Part five to chapter 7. Hope you enjoy.
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"I really did it..." The words left his lips subconsciously, now put on edge as he stared at the monster he called upon. It wasn't very large or intimidating on its own, but it was alive.
He'd created life.
The beast's small wings spanned outwards as it took notice of him, cooing gently. The monster was a baby dragon orange in color. Its blue eyes were surprisingly animated, and it had two bright metallic horns on its head and the top of its wings. It also had spiny points down its back and tail.
The card's name was aptly named Baby Dragon.
With a curious tilt of its head, the baby dragon approached Issei on all four legs, making him naturally step back in anxiety. Even if it stood up on its hind legs, it would only get a little over four foot tall in height. The length of the creature measured out about the same size as well, though its wingspan lengthened it. For a dragon, the summon wasn't particularly intimidating at all.
Of course, Issei was frightened like a fish.
"Relax. Can't you tell it's already bonded to you?"
"I-it is?" A forced grin played on his face as he kept his nerves under control. He'd mentally prepped himself for this, but dragons were still dragons, and this thing was similarly sized to a fully grown tiger. Sure, he might've had the power to elbow a tiger into its grave, but it wasn't like he'd actually done such a thing. He wasn't well equipped with his powers enough to stay comfortable in a scenario like this.
"It is, so quit being a baby. I could sense a Familiar Contract immediately form and chain itself to you the moment the whelp awakened. Observe it if you don't believe me."
Issei followed Ddraig's advice.
Observe.
Name: Baby Dragon
Nickname: None
Race: Dragon
Gender: Male
Level: 19 - Soul-Linked to Issei Hyoudou
Unevolved
Relationship: Perfect
"Perfect... Phew, guess you're right." Breathing a sigh of relief, Issei watched the tiny dragon as it came into proximity and lightly begin sniffing him. He couldn't help chuckling at its dog-like behavior, like it were trying to familiarize itself to it's owner. It was actually pretty cute- just like on the card - he had no idea why he was even scared of it in the first place.
Ddraig was less concerned about its Relationship Status and more about the other piece of information revealed. "Unevolved? So this dragon can change overtime?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah. Seems like it," Issei answered, petting his new 'dog' on its head as it hummed appreciatively, looking as if it were happily smiling from the feeling. "I've played some games that would have you evolve monsters after leveling them up a bunch. They would change into stronger, and usually cooler looking creatures. Maybe it's something like that?"
"Don't be ridiculous. What does some random video game you've played have anything to do with... actually, you might be right about that." Given the context surrounding the boy's power, such a thing no longer sounded so absurd.
"That's about a good a guess I got, anyway. What about you?"
"It could 'evolve' after a certain amount of time has passed. Such a thing would usually be contributed to aging, but we cannot rule out the possibility that its genetics work differently than creatures from our world."
"You mean because it's from a different world, it might develop differently?"
"Precisely that. Us dragons can grow and change, but the term evolve isn't one to take lightly. So long as your system wills it, this creature could become anything."
Scratching the baby dragon under the chin, Issei read over the text once more. "Soul-Linked to me... I'm guessing that means its level is bound to mine?"
"I thought the same. To be sure, this can be confirmed after you level up again."
"Right," Issei replied. It was crazy to think he'd be leveling up alongside a dragon companion now. Well, a dragon companion that wasn't trapped within a sacred gauntlet on his left arm. He wondered what all the little guy could do and what adventures they could have together. The only problem was how the hell he'd explain its existence to his devil friends if they ever saw him.
"You said something like Familiar Contract earlier. Does that mean other people can 'bind' themselves to animals or something?" He questioned Ddraig.
The gem on his gear shined bright. "They can. There are many ways for one to acquire one, but methods of doing so for each race often change around every millennium. If you are curious about revealing your own, simply make up an excuse. Claim that the young whelp was able to find you because of me. If it comes down to it, I myself will back the claim."
"You'll really help me out like that?"
"I'd prefer to avoid conversing to such pitiful creatures, but if there is no other option to resort to, then yes."
A surge of joy spread throughout Issei. The red dragon could be a real pain, but he was really liking that the guy was starting to come around. It wouldn't be long before he could indoctrinate Ddraig into the Issei Club and have him obsess over boobs with him. Then they'd be real bros.
"Kinda weird his name is Baby Dragon. I know the card said that, but that really is his name." Taking his hand off its head, the small beast let out a small whine. "Guess I should give him a nickname?"
"You don't need my permission to name your pet."
Thinking for all of three seconds, Issei's face lit up. "He's my Little D!"
"...Please, don't call it that," Ddraig said after a moment of muted disappointment.
"It's a perfect nickname! When he finally grows up, we can call him Big D!" Issei refuted proudly. As the perverted boy confidently made goofy cheers with his arms in assurance, Baby Dragon fervently followed along by moving its head in-time with his motions, blissfully unaware of what was being said and excited its master was giddy.
Before Ddraig could refute him again, a slight ring came from the menu screen as Baby Dragon's nickname was confirmed. It looked like it could still be changed, but Ddraig just couldn't work himself up to argue anymore. It wasn't worth the headache.
"And we can call you Bigger D!"
"Don't piss me off."
"E-eh, right sorry. I take that back." With a weak laugh, Issei watched as his summon frolicked around the empty clearing with the fascination of an innocent newborn. It chirped in delight as its wings fluttered lightly as if desiring to take flight, remaining grounded out of the natural instinct to remain obedient to its master. The contract chain linking them instantaneously set the development of their relationship to the max. He could never lose affection with it, even if he tried.
"It has the whimsical nature of a child, yet subconsciously holds itself back from making choices for itself due to your authority. Try giving it a command," Ddraig advised after observing it alongside him.
"Baby Dragon, err... Little D, go take off and fly around in the sky." The little creature stopped hopping around and peered its head back at him in acknowledgement, before happily flapping its wings and getting airborne. It easily whisked itself up into the sky and over the tree tops, becoming a small orange blur across the expansive blue backdrop deprived of clouds.
Issei watched it soar from the ground without worry, remembering the special barrier would keep any potential people from catching a glimpse of the creature. After about a minute of flying around in circles - including a variety of eager loop-de-loops - the young dragon flew back down next to him.
Getting hit with a small gust of wind from it's landing, Issei blinked. "It's kind of fast, isn't it?"
"It is a dragon that shares the same level as you. Having a higher base parameter than a human like you, it's natural stats in strength and speed are much higher than yours."
"That explains it. My Little D already flying around like an airplane." He stroked the creature again, getting another approving purr.
Putting his hang-ups about the stupid nickname aside, Ddraig continued, "Now call it off. Focus on your contract and imagine the door closing."
Easily following along, Issei watched Baby Dragon disappear in the same light it was summoned in. Expecting the card to reappear on the ground or in his hand, he was shocked to see that wasn't the case. He could still feel the link inside his being, but nothing outward had happened.
"Call it back."
Opening the contracted door he visualized, Issei watched as Baby Dragon reappeared in the same yellow light. "Is this supposed to happen, Ddraig?"
"It appears so. I can feel the contract between you and the whelp, and it seems to work the same way other contracts work with beasts in this world. Though it has a different form of magic within its body, and was summoned with said magic, it was still able to conform to our reality," Ddraig explained it as best as he could understand.
"Think the other cards will work similarly, or only ones with a monster?"
"Try them out. You can test them, but at any point I tell you to pull back you listen." It was a precautionary order. Using the cards like they were mid-battle was unwieldly and could disturb Issei's flow. That's why Ddraig thought in the case they don't return to card form, they should be activated now so they can be called upon at any point later.
However, they all contained that foreign magic, which he had no idea where it scaled. Baby Dragon was an exception because it was small and not overtly powerful just yet, but the others could cause unwanted problems.
Heeding Ddraig's every word, Issei carefully activated his remaining cards. Thankfully, rather than coming out as a summon like Baby Dragon, the others worked more like spells. When he used each card, the spells were not cast and instead added into his skill menu as spells he knew. The remaining card was labeled as a monster, yet it too didn't bind to him with a contract like before. He still felt it bind, but in a more artificial way.
Maybe because it was an inanimate object, unlike Baby Dragon which was alive?
Issei didn't get to mess around with it much before Ddraig told him to stow it away. The dragon also only let him cast a single one of the spells to test if it would have the same trace of mana as other spells from their world, or if it would retain its foreign kind. It remained foreign, and he immediately had Issei get rid of it.
The mana from the spell itself wasn't a big deal. Most wouldn't be able to detect a difference, and there were a variety of magics that existed, as well as lost or unknown ones. But unless they were pressed and needed to rely on it, Ddraig would rather Issei avoid showcasing such moves freely. The less others new, the better.