Gara and Marcus continued talking. Their earlier laughter (Gara's laughter) had mellowed into something more thoughtful, more grounded—like the kind of conversation that lingered in the heart long after it ended.
Eventually, the topic shifted.
"So," Gara said, resting his hands behind his head as he leaned back against a rock, "wanna talk about dreams?"
Marcus blinked, tilting his massive head. "Dreams…?"
"I'll go first since I brought it up." Gara grinned. "My dream's simple: I wanna become the strongest in the entire Story World."
The silence that followed was dense.
The dragon's tail curled slightly, claws tapping the stone. "That's… bold," Marcus finally said, voice unsure, almost cautious. "You do realize the strongest Players are… well, monsters. Beasts. Living myths."
Gara's smile didn't fade. If anything, it grew sharper, more real.
"You're talking about people like the [Gold Emperor], the [Dragon King], and the [Grey Rose], right?" Marcus said, tilting his head. "Players like them… they're so far above the rest. Stories so vast they bend Fragments around them."
Gara's fingers tightened a little behind his head, but his eyes burned bright.
"I know."
Behind the digital curtain of the Fragment, beyond the narrative veil, Readers leaned closer to their screens. The Story System registered a spike in attention. This kind of moment—a bottom-tier Player daring to dream of reaching the top—was rare. Especially in recent centuries, when most at the F Rank played it safe, took Borrowed Stories, and avoided risks. But Gara? His story—[Root of All Things]—was an Original.
A dangerous kind of dream in a world like this.
And now, his words were echoing across a thousand minds.
'I know,' he repeated in his thoughts. 'That's what makes it worth chasing.'
Gara leaned forward now, arms resting over his knees, eyes shimmering with a daring sort of fire—the kind not born from arrogance, but from absurd conviction.
"Nah," he said with a casual wave of his hand. "Even those guys aren't where I'm aiming."
Marcus blinked, confused. "What do you mean? You're not aiming for people like the [Grey Rose] or the [Dragon King]?"
"They're strong, sure," Gara admitted. "But not that strong. I want bigger. Way, way bigger."
Marcus tilted his head, brow furrowing. "Gara… those are Z Rankers. You know what that means, right?"
He began counting off on his claws. "F to A Rank is the normal path. S to SSS after that. Then the X Rank. Then Z—top of the chain. And not just any Z Rankers, but top ten Z Rankers. You're talking about the strongest of the 100 Z Rankers in the whole Story World."
Gara only grinned.
"So what are you talking about? Stronger than them?"
Gara leaned back again and looked up at the blue sky. "Yeah. I'm talking about the ones above the known strongest. I wanna reach people like the [Kid Who Never Grew Up]... and the [First One Out]."
The temperature in the air seemed to shift. Even Marcus blinked in silence for a long few seconds.
"…Who?"
On the other side of the Fragment, Readers paused.
The Story System detected a burst of confusion. Comments flooded the side panel of the Blue Trade Replay Stream.
"Who's the [Kid Who Never Grew Up]?"
"Wait, is the [First One Out] a real title?"
"Never heard of these guys."
"Is Gara making stuff up?"
Even the Reciter, lounging in the dark space above the Fragment, narrowed his eyes.
[...Huh. I don't know those names either. I'll have to dig through the Records of the Blue Trade Organization later.]
But in the Fragment, Marcus stared hard at Gara.
"…How do you know about those two?" he asked slowly. "Almost no one does. I thought I was one of the very few who even heard of them."
Gara's smile didn't fade. If anything, it grew quiet. Confident.
Gara spoke up with a strange mix of pride and nostalgia, his tone firm. "I met them. Both of them. The [Kid Who Never Grew Up]... and the [First One Out]."
Marcus blinked, his enormous draconic eyes narrowing slightly. "You met them? Personally?"
"Yeah." Gara nodded. "Back when I was still stuck inside my home Fragment. They just… showed up one day and ended up saving me. It was a blur, honestly—but I never forgot them. They told me about the Story World, about Readers, Fragments, all of it. And after that, I knew I had to get out and find them again."
The dragon tilted his head, flickers of firelight reflecting off his scales. "But… no one knows them. At least that was my experience when asking around."
"That's the thing," Gara said, voice lower now, his grin fading into a more serious expression. "No matter how much I searched—dug through the Blue Trade Records, asked other Story Guides, even paid shady info brokers—no one had even heard their names. Like they were myths."
Marcus's tail twitched. "No one?"
"Well… one guy did," Gara muttered, rolling his eyes. "And of course it had to be him."
"Who?"
"Dante," Gara groaned. "The same jerk who wants to charge me a White Core for a ticket to the Final Express. He's my employer, actually—runs the Story Guides Workshop which I'm part of. An A Ranker. Carries the story [Hiro Hunter]."
"Ah," Marcus said, nodding slowly. "Sounds… unpleasant."
"Unpleasant is putting it way too lightly." Gara sighed, rubbing the back of his head. "But he did confirm they existed. Said he ran into the [First One Out] once, long ago. Refused to tell me more, of course, unless I 'proved my worth' or paid up. Typical Dante."
The Readers watching from the other side leaned in, the view count ticking upward again. The mystery of these two forgotten legends, spoken like a memory or myth, had caught their attention—and this time, they weren't just reading for the laughs.
They were starting to believe.
Gara continued, his tone shifting into something steadier—like he was saying this not just to Marcus, but to everyone who might be listening.
"Anyway," he said, "that's what I want to do. To become the strongest. Just like the forgotten legend—the [First One Out]."
His voice echoed gently in the clearing, and for a second, even the flickering embers around Marcus stilled. The dragon tilted his head, letting that name linger in the air.
"But…" Gara went on, a spark lighting behind his blue eyes, "what might actually interest those listening in—" his gaze casually flicked upward, almost as if looking through the Fragment's ceiling, right at the invisible audience "—is how I plan to get there."
From beyond the veil, the Readers felt a strange jolt in their chests. A few straightened up. Others leaned forward, more focused now. He was right—they were interested.
"I want to learn everything," Gara said. "Because my story is [Root of All Things]."
Marcus blinked slowly, visibly processing this. His molten eyes narrowed slightly, trying to gauge the weight of that statement.
He opened his mouth, then closed it. Then, after another pause, he raised his claw slightly and attempted a wide-eyed, slack-jawed expression of awe.
Gara snorted with laughter. "You don't have to fake it, Marcus. If you're still not sure which emotion fits, that's okay."
Marcus frowned a little, but nodded. "I am surprised, though," he said. "That's a huge goal. And… is that why you're learning so many styles? Like opposites—ice from [Ice Ninja], and fire from me?"
Gara gave a simple, proud nod.
Marcus didn't even hesitate. "That's bad," he said bluntly, cutting through the atmosphere like a sword through mist. "If you try to learn everything, you'll just make it impossible to reach the peak."
Gara didn't look offended. In fact, he nodded thoughtfully, as if he already knew this was coming. "You mean because of Restrictions, right?"
Marcus nodded.
In the Story World, Restrictions are a vital part of what makes a Story powerful. They narrow a Player's focus, allowing the Story to become hyper-efficient in a particular domain. For example, a Story that restricts itself to fire abilities only might become overwhelmingly powerful in that one element, far beyond someone who spreads themselves thin.
Some Restrictions are even more brutal—like limiting the number of escaping death. The escape is through creating avatars they can take over if their main body dies or through similar methods.
Almost every Story Owner has a way to escape death at least once, not a real escape of course, but some decide otherwise, one such Player who stands among the strongest Z Rankers is known for having no methods to escape death through sneaky abilities, his story name is [Beast King].
And the escape only works in the Story World, or the Real Fragment Worlds, not when playing through a Storyline like Gara is doing at the moment. There is no escape when playing a Storyline, the abilities to escape are restricted by the Fragment Systems, unless the Reciter allows them, of course.
But not many Reciters do, since it would kill most stakes a Story holds.
The strongest Story Owners in the world have all mastered their Restrictions. They've shaped their narratives into weapons—lean, precise, and filled with intent. Without Restrictions, a Story becomes too open, too chaotic… and that's dangerous. Because learning everything takes more time than a single lifetime allows.
In other words, chasing every path at once is a dream so vast, it borders on the impossible.
Marcus looked at Gara seriously. "Even the strongest out there, The [Gold Emperor], the [Dragon King]—they all have Restrictions. It's what lets them climb that high."
Gara stayed quiet for a moment, the firelight reflecting in his eyes.
Then, slowly, he smiled.
Gara grinned. "That's why I love this dream. It's big, impossible, reckless—everything a dream should be." His voice carried a quiet pride now, not just in the dream itself, but in how it shaped the very foundation of who he was. "And that's also why my story's strong… even for an F Ranker. Even among Original Stories, it stands out."
He stepped back and extended one arm theatrically as if presenting himself to the Readers. "I call it… the [Root of All Things]."
High above them, in the dark space where golden hues shimmered like distant memories, the Reciter let out a rare, surprised chuckle. [What a lunatic,] he thought with amusement.
But he didn't sound annoyed anymore. If anything, he sounded impressed. This kid wasn't just wandering through the Fragment like all the others—he had ambitions that reached beyond the ceiling of the known world. It wasn't often a Reciter got interested, truly interested, in a Player.
And the Readers? Their excitement spiked. Comments flew through the Blue Trade Records as people shared the quote, replayed the moment, discussed the implications. Few Players at the bottom dared to dream this big anymore. Fewer still had Original Stories. But one who did both—and called his story [Root of All Things]? That was a Player to watch.
Marcus, for his part, didn't say much at first. He tilted his massive dragon head slightly, considering everything he'd just heard. Finally, he nodded once. "It's a crazy dream," he said. "But I hope you make it. I'll teach you every Fire Technique I know when the time comes."
Gara looked up with a smile. "Appreciate it. Really."
Then he leaned forward, expression curious. "But what about you, Marcus? What's your dream?"
Marcus shifted slightly, lowering his massive head in thought, the firelight reflecting off his gleaming crimson scales. When he finally spoke, it was in that deep, ancient-sounding voice that echoed with the weight of ages.
"My dream," he said slowly, "is to become… the best Reciter in the entire Story World."
The words hung in the air like a thunderclap.
Gara froze mid-breath, wide-eyed. "Wait... what?"
Even the Readers went dead silent across the Blue Trade Records. Reactions ranged from shocked silence to flooding comment threads.
And high above, in the dark space filled with golden hues and floating windows of data, the current Reciter of the [Ice Ninja] Fragment stood up from the space itself, slack-jawed.
[Did he just say what I think he said?]
It wasn't the ambition that stunned everyone—it was who said it. Not that Marcus wanted to become a Reciter. Not even that he wanted to be the best, which was already an enormous, nearly unreachable goal.
No. The shock came from the fact that Marcus was a Dragon.
In the Story World, Dragons were infamous for their emotional detachment. Their logic was flawless, their power immense—but their emotional range? Stunted. Cold. Nearly mechanical. Sure, the more powerful the dragon, the more emotion they technically developed… but even then, they were still the species known to be the least emotionally connected of all.
And what did it take to become a Reciter, let alone a good one?
Emotion.
To tell a story that could capture hearts and ignite dreams, a Reciter had to feel. Their words had to carry joy, pain, fear, love, desperation, madness, hope—layers of human and inhuman truth that made stories live. Dragons, by their very nature, lacked that.
And yet here Marcus was, staring into the fire with quiet certainty.
A Dragon… who wanted to become not just a Reciter.
But the best one in the Story World.
The silence that followed was so dense, even the mountain wind dared not blow.
A few seconds passed in stunned silence—then Gara suddenly threw his head back and burst into laughter.
"You're a madman, Marcus!" he wheezed between laughs, clutching his stomach. "A dragon who wants to be the best Reciter?! That's insane—I love it!"
Marcus tilted his massive head, confused at first. "Is… that a compliment?"
"Of course it is!" Gara grinned. "That's why I've found it so easy talking to you this whole time. You're as nuts as I am! And now that you've told me your dream, I like you even more."
Marcus blinked slowly, processing the words. Then he nodded solemnly. "That's good. Friends are supposed to like each other."
Gara gave him a playful thumbs up. "Exactly."
The fire between them crackled gently as the two stared at each other, a mutual understanding solidifying in silence.
"Our dreams," Gara said eventually, "they're both absolutely crazy, huh?"
Marcus nodded. "Objectively, yes."
Gara grinned wider. "I want to become the strongest Player in the entire Story World. Stronger than [Grey Rose], stronger than the [Dragon King], stronger than anyone—even without Restrictions on my story, the [Root of All Things]. Everyone says it's impossible, that I'll never catch up to those focused legends because I'm spreading myself too thin."
Marcus nodded slowly. "And I, a Dragon, want to become a Reciter… the best Reciter, no less. Even above [Informant Z] and the [Traveler]."
The mere mention of those names sent ripples through the Readers. Those two were the twin stars of Reciters. Both Z Rank. Both legends in their own right. That Marcus dared to set his eyes above them…
"And yet," Gara said, voice softer now, "we're still gonna chase those dreams anyway, aren't we?"
Marcus looked into the fire for a moment, then back at his friend. "Yes. We are."
The two madmen nodded in mutual respect, their ridiculous ambitions igniting more excitement in the watching Readers than any boss fight ever could.
Gara leaned forward, eyes glinting with curiosity. "Since we're already talking about Reciters, who are your favorites? And don't say the two stars—we'll get to them, but first you gotta name others."
Marcus huffed, a plume of warm smoke rising from his nostrils. "But I want to talk about the two stars…"
Gara laughed. "You can! But only after you answer the actual question."
The dragon grumbled in a way that sounded suspiciously like a pout, then settled into thought. A few long seconds passed before he rumbled, "Fine. I suppose if we must… I'd say one of my favorites is [Informant X], student of [Informant Z]."
Gara's brows lifted in recognition. "Oh, yeah! I like him a lot too. Always talking in riddles and pretending not to care, but he's the one showing up with answers when it really matters."
Marcus nodded. "An X Rank Reciter, yet still called the 'shadow of Z.' But many say he's close to surpassing his teacher."
"Agreed on that," Gara snorted. He then laughed commenting on the fact that [Informant X] was an X Ranker while [Informant Z] was a Z Ranker. Marcus didn't understand the joke, so he just continued.
"we can't leave out the other Z Ranker who's often compared to the two stars. The one who leads the Blue Trade Organization."
Gara's grin returned. "Ahh, the [Blue Archivist]. Yeah, that guy's terrifying."
"The man who knows everything," Marcus said, voice low.
"About the Story World. About the Reader World. Some even whisper he knows things beyond either."
Gara whistled. "Crazy to think that guy even bothers with us low-level nobodies. I once saw a rumor that he rewrote a Fragment just by speaking its original form out loud."
Marcus blinked. "...I read that one too. Though I assumed it was fake."
Gara smirked. "With that guy? Who knows."
Above them, some of the watching Readers were now frantically checking the Blue Trade Records to find these figures Marcus had casually dropped into conversation. A few even debated if the [Blue Archivist] was secretly a Reader who never went home.
The fire crackled again, and the conversation, full of awe and quiet ambition, continued.
A few more names came up as their conversation drifted through the vast landscape of Reciters—[The Needle Voice], who wove entire Fragments through lullabies and haunting melodies, or [Director Hollow], whose meta Fragments broke the fourth wall so often they had a door installed in it. But eventually, Gara circled back around with a gleam in his eyes.
"So, be honest now," he said, pointing a thumb toward Marcus. "Are those two your favorites? The stars, I mean."
Marcus didn't hesitate. "Of course. Very few have a favorite who isn't one of them. They're the best for a reason."
He shifted slightly, the firelight dancing off the glint of his scales as he continued in his slow, ancient cadence. "There's [Informant Z], Reciter of the only currently active Z Ranked Fragment in the entire Story World—[Roses Universe]. That's the Fragment owned by the [Gold Emperor]."
Gara gave a slow whistle. "Hard to forget. That Fragment's basically a living legend."
"And then," Marcus said, his voice dropping slightly, "there's the [Traveler]. The only Reciter who runs two major projects at once. First, the Final Express, still running nonstop across Fragments. And now this new one…" His voice lowered further, almost conspiratorial. "He calls it the Dark Castle Series. Only whispers so far. No official Record entries. But the rumors are... interesting."
"Interesting is one word for it," Gara chuckled. "It's insane what those two have done. You'd think they'd hit a ceiling, but somehow they keep rewriting what 'impossible' even means."
He paused, tilting his head. "So who do you like more?"
Marcus didn't even blink. "I like [Informant Z], of course."
The Dragon continued, "But if we're being fair… the [Traveler] doesn't actually Recite much. He's more of an explorer now. Wandering the Sea of Fragments, diving into the unregistered ones—places even the Story System hasn't fully mapped. He adds them to the official lists in the Golden Space when he's done, sometimes even auctions them out to newer Reciters for cheap." He tilted his head. "Honestly feels like he doesn't care much for the Fragments once he's explored every inch of them."
"Makes sense," Gara said, arms behind his head. "But I love the [Traveler]." His voice was full of admiration, no hesitation in it. "Sure, he doesn't recite a lot, but the few stories he does Recite? Always masterpieces. Every single one."
He leaned forward, firelight catching the spark in his eyes. "And the fact he explores the actual depths of the Sea of Fragments? That's just… man, that's marvelous."
He threw one hand up in the air, practically shouting, "And don't forget—he made the FREAKING FINAL EXPRESS! A train! That takes Players from one Fragment to another! I mean—c'mon! That's just too good of a fact! Who even does that!?"
Even Marcus found himself chuckling softly at Gara's overflowing enthusiasm.
Gara paused mid-gesture, eyes narrowing with playful curiosity. "Wait—was that a chuckle just now?" He leaned in with a grin. "Hold on, did you just feel something, Marcus?"
Marcus blinked. "I… may have."
Gara immediately threw both fists into the air, voice booming with exaggerated pride. "Congratulations! First recorded emotion from a dragon! Someone mark the date!"
"I'm not sure what to do with this," Marcus said, claws tapping nervously against the stone. "But… it wasn't unpleasant. I… liked it, I think."
Up in the Reciter's dark space, the man in the lab coat leaned forward ever so slightly, interest sharpening. [Emotion... from a dragon? Curious. But he did say he didn't have friends before. Could that connection be the cause?]
He glanced at Gara through the screen. [Friendship as a catalyst… hm. I'll keep observing.]
Meanwhile, the Readers were exploding.
One group was openly weeping in joy, furiously typing into their Records logs:
[Reader @PetalBloom]: "A DRAGON FELT SOMETHING!!!!"
[Reader @MidnightDagger]: "I KNEW MARCUS WOULD BE THE FIRST TO BREAK. GARA YOU BEAUTIFUL DORK."
[Reader @ReciteSnob]: "This is too cliché. Dragons feeling emotions? Ugh. Where's the slow burn!?"
Another group was irate:
[Reader @PuristPath]: "NOOO! He was supposed to feel something AFTER a major arc climax not NOW!"
[Reader @ExitStageLeft]: "I'm out. This ruins the pacing."
And still more poured in, their interest piqued by the sudden narrative shift:
[Reader @CuriousSoul]: "Heard a dragon giggled. Subscribing."
[Reader @FragmentDivePro]: "Wait, this is live? Why didn't someone tell me sooner!?"
As the fragment buzzed with activity, Gara just smirked to himself and gave Marcus another thumbs up. "See? Told ya talking to me was a good idea."
The conversation between Gara and Marcus drifted on with warm, lingering ease. They traded a few more words, some light teasing, and even a clumsy attempt from Marcus to replicate a high-five—which ended in Gara nearly being knocked off his feet by a claw the size of his entire body.
Eventually, though, the sun in the sky above began to shift—slowly descending in that strange, stylized way only Fragments ever rendered time, a gentle reminder that things were moving forward.
Gara sighed, then stretched. "Welp, time for me to head out."
Marcus tilted his head. "But… the story hasn't ended. You haven't defeated the Calamity Dragon yet."
"Yeah," Gara said, grinning. "And I'm not about to punch my new friend in the face just to progress a story. No offense."
"None taken. I would incinerate you in less than a second."
"That too."
He dusted off his blue kimono and looked out across the snowy mountain range surrounding them.
Gara decided to put on a show for the Readers, might as well earn some more Cores before he left the Fragment, right? So he started explaining ways to leave Fragments, not all Readers were familiar with the Story World after all.
"There are three ways to leave a Fragment," Gara began. "One, you finish it. That's not happening—Marcus is still standing. Two, you die. Also not happening—Marcus has already crisped me three times in past runs."
A few of the Readers laughed. Others, especially new arrivals, leaned in closer, curious.
"And three…" Gara turned his face to the sky, cupping his hands around his mouth. "You ask the Reciter!"
He shouted up to the blue sky above. "HEY, RECITER! YEAH YOU! LET ME OUT, WILL YA?!"
The sky did not react at first. A faint silence swept the mountains. Then—
[…Tch. Fine.]
The air shimmered.
A blue ring of light appeared beneath Gara's feet, spinning with glowing glyphs in the shape of frozen leaves and curling mist. The snow around him swirled upward as the exit sequence began to activate.
"Meet you at the Town of No Return in two months, right? Remember to teach me those Fire Techniques!" Gara smiled.
Marcus tried to smile back in return, but his smile was more scary than warm, "Sure, let's meet up then and take the Final Express together."
Gara gave Marcus a last glance and a lopsided grin. "Guess I'll see you around, future greatest Reciter in the world."
Marcus blinked. "And I'll see you, future strongest with no Restrictions."
The light consumed him.
And just like that—Gara vanished from the [Ice Ninja] Fragment.
High above, in the floating void where the Reciter watched, his cracked glasses reflected fading snowflakes. He muttered under his breath:
[Fourth run completed. And he still refuses to finish it.]
Some of the Readers were cheering. Others were sighing in relief. A few were already updating theory threads in the Records.
And Marcus?
He stood silently in the snow, one claw resting lightly against his chest.
That warmth—whatever it was—hadn't left just yet.
With that, the Storyline of the [Ice Ninja] Fragment came to a close.
...
The air shimmered, and space bent slightly as the Reciter of [Ice Ninja] appeared above Mount Ranzai, floating effortlessly in the golden-tinged dark void. His white lab coat fluttered, stained with old ink and burns, and the light from his cracked glasses gleamed faintly. Below him, nestled on the mountain's scorched peak, coiled the massive red dragon—Marcus—his eyes glowing faintly with a warm ember instead of a raging blaze.
No Readers were watching this time. No commentary, no clapping or screaming or betting. Just Reciter and Player.
[Are you really going to leave in a month?] The Reciter asked, his tone light but carrying a quiet weight.
The dragon's head turned slowly, his voice still ancient, still noble. "Yes. I will use the month after I leave to train and reach D Rank so that I may board the Final Express with my new friend, Gara."
The Reciter's floating slowed slightly, as if that statement nudged his thoughts into sluggish orbit.
[You know... I really liked you as the final boss,] he admitted, shoulders dropping just slightly. [You were cool. Dramatic. You had the whole 'immovable mountain of fire' thing going. Readers loved it. Some even said you were hot. Literally and figuratively.]
"I do not understand the figurative part," Marcus rumbled, but there was a gentle humor in it. "But if you truly miss me, you can create an Echo."
The Reciter raised a hand then dropped it like a puppet's limp arm.
[I don't have the Echo System. Are you kidding? That costs like… four Black Cores and my dignity.] He scratched his messy white hair. [I'm lucky I even get updates on this Fragment at all. I'm one of the weakest Reciters out here.]
Marcus tilted his head. "Yet you are still a Reciter."
[By some miracle. Or technical error.] He floated closer, stopping above the dragon's nose. [Anyway. If you're really going… guess I'll have to start rewriting the end of this Fragment.]
"I apologize," Marcus said with a slight nod of his massive head. "I did not expect to find… companionship in the middle of a duty-bound loop."
The Reciter blinked.
[You're the final boss saying that, right?]
"Yes."
[We are officially in a weird genre now.]
The Reciter let out a long, theatrical sigh that echoed through the golden interface now floating before him—a glowing menu that listed the names of incoming Players. He idly scrolled, mumbling complaints about having to manually approve entries because the Fragment's auto-filtering system was "held together by duct tape and dreams."
Then he paused.
[Huh...?] His brow lifted beneath his white bangs.
There it was, a new request. A Player far above the Fragment's usual crowd.
[Blue Dragon] — E Rank
[An E Ranker?] The Reciter blinked rapidly. [Why would an E Ranker drop down here? This isn't a nostalgia trip Fragment. It's barely hanging onto F Rank.]
He looked at Marcus.
Then swiped the Player's profile open. [His Story Name is [Blue Dragon]... oh. Hah. Not a dragon. Just someone who killed one.]
Marcus stirred, his head lifting slightly.
"A dragon slayer... here?"
[Relax. You're not going to get flashbacks or anything, are you?] The Reciter muttered, then looked back at the screen. [Anyway, technically he's way too strong for this place, but since the system will auto-cap him to F Rank while inside, he can't stomp everything. You included.]
"I see," Marcus rumbled. "Would you like me to serve as his final challenge?"
The Reciter tilted his head, blinked once, and then gave a tired grin.
[Oh, so now you're volunteering to stay a little longer? What happened to 'one month and I'm gone'...] He let out a snort. [But yes. Let's give this [Blue Dragon] a bit of a wake-up call.]
He reached out, tapped the golden menu—and just like that, the [Blue Dragon] was permitted entry.
[Welcome to [Ice Ninja], buddy. You came looking to clear it quickly?] The Reciter chuckled darkly. [Hope you brought heat-resistant armor.]
—End of Chapter.
-------
[PRIVATE SYSTEM CHANNEL: POST-STORY REVIEW – TEXT LOG]Participants: Gara [Root of All Things], Reciter of [Ice Ninja] Fragment.
[Gara]: Yo!
[Reciter]: [You AGAIN.]
[Gara]: 4th run clear... or, y'know, clear adjacent.
[Reciter]: [You didn't finish the story. Again. You didn't even try to fight the dragon this time.]
[Gara]: Bro he's my friend now, we shared dreams, trauma, and tea.
[Reciter]: [He's the Calamity Dragon.]
[Gara]: He's Marcus, get it right, you floating storylamp.
[Reciter]: [I'm an A Rank Reciter, Not a "floating storylamp"!]
[Gara]: Same diff, anyway did you SEE that emotional growth?? I made him chuckle. That's progress.
[Reciter]: [One micro-chuckle does not constitute a completed arc.]
[Gara]: Tell that to the Readers crying in the comments, one even named their pet rock Marcus.
[Reciter]: [I saw. And I'm haunted.]
[Gara]: Also ngl, kinda proud of the speech about dreams, I was cooking 🔥
[Reciter]: [You delivered a TED Talk to a dragon, and then asked me to open the sky portal like a microwave door.]
[Gara]: ✨Cinema✨
[Reciter]: [You're impossible.]
[Gara]: And yet u keep letting me back in, run 5 when?
[Reciter]: […after I emotionally recover.]
[Gara]: So tmrw?
[Reciter]: […yes.]