This mental patient—temporarily dubbed "Golden Finger"—laughed for quite a while.
Even Ophis, who generally had no sense of time, felt she'd been laughing far too long.
Still, she didn't interrupt.
It seemed that their earlier exchange had merely been an excuse—this fit of manic laughter felt more like an emotional release.
Looks like this so-called cheat has a complicated backstory.
But Ophis didn't pry. Or rather, she didn't want to.
By nature, she found it tedious to care about things that didn't concern her—or that seemed unnecessarily complicated.
Even if they did concern her, she probably wouldn't care much anyway.
Rather than involve herself in such messy matters, she preferred to sit quietly and contemplate existence—human, no, draconic existence.
Compared to a dragon, she was probably better suited to being a salted fish.
But no matter how good Golden Finger-oneesan was at laughing, she couldn't possibly keep at it forever.
Eventually, just as Ophis began to feel genuinely irritated by the endless noise, the laughter stopped.
[Though I don't have any particularly amazing powers, I'm still somewhat useful, you know.]
"How useful?"
Her interest was minimal, but she still devoted part of her attention to the voice.
[I pride myself on being able to help you grow stronger without wasting time on detours… Basically, I've got the experience and knowledge that would take you countless ages to build up on your own~~]
"Hm…?"
This time, Ophis actually reacted.
She had never been especially driven to pursue power. Her original plan was simply to drift through eternity here in the Dimensional Gap—quiet, idle, unbothered.
But after learning what the future might hold, things had changed.
Sometimes, trouble came for you whether you sought it or not.
[Ah… in terms you'd understand, think of me as something like an Old Grandpa—no, wait, Old Grandma—no, that still sounds wrong… well, let's say your personal goddess? Hm? Why does that sound even more wrong?]
Aqua, damn it.
[Ahhh~~ whatever. Anyway! The great me will guide you down the correct path!]
In her mind, Ophis now pictured the "Golden Finger" as a blue-haired girl.
Honestly speaking, if this was all she was, Ophis felt rather relieved.
Pureblood dragons each possessed their own distinct power systems and training methods, passed down through inheritance. She was certain that no matter what this "Golden Finger" girl said, the most she could do was point out a direction—never truly interfere.
Even if her advice turned out wrong, it would simply mean a longer detour. Ophis had eternity to spare.
If the other party somehow achieved some hidden goal through such roundabout means, Ophis would simply admit defeat.
At that point, either the other was too clever—or she herself was too stupid.
Besides, she couldn't bring herself to feel real hostility toward this Golden Finger—and even if she could, she had no means of dealing with her anyway.
More importantly, she needed power to face Great Red.
Even without knowing her odds, she wouldn't flee.
Though she was naturally inclined toward laziness, she still carried the stubborn, unreasonable pride of a dragon.
Victory or defeat—that could be decided after the fight.
"Then, do you have any suggestions?"
After some thought, Ophis asked directly.
While she had accepted the other's existence, she remained skeptical.
Dragon training differed from one individual to another, but ultimately, it was a matter of energy flow and direction. At its core, there were no secret arts or ultimate manuals—just time.
If you wanted power, you spent time accumulating it.
And for dragons, that often meant sleeping.
They'd close their eyes, open them again—and suddenly stand among the strongest in the world.
It sounded effortless, but in truth…
The training speed of this so-called "strongest species" was actually much slower than that of humans.
Granted, their starting point was already beyond what most humans could achieve in a lifetime.
Most dragons simply needed time. Ophis was no exception—
Though her circumstances were somewhat unique.
[Suggestions, huh…]
Golden Finger-oneesan seemed to think for a moment.
[First, as Ouroboros, you already know what your greatest talent is, don't you?]
"Hmm…"
...
───The Ouroboros itself carried many meanings.
Creation and destruction, birth and end, life and death, regeneration and eternity, infinity and perfection.
Every Ouroboros contained all these concepts, though the weight and prominence of each varied from one to another. Even concepts that appeared similar manifested in different ways.
As for Ophis—
"I am… Infinity."
As the Infinite Dragon God, Infinity was naturally her greatest strength.
For other Ouroboros dragons, their cycles or immortality might allow them to instantly replenish lost energy or resurrect immediately after death. But Ophis was different.
She was infinite. As long as her infinity wasn't severed, her power would never deplete and death would never reach her.
But as a trade-off, abilities related to destruction, rebirth, and other instincts innate to normal Ouroboros dragons were things she had to consciously learn.
And these weren't short-term goals either.
Ophis, as an Ouroboros, stood apart from other dragons.
Her energy was "Infinite," meaning she didn't need to waste time accumulating it like others. However, it also meant she had to spend far longer mastering its control.
Right now, she was like a child sitting atop countless nuclear power plants without the faintest idea how to harness them.
Like other dragons, she required time—but rather than training, her true challenge lay in control.
She couldn't simply rely on sleep to build power. She had to stay awake, actively practicing how to handle the flow within her.
If she truly had infinite energy inside her, perfect mastery would be impossible even after tens of thousands of years. But Ophis wasn't built that way.
Normally, she carried no energy internally at all. Instead, she embodied the concept of Infinity, an inexhaustible source she could draw from directly as needed.
When energy was limitless, the questions became: how much could she draw at once? How much could she actually use effectively? And how precisely could she control the output?
Even just controlling the amount extracted was already a difficult first step.
Drawing too little or too much would ripple into every subsequent manipulation.
Although Infinity removed obvious weaknesses like downtime between depletion and replenishment, the extraction step itself was slightly inefficient and needed constant practice to refine.
In a brief span, Ophis mapped out a rough plan for her abilities.
If this Golden Finger-oneesan's "advice" went no further than the basics, then this trash cheat could be ignored entirely, Ophis thought silently.
[As expected, it's Infinity, huh… Ah well, energy control training is your own business, so I'll skip that part.]
She's skipping it… just like that?
[So, this infinite energy—how exactly will you use it?]
"How… to use?"
Ophis blinked her huge eyes.
Probably asking about combat style?
Wasn't that simple?
Nothing in the world couldn't be solved by a magic cannon.
If one wasn't enough, fire ten million more.
If still insufficient, multiply that by another ten million.
Minimal mental strain, tremendous destructive power, dazzling in its simplicity—countless beings dreamed of it.
Naturally, Ophis told Golden Finger-oneesan her thoughts.
[Ha… I kinda expected it, but wow, you're really that straightforward, huh…]
"…Problem?"
[It suits you, but it's terribly lacking in adaptability. What if your allies are mixed in with the enemy? Are you gonna blast them too? What if the enemy has energy immunity?]
Ophis tilted her head, thought for a few seconds, then rolled slightly.
"I'll gather magical power into my fists, and punch."
"…"
Golden Finger-oneesan went silent.
[Listen carefully: You're Infinite! Infinity doesn't mean just being a perpetual energy machine!]
"Then what?"
[You're an existence with 'Infinity,' which means you must pursue infinity. But you're just one being—your infinity must ultimately return to 'one.' Get it?]
"…Don't get it."
[…]
"Forget 'one'… Even with infinite power, I'm still only one individual. How can I simultaneously pursue infinity?"
[Well… 'Infinite' is metaphorical. True infinity is impossible—if you could achieve it, it wouldn't be called infinity at all… You'll have to figure that part out yourself…]
"…So you mean there's no upper limit to growth?"
[If you take it that way, fine. Anyway, how infinite you become is up to you. With your abilities, maybe even true infinity isn't impossible. Quantity isn't the point—what matters is making that final 'one' powerful enough.]
"…"
Ophis fell silent for a long moment, then finally asked:
"Your name?"
[What?]
"Still don't know… your name."
[Ahaha… True…]
Golden Finger-oneesan paused.
[I've had many names before. Some lost meaning, others I discarded… But if you need something to call me—]
[Just call me 'Inori'—as in 'prayer'~~]