The world remained silent.

Logan felt as though he had been submerged into an ocean, his consciousness drowning gradually as time passed.

Just as he was about to grasp Evelyn’s hand, she mouthed a few words.

"Live on for me... Logan..."

Her words barely carried through, but Logan could trace their shape from the slow movement of her lips.

"Evelyn?"

He called out, but her figure bled at the edges and slipped away.

"EVELYN!!!"

The shout tore raw from Logan’s throat. With a gasp he was jolted awake, the wind cutting sharp against his face.

The first thing his eyes found was sky.

"Is this... the afterlife?" Logan muttered, though recalling the afterlife from his previous life, he understood that this wasn’t it.

"Whe—"

"You shouldn’t be moving in your condition." A light, feminine voice drifted over...

Logan struggled to turn, his body protesting with every movement, until his eyes finally locked onto her.

She was pure sin wrapped in danger.

A woman with sleek, raven-black hair that fell in loose, glossy waves down her back, framing a face that could make grown men forget how to breathe.

Her lips were full and painted a deep, provocative crimson, currently wrapped around a bright red lollipop. She slowly, deliberately dragged her tongue along the candy in a lazy, sensual circle before pulling it back into her mouth with a soft, wet pop, never breaking eye contact.

She had the kind of body that demanded attention: dangerous curves poured into tight black leather pants that hugged her hips and long legs like a second skin, accentuating every sway and shift of her plump thighs.

A fitted black top clung to her full breasts and toned waist, the material stretching just enough to hint at the strength and softness beneath. Dark sunglasses hid her eyes, but somehow made her presence even more intimidating, like she was staring straight into your soul while you couldn’t even see hers.

She casually lounged against the head of the dragon as if it were nothing more than a throne, one leg bent with effortless confidence, radiating that intoxicating mix of raw sex appeal and unshakeable badass energy.

There was something almost predatory in the way she held herself, completely relaxed yet coiled like a panther ready to strike. The lollipop rolled slowly across her tongue again as the corner of her lips curved into a dangerously playful smirk.

She looked like trouble.

The kind of trouble that made a man want to get on his knees and beg for it.

"Who... are you?" Logan managed to mutter through a forced groan as he sat up.

He glanced around, his bearings slow to return.

A dragon...

It had scales like molten gold, gleaming faintly beneath the night skies, its warmth a strange, perfect match for the woman above.

Glancing at her, a suspicion had already taken root in Logan’s chest about who this was.

"Shouldn’t you thank me for saving your life first?"

Daenerys changed the topic, her smile never receding.

Logan’s expression shifted as he recalled what had happened.

He... was supposed to be dead after burning all of his lifespan, supposed to reunite with Evelyn... but he was here... back to this cursed world.

"You shouldn’t have saved me," Logan replied.

Curiosity sparked in Daenerys’s eyes.

"Is it because of her? Evelyn?" She removed the lollipop from her mouth and leaned closer.

In an instant, she was barely a few inches from Logan, her breath warm against his skin.

"You kept calling her name while you were unconscious..." Her eyes, hidden behind the glasses, dragged slowly across Logan’s body, intrigue flickering in their depths.

Logan said nothing.

Noticing that she must have touched a sore spot, Daenerys smiled and leaned back.

Casually, she rested once more.

"You have just three months to live..."

"Okay..." Logan replied smoothly, not paying her words any heed.

"You seem as though you’ve accepted death?"

Logan remained silent.

Daenerys’s curiosity deepened.

"You can call me Daenerys Stormborn... an instructor at the Origin Academy. It’s my duty to ensure every student doesn’t go astray..." she replied smoothly, and leaned back, sticking the lollipop back into her mouth, her tongue dragging lazily across its surface.

"Daenerys..." A wry smile appeared on Logan’s lips as he heard the name.

As though acknowledging his dread, Astra’s voice entered his mind with a soft chime.

[You have received a new main mission.]

[Mission details: Congratulations on encountering the mother of a second heroine, please conquer her...]

[Rewards will be distributed after initiating intimate encounter.]

[Accept/Reject?]

He had just lost Evelyn... the first heroine’s mother, and now fate just had to bring another straight towards him.

’Fate... oh, fate... are you fucking toying with me?’ Logan felt the urge to curse aloud, his anger flaring instantly.

Just as she had said, Daenerys was a single mother of Rosaline, a heroine of the original novel. Her husband had long since died inside a dungeon, and she had dedicated her time to raising her students, ensuring her daughter didn’t carry the weight of his absence.

She belonged to the Summoning origin path and had succeeded in summoning an SS-rank creature, the dragon they were currently riding...

However, that wasn’t what made Logan shiver at the thought of her...

’Let’s just say... Daenerys could go to drastic lengths to ensure that Logan didn’t go astray...’

As long as he had fallen into her grasp, there was no escape.

Logan didn’t know whether to laugh or cry at his predicament.

Despite the allure of an SSS-rank Summoning, his feelings towards Evelyn still ran deep.

’I decline the mission,’ Logan replied to Astra internally.

The System wasn’t too surprised by Logan’s reply, having already expected this.

[Please note that the mission will still be available for whenever you wish to accept it.]

With those final words, Astra faded into the background.

Logan clicked his tongue...

There was no way he was accepting that mission.

The silence between the two stretched, bleeding into hours, when Logan finally spoke.

"Where are we going?" he couldn’t read the directions through the clouds, so he was curious.

Daenerys lingered for a few seconds before replying evenly, "We need to get you enrolled at the academy."

A wry smile once more appeared at the corner of Logan’s lips. His eyes twitched.

"I’m not interested in attending the academy. I have three months to live anyway, might as well have as much fun as I want," he replied casually.

Daenerys was silent for a while, perhaps stunned by his words.

"It’ll be beneficial to you," she finally replied, "and who knows? If you rank in the top ten in the first year’s tournament, you might be able to receive another life extension treasure from the principal."

"I’d rather not extend my life..."

"Have you heard of the Forbidden Resurrection Technique?"

"What?"

"You lost her, right? Evelyn... Shouldn’t you be thinking of resurrecting her?"

Logan froze, her words echoing inside his mind like a clap of thunder.

He had lost Evelyn, yes, he had been sad about it...

However... he had never once thought of resurrecting her...

Wasn’t he living proof that one could be resurrected from the dead?

He had died in his previous life... and he was here, alive and breathing.

Logan’s breathing quickened.

His gaze fixed on Daenerys... her lazy smile, as though she had already calculated all possibilities.

He knew of something that could resurrect one from the dead.

In fact, the protagonist had used it later on, bringing one of the heroines back from death.

’Why didn’t I think of this...’ Logan felt like slapping himself, the grim realization settling in like cold iron.

And so, Logan did something he didn’t think he was ever going to do.

’Evelyn... I promise... this is to bring you back...’

He knew that in order to retrieve the object that could resurrect one from the dead, he needed every scrap of strength he could gather.

One SSS-rank origin ability wouldn’t be enough.

He needed something more... he needed another equally terrifying SSS-rank ability.

And one was right in front of him.

With a bitter heart, Logan finally called out.

’System... I... accept the mission.’

[Congratulations, master... I wish you success...]

Astra’s voice echoed like a whisper of doom.

The two remained frozen in that moment, the dragon flapping its devastatingly terrifying wings as it cut effortlessly through the air.

Daenerys with the lazy, laid-back expression plastered across her face.

And Logan, with resolve shining in his eyes.