Demonic Dragon: Harem System-Chapter 811: Back to normal

The impact of that colossal presence still echoed in the air when silence finally truly settled in—not the heavy silence of loss that had dominated the crater moments before, but a silence laden with disbelief, with something that shouldn’t exist and yet was there, breathing before them.

The white dragon, its living scales enveloped in flames that didn’t consume, remained motionless for a few moments, as if adjusting to its own existence, as if each movement needed to be relearned within that new structure.

The heat emanating from it didn’t burn the skin, but it pressed down on the atmosphere, making each breath denser, more conscious, as if the air had been altered to match this new reality.

Rogue was the first to move, not out of courage, but because standing still meant accepting what had just happened, and that was still far from acceptable.

Her eyes were red, tears still marking her face, and her voice came out louder than she intended, laden with everything she had held back until that moment. "What the hell was that, Strax?!" she demanded, stepping forward even in the face of something that should have inspired only retreat. "You disappeared! You turned to dust! I... we... we saw you die!" The last word came out weaker, as if she herself didn’t want to accept it.

The dragon tilted its head slightly, and the gesture, though minimal, was laden with recognition, as if it were adjusting not only its body but the way it communicated through it.

When it spoke, its voice didn’t come out as before; it was deeper, broader, reverberating in their chests even before reaching their ears.

"Technically... I came pretty close." It released a slow breath, and the air that escaped its nostrils spread a white vapor that dissipated before touching the ground, as if even that was under control.

"That last explosion wasn’t just power. It burned... everything. Not flesh, not ordinary energy. It burned continuity."

Daniela stepped forward, still breathless, anger mixing with fear so intensely that she seemed unsure which to control.

"And you thought it was a good idea not to tell us before you turned to dust?!" Her voice trembled, but not from weakness—it was pure indignation, fueled by recent despair. "We stood there, watching you disappear, you idiot!"

Strax nodded slightly, as if considering her words seriously, even though his next tone was lighter. "I didn’t plan on turning to dust, if that helps." There was a short pause, almost as if he were organizing what to say so that it would make sense. "But when it happened... I didn’t leave. Not completely."

Cassandra, who had been observing silently until then, stepped forward, her eyes still shining with contained emotion, but now focused, trying to understand. "You... went somewhere." It wasn’t exactly a question, but it needed confirmation.

The dragon nodded slowly. "Between places, actually." He raised his head slightly, as if he could still see that space.

"It’s not heaven. It’s not hell. It’s... an interval. A corridor. Where things pass through when they cease to be here, but haven’t yet arrived somewhere else." His voice lost some of its lightness at this point, not out of fear, but out of respect for what he had experienced. "I was there. Or rather... what remained of me was there."

Rogue frowned, crossing his arms tightly, as if trying to anchor himself to something concrete. "And you simply... decided to come back?" The question carried disbelief, but also a hint of hope, as if he wanted to hear that it wasn’t as impossible as it seemed.

Strax let out a sound that could be interpreted as a low laugh. "It wasn’t that simple." He moved one of his front paws, observing his own body for a moment before continuing.

"Those white flames... I understood them better in the end. They don’t burn the body. They burn the continuity of life. That which keeps someone... existing." He tilted his head slightly. "But if that is life... then it can also be manipulated."

Cassandra narrowed her eyes, following his train of thought with increasing attention. "You used what was left of them."

"Exactly." The confirmation came immediately.

"When I was... there, I was still conscious. I had no body, no form, but I still existed." He paused, as if searching for the best way to explain something that shouldn’t be explainable. "I took the remnants of those flames that were still inside me. That which was destroying me. And I reversed the process."

He raised his head slightly, the white fire around his scales pulsing gently. "Instead of letting them consume what was left... I used them to rebuild."

Daniela blinked, processing, and then snorted, wiping her face forcefully. "So you basically died... and decided you didn’t like the idea?" The disbelief in her voice was almost comical, were it not for the context.

Strax shrugged—or at least the draconic equivalent of that. "More or less."

Rogue shook her head, a humorless laugh escaping her as tears still dried on her face. "You’re ridiculous." But there was relief there, heavy, deep, almost crushing.

He then slightly raised one of his claws and absentmindedly scratched the side of his head, a gesture so human that it contrasted absurdly with his current form. "To be honest... I don’t think I’ve recovered my old body." He looked at himself again. "This here... is probably a new one."

Cassandra arched an eyebrow, her lips curving slightly despite everything. "That’s obvious."

Daniela crossed her arms, now clearly irritated by something much more immediate. "Okay, great, you survived, congratulations. Now go back to normal." She pointed at him firmly. "I’m not going to talk to a giant lizard."

"Daniela—" Cassandra began, but the other interrupted her immediately.

"No! I almost had a heart attack seeing him turn to dust, and now he shows up as a dramatic giant dragon? No. Go back. Now."

Cassandra stepped forward, her composure finally yielding a little, her voice lower, more sincere. "Come back... please." Her eyes met his, and there was no analysis, no logic. Only emotion. "I want to hug you."

The silence that followed was different. Lighter. More human.

The dragon watched them for a few seconds, and then a small smile—or something equivalent—seemed to cross his expression. "It’s alright."

The white flames around his body intensified, but this time there was no threat in them. They receded, concentrating, enveloping every part of his colossal form.

His body began to shrink, not abruptly, but in a controlled way, as if being rewritten once again, only now with clear intention. The scales disappeared first, dissolving into light. The wings retracted, transforming into lines that dissolved in the air. The gigantic structure collapsed inward, not in destruction, but in reconstruction. In a few seconds, where there had been a dragon, there was now a man.

Strax took a step forward, his foot touching the ground lightly, as if this body were even more natural than the previous one.

And then they realized.

There was something different.

It wasn’t just the fact that he was whole. Nor that he was alive.

It was... him.

The lines of his face were more defined, his eyes clearer, deeper, carrying something that hadn’t been there before. There was a presence in him that no longer needed to prove itself, a silent confidence that didn’t come from strength, but from understanding. Even the way he moved seemed more precise, more aligned, as if each gesture was exactly what it should be.

Daniela blinked.

Rogue opened his mouth slightly.

Cassandra... simply stood still.

For a brief moment, none of the three said anything.

Then Daniela let out an involuntary sigh, bringing her hand to her face. "Okay... that’s unfair."

Rogue laughed, running a hand through his hair, clearly trying to regain his balance. "You were already cocky before. Now even more so..."

Cassandra said nothing.

She simply stepped forward.

And hugged him.

"Hey, hey— calm down," Strax repeated, the smile still present, but softer now, less provocative and more... human, as if he too were trying to reconnect with that reality after everything he had been through.

But Cassandra didn’t respond, not immediately, because the moment she hugged him, she wasn’t concerned with explanations, or logic, or what it meant. Her arms closed around him tightly, almost urgently, as if there were a silent fear that if she let go, he might simply... disappear again.

Strax felt it.

Not as physical pressure, but as intention.

He stopped talking.

For a second, just... he stood there.

His hand slowly moved up to her back, returning the hug naturally, without hesitation, as if it were more important than any explanation at that moment. Cassandra buried her face in his shoulder, breathing deeply, as if trying to confirm, through the air, the warmth, the weight... that he was really there. That this was no longer an illusion, no longer a last image before the void.

"You took your time," she murmured, her voice muffled, almost inaudible, but laden with a tension that was only now beginning to dissipate.

Strax let out a small sigh through his nose, tilting his head slightly. "Sorry. I had... to take care of some things on the way."

"I hate you," she replied immediately, without lifting her face.

"I know."

But he was smiling.

Rogue watched the scene with her arms crossed, but now without the rigidity of before. There was still emotion there, still a weight in her gaze, but it was different. It was more stable. She exhaled slowly, shaking her head, as if reorganizing everything she felt before making a decision.

Then she took a step forward.

And slapped his arm.

It wasn’t hard.

But it wasn’t light either.

Strax blinked, surprised. "Ow."

"That was for dying," Rogue said, looking directly at him, her eyes still slightly red. "And this—" she slapped him again, a little harder, "—was for coming back as if it were nothing."

He looked at his own arm, then at her, clearly assessing the situation.

"Fair enough."

She tried to maintain a serious expression.

She failed. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

A smile escaped.

And then she stepped forward too, embracing him from the side, without asking permission, without hesitation, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, but there was something firm there, a grip that spoke louder than any words. "Don’t do that again," she murmured.

Strax raised his free hand, as if surrendering. "I’ll try."

"Don’t try," she retorted immediately. "Just don’t."

"Okay. No promises then."