I should have been proud.
Every battle I had fought had ended with me on top, and this one was no different. And yet, it was. I was weaker now. That meant I was more susceptible to death than I had ever been, even as a youngling. But I had come out relatively unscathed—and my enemies lay dead at my feet.
So why wasn’t I happy with the outcome?
It was a strange feeling, not feeling pride at what I had done. I couldn’t tell if the sympathy that I felt for the dead around me was my own or… someone else’s. I turned once more to the statue of my father and the unrecognizable face that stared back at me in my reflection below it.
I was me, yes, that much was true. But I was also someone different. The System still recognized me as the [Empress of Dragons], and yet…
I pushed the thoughts away. Now was not the time for introspection. Now, I needed to act. If The System said I needed to build a Hoard, then I should start. Even a meager beginning was a beginning.
As if in answer to my mullings, another golden window appeared beneath the first.
+3 Attribute Points.
New Skill: Swift Strike - The user's movements become quicker and more controlled. Directable. Capable of delivering a killing blow.
Skill Increased: Dodge +1
I felt the knowledge as it slipped into my mind, like rain water soaking into parched, dry earth. My human body had learned something from this senseless dance of violence, and it had become more efficient at inflicting pain upon my enemies.
The smell of blood was heavy in the air, metallic and coppery. It clung to my nostrils like a presence that didn’t want to be ignored. But without my dragon’s nose, I found the smell… underwhelming. Perhaps there was one good thing about being human.
The windows faded from view, as I leaned down and wiped the dagger across the thug leader’s pants, cleaning blood from its thin blade. Then I tucked it into the belt that wrapped around my waist. Based on the name of the loot that The System had mentioned, I assumed it was Tybor’s Needle. I made a mental note to inspect it closer, when I was somewhere safer.
The traveling clothes I’d come back in weren’t much to look at, and I’d need to get a proper outfit, one befitting my station, before long. But, for now, the dagger tucked into my belt would hopefully help ward off anyone else who might be tempted by my weak facade.
All that was left to do now was loot the fallen. It was a beggar’s move, I knew, but I didn’t have much choice, did I? A dagger would only get me so far, and each of the dead or dying men in the garden could have something useful. But it still felt wrong to go through their pockets—to take from men that I had once sworn to protect.
The wound on my arm flared with pain as I idly stretched it, sending a flash of anger through my gut. I had sworn to protect them, yes. But they had also tried to kill me. By all rights, anything they had to offer was mine, wasn’t it?
Plus, the System had mentioned loot specifically. If I was going to understand all of its machinations, then I would need to understand how it worked. I let out a hollow sigh and stooped to the first body.
The first man had a small leather pouch at his belt that contained seven tarnished Copper coins and two dull Silver coins. Not much, but it was something.
The second had nothing of value, except a crude iron ring that looked like it had been stolen from someone else. I pocketed it anyway—I was a dragon, after all—and perhaps I could sell it off for a few extra coins.
The third man yielded another pouch with five Coppers and two Gold coins. One of the Gold coins alone would be enough to buy a decent meal and a night’s lodging somewhere in the city.
I found a small carving knife on the fourth man. It wasn’t much good as a weapon, but it could prove useful for other purposes. I tucked it into my belt next to the needle-dagger.
The leader had the real prizes, though. His belt pouch contained fifteen Gold coins and several Silver. More interestingly, though, he wore a ring on his right hand that pulsed with a faint light similar to that of a magelight.
When I palmed the ring, a new window appeared in the corner of my vision. I focused on it.
Ring of Minor Strength: +2 to Physical Power when worn.
Now, that could prove useful. The ring had to be a magical item. I slipped it onto my thumb, as his finger had been much larger than mine, and felt an immediate difference. My human form suddenly felt stronger, more capable. It wasn’t a massive increase, but something was better than nothing. Especially right now.
In total, my ‘loot’ from the encounter with the thugs amounted to seventeen Gold coins, sixteen Silver, twelve Copper, the small knife, and the magical ring, plus the worn ring I’d taken off the one follower.
By any standard I had known in my previous life, this hoard was a mere pittance. I had corners of rooms with more treasure than this back in the palace. But, since it seemed I wouldn’t be able to get close to any of that, based on my encounter at the gate tonight, I’d have to settle for this haul.
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My disappointment didn’t stop a new window from appearing. The words written on it made me reconsider the value of my findings.
New Quest: Humble Beginnings. Quest Objective: Obtain 15 Gold.
15 Gold… I had 17, which meant I had already completed this quest. My heart unexpectedly jumped in excitement as the window updated immediately, the words transitioning.
Quest Complete: Humble Beginnings. Reward: 100 XP. Current Level: 2 / Experience to next level: 100/750XP
Another one hundred experience points earned. But still more to go if I wanted to reach the next Level.
I was starting to get a grasp on how The System’s economy worked. Each Level seemed to require a certain amount of points, and then the amount of points needed, as well as the pool I had available, would reset with each Level. It didn't appear like I earned experience from simply defeating enemies, as I hadn't received any new windows or anything during the fight.
That meant I would need to find and complete quests to gain experience. Doing so would let me Level up to unlock ‘new’ abilities, I surmised. It was far simpler than I’d first imagined, even if some of the requirements were less than ideal.
I walked to the fountain and washed the blood from my hands and arm. The water ran red for a moment before the current carried it away, into the city’s aqueduct. When I was clean of the blood, I looked back at the bodies scattered around the garden and felt… a sense of completion; despite the emptiness, the scene also weighed on me.
I had only just begun this second life, but at least I was already making progress.
More importantly, this progress represented a new understanding of what I would need to become, if I wanted to overcome the [Hero] in eight years. In my previous life, I had been a protector. A benevolent ruler who led through wisdom and strength.
He had painted me as a tyrant, but even if that were the case, I had been a noble sort of tyrant. Someone who ruled because she knew better than her subjects what was best for them.
Tonight was different. Tonight I had killed not to protect others, but to simply protect myself. I had stolen from the dead not because I had to—though it was fitting for a dragon—but mostly because the System seemed to reward such behavior. Did that mean I was becoming a monster as the [Hero] had insinuated?
Monster.
I let the word roll through my mind for a moment, mulling it around. It didn’t sting as much as I thought it would, thinking of myself in that way. Perhaps that should have worried me, but it didn’t—not even a little.
If being a monster was what it took to save my people from the coming crusade, then I would gladly become the greatest monster that the cosmos had ever known. It might have been a lofty goal, if I was anybody else.
I checked my Level once more. Just 650 more experience points to reach Level three. Then there would only be thirty-two Levels after that to unlock my dragon form.
It still seemed like an impossible distance, especially since I had no idea how to trigger new quests. Though, I would have been stupid to discount that every journey began with a single step. And tonight had been a massive leap forward, I assured myself.
The path ahead was still dark, but I could at least see the outline now. It was a path I would follow until it brought me face to face with Marcus Ashworth once more.
He had called me a tyrant.
I would become that and it seemed that the System would reward me for it. The irony of it all was bitter, but as clear as sand blown into glass with dragon’s breath.
To defeat the [Hero], I would need to prove him right.
I walked away from the garden, leaving the bodies of the thugs behind. Not all of them were dead and someone would find them soon. The leader’s screams had assured that. It was a wonder that the city guards hadn't come running sooner.
One thing was certain, though. In the morning, there would be questions and investigations. I didn’t plan to leave the city yet as there was still work I could do here. That meant I needed to make sure I wasn’t connected to this. My eyes scanned the lit windows of the buildings I passed, looking for any signs that someone might be watching.
Luckily the Seven were on my side, and no curtains seemed disturbed, as if the people inside had somehow missed the searing screams of the thug. It was a blessing, even if only a small one compared to the night's struggles.
I turned my steps toward the other side of the city, the Eastern Quarter. It was a far cry from the streets that surrounded the palace. A place where an inn that I had once been particularly fond of still resided.
It was a small, and mostly forgotten place. I had once known the owner, a woman who had wanted to offer a place for weary travelers, that wouldn’t leave them penniless. Given how meager my earnings had been tonight, that would be the perfect place to lay low for a little while, and maybe even find another quest worth completing.
I still needed to learn how The System handed out quests. What was worth The System’s rewards, and what wasn’t? I had the ones that The System had offered thus far. But those would take time. I needed something more immediate. Something that would help grow my hoard and my connections in this new life.
And while I was at it, I’d need to solidify who I was.
I was still the [Empress of Dragons]. No one could ever take that from me and even the System seemed happy to grant me that title. Whether or not it had any purpose, though, I was unsure. However, if I wanted to become the person capable of standing up to Marcus Ashworth and defeating him, I'd need to be someone else for a while. Perhaps someone more fitting of the subclass that the System had granted me.
Rogue. Thief. They were titles that didn't wholly make sense to me. People could be ‘rogues,’ sure. But what made it a class? What made being a ‘thief’ a class? I could only assume that it somehow tied into the Skills and Abilities that I would be capable of acquiring as I increased my Level and thus my understanding of the System as a whole.
Ariandre Grace Veiltide.
That was the name given to me at my birth. It was a beautiful name. A name I had carried with pride for thousands of years. A name that had helped herald in a time of protection for this kingdom unlike any it had ever seen.
But Ariandre Grace Veiltide was not strong enough to save her people. To do that I would need to become someone different. I would need to carry a new name with the same pride. Aria Grace.
It was similar to my old name, and yet different on its own. An evolution of who I was. Of who I would become.
A golden window appeared in my vision as I walked.
User information updated. Aria Grace, Empress of Dragons.
I dismissed it with a wave of my hand. Above me, the fifth moon peeked its head out of the clouds, shining brightly, as if the heavens themselves were smiling upon the path that I now tread.
I smiled as I walked through the dark streets of my city. I might not be myself, but it was still mine, and I would die before I let it fall before Marcus Ashworth once again. For the first time since my awakening, it felt like the smile of a dragon.
Six years until he arrived. I would be ready. I had to be.