Dragon Game: All My Dragons Are Ranked 'SSS'

Drahon's pulse quickened. The footsteps stopped right outside the weapon room, and for a tense moment the silence stretched, so taut it felt like it might snap. His palms grew slick.

If it's the horned man… what do I say?

His mind scrambled, racing to invent an excuse. He could claim he got lost. Or maybe say he had sleepwalked. No, that sounded stupid. Maybe he could say he was just curious, looking for a bathroom?

The thought made him wince. Great. The legendary half-Dragon guy, wandering halls at night because he needed the toilet. Real convincing.

The footsteps moved again, softer this time, like the person was leaning close. He took a step toward the door, his heart hammering, preparing himself for whatever scolding or punishment might follow.

But when he pulled it open a crack, relief crashed over him like a wave.

"Ayvira?"

The girl blinked at him, caught in the half-glow of the runes overhead. But she didn't look as she had earlier. She was dressed in a deep velvet gown, its fabric the color of twilight, threaded with faint silver lines that shimmered as she moved. Her hair, usually falling loose and sharp around her shoulders, had been brushed and pinned slightly to one side.

For a second, Drahon just stared. The gown, the faint shimmer, the calm poise she carried, it made her seem like someone out of a painting, more queen than teammate.

She looked stunning!

"Nice," he managed, his voice uneven. "The gown. You look… well, you look…"

He wanted to compliment her beauty but thought against it.

"It's nice on you," he managed to say.

Ayvira's lips curved, not into a smile, but into something like restrained acknowledgment. Her eyes softened, but only for a second before her usual composure returned.

"This is just for the night," she said evenly. "The room gave me options. I picked one."

Drahon nodded quickly, a little embarrassed at how flustered he had been. "Right. Makes sense."

"Thanks for the compliment, I guess," she added, then tilted her head slightly, her sharp gaze sweeping past him into the weapon chamber. "What are you doing here?"

"I—" He caught himself, almost blurting out one of the lies he had been rehearsing. But something about her steady eyes pressed the truth out of him. There was no use lying, anyway. "Looking for the library. The menu said there's a door for it somewhere here."

Ayvira's brow lifted faintly. She hesitated for a moment before saying, "I'm looking for the same."

For the first time since stepping out of his room, Drahon felt the tension in his chest ease. He wasn't alone anymore. He was calm now.

"Then," he said, gesturing to the hall, "want to look together?"

She gave a small nod. "Fine."

They stepped back into the corridor. The runes overhead glowed gently, as if marking their passage. Together they walked, the silence between them less suffocating now.

---

The first door they tried glowed with a soft green rune shaped like a droplet. When Drahon pushed it open, the smell of damp earth rushed out to meet them. Inside stretched a lush greenhouse, its glass ceiling streaked with condensation. Strange plants glistened in the glow of hanging lanterns, some with blossoms shaped like stars, others with vines that moved faintly, curling toward the light as though alive.

Ayvira lingered a moment, brushing her fingertips against the edge of a glowing leaf. It recoiled instantly, curling inward like a startled animal.

"Not this one," she murmured, stepping back.

Drahon nodded, closing the door behind them.

Drahon wondered why there was a room like that in this place, by the way. How was it even possible?

But then, he didn't put so much thought to it. This was the simulation realm, after all. Anything was possible.

The second door bore a rune shaped like a spiral. When they entered, it was empty. There was nothing in it except for a table and a chair, which sat in the middle.

Drahon's stomach knotted as he peered down. It was eerie and scary, like some murder room.

"Definitely not a library," he muttered.

Ayvira's eyes lingered longer, unreadable, before she finally turned back.

The next room was worse.

This was completely dark. Nothing was in it at all. The air was stale and smelled of… nothing.

The floors were bare. There were no carpets or tiles… just nothing.

Drahon wiped sweat from his brow and stepped back quickly. "Yeah. Not this either."

Ayvira followed without comment.

They checked door after door.

One opened into a music hall, with instruments playing themselves in eerie harmony. Another revealed a space filled entirely with mirrors, each reflecting not just their images but distorted versions, older, younger, twisted, or grander. Ayvira's eyes lingered there, cold as she studied a reflection of herself draped in regal armor, before turning away.

Through it all, they spoke little, but the silence between them was no longer awkward. It had become almost… purposeful, each step tightening the coil of anticipation.

Finally, they came to a door marked with a faint silver rune shaped like an open book.

Both of them froze.

Drahon felt his throat go dry. "This… could be it."

From the door looked, it was almost certain.

Ayvira nodded, her eyes glinting faintly in the rune's glow.

"If this leads to a completely different place, then that's it. We might have to stop at this point."

Drahon grinned, but she didn't see it. For her to say that, then this was certainly the place.

It should be, by the way. There was a book sign there.

And so, together, they pushed it open.

The air that spilled out was cool and dry, carrying the faint scent of parchment, ink, and dust. Beyond the threshold, faint lights glowed in neat rows, as though lining shelves that stretched far, far beyond sight.

It was the sort of air that had an educational tingle in it.

Drahon smiled softly.

Finally!

"The library," he whispered.