On The Other Side: I Quit Being Human

“Were you pretending to not know anything about what it means to be an Incarnation?” Azhdaha asks calmly after recovering from his shock.

“Is it not something that everyone knows about?” I ask curiously.

“Great Reset is not just a name, you know? Only those who survived it know what happened in the Ancient Gods Era. I am sure, except for us Dragons, only the Demon Kings know what happened in the Ancient Gods Era. You are a young Demon and not from this world, so it is baffling that you are quite well-versed in history.”

Brushing aside the sincere praise, I ask, “Does being an Incarnation mean inheriting the Origin of the Great Demons?”

“That is correct in a way…but there is more to it.”

“Can you…I guess not, huh?”

“You can ask your Demon King, you know?”

Ilschevar once told me to never focus on things that are unnecessary to the current me. He hides some truth, but he never lies to me. He has hundreds of ways to manipulate me, but he never does. He genuinely wants to make me his successor. From that, I can safely say there is a reason why he doesn’t tell me anything about this.𝗈𝐯𝔩xt.𝗇𝓔t

The look on his face when I told him my Origin was Pride said it all. He was elated and frightened at the same time. His Kingdom got another powerhouse, but the said powerhouse may or may not end up like the fallen powerhouse—Millonia. He doesn’t want to burden me with that knowledge, so he doesn’t tell me about it.

He has learned from his mistake. He has seen what the knowledge of one’s dangerousness does to oneself: it creates a vessel of guilt who can’t even look him in the eye.

Ilschevar is the strongest Demon King, but for the soft side he fails to hide, he is also the weakest.

“So, how is it? Do you like the feeling of having my blood run in your body?” Azhdaha smirks. “You can call me father—”

“I feel like a vampire. I am not cold but I can tell my insides are freezing,” I cut the idiot.

“What!? How dare you compare my blood to that of that lowly subspecies? Mine is unquestionably superior. Can’t you tell!?”

“Don’t get your panties in a twist, sissy. I am just telling you that my body is colder than usual. I am full of energy, though, so I also feel like I am no fire. It’s a very contradicting feeling—weird but not unpleasant.”

“Ku-Ku-Ku. You will get used to it. That is what it means to be a Dragon!”

Seeing Azhdaha’s prideful smirk, I ask what I have been wondering about. “Does this make me a Demonic Dragon?”

The blue-haired bastard blinks his eyes before shaking his head. “No, that is not true. You are a Dragon, but you can’t turn into a Dragon. That is not your True Form after all. You are what we call a Draconic Demon. A Demon who possesses the trait of a Dragon.”

“So, to make a Demonic Dragon, all I have to do is inject my blood into a Dragon?”

“It is not that simple, but I guess you can do that too.” Azhdaha shrugs. “Why are you asking me this? I am not a Demon—ask your Demon King!”

Ignoring the blue-haired bastard, I think about the things that I got from this cave. Instead of Relics from the Ancient Gods Era, I got the bone marrow of Azhdaha who was also known as the Serpent of The Frozen Sea. In other words, I got an unlimited supply of Azhdaha’s blood. Other than that, I got to know Millonia’s past and a glimpse of what happened in the Ancient Gods Era.

I am more than satisfied with today’s extraction. I am fine with going back now since I have reaped a lot. Of course, I won’t just go back. There is still something that I haven’t extracted yet. Something in the pond is calling me. It is not a honey trap—I am sure. I will regret it if I just leave it be.

“Well, you don’t have to hold back,” Azhdaha says, interrupting my thought.

He gestures at the pond and smiles encouragingly. He must know something like this will happen. I am not one to beat around the bush, so I immediately walk to the pond. I have to stop in my tracks, though, since Luxia holds my wrist. I turn to her in curiosity and she just looks at me silently.

Her eyes get her point across: she wants me to be careful. I smile reassuringly before patting her head, which causes her to scowl slightly. The headpat doesn’t do that to her. I believe she scowls because she thinks I am being overconfident. I don’t blame her. I am aware of how overconfident I have become these days.

Turning around, I resume my walk to the pond. I am tempted to immediately jump into it, but I hold myself back. I dip the tip of my shoe into the pond and watch as the water freezes it. Coating it with Mana, I find removing the ice not as easy as I thought. Before I can turn around, Azhdaha opens his mouth.

“Don’t resist it! It is your power. You have to accept it. Your power will never kill you—trust me.”

I remain standing silently for a few seconds before nodding my head. I wasn’t contemplating whether to bet or not—I was looking for the slightest amount of deceit in Azhdaha’s tone, which I couldn’t find.

Stepping into the pond, I ignore the coldness that climbs me from my feet. Per Azhdaha’s instruction, I don’t resist the foreign power in the water; so, I don’t wrap my body with Mana. I feel cold. Fortunately, my body is sturdy enough to not shudder at the coldness. Before long, my whole body is submerged in the pond.

Then, I fall.

My eyes are open, so I can see the dark abyss waiting for me. I thought it was just a pond. I didn’t expect to see the Mariana Trench here. As cold overwhelms my body, my body shudders for the first time, breaking some layer of ice covering me.

The oxygen in my lungs condenses and I am forced to heat my lungs with Mana to prevent the oxygen from turning into liquid. I can’t let it be, lest I would drown. Fortunately, it doesn’t interfere with the foreign power entering my body. Seconds passed, which felt like an eternity, and then I see a light.

It is the only source of light in the abyss—it is impossible to ignore it. A weird desire to grasp it wells in my chest. This is the moment when the ice covering my body thickens at an absurd rate. My vision is getting blurry because of the ice covering my eyes. It is hard to raise my hand because it is freezing.

The desire to reach out to the light gets more intense. The coldness doesn’t cool my mind—I am pissed.

“Don’t accept it.”

Then, I hear a familiar voice that I haven’t heard for quite a long time.

“Conquer it! That is what you are born for.”

Something in me explodes at the remark. Is it my Mana? I can’t tell, but the cold disappears in an instant. I can move freely again and my vision is clearer than crystals. Clutching my hand, I find myself holding something. Curious, I open my palm and have a look. It is the light in the abyss that was unreachable before.

Drowsiness assails me out of the blue. I can’t fight the urge to close my eyes, so I let them be. My drowsiness leaves me just as fast as it came. I open my eyes wide and instinctively look at my hand. I am clutching something shining. Its light escapes through the gap between my fingers.

When I open my hand, I am greeted by a lump of Celestine. At least, it looks like one. From the Mana pressure it is exuding, though, I doubt it is one. As I mull over what it might be, I notice the water filling the pond has disappeared. I am too entranced by the shining crystal that I fail to register I am already standing at the bottom of the pond.

Lowering my hand and letting it hang on my side, I look up. I can see everyone’s look of bewilderment. By everyone, I mean Millonia and Luxia. Azhdaha is nowhere to be seen. Lowering my head, I return my gaze to the shining crystal. I can immediately tell me holding it is the reason why Azhdaha disappeared.

“I see. This crystal is not a Celestine. It is a Soul Essence.”

Soul Essence is something the soul that belongs to someone absurdly strong leaves behind after the owner’s death. It contains the Intent of the said person and, sometimes, also the special ability that only the said person has.

It is a highly-priced treasure. People don’t care about the quality of Soul Essences. Once they find one, they won’t trade it with anyone. After all, those who can produce one after their death are by no means a nobody when they are alive. With that said, the Soul Essence that belongs to a Dragon is something that everyone will fight over.

I can tell the Soul Essence will only give me Azhdaha’s Intent. Therefore, I don’t plan to absorb it. I can intimidate Dragons with my Intent—why should I bother to use a Dragon Intent? Of course, I am not going to throw it away.

“Rexorem, don’t disappoint me.”

Putting the Soul Essence above the Mana Stone attached in the middle of Rexorem’s guard, I let it devour the Soul Essence.