Chapter 20 World domination

Words : 1086 Updated : Sep 10th, 2025

Back in their room, Kelvin collapsed into his chair with a laugh. "I still can't believe we actually did that." Noah sat on his bed, surprisingly calm. 'Amazing what a void storage system can do for your nerves.' "You're taking this well," Kelvin noted, eyeing him suspiciously. "Usually you'd be pacing around, worried about getting caught." "Maybe nearly dying changed my perspective on what's worth worrying about," Noah shrugged. "Speaking of weird changes..." Kelvin leaned forward. "What was that back there? One second you're next to me, then you're somehow across the room. Since when are you that fast?" "Adrenaline, probably." Noah forced a laugh. "Being unconscious for a week probably messed with your perception of my abilities." "Right..." Kelvin didn't look convinced, but he dropped it. "Well, whatever it was, it was impressive. Terrifying, but impressive." Noah stood up, making a show of sniffing his shirt. "All that sneaking around got me sweating. I need another shower." "Another one? You just—" "Better safe than sorry!" Noah called back, already heading to the bathroom. The moment the door closed, he turned on the water and then whispered, "Domain." A dark wave swept through him, and suddenly he was standing in his domain's ethereal landscape. Nyx bounded over immediately, chirping hungrily. [Void Storage Contents: - 3x Level 2 Frost Wolf Cores@@@@ Select Action: 1. Convert to Feed 2. Store for later use] 'Should probably save some,' Noah thought. 'But first...' He selected two cores for feeding, keeping one in storage. No sense emptying his supplies completely. [Converting Cores to Dragon Feed...] [Notice: Higher-grade beast cores can accelerate dragon growth] [Current Probability of Evolution: 27%] [Evolution chance increases with core quality and quantity] 'Wait, evolution?' Noah watched as Nyx devoured the converted energy, its scales gleaming slightly brighter. [New Quest Available!] [Title: Evolution's First Step] [Objective: Successfully evolve Nyx to its next form] [Reward: Unknown] [Note: Evolution success rate varies based on core quality and feeding frequency] Noah knelt beside Nyx, watching it feast. 'So you can grow stronger... but we need better cores.' The tiny dragon looked up at him, letting out a satisfied chirp. Despite its current size, Noah could sense the potential within it. The raw power waiting to be unleashed. 'A Red Death Dragon...' he thought. 'I wonder what you'll become.' As he finally took his actual bath, his mind wandered to the evening ahead. Lila and ice cream. Not a date, definitely not a date. Just two people who happened to survive a near-death experience together, getting dessert. 'She's probably just being nice,' he reasoned, trying to ignore the flutter in his stomach. 'We almost died together. That's bound to create some kind of bond, right?' As he toweled off, his mind wandered to more uncomfortable thoughts about Lila. 'Funny how things change,' he mused with a hint of bitterness. 'One near-death experience and suddenly we're getting ice cream.' He remembered when she first joined their team. Everyone had been excited – Lila, one of the top students in their class by entrance scores, choosing to work with them. But Noah had seen through it. 'Classic strategy,' he thought, wiping fog from the mirror. 'Join the underdogs, stand out more. Easier to shine when you're surrounded by people barely scraping by.' The memory of the cave made him pause, towel mid-motion. Lila had been next to useless when the Stonewall Behemoth showed up as far as he was comcerned. All that talent, all that reputation, and in the face of real danger... 'Some help you were then,' he thought, then immediately felt guilty. 'And now here I am, getting dressed up to hang out with you. The irony.' He stared at his reflection, at the area near his chest where the beast had nearly ended him. 'Maybe I'm being too harsh. Fear does things to people. Makes them...' [Time Check: Evening Approaching] [Nyx Status: Resting] The system notification interrupted his thoughts, and he almost laughed. Here he was, worrying about Lila's motives while hiding a legendary dragon in a pocket dimension. 'Talk about trust issues,' he thought wryly. 'Though at least Nyx's motives are simple. Food, sleep, and possibly world domination.' Still, he couldn't quite shake the nagging feeling about Lila. Self-righteous or not, his instincts had kept him alive so far. 'Well,' he thought, reaching for his towel, 'at least ice cream is a low-stakes way to figure someone out.' Unless, of course, she turned out to be as complicated as everything else in his life had become. By the time he stepped out of the bathroom, Kelvin was waiting with a knowing grin. "Took you long enough," his friend smirked. "Got a hot date to prepare for?" "It's not a date," Noah said automatically, reaching for his usual t-shirt. Kelvin intercepted his hand. "Oh no you don't. Not that old thing." He walked to his own closet, rummaging through it. "Here – wear this." He tossed Noah a dark blue button-down shirt that probably cost more than Noah's entire wardrobe. "I'm getting ice cream, not going to a gala," Noah protested. "Ice cream with Lila," Kelvin corrected. "The girl who, may I remind you, hasn't shown interest in anyone since joining the academy. Until now." 'Because we almost died together,' Noah wanted to say, but kept quiet. "Look," Kelvin continued, now digging through his pants collection. "You survived a Level 3 beast, pulled off a vault heist, and somehow developed ninja-level reflexes. But Lila? She might be your biggest challenge yet." Noah caught the dark jeans Kelvin threw at him. "You're enjoying this way too much." "Someone has to," Kelvin grinned. "Because you're too busy overthinking everything. Just like always." 'If you only knew what I was really overthinking,' Noah thought, thinking of the sleeping dragon in his domain. "Fine," he sighed, taking the clothes. "But if I look ridiculous—" "You'll thank me later," Kelvin cut him off. "Now hurry up. Can't keep your not-date waiting." As Noah changed, he caught his reflection in the mirror. The clothes did look good, he had to admit. But his mind kept drifting back to Nyx, to the vault, to everything that had changed in the past week. 'One thing at a time,' he told himself. 'First, survive ice cream with Lila. Then figure out how to evolve a legendary dragon. Simple enough, right?' Right.

Chapter 20 World domination

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