The next day, Kaedros washed and dressed, then went downstairs to the inn. Last night's hunt was already slipping from his mind.
"Oh, you're awake," the innkeeper said. Kaedros had forgotten the man's name, he was thin and always seemed to be doing something. At the moment, he was scrubbing a set of cups.
"Yes," Kaedros replied flatly, taking a seat near the counter. "Where are the others?"
"They're out, probably preparing for the bounty," the man answered. "You're supposed to wait here. Drakar will take you to the bounty hunters Association."
"Oh, right," Kaedros muttered. Today was the day he would receive his fake path. He wasn't excited. The failure of last night's hunt still left a bitter taste in his mouth, and a hunger in his blood.
The innkeeper gave him a hesitant look before speaking again. "Listen... you don't have to do all this, okay? The path, the Ascendant life. Just walk away from it. It's not worth it. Hunting, Ascendants live for killing monsters, raiding forbidden zones, and leveling up. That's not a real life."
Kaedros continued to stare at him in silence.
The man slapped the towel in his hand onto the counter. "Trust me, I know. I'm ordinary human, but I run an inn for Ascendants and bounty hunters. It's not all glory and gold like people think."
Kaedros sighed quietly. He didn't care about being a bounty either, but he needed the identity.
The cover. The freedom. He'd rather be stealing relics and feeding off the power he already had, but that's another problem, compared to other Dragons, he didn't even have enough power, not even comparable.
The man leaned in, hopeful. "I could give you a job here. Maybe you settle down... get a wife."
"A wife?" Kaedros blinked. The word felt strange in his mouth. Since he came to the new world he'd totally adjusted his mentality to that of a Dragon.
He now mostly thought as a Dragon.
It was what kept him alive in the Draconic city.
"Yes. You know, someone you spend your life with?" The man grinned, then whispered, "And you get free, unlimited pleasure too."
"That would be exciting, I guess." Kaedros said. '..after I've returned to Draconic City and gain power and dignity...after I've removed this curse entirely..a curse that was given by my other siblings..'
Ever since he was born, Kaedros had been ignored.
Unlike humans, Dragons gives birth in circles, a female Dragon could mate with five male and have five different children.
Apparently, Kaedros's father didn't have a strong genre and he was born a runt. That was why the Bloodline curse was passed to him.
They would have killed him if not for his Noble Dragon status—a Dragon Prince, albeit a very weak one, unworthy of the title.
He simply ignored the innkeeper after that.
He ordered food, and the innkeeper returned with a steaming plate of roasted meat and thick bread.
"Your room and food are covered," the man said.
Kaedros grunted, already busy with the food. Maybe Kaelith managed to sell the spellbooks, he thought.
The door creaked open. Kaedros didn't look up, he recognized the scent.
"Eating, I see," Drakar said as he stepped in. His gaze moved to the food.
How does he get all that into such a small frame? Drakar wondered. Watching Kaedros eat reminded him of a trained hunting beast. The boy's sharp blue eyes tracked each juicy bite like it was prey.
"You can join too," Kaedros said, but his hand gripped his plate tight as if he had no intentions of sharing. He didn't.
"I'll pass." Drakar ordered an ale instead, then took a seat across from him, sipping slowly.
He didn't have to wait long, Kaedros devoured the meal with practiced efficiency. Then he leaned back, stomach full, and washed it down with the rest of the ale.
"Let's go, if you're done," Drakar said. He noticed how Kaedros's stomach didn't even bulge after all that food.
"Go where?" Kaedros asked.
"You said you wanted a path, remember? We're going to the bounty Association," Karina replied. "They are one of the organizations that help with this kind of stuffs."
Kaedros grunted. '..no avoiding it, huh?..'
He stood up and stretched. "Alright. Lead the way."
They left the inn and stepped out into the bustling street. Ascendants and ordinary humans moved through the town, each lost in their own path. Kaedros followed Drakar through long roads and narrow alleys, the assassin's movement smooth and sharp, eyes always scanning.
"A true assassin," Kaedros murmured as he trailed behind.
The bounty hunter Association branch in Solmere wasn't as grand as the Celestial Order, but it was bigger. Made of grey stone, the building pulsed with quiet authority.
It was busy, armored Ascendants moved in and out, some dragging sacks soaked in monster blood.
Kaedros sniffed at a sack dripping green fluid.
"This is where bounty hunters sell their kills," Drakar explained. "The bounty hunters processes it and sells it to whoever needs it."
Efficient, Kaedros thought.
"This is also where we receive bounty pay," Drakar added as they followed the flow of people inside.
The entrance opened into a large hall filled with rows of tables where attendants helped bounty hunters file reports, sell goods, and accept quests.
Drakar led them through a side door and down a long corridor until they reached a smaller chamber. They waited briefly before being called in.
"You're here for the choosing," the bored attendant said. "The codex might assign you something directly or it may let you choose."
Drakar snorted. "It loves choosing for us, doesn't it?"
The man gave Drakar a blank stare before turning to Kaedros. "Step into the circle. It'll do the rest."
The choosing circle was made of green crystal, with perfectly carved glyphs glowing faintly. The floor pulsed with quiet energy.
It contained the codex.
Time to get this over with, Kaedros thought. Get the fake path, maybe wring some meatballs out of Drakar on the way back.
He stepped into the circle.
And.
The world went dark.