A Dragon Idol's Reincarnation Tale

Experience for development Jobs has reached multiple breaking points.

[Wildfire]: Lv. 41 -> Lv. 55 | Reset accumulation finished | Prestige 15 Lv. 53

Prestige requirement achieved! Job max level has increased. Experienced accumulation and reward quality increased.

[Wildfire] Max level -> 60

You may spend your prestige points when you are ready

Evolution Points: 50/50

[“Woooo, finally!”] I cheered as I reared my head up, roaring from the top of my lungs as I stood upon the corpse of another mammoth. My ear-piercing shout raced around the chilly plains, scaring whatever animals still prowling these lands despite my hunting spree.

I might not have gained any levels or skill increase, but what was equally as important? My unique Job. What did that also mean? Job evolution and that would result in skill increases.

The last point on the checklist before our party ventured into the glacial north, and we thankfully managed to get it done as we flew there. Nong, being a very fast fly—as in jet-like when he was being serious—made the trip a breeze, cutting down on a ton of time that I would have otherwise taken since I couldn’t use my rocket boosters non-stop without overusing my scale-dust.

It took Vifi and me about four days to reach the north, although we did spend a ton of that time hunting and fighting to train ourselves up. While I did the same for this trip, Nong’s flight allowed us to reach it in two days’ time, although we would take the rest of the day to rest and also allow my party members to get in a few last level ups before we took on the expedition.Technically, for me, it was also a day to analyze my companion’s Profile, as well, not to mention mine. A final check up, hehe; just like the good ol’ time when we traveled Altrust inside Grimnir’s RV.

I shook my body, flapping my wings along the strong, cold wind to feel the brush of the upcoming expedition. The biting chill that once shriveled up my scales like resins felt like New York’s harsh winter now. It bit into my skin like needles, drying them up, making them coarse and yearning for some skin-care products.

Yet, that was Hikari’s problem back on Earth. As a dragon, my scales and skin remained youthful due to mana. Sure, the cold did a thing to my poor body, but with how high my [Ice Resistance] had risen, the weather … actually felt normal to me.

Sure, I could feel it was colder than probably the Antarctic—or maybe it was similar; I’ve never been there before—but my solar core was maintaining my body temperature at a far better efficiency than before. Far less mana was used and I was just more resilient than the last time I went here. I didn’t even need to manipulate the temperature around me at all, right now. I probably would once we entered the glaciers, but this felt like the fruits of my training!

[“Cold winds of the frozen tundra, let me feel the shine of the sun and the chill of the ice! Allow me—your young princess—to bask in my homeland’s bounty and dangers, all to further myself and the brilliance of my lineage!”] I smiled before growling, squinting as I turned to glare at Nong as he clapped to my fanciful statement. His dragonewt face was all so expressive, while all my dragon head could do was glower at the source of my current embarrassment. “This is all your fault! You infected me with your virus!”

“Virus? Now hold on, you can be melodramatic as much as you want, little scamp, but calling such a beautiful poetic statement a virus is quite harsh! Give yourself credit, haha!” Nong burst in laughter, unaware this was all his fault.

A flight on Hestia Airlines was mostly peaceful if you ignored the vomit-risks, but on Nong Airlines, the flight might be smooth and comfortable, but the pilot was such an extrovert, it made me feel like I was an introvert.

He spoke more than even the most talkative people I’ve come to know in both of my lives. Mundane? Trivial? Serious? He was switching up the topics like a revolver the instant he managed to find a common point using small talk, pretty talking with everybody on the party aside from Vifi, who simply ignored him. He talked too much, but he knew not to pester people.

Still, during the two day flight, all we had for entertainment was Nong’s constant talks and the meals we had during our breaks. My social battery was drained so much I didn’t even want to talk to Tasianna when she was brewing extra potions and elixirs for our trip. Yet, Nong had enough energy throughout this trip like a young, hyperactive labrador—he even kept his smile up like one as he kept posing and flaunting his appearance like a peacock to the point that a small voice in my head was telling me he was a narcissist.

That “Woooo, finally” was just my outlet … Ah, well, I wanted to blame things on Nong, again, but I still felt empty inside. As such, instead of continuing my nonsensical talk with him, I dismantled my prey with Nong’s help and placed the spoils in my storage before returning to the cave our party would be using for the night.

[Humanize (Moderate)] inflicted on [Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor]

The twins and Vifi were out, still hunting and training, but Tasianna had already returned with a backpack full of roots, herbs, and other ingredients she needed for her craft. Her tools were simmering and buzzing with activity as liquids and powders were synthesized and altered under her watchful eyes.

Vials were placed on the table she was working for—furniture from my carpentry days. Some were empty, others were filled with blue and green liquids. With my limited knowledge of alchemy, I could tell her concoctions were nowhere close to done.

“Welcome back, Lady Hestia. Prince Nongramos.” Tasianna stood up quickly and gestured to the fireplace with a tea pot boiling over a stand, before turning back to her tools. The tea was ready.

Still no energy, too? Yeah … I sympathized with my friend. Sadly, somebody had to occupy my talkative brother, here.

As I served him some tea, Nong drank it with the poise of an aristocrat, treating the cup he was holding with care as he moved it close to his lips. With a quiet sip, he let out a satisfying moan as he thanked Tasianna for “another great cup of enjoyment.”

Seeing him get comfortable, I couldn’t help but smile awkwardly and sigh. I looked down at my hands, seeing them shiver a bit, not due to the cold, but due to slight trepidation for the start of the expedition. With me reaching the next Job evolution, there was no more reason to delay the trip any longer.

Haaa, the damn cold … I felt my heart quicken as I remembered what had happened during my first visit to the glaciers. Still, I took a deep breath, reminding myself I was prepared this time. Even the cold felt like a cool breeze now, so why was I so scared when I knew what I was getting myself into?

… Okay, maybe the fact that everything before us would the unknown. Our party was given a pretty stern lecture on never underestimating the glaciers, purely due to the blizzards. My party had plans to protect ourselves from it, and how to insulate our refuges from it, but thinking about these protocols was nerve wracking.

Then again, this was my first real adventure in, like, forever, I believe.

I didn’t count the Inferno Nest trip one, since that was just an accident and misunderstanding, so the last time I actually went on an adventure would be the Event Quest—our dungeon dive in Inkoran-Tazul. Even the scouting trip to the glaciers was just the prelude to this, really. Was this the adventurer spirit compelling me? Or was it simply me being rusty? Too used to civilization, bureaucracy, and being a princess of Frozen Nest?

Well, regardless of the reason, these thoughts kept me restless. Since taking care of your equipment was the one-oh-one of being an adventurer, instead of dealing with my unique Job first, I decded to take out my catalysts, glaive, and plate armor.

Seeing my two [Core of the Sun], my [Heart of the Volcano Catalyst] inside “Burn my Dread”—my glaive—and the two wind catalyst I received from Kahalameet inside my violin and piano made me feel super prepared. I had a pretty strong collection of catalysts depending on the situation. Even [Providence’s Will], who was still not fully listening to me, made me absolutely giddy like a gun or sword enthusiast.

Ah, but I couldn’t forget about my armor. The rhytilic [Crimson Dragon Princess Exoarmor], a piece of torso plating that could morph its form into two forms. Its humanoid version, which it was in right now, and the form it would assume when I transformed into my dragon form. Protective and it made me feel safe. Having it under my fur coat would—

“You’re actually going into this with that piece of armor?” Nong suddenly asked, his eye snapping over to me before I could pour my own cup of tea. “I heard from Brother Phsotophus and Brother Kahalameet how you liked training in this black armor of yours. Heard it can enlarge and fit your dragon form. It’s a damn waste, little scamp. Your scales have a beautiful luster that the world should see; don’t hide it behind that armor.”

Beautiful?

“Uhm, okay? Well, happy to hear that, Nong, but armor is still armor. The glaciers are dangerous, and I don’t want to risk it too much. Better safe than sorry!”

“Don’t worry, I can and will protect you, little scamp.” He chortled, sounding so sure of himself. “Doesn’t matter if its a rank A, or an army of rank B. I’ll keep you safe; that’s why I was sent with you. I’ve been entrusted by our siblings with your safety, and that is an oath. A promise. My word as the next ‘Black Tyrant of the Skies!’ Although, I rather that ‘black’ part be changed to ‘emerald’ in the future, but—haha—the point stands!”

Considering what Ryra could do with [Battle Frenzy], I could believe Nong’s confidence. Still, I felt uneasy.

“Besides, you can create armor with your spell, right? Now, that, I can accept. It’s your expression of magical power; that’s showing off your confidence as a dragon! We all do it, anyways, and it’s far more elegant than something a smith made with our leftover scales! Ha!” Nong snorted. “That armor? Eh, wear it when you’re a dragonewt, but not as a dragon, okay?”

“… The armor was made by my personal blacksmith. He’s also a very good friend.”

“I am not deriding the armor’s quality, Hestia. Here’s my opinion as a connoisseur of beauty—the armor is splendid. A real masterpiece of an armor that I personally would love to place on one of my mannequins to boast to people. Well, since I can smell a bit of you of it, I presume your scales were used in its making, so I would most likely boast about you. Hear this! ‘The Blackest Sheen! Armor made by the shed pieces of our youngest!’ Haha, that’s worthy of a story, I say!”

“… You know what? Forget about it, and don’t you dare title it like that. Please. For the sake of my mind.” I shook my head, feeling a headache grow as Tasianna chuckled.

Hrrm, Nong will just annoy me if I wear the armor. Haaaa, better leave it off for now.

Sighing, I packed up all my stuff, including my armor. Funnily enough, he didn’t complain at all about the catalysts, although he did eye my glaive a bit. That look of his … He probably was telling me not to use it either. Big, proud, very dragon Nong …

I figured he didn’t mind the catalysts since they were magical, at the end of the day. They weren’t “too humanoid” compared to weapons and armor. He even had his own float around him, right now, like an orbiting planet.

Weird … despite how much his flamboyant nature got tiresome during this trip, it wasn’t all this bad. Hearing him speak like this to weapons, though … It made my original opinion of him with his noble-like behavior feel a bit muddled. It felt like a rift was forming in my head. I shouldn’t think like this.

A narcissist, prideful, quick-to-anger, and very dragon-like. Haaa, at least, he cares for his family, but this feels weird, now.

“Okay, unique Jobs! Tell me, little scamp!” he said with a boisterous tone, clapping as if to blow away any awkwardness around us. “You got your levels, so now nothing can stop us, right? How exactly are we ‘normal’ people supposed to get unique Jobs when this ‘Event Quest’ stuff hasn’t happened since that one with the dwarves? When’s the next?”

Serious time! Well, as serious as he could be in a casual setting, at least. With his mother responsible for the empire’s culture, education, and entertainment, Nong inherited a lot of the traits needed for someone supposed to inherit this duty one day if he wasn’t to become the emperor. One of them, of course, was general curiosity and a receptive attitude to talking with others, despite his flamboyance.

Now, none of the dragon empresses handled subterfuge nor did they handle an information network. Those tasks were on Loatryx to obtain for Kargryx’s sake, which allowed the empresses to act on foreign politics, which was a united effort for them. However, speaking was gathering information, and Nong sure did it well. If the wind dragons were to simply spread with the wind like dandelion seeds, using their wind manipulation to eavesdrop, they would probably be a force to be reckoned with … As long as they were willing to do so, of course.

“I told you, I don’t know,” I said, exhausted after that little talk and remembering what we talked about during the trip here. I pulled out the cooking wares for tonight’s meals and some of the meat, hoping Nong would get the message but he was relentless.

“Yes, I’ve heard, but you’re the only person in this world who can actually speak with the gods without instantly getting their soul fried, okay? Even Father can’t compare from what I heard from Kahalameet, so you should be the most aware. You’re Aurena’s envoy, in a sense, right? As her blessed?” he said. “Hearing your party speak about your unique Jobs made me envious, all right? I admit it. Everybody didn’t give it much thought when the global message came for the event, but I want another to happen soon!”

“Just to become stronger? You know, to achieve that ‘Black Tyrant of the Skies’ ambition of yours?”

“Yeah, exactly! The ability to level up your Jobs even in your dragon form is amazing, and the amount of stats you can get from Jobs makes the effort worth it, if it wasn’t for the 25% stat reduction from [Elvenize (Minor)]. Come on, ask them!” he nudged me, but I shook my head.

“Then wait for two more years. The moment I reach five, the Job System will be overhauled for everybody. That’s when you automatically get your own, okay?” I explained.

I wasn’t doing this just to spite him for not telling me what he was lying about, of course. I genuinely didn’t know and I also knew from how often I’ve talked with the gods that this was something they would never inform me about. Knowing when and where an Event Quest would happen wasn’t part of my duty as a blessed, nor would it help me considering these events were supposed to be objective.

“Nong, I know you’re curious, but I can’t give you every single answer. Even if I am more privileged than others, you’re starting to be annoying with how you’re not listening to me,” I stated, prompting Nong to back off. “Even I am not sure what the gods are thinking, even if I can speak with them. Like, Chihiro just issued a Divine Quest to my friend to film a music video with me. What is that for a Divine Quest? Not to mention, Vifi got her unique Job because Chihiro decided to give her a unique Job as an Event Quest reward, despite not being part of the winning team.”

“Got it!” He held his hands up as if he was surrendering. “Haaa, fickle as always, those gods. A bit too preferential treatment, don’t you think?”

“The intention of the new unique Job System is to mostly benefit the humanoids, Brother. You know well enough that humans are far weaker than us the more we evolve, and that is hard to catch up with the current iteration,” I said. “It isn’t that I’m not curious myself, but you can’t expect me to beg them for information.”

“Fair enough.” He sighed, finishing his tea. “Just feels like nothing really happened since then, you know. That news was pretty big when Loatryx started hearing about the Event Quest’s conclusion and that you were part of it, but since it hasn’t happened in a while, people just forgot about it. Would be a great distraction from all the crap that happened recently.”

“The leviathans, I guess? You did hear what happened to us, right?”

“The attack on your harbor? Yeah! The mess they cause at our harbor? Yeah! Both, and Wendriosa can’t control them at all! If you think it’s stressful for our empress-mothers, think what our eldest sister is thinking with everything. It isn’t just a bunch of paperwork, it’s also whispers, disapproving eyes, and disgruntlement from the elder scales. Something fun would be a great way to get everybody to lighten up. We need it, right now.”

“Well, I’m not planning to do it properly, but there is my mom’s birthday in four months. If we get out of the mountain in time, I’ve been planning on giving her a concert just for her present! As long as they remain on schedule—which they should even with all the trouble. We’re outsourcing the magic stuff to the dark dragons, after all,” I said before gesturing for Nong to follow me outside, pointing at the large ice tower in the distance. “Even from here, you can already see all their hard working …”

The information tower responsible for the manatech “internet” was humongous in size and bulk. The structure integrity of the building had to fit with the environment, after all, and that meant it needed to be sturdy enough to survive random monsters banging against it or using ice magic. This wasn’t even mentioning the fact it needed to survive dragon attacks or dragons accidentally bumping against it.

A metal skeleton inside a brick tower, all while it was protected by a transparent ice shell similar to how Mom created her mountain. Construction of the building was relatively quick due to magic and our population, though it still wasn’t finished as the digital media guild had to invest time in adding the manatech for it all to work out, including the designs the dark dragons needed to get their magic working properly.

Since the tower was built in the middle of a random mountain pass, monsters and the weather were the biggest hurdle for its maintenance, but that was the price we needed to pay to allow it the radius needed to reach every single inhabitant in this area. Sieg promised he would add some runes on it later on to assure it could even survive a clash of dragons, while the ice was durable enough to survive some blows of a rank S dragon. It would buy just enough time until an evacuation was possible.

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

Therefore, to facilitate the design, a landing platform was built close to its top, allowing wyverns, dragonewt, and smaller dragons to land on it. You could enter from the top or bottom, and we even installed a draconic levitation platform to transport people up and down, with a similar function to the floating cities. Aside from that, there is a whole habitation module inside with a large enough storage to allow workers to live here for months if needed, in a similar manner to how lighthouse keepers lived, although you could reach a small dragonewt hamlet from a nearby clan.

“Yeah, seeing that thing up in the clouds was quite a surprise. It sticks out, but not really since you kept the aesthetic similar to everything around it. It looks like an overgrown mountain spire from a distance,” Nong complimented. “I like it, and I like your idea even more. That ‘streaming’ service will surely be a boon to all the dragonewts living out in the wild with only a few clan members. Ha, I can hardly wait for this ‘idol concert’ of yours. See what’s so different from normal musicals and stuff. Better make sure to thrill me and my mother, okay, Hestia?”

“Hiehie, oooh, an idol can’t live without the hype, you know! Sure, of course. I give my all for every single concert!” I clapped, posing a bit out of habit … Not ‘cause of Nong, of course.

Seeing this, Nong cheered as if he was ready for a party. “Good! ‘Cause it will be a hard thing to prepare. The expedition will take time, all right? Even if we find your friend, the main objective of this trip is to find him, give him permission to delve deeper, and then follow along as support. That will take a month or two, at least, simply because we have to be careful of the weather. A strong blizzard is not good for you nor me, and if an avalanche buries our cave, the trip can take even longer. Nature shouldn’t be underestimated; it birthed us, after all.”

“I know, I know. There is also my party’s own reason to do this expedition. We need to reach the end of the glacier—the place where ice elementals gather. So, hopefully, we won’t get—Actually, I won’t say anything. That will only jinx stuff.” I turned back to the cooking station to prepare dinner.

“‘Jinx?’” Nong raised an eyebrow as he followed me back, offering to help out cooking. We had to wait for the rest to come back, since I wanted everybody to witness me taking my next Job evolution.

Once Vifi and the twins were back, we all huddled around the campfire as I began to tell them the result of my little experimentation.

All right, done. Now, show me the results of my level divides!

Evolution choices for [Tyrant Diva]. Evolution choice affected by unique choice from [Star Idol]’s [Heavenly Performance Act 2], [Wildfire]’s [Searing Flames], [Lightbearer]’s [Sacred Equilibrium], [Lightbearer] and [Wildfire] acquired Prestige

[Rising Dawn Tyrant]Benefits: Unique Skill [Ruby Star][Trailblazer of Stars]Benefits: Unique Skill [Trailblazing Tyrant][Dragon Idol Candidate]Benefits: Unique Skill [Drakonian Idol][The Sun Who Graces All]Benefits: Unique Skill [Divine Solar Core]“Hahaha! That means, only Donut and Saori are the only ones who didn’t have to spend their second unique Job evolution on some random skills! Haha, that’s fucked up!” Vifi said before landing on her back, letting out a jealous sigh as she stared at the ceiling. “Why didn’t I get one?”

Ahah … Can’t help it, Vifi. Wait?

“Hmm? Saori got one, too?” I asked, thinking back to my discussion with the others concerning Jobs.

I didn’t need to reiterate it, but I was in a coma for over a year. This timeframe didn’t just mean that all my friends and allies had the chance to level up and get stronger but it also meant all of them had more time to experiment with their unique Jobs. Those who were part of the first Event Quest and were still living—Akasht, may your soul rest in peace—all received a unique Job. All of them could level up, evolve, and gain new Job skills—that meant we had access to a ton of information concerning the unique Job System.

Vifi, due to the fickle nature of the gods, received one as well despite being on “Team Hestia” at the end of the Event. She did make it to the last floor at the same time as Tasianna’s team, though, so I guess it “counted.” Regardless, what was important to note was that Vifi was probably the most invested in the matter.

“The future is now,” kinda mindset, where she understood the unique Job System was the future of growth and if she wanted to embrace the “head start” our party had on the world, then the only way for her to do so was to learn. Knowledge was power, and it was all stuffed in her party bracelet’s notes.

The plan to dedicate the remaining levels to [Wildfire]? Hers, when we were on our scouting trip. I decided to isolate the development Job so I would only gain [Wildfire] levels for the last 15 prestige ranks I needed to evolve my Job. This all came from the experiences of my friends—even those still on Altrust—and was conveyed to me by Vifi.

To expand the choices of evolutions, similar to how I did it for my usual evolutions, I also bought [Searing Flames] for [Wildfire]. Even if it was my skill farming development Job, I wanted to see what sorta options would become available.

The division of prestige points, the Job skills bought, and also outside factors would alter the unique Job.

Vifi opened up her party bracelets, looking at her notes. “With Donut also having a unique skill, that leaves things mysterious as ever. Hestia and Saori share the fact they are monsters, both are blessed of gods, have a bunch of unique skills, reincarnators from Earth, and also the fact they evolved into rank Bs as ‘youngs.’ There are other points, but I didn’t really consider them important.”

Vifi sat back up. “Fargryneill, another Kargryxmor dragon, didn’t receive a unique skill option on her second Job evolution. Asaka, Kushlek’zar, and the other blessed also didn’t get one either. The Earthlings didn’t receive anything special, either. Which means, the last point we have is that they are both early evolvers, but I don’t think the gods would make that a requirement to gain a unique skill earlier than the third Job evolution.”

“Third?” I asked.

“Yes, Kushlek’zar mentioned that that naga Champion managed to reach his third Job evolution. The guy is apparently rising like a cascade in rank and status within Caedhul …”

Tehmrayn …

“Champion Tehmrayn has indeed received a unique skill, Lady Hestia,” Tasianna confirmed, mentioning Master had told all of them when he last visited Frozen Nest. “He is very likely the first as we still have contact with all the other members of the Quest expedition. Either this is normal, or there might be another reason for it. Madam Saori had her second Job evolution after half of the unique Job holders achieved theirs, creating a new precedent. We just do not know how she managed to do it, and it applies to you now, as well.”

[“We might know if you ask God Kargryxmor or Goddess Aurena, though, Lady Hestia,”] Beth suggested and I nodded, trying to do so only to hear Nong complain that I “only listen to my friends but not my brother.”

Pah … Goddess Aurena? Kramps? Did you two hear this?

I heard Aurena’s voice but not Kramps.

Hmm, well, it hasn’t affected me just yet so I don’t know how to feel about it.