Chapter 7

Crack! Krrrack!

The process of bones being dislocated and reassembled repeated endlessly. Muscles tore apart and healed again.

Vital organs twisted and settled anew within the body. The heart transformed into something entirely different from before. New bodily organs never seen before began to appear.

With a sensation like his head was exploding, he started to see and feel things that were completely different from before. His brain evolved limitlessly, gaining functions that could no longer be called human.

All impurities and filth accumulated in his body were erased, with pure crimson magic power circulating inside him.

Moreover, his very body began merging with magic power, starting to transcend mortals. It was as if he was becoming a magical creature made of mana itself.

As a living being, his ‘rank’ had changed.

The soul also grew rapidly on its own to fit the new vessel. Thanks to the Soul Bond formed with Tiamat, the soul itself gained potential beyond mortal limits.

Furthermore, thanks to the ordeal of inscribing magic circles on massive bones and Tiamat awakening his spirit through the soul connection, his soul’s growth was exceptionally fast.

His soul began to awaken. A non-existent third eye opened.

And Eugene, undergoing all these changes at once…

Crack crack!

“Guh…! Hah… hah…”

Unable to even hold his own body due to the pain of evolution and soul growth. Ironically, because of the soul’s growth, he was fully conscious and enjoying every bit of the agony.

Thanks to the heightened senses, everything felt more vivid, amplifying the pain twofold.

Though the growing soul endured the pain without difficulty, his mortal body was wracked by the evolutionary process, unable to even utter a word.

“Are you alright?”

Tiamat asked as she looked at Eugene, who then tried to speak.

Crack crack crack!

“Ugh!”

‘Haha… it’s bearable. Maybe it’s because I’ve experienced being burned and regenerating repeatedly?’

Despite wanting to say that, only groans escaped his mouth due to his body reconstructing itself, making coherent speech impossible.

“It seems so. You’re holding up better than expected.”

Somehow, through their connected souls, Tiamat received the thoughts Eugene meant to convey rather than what came out verbally.

And indeed, it was true. Though his body was undergoing extreme transformations that rendered him unable to speak, his evolving soul handled the pain with ease.

‘Haha, this is getting kinda scary. I’m worried I might end up looking like some kind of monster after all this.’

He sent that thought to Tiamat using their soul link, having gotten somewhat accustomed to using it.

“Don’t worry. That won’t happen. Just look at me, does it seem like that?”

“Is that so?”

“Of course. Remember when I told you this form was a polymorphed one about two months ago for you? Do you recall what you said when you saw my human polymorph form?”

“That you were incredibly beautiful. That impression hasn’t changed.”

“Exactly. And just like me, you’ll end up with an appearance superior by human standards. Though from a dragon’s perspective, how we look in human form doesn’t matter much… but isn’t it different for you since you used to be human?”

“Hmm, if I can live off looks alone, I suppose it wouldn’t be too bad. Speaking of which… do dragons always polymorph into handsome men or beautiful women when they take human form?”

That new thought prompted Eugene to ask. If he’d gain an appearance superior by human standards, did that mean all dragons took on such forms when polymorphing?

“Not exactly. You can change into whatever form you wish. However, there is a sort of ‘default setting’ for polymorphs. When dragons transform into humans, they usually take on the appearance of what they consider to be the ideal human form. You can modify it from there, but not many dragons bother. After all, dragons usually polymorph for amusement.”

“Aha, I see. So dragons have aesthetic standards similar to humans?”

“More like our standards of beauty are similar. As I mentioned before, though humans aren’t dogs or cats, we understand what makes them cute and pretty just like how we know what appeals to us.”

“I understand.”

While conversing with Tiamat thusly, Eugene endured the pain of evolution.

How much time passed?

Pwhoosh!

The body’s evolution ended. Crimson mana erupted from Eugene like steam.

“…Huff.”

Eugene exhaled and rose, looking around.

“…Ah.”

He saw a new world.

Would someone born blind suddenly regaining sight feel like this? Or if an entirely new sense appeared overnight?

Though the great Joint Space remained unchanged, Eugene was receiving far more information than before.

It was as if “he” existed everywhere, perceiving information even from spaces where he wasn’t physically present.

An overwhelming collection of information that a mere human could never handle. Not just understanding, but even categorizing it would be impossible – a storm of information.

In that instant, he saw the world in seven primary colors, touched sounds, felt colors, and smelled sights.

Simultaneously, he saw ripples spreading through space with his movements and briefly touched the flow of time.

And…

“These energies…”

Mana, aura, divine power, magic…

He could see, touch, hear, and smell the Four Great Powers.

Feeling the energies surrounding him, he realized he could easily process this overwhelming storm of information.

Recalling Tiamat’s words when she transmitted the magic circle for becoming a dragon and he sat stunned for half an hour, unable to comprehend it…

Had he temporarily forgotten the limits of mortal information processing? It made sense now.

Living in such a world while the brain effortlessly processed all this information. Eugene now understood everything she transmitted and felt confident in handling it all.

Having such abilities made him think back to how he carelessly tried to cram all that information into his mind at once back then, thinking he could instantly grasp and process it all.

If he’d had these abilities back then, he probably would have done just that. Now, work that took nearly a month might be accomplished in seconds.

“…Amazing.”

He realized he had transcended from an ant to something truly great. He could comprehend things beyond human understanding and viewed the world with senses unlike before.

At the same time, he felt immense power coursing through his body. Not the scattered magic power of the previous Eugene, but Tiamat’s mighty dragon power filled him.

Casually bending down, he picked up a rock created from the earlier collapse.

Before consuming the dragon’s heart, this rock would have crumbled to dust upon touching. But now, he could pick it up intact.

At first glance, it might seem like he’d grown weaker… but that wasn’t the case.

Kraak! Crumble…

When Eugene exerted just a little force, the rock shattered immediately.

Rather, he had grown stronger than before. He could now control his strength.

He could exert normal human strength or possess the power to move mountains, wielding both naturally.

He had perfect control over his body.

Placing his hand on his chest, he found not a flesh-made heart but a gem-like heart resting there.

The dragon’s core.

It continuously generated tremendous magic power, circulating mana throughout his body.

Drawing up the magic power, he extended his hand.

The magic power resembling that from his heart swirled around his palm. Swinging his hand…

BOOM!

Crimson magic power exploded, blasting away part of the wall. Staring at it for a moment, he clenched and unclenched his fist.

‘This feeling is like a drug.’

It gave a sensation akin to becoming a god. Similar to when he first moved Tiamat’s magic power.

This tremendous magic power now belonged to him. Thinking that made him feel intoxicated by the power.

‘Should I clear my head a bit?’

But Eugene calmed himself. Getting drunk on such sensations wouldn’t do any good.

He mustn’t forget – his roots were those of an infinitely weak human. Forgetting that would reduce him to nothing more than a beast intoxicated by power.

He wasn’t special.

He was a being burdened with烦恼and suffering, living in the world just like everyone else.

Regaining peace of mind, he smiled and turned toward Tiamat.

Tiamat also smiled as she gazed at him and spoke.

“How does it feel? Being a dragon.”

“Haha, it feels like I could get drunk on this power. I never cared about greatness before, but this is how it feels to become something mighty, huh.”

“You seem to have control over yourself despite that.”

“…Haha, caught me.”

At that, Eugene sheepishly scratched his head.

Tiamat looked at him as if regarding a proud son, knowing all his thoughts.

Though he felt the intoxicating sensation of power, he quickly regained control and found himself again. He showed no intention of becoming arrogant and acknowledged his own inadequacies and weaknesses.

In fact, Tiamat had been somewhat worried. A common problem with young dragons – hatchlings – is that they become arrogant tyrants, drunk on their own power.

To children, they are the center of the world. How much more so for those destined to become mighty beings who actually possess great power?

They quickly become drunk on power, grow arrogant, and inevitably make irreversible mistakes by wielding their strength like tyrants.

But Eugene was different. Despite technically being a hatchling, perhaps due to spending most of his life as a human, he quickly returned to himself.

‘Or maybe this is just who Eugene is.’

Mortals are weak, so they tend to become arrogant more easily when gaining power. This might only be possible because Eugene is someone without greed who knows how to control himself.

Anyway, with one worry gone, she felt relieved.

Eugene was the first mortal to come here, but he was also the figure she had long desired.

Perhaps… this was fate.

No, it certainly was. The fact that the first mortal to come here was Eugene, and that he formed a contract with her, was truly guided by destiny.

Tiamat smiled gently as she looked at Eugene.

A slightly changed appearance compared to before becoming a dragon.

Originally already flawless, blemishes disappeared and his skin became clearer. His facial features took on an even more ideal human form.

Compared to before, his appearance had noticeably improved.

His hair color deepened to an ink-like hue, and his blue eyes turned completely red like Tiamat’s.

Blood-red eyes met Tiamat’s gaze. Eugene asked.

“Hmm, did I change a bit?”

“You’ve become cuter. Your eye color… I liked it when it was blue, but I like that it’s the same red as mine now.”

“Is that so?”

Eugene had already noticed the extent of his changes through his newly transformed senses, but was simply curious about Tiamat’s opinion.

Checking his changes for a moment, Tiamat spoke.

“Well then, let’s prepare to leave soon.”