Chapter 14

Days passed uneventfully, but one day, something out of the ordinary shattered the calm.

I was staring out of the window with a serious expression, my senses sharp. Magical energy was swirling nearby, thick and ominous. I could feel it building, growing stronger.

A gate was about to open.

It wasn't night, and my parents were both inside the house. I couldn't just run out and obliterate the monsters in plain sight. Not yet.

Looking at the streets outside, I noticed the bustling crowd—people carrying groceries, chatting, and living their ordinary lives.

"Huh? They don't realize it yet?" I muttered to myself. "If that's the case..."

The magical energy suddenly spiked. I felt the air tense around me. "At this rate, the gate will open soon."

I sighed, deciding to wait. There was no point in panicking yet. I hopped off the bed and walked over to Mama, who was busy adjusting the clock on the wall.

Raising my arms, I looked up at her and murmured, "Mama!"

She smiled instinctively, scooping me into her arms.

Perfect. Now she wouldn't notice anything odd about me. If I was in her arms, I could keep her calm, no matter what happened.

I glanced over at Papa, who was at his desk doing office work. He wasn't wearing headphones, so he should be able to hear everything.

Suddenly, screams erupted outside. The cries of our neighbors shattered the peace.

Mama froze for a moment, startled. Papa burst out of his study, shouting, "What's going on?!"

"I-I don't know," Mama stammered, her voice trembling.

A loudspeaker blared outside, its mechanical voice booming:

"A gate has opened! Evacuate immediately! I repeat, evacuate immediately!"

Panic consumed the city as chaos unfolded. People ran in all directions. Wyverns and dragons flew overhead, their shadows casting terror over the streets.

"Honey, let's go!" Papa shouted, grabbing Mama's hand and pulling her along.

Mama tightened her grip on me and started running. But the streets were soon flooded with people, a dense, chaotic crowd. Papa struggled to push through, pulling Mama by the hand.

The mass of people was relentless, like a storm of bodies. Suddenly, someone bumped into Papa, forcing him to stumble and lose his grip on Mama.

"Leena!" Papa shouted desperately, his voice echoing above the chaos.

He tried to fight his way back to us, but the crowd swallowed him like a wave, dragging him further away. His voice became fainter as he shouted, "Let me through! My family is out there!"

Mama froze, her eyes wide with terror. "Honey!" she screamed, her voice cracking with despair.

I stayed silent, my tiny arms wrapped around her neck, watching everything unfold.

And then I noticed it—a large shadow fell over us.

Still clutching me tightly, Mama didn't see it, too focused on trying to get into the crowd. But I looked up and saw it.

A dragon.

Its massive form towered over the second floor of nearby buildings. This wasn't a wyvern. It was a dragon—a lesser one, but still powerful.

---

The Dragon's Perspective

The dragon growled, its golden eyes gleaming with malice. Humans. Weak, helpless creatures. It raised its enormous leg high in the air, ready to crush the screaming crowd beneath it.

But then it hesitated.

It felt… something.

Its gaze locked onto a little girl in her mother's arms. The girl looked calm, eerily calm. There was something profoundly wrong about her, something far from ordinary.

A strange feeling clawed at the back of the dragon's mind.

Fear.

The dragon growled, shaking off the unsettling thought. It was a dragon, after all—a being of power and dominance. What could a little girl possibly do?

It roared and brought its massive leg down, aiming to crush the girl and everyone around her in one swift motion.

But the world flipped upside down.

Time seemed to slow.

The dragon's vision blurred, and in the next instant, it saw its own headless body collapsing to the ground.

Its severed head tumbled onto the cobblestone street.

As its consciousness faded, the dragon finally understood what the strange feeling was.

It wasn't just fear. It was death.

---

Back to My Perspective

The dragon fell with a deafening crash, its body lifeless. The crowd screamed louder, scattering in all directions.

Mama hadn't even noticed what happened. She was still shouting for Papa, tears streaming down her face.

I tightened my grip on her, leaning closer. "Mama, it's okay. We'll find Papa," I whispered, my voice soft and reassuring.

She nodded, trembling, and held me tighter.

I glanced at the dragon's corpse one last time, its blood pooling around its headless form.

Fear. I could see it even in death. It had recognized me for what I was, what I still am.

Death herself.