Chapter 28: Touched by Power

The hum of the computer screen was the only sound in Les's small, dimly lit apartment as he sat at his desk, fingers still hovering over the keyboard. The battle against the Shadow Drake had left him rattled, not just because of the intensity of the fight, but because of what he had taken from it. The dragon language still burned in his mind, words filled with ancient power swirling like a storm inside him.

He closed his eyes, trying to shake off the unease, but the pull of the power was intoxicating. It wasn't just some virtual skill—he could feel it. Even now, sitting in his cramped real-world apartment, the primal energy from the drake's memories still lingered. The ancient tongue wasn't just code. It wasn't data. It felt… real.

Les swallowed hard, the idea forming in his mind before he could even fully grasp it. What if he could use it here? In the real world?

The thought was absurd, and yet, the pull of curiosity was too strong to resist. He had always been a skeptic when it came to superstitions and mystical nonsense. But this—this felt different. The Life Mirror skill had already blurred the lines between the virtual world and reality, allowing him to gain practical skills and knowledge from the game that he could apply in real life. What if the dragon language was the same? What if it transcended the boundaries of the game?

His heart pounded in his chest as he stood up from the desk, pacing around the room. He could feel the words clawing at the edges of his mind, begging to be spoken. Could it work? Could he channel the drake's power here, in the real world?

Les exhaled sharply, the weight of the decision pressing on him. He stopped in the center of the room, closed his eyes, and focused. The apartment fell silent, and he felt the hum of the city beyond his window fade into the background. His mind was clear, but the ancient words pulsed within him, louder and louder.

He let his mouth open, trying to form the sounds, letting the guttural syllables of the ancient tongue spill from his lips. The words felt foreign on his tongue, as if they didn't belong in his mouth, yet they flowed with a dark, heavy energy.

Suddenly, the room seemed to shift around him. The air grew dense, pressing down on him like a thick, invisible weight. His vision blurred, and a strange pressure began to build in his chest. It was working—he could feel it. The power was there, just beneath the surface, waiting to be unleashed.

But as he spoke the final word of the incantation, the power surged through him, violently overwhelming his senses. A sharp pain exploded in his head, and his vision swam with dark, swirling shapes. His entire body tensed, muscles spasming as the energy within him spiraled out of control.

Les gasped, stumbling backward as the force inside him erupted like a dam breaking. He tried to stop the flow, tried to contain it, but the energy had already been unleashed. His chest tightened painfully, and his vision darkened further. He could barely breathe, barely see.

Then, with a sickening jolt, the power shattered, and everything went black.

Les collapsed onto the floor, coughing violently, his body trembling uncontrollably. He could taste the metallic tang of blood in his mouth. He clutched his chest, gasping for air as his body convulsed in pain. A thick, dark red trickle of blood dripped from the corner of his lips, splattering onto the floor.

What… was that? He could feel the remnants of the power still swirling inside him, but it was faint now, like a dying ember. Whatever he had just tried to summon—it had been real. It had touched him.

But it had also nearly killed him.

He sat there on the floor, breathing heavily, his body aching with the aftershocks of the failed attempt. His head was pounding, and his chest burned with the residual effects of the ancient energy. He couldn't believe what had just happened. The dragon language wasn't just some virtual trick; it had real-world consequences. It wasn't just a game skill. It was something more—something dangerous.

Wiping the blood from his mouth, Les shakily pulled himself back to his feet, his mind reeling from the experience. He stumbled to the bathroom, catching a glimpse of himself in the mirror. His pale face was streaked with sweat, his eyes wide and filled with confusion—and fear.

He leaned over the sink, splashing cold water on his face, trying to steady his thoughts. How had this happened? Was it the Life Mirror skill? Had it somehow given him access to powers beyond the virtual world?

Les's hands shook as he gripped the edge of the sink, staring down at the water swirling in the basin. His thoughts were a jumbled mess, but one question loomed over everything else, a question he couldn't ignore:

What does this mean for the real world?

He stood there, his breath shallow, as the implications began to settle in. If the power of the dragon language could affect him in real life, then what did that say about Ancient Arena Online? Was it just a game? Or was there something deeper at play? Something that connected the virtual world with reality in ways no one had ever imagined?

Les clenched his fists, his mind racing. He had to find answers. The game, his skill, the strange power he had tapped into—it was all connected. He couldn't ignore the truth any longer.

Is Ancient Arena Online really just a game?