Scene shifts to thirty minutes later.
The sky had begun to lighten as dawn approached, a faint glow coloring the horizon beyond the volcano's peak. The adult dragons stirred, their massive bodies rising with heavy, thunderous footsteps. Even the roaring of the lava was drowned beneath their movement.
Kazuki, hidden behind a jagged boulder, watched intently as the two enormous dragons stretched their wings and took to the sky, leaving the nest to hunt for their morning meal.
As their massive silhouettes disappeared into the clouds, Kazuki sighed in relief.
"This is it," he whispered to himself.
Without wasting a moment, Kazuki stepped into the open, where the two baby dragons remained. The young dragons, roughly the size of a human, turned their wide, curious eyes toward him. Instead of aggression, they approached playfully, one nudging his shoulder while the other tugged at his cloak.
Kazuki chuckled softly, patting one of them on the head.
I need to gain their trust first… or they might call their parents back if they sense danger.
The dragons playfully circled around him, letting out soft, high-pitched growls that resembled purring more than a threat. In no time, Kazuki found himself playing with them, letting them chase him and even letting one hop onto his back.
After a few moments, one of the baby dragons lowered itself, offering Kazuki a ride. Surprised but seizing the opportunity, he climbed on. The small dragon flapped its wings weakly and glided down to the lower ground of the cavern where the battlefield's corpses still lay scattered.
Once they landed, Kazuki gave the dragon a gentle pat on the head.
"Thanks, buddy."
The baby dragon gave a soft growl of approval before running off with its sibling to a shallow pool of lava to play.
Kazuki immediately sat down cross-legged amidst the scattered bodies. He closed his eyes, taking deep, steady breaths. Elsa's voice echoed in his mind.
"You sure about this? That's a lot of unclaimed soul force. Absorbing it all might be dangerous if you lose focus."
Kazuki smirked. "I'll manage."
He began to meditate, drawing the lingering spiritual force from the fallen soldiers around him. It was dense here — untouched, pure, and heavy with the weight of so many fallen warriors. His muscles tensed as the spiritual energy coursed through him.
An hour passed.
Kazuki's body began to glow faintly as the spiritual force soaked into his veins, muscles, and bones. He felt his physical strength multiply. His breathing steadied, his pulse calmed, and his skin toughened as the refining process advanced.
A sudden surge of power burst through him, and Kazuki's eyes snapped open.
[Body Refining Tier 3 — Achieved]
He exhaled sharply, a victorious grin on his face.
"That's it."
As the warmth of his enhanced body settled, another memory surfaced — a lesson from his academy days.
Scene shifts — Flashback.
The classroom was quiet as the teacher spoke, pointing to a diagram of the human body with various energy points marked.
"When you meditate to advance your body refining tier, you're not sending the spiritual force into your soul. Instead, you absorb the spiritual force from the environment into your muscles, veins, blood, lungs, and other organs. This strengthens the body itself, making it more resilient and powerful."
"Be warned — the spiritual force already within your soul cannot be redirected back into your body. If you attempt it, the imbalance of energy could cause your body to burst from within. That's why warriors gather the lingering spiritual force of the fallen in battle. After death, the soul force leaves the body, but it lingers for a time in the environment before dispersing completely. Absorbing it is safer and far more efficient for body refining."
Scene shifts — Present.
Kazuki nodded to himself, the teacher's words still fresh in his mind.
"Now I'm starting to see how this war can be my path to strength. I'll need every advantage if I'm going to change fate itself."
He looked toward the horizon. The dragons would return soon. It was time to leave.