. She crouched and carefully slipped one hand beneath the hatchling’s body, lifting her until they were facing one another.

The dragon sniffed near her cheek.

Elinox smiled. ’What a cute little one...’

The hatchling reached toward a strand of her silver-blue hair and caught it between both tiny claws.

Elinox let her. ’And this little one seems so pleasing to have...’

”Mama...”

”Yes,” Elinox answered, though her attention shifted when she noticed Ollie looking at her from the sofa. The boy immediately looked away the moment their eyes met, which only made her narrow her eyes.

”What?”

Ollie shook his head and suddenly became very interested in the floor. ”Nothing, High General.”

Outside Skyforge, Zishan stepped onto the upper surface of the vessel and was greeted by wind strong enough to throw an ordinary person into the clouds.

However, with Gravity Magic on his side, his boots remained planted. He had discovered that while Skills were needed to amplify his Magic, he could still use Mana itself for basic things like this.

He raised one hand to shield his eyes for a moment as dozens of Wyverns circled Skyforge from every direction. Some flew close enough that he could see the patterns running across their scales, while others moved higher above the clouds before folding their wings and diving toward the barrier.

”Okay.” Zishan rolled his shoulders. ”This is more like it.”

One Wyvern opened its jaws as Mana gathered inside its throat. Lightning Mana surged through Zishan’s body the moment he activated Thunderwake, sharpening his reactions and sending him across the upper surface of Skyforge before the creature could release its attack.

He raised one arm while moving. ”Stormwing Rend!”

Compressed Wind Mana tore through the air and struck the Wyvern across its chest, throwing its aim aside as the attack building inside its mouth exploded harmlessly into the distance.

A second Wyvern swept beneath it and tried to climb toward him, but Zishan had already turned his attention toward the creature. ”Gravitic Anchor.”

Gravity Mana pressed down around its body and dragged it several meters through the air. Its wings beat violently as it fought against the sudden weight, but Zishan was already gathering Fire Mana around himself.

”Wildfire Requiem!”

Fire erupted across the sky and swallowed the nearest Wyverns before spreading through the rest of the formation.

Several Wyverns screamed as the flames spread through their formation, jumping from one target to another before they had enough time to separate. Zishan watched three burning bodies fall through the clouds while EXP notifications filled the edge of his vision.

”HAHAHAHA!” Zishan laughed. ”Yes! Keep them coming! So much for being Level 200s!”

Two more Wyverns charged him from opposite sides.

Zishan waited until both were close before Wind Mana gathered around his arm. He swung it toward them. ”Stormwing Rend!”

A blade of compressed Wind tore outward once more.

The Wyvern on his right twisted away too late and lost part of one wing, while the second creature managed to avoid the center of the attack, only for Zishan to vanish from where he stood.

Rift Steps carried him across the surface of Skyforge. He appeared several meters away. ”Missed me!”

The Wyvern turned.

Zishan raised his hand again as he muttered, ”Ember Malediction.”

Flames gathered around the creature’s scales. Then, its scream disappeared beneath another explosion.

Zishan laughed before his attention wandered somewhere it had no business going.

’Mama.’

His expression changed.

The little dragon had looked at Elinox once and decided she was her mother. He still did not understand that.

’Why her?’

Another Wyvern dove toward him.

Zishan ducked beneath its claws and slapped one hand against the surface of Skyforge. ”Gravitic Anchor!”

The creature was thrown downward so hard that its body struck the barrier before rebounding away.

Zishan stood again as the thought returned to him. ’Why did she call High General Holmes Mama anyway?’

He frowned while another Wyvern circled above Skyforge. The hatchling had only been awake for a few minutes, yet she had already decided on that without hesitation.

’What exactly did she see in her?’

”SHIT!”

A claw swept toward him before he could think any further. Lightning Mana surged through his body as Thunderwake activated, and Zishan shot across the surface of Skyforge just before the Wyvern passed through where he had been standing. The wind around its wings still caught his clothes as it went by.

”Can’t you let me think?!”

The creature screamed at him while turning for another pass.

”Fuck you too!”

Zishan gathered Wind Mana around his arm and swung it toward the approaching Wyvern. ”Stormwing Rend!”

A blade of compressed Wind tore across the space between them and struck one of its wings, sending the creature tumbling away from Skyforge.

Even while watching it fall, Zishan found his thoughts drifting back toward the little dragon. He could still picture her clinging to Elinox’s leg and calling her Mama as though she had already decided there was no other possible answer.

’Why her, though? Well, except High General Holmes, there were no other girls there. Maybe if she sees other girls, she will also call them Mama...’

The whole thing had left a strange feeling behind that he couldn’t quite place. It wasn’t something he disliked, which somehow made him even less interested in figuring it out while several dozen Wyverns were trying to tear him apart.

’Whatever. The little one’s just weird.’

Another Wyvern descended from above before he could think about it any further. Zishan raised his head as Fire Mana gathered around him.

”Wildfire Requiem!”

Flames erupted across the sky and spread through the approaching formation, swallowing several Wyverns while new EXP notifications began appearing in front of him.

After that, Zishan gave up trying to understand the whole Mama situation and concentrated on the far simpler problem of killing everything currently attacking Skyforge.

A second Wyvern came after him before the first had even finished falling. Lightning Mana surged through Zishan’s body as Thunderwake carried him away from its path, and he turned the moment the creature flew past him.

Wind Mana gathered around his arm. ”Stormwing Rend!”

The blade caught the Wyvern across one wing and sent it spiraling downward.

[Wyverns Slain: 29 / 30]

Zishan searched the sky and spotted one Wyvern already retreating farther into the clouds.

He pointed at it. ”You.”

The creature kept flying. ”Oh, don’t fucking run now!”

Rift Steps carried Zishan toward the edge of Skyforge as Wind Mana gathered around his arm. ”Stormwing Rend!”

The blade of compressed Wind crossed the distance and struck the fleeing Wyvern. Its body jerked before it began falling toward the forest far below.

[Wyverns Slain: 30 / 30]

Zishan raised both hands. ”YES!”

The EXP notifications that had been stacking at the edge of his vision finally expanded one after another.

[EXP Gained: 120,000]