Dragon Game: All My Dragons Are Ranked 'SSS'

They stood quietly for a moment, gazing at nothing in particular, silence settling over them after the laughter faded.

Drahon's eyes slowly drifted toward the Tower in the distance.

Damn.

He had forgotten about it.

That was supposed to be their next step… until the stats, the banter, and the laughter had pulled them away from it.

Ayvira stared into the horizon while Devon was still grinning faintly, like he was trying to recover, because who knew, he might not laugh like that again for a long time.

Then, without cue, all three glanced at one another… and burst into another wave of restrained chuckles.

"Sorry about your parents though," Devon said, stepping forward.

"Yeah," Ayvira added. "I mean, we've all had our share of heavy pasts, but yours... Sounds rougher."

Drahon gave a half-smile and shrugged.

"Fuck them, honestly. If they could abandon me just because of my horns and never come back… then to hell with them."

He was repeating what the orphanage nurse had once told him: that he'd been left behind because of the horns on his head.

Devon grinned and gave him a light shoulder bump, one of those casual, brotherly hits.

"Screw 'em. You're better off without that kind of bloodline."

Then he walked past him, making his way toward the crumbling tower.

"Let's keep moving," Devon said. "Hopefully we slow things down from here. Find the eggs and actually rest for once."

Drahon nodded and turned to follow when Ayvira's voice stopped him.

"I know it's not really my place," she said gently, "But maybe you shouldn't judge your parents so quickly."

He and Devon turned to her, blank expressions on their faces.

"While Devon and I might've seen our parents and sort of understood why they abandoned us… you never really saw yours."

Drahon stayed quiet, just listening.

"Maybe leaving you behind wasn't about abandonment at all. Maybe it was to protect you. If they'd really wanted to throw you away, they'd have dumped you on the street, or worse."

She paused. "Maybe keeping you would've placed you in danger. Maybe… they were half-dragons too."

Drahon raised an eyebrow. "The nurse said she saw them. They were… normal humans."

"Maybe they used the Horn Shroud skill," Ayvira suggested quietly.

He didn't know how to respond to that. So, after a moment, he simply turned away, facing the tower again.

"What does it matter," he muttered. "I'll probably never see them again. The universe is vast and wild. I never even believed there was life beyond Earth. I mean, sure, I joked about Martians and sci-fi stuff, but this?" He gestured around them. "The Dragon Game. The Dragon World. Other races? Other realms? It's all real now. Anything's possible… but it doesn't mean it'll happen."

He inhaled. "There's a 99.9% chance I'll never see them again. And 0.01% chance I might. So thanks, really. But let's keep moving."

Drahon stepped ahead, trying to hide the flicker of sadness crossing his face. Ayvira followed silently behind, while Devon, still ahead, shot her a glance and muttered, "Damn, Ayvira… you just made that bleak."

"I'm fine," Drahon called back before she could say anything. He grinned and tried to shake it off. "Let's focus on finding those eggs."

"That's the spirit," Devon said. He summoned his scimitar-like sword and held it loosely in one hand.

Ayvira blinked. "Why are you summoning a weapon? We just took out every Draconic goblin in the area."

Devon grinned over his shoulder. "Gut feeling. I don't think we got them all."

Drahon shrugged. "Guess we'll find out inside."

He didn't summon a weapon, and neither did Ayvira. They left the instinct part to Devon.

______

The inside of the tower was dim and heavy with stillness.

Cracked stone walls loomed above them, their surfaces webbed with thin fractures and patches of moss. The air was dry, yet it carried a faint metallic scent, like rust and old ashes.

Tattered banners hung from rusted iron hooks, their symbols long faded and edges torn by time. The floor beneath their boots was uneven and brittle in places, with loose tiles scattered like discarded relics. Long claw marks scratched across the stone, as if something massive had dragged itself through here long ago.

In the center, a large circular emblem had been etched into the floor. Strange arcane symbols spiraled outward from it, glowing faintly, not bright enough to light the room, but just enough to draw the eye. Drahon paused there, staring at it longer than he should have.

At the far end of the chamber, a warped table leaned against the wall, surrounded by toppled chairs. The wood was dry, brittle and covered in dust.

Then suddenly, a faint echo rang through the tower.

Clink… Clank… Clink…

They all froze.

The sound came from the left hallway, something metallic dragging across stone.

Before Drahon and the players were to reason what was going on…

From the darkness, a shape emerged.

It was huge. Not just large in size, but in presence.

A Draconic Goblin, twice the size of the normal ones they'd faced outside although the Boss monster was bigger than it.

It stepped into the chamber, its back hunched and muscles rippling beneath it's blackened scales. Thick horns curled over its head, and its eyes glowed an ugly molten (the usual color for a Draconic Goblin) red.

It wore uneven metal armor, pieced together from scraps of previous kills, and in its clawed hand, it dragged a rusted war axe nearly as tall as Drahon himself. The weapon scraped against the floor, leaving deep lines behind.

It stopped just short of the glowing sigil on the floor, lifted its head, and sniffed the air.

Then, without warning...

ROAR!!!

The creature charged.

"Shit!" Drahon reached for his weapon, but it wasn't summoned. He stammered trying to summon it.

Ayvira flinched, startled.

Only Devon reacted instantly.

His scimitar-like sword was already in his hand.

With a low growl, he stepped forward, bracing himself. "Told you I had a feeling," he muttered.

The Goblin barreled forward, snarling, axe raised-

CLANG!

Devon's blade met it in the middle of the chamber.

Sparks flew as metal clashed.

Devon gritted his teeth, pushing against the monster's strength. The goblin was powerful, heavier than expected, and its strikes came with savage momentum.

But Devon wasn't just any player.

He ducked low, letting the axe graze past his shoulder, then sliced upward in a quick arc-

Slash!

His blade tore through the goblin's thigh, drawing dark red blood. The monster roared, stepping back with a snarl.

"You gonna help or…?" Devon grunted over his shoulder.

"Right!" Drahon summoned his sword with a flick of his hand. [SSS Golden Sword – Activated!]

Ayvira summoned her spear too, energy swirling gently at the tip.

But Devon didn't wait.

He dashed forward again, dancing around the Goblin's swings. The monster was brute force. Devon was finesse…

Another clash.

Another dodge.

Then a twist.

Devon leapt, spun midair, and came down hard, his scimitar slicing across the monster's shoulder.

The goblin staggered.

It howled and swung its axe wildly. Devon ducked under it again and rolled away as Drahon came in from the side, blade ready.

Ayvira had her axe and sword ready too.