The First Legendary Dragon Tamer

'Now that I have 405 SP left… what should I use them for?'

Draco already had a few ideas in mind, but some of them were too impractical to put to use at the moment. For example, after seeing what was possible with Nyx, he had some interest in advancing his strongest Nightcrawler—Preto—to a higher Rank.

However, the limit of a Nightcrawler was Rank 3.

Since this was their species' limit, Draco couldn't advance them higher, even with the help of the System Shop.

'The only alternative is to advance Preto's species to a more evolved kind. Unfortunately, I don't have sufficient SP for that.'

Since Preto was Rank 3, he would need to evolve Preto to a Rank 3 version of a higher species.

But that was too expensive!

'I currently can't buy Dragons from the Shop, but if I could, advancing Preto to another species while maintaining his Rank would cost the same as purchasing a Dragon of the same Rank, to begin with.'

In essence, it was a highly inefficient venture.

The next thing he considered using his SP for was upgrading Nyx to Rank 3. However, doing so would mean Nyx would no longer have [Dark Fart], since that was a Rank 2 Breath. She would possess the same Breath as Preto.

'Since I already have access to [Into The Shadows], there's no reason for two of my Dragons to have the Breath—especially if I'll lose a Breath as a result.'

Sure, [Dark Fart] was only Rank 2, but it was still a practical Breath he would have to lose.

Just because it was of a lower Rank didn't mean it didn't have its use.

Draco had to consider this factor, and many more, when considering whether or not to upgrade Nyx to Rank 3.

After exploring the Shop with these thoughts in mind, he eventually figured out a solution.

'I can actually purchase [Breaths] in the [Buy] Section of the Shop. Even though it's currently locked for me, I can purchase it for my Dragons.' Draco went through the catalogue, which only contained the Breath list of Dragons he already had in his possession, and found that he could purchase the [Dark Fart] Breath.

That meant he could upgrade Nyx to Rank 3 and simply purchase the [Dark Fart] Breath for either of his Nightcrawlers to use.

Draco found this to be the perfect solution to his problem.

'There seems to be requirements that the Dragons I'm buying the Breaths for must fulfil. Their Ranks must be high enough to learn it, which means I can't buy a Rank 3 Breath for a Rank 2 Dragon, but I can give a Rank 3 Dragon a Rank 2 Breath. The Dragon must also belong to the species that uses that Breath.'

So, he couldn't give [Dark Fart] to any species that weren't Nightcrawlers—at least, for now.

There was a chance that things could change in the future, but Draco somehow doubted it. In the end, this was a matter of a Dragon's biology.

He couldn't imagine a Plant Dragon using the Breaths belonging to a Water Dragon.

In the end, they were simply too different.

'But, a Rank 3 Nightcrawler was once a Rank 2, so it makes sense that they would be able to use [Dark Fart]...' Without wasting any time, Draco advanced Nyx to Rank 3 and purchased the [Dark Fart] Breath for Preto.

That meant Preto now possessed two Breaths: [Into The Shadows] and [Dark Fart].

The reason he chose Preto and not Nyx was due to the former being a Rank 3 Dragon for longer, hence he was more experienced and stronger. He was also a Champion who had dwelled in the Cave of Trials for an incredibly long period.

His Essence Pool was much larger, and his constitution was far greater.

Even in terms of size, Preto was already far above ten meters, approaching eleven, while Nyx was barely ten.

This was due to their sheer difference in growth.

'With this, I've raised the strength of my Nightcrawler Dragons to an acceptable level…'

Sadly, he had spent all of his SP on that single venture.

As a result, he couldn't invest in his other Dragons. Draco considered this a shame, but it also couldn't be helped. Improving himself was the utmost priority, and even when it came to Dragons, he learned an important lesson.

—Progress was expensive!

Whether it was purchasing Breaths or upgrading the Dragon's Rank, it consumed a lot of SP.

'Merely advancing Nyx to Rank 3 costs 375 SP, and purchasing [Dark Fart] costs 30 SP. Combined, they cost exactly 405 SP… his remaining balance.'

Hence, once again, he was back to 0 SP.

However, unlike before, Draco felt somewhat accomplished with his current state. He had used up all of his wealth, but the results were beyond satisfactory.

He held no regrets whatsoever.

A part of him thought about Luke, particularly the plans he made to save SP for his dying parent.

The SP Draco had spent would have been really helpful in contributing to the 100,000 SP that Luke was trying to gather for the Supreme Grade Recovery Pill. Yet, not only did Draco spend it without restraint, but he even spent it all.

Despite knowing all of this, Draco didn't feel an ounce of guilt in his heart.

'Growing stronger takes priority…' That was his thought process, and since he was the one doing all the work by completing the Quests, he had already done more than enough to help.

Though they shared memories, Draco did not have Luke's feelings.

As such, he could not empathize with him.

'Once Luke logs out, the System will reward him with Sp, which I won't have access to use in the Shop. Since that's the case, he shouldn't have access to the Sp I get from selling things too.'

Draco spent the rest of that day, and the days after that, training and getting used to his newfound strength. He already knew Zara and her parents wouldn't worry about him if he only spent a few days away, so he made very good use of his time.

The water of the lake ensured he could always recover very quickly whenever he used up his Essence, so he did very little to preserve his strength and constantly tested his limits.

At some point, he was so amazed by the effects of the lake's water that he desired to sell it.

However, after realizing how imperative it was for the growth of Verdantia's children, he decided against it. Even for the lake, it did not possess unlimited Essence. He had to leave it as an investment for his future Dragons.

Still, he chose to take some water for himself.

That way, he could use them in place of Essence Stones and recover Essence whenever he was running low. Draco returned to Zara's home after his few days of training were done and, just as he expected, there was very little fuss regarding where he had been.

After enjoying dinner, he retreated to his room and had his first proper sleep in days.

Coincidentally… this was exactly when Luke logged out of the game.

[System Notice]

~Main Objective <Preparations for the Academy> has been completed!~

You can now log out

<Logging out in 3… 2… 1…>