Classless Awakening; My Dragon Is Legendary-Chapter 26: Strange Illusion

Tens of tree branches all sped toward Derrick at once.

Derrick’s vision instantly darkened, and his focus skyrocketed.

The first branch grazed his skin, but he managed to sever it before any damage could be done.

Derrick groaned, the whip from the branch had stung, and his skin turned red where it had been struck.

Derrick leaped into the air, he used his Air step to stay afloat while scanning the entire forest.

The feeling had grown even stronger, and now Derrick knew why.

The thing he sought, whatever had been calling out to him, wasn’t in the forest, it was in the mountains above it.

Derrick buried his sword into the mountain, using it and his hand to climb upwards.

It was a stressful and slow process, especially with the forest violently moving beneath him, trying to keep him from climbing up.

He knew that the second he fell, it was over for him. That fear gave him the motivation he needed to latch onto the mountain.

’I should’ve just stayed home!’ Derrick groaned. He hoped that whatever he would find on the mountain would be worth it.

Hours went by, and Derrick had finally clawed his way to the top.

Heavy breaths escaped Derrick’s mouth, his body had grown weak, and fatigue crept in.

He struggled to his feet. Atop the mountain was leveled ground that spanned as far as Derrick could see.

The feeling from earlier had grown stronger than ever before.

Derrick groaned, each step he took forward sent waves of pain through his entire body, and with each one, he regretted his decision.

Derrick continued to walk, his body dragging across the ground.

Derrick walked for three minutes when his body suddenly regained its lost energy.

"What just happened?" Derrick asked the system. The sudden boost in energy was strange.

[Your body’s energy has been replenished.] the system responded.

Derrick wanted to ask more questions, but he didn’t, the system would just end up confusing him even more.

Eventually, Derrick came across a cave, forcing him to raise a brow in confusion.

"A cave atop a mountain?" It was more than strange. It was unnatural.

Derrick activated his dragon eyes, trying to scan inside the cave, but it was completely hollow.

Something wasn’t right with this cave, this entire place gave him the chills.

Derrick approached the cave with caution. On getting closer, he could see the strange, pulsing dark marks engraved on it.

’System, what’s this?’ Derrick asked, but was met with momentary silence.

[I... I don’t know.]

The system had never seen this kind of runes before.

[ I am not even sure if these marks were runes, they don’t follow the natural rules at all.] 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

The system had gone through multiple scans and possibilities, yet it couldn’t come up with anything.

And worst of all, these inscriptions didn’t emit any known form of energy. Whatever was going on here was completely foreign to it.

"Also, if they weren’t runes, they wouldn’t be pulsing and glowing," Derrick noted.

’Could it perhaps be a rune powered by an energy other than magic?’ Derrick asked.

[There is a possibility, but no one has ever done anything like that.]

Derrick stared at the cave, its call was growing stronger each second.

In fact, he was using almost all of his willpower to avoid diving into the cave.

He took a deep breath, in a few hours, the sun would rise, and Royal Knight would be out looking for him.

Derrick was curious, but he wasn’t stupid. Entering into this cave could very well be the end of his life.

It could be a portal that would transport him to a den of dragons, or a pit of serpents, maybe even the bottom of the ocean.

[Don’t go in.]

The system concluded, since it couldn’t ascertain what was inside that portal, it couldn’t let Derrick go through.

"Let me look around, we may find some clues," Derrick suggested, and the system agreed.

The first thing Derrick did was to scan the ground for any energy trails that could be powering these runes.

For all he knew, a beast core could be powering these runes, or they could be as a result of someone’s talent.

There were many possibilities now that Derrick thought about it, and he was actively looking for signs of those possibilities.

[I told you, I’ve scanned the entire place, I couldn’t find traces of any energy.]

The system complained, it felt like Derrick didn’t trust it.

"What if we’re going about this the wrong way?" Derrick asked. It finally clicked in his mind.

The best way to hide an energy signature was by making sure the opponent didn’t think it was being hidden.

Derrick shut his eyes, relying on his other senses instead.

Too many powers were at work here, and every one of them were working hand in hand to keep him from unveiling the truth.

Derrick could hear the faint sounds of something in the distance, it sounded unnatural.

And the more Derrick listened, the more he realized the pattern.

The wind blowing with the same rhythm each time, the sounds around him repeating themselves discreetly.

"Whoever did this must be a genius." Derrick had to give credit where it was due.

However, the person failed to account for Derrick’s own unnatural intellect.

Derrick walked forward, following his instincts, hearing and smell, which were all leading him in one direction.

Derrick continued to walk for about 5 minutes, when the system screamed in his head.

[STOP!]

The system’s voice was thick, clear and frightening.

Derrick opened his eyes, he was at the edge of the mountain, and below him was the forest he had just escaped from.

Derrick’s other senses were telling him to continue ahead, but his eyes told him to turn.

Derrick took a deep breath, his mind went back to a class he had with Sir Thompson.

"The eyes and mind can easily be manipulated, but the spirit can never truly be deceived." Derrick repeated Sir Thompson’s words.

He took another step, and to the surprise of everyone, he didn’t fall.