The Iron-Hide Hound was faster than anything I had ever seen.
Before I could even raise my kitchen knife, it slammed into my chest. The force threw me across the kitchen, smashing my back into the industrial stove. My ribs cracked. I couldn't breathe.
Marek and the other chefs didn't even try to help. As soon as the monster's claws touched the floor, they screamed and fled through the back exit. I was alone.
The Hound stepped over the broken prep tables, its red eyes locked on mine. It opened its metallic jaws, ready to crush my skull. I felt the cold shadow of death.
Is this it? I thought. Twenty years of being a "Hollow" just to die in a kitchen basement?
Suddenly, a voice—deep, ancient, and freezing cold—thundered through my mind.
"This is not the way you are going to die, Kai."
My heart stopped beating for a second. The "Hollow" void in my chest didn't just break; it detonated.
"It is time to wake up."
An explosion of obsidian light blew the Hound backward. From my shadow, a massive, fifty-foot Black Dragon surged out. It filled the entire kitchen, its scales grinding against the ceiling. The power was absolute. With one swipe of its claw, the Iron-Hide Hound was shredded into pieces.
The Dungeon Master—a massive Alpha Hound—stepped through the rift, but it didn't stand a chance. The Dragon opened its maw, and a blast of pure Shadow-Light disintegrated the monster and closed the rift instantly.
The silence that followed was heavy. The kitchen was a ruin of twisted metal and ash. I looked up at the legendary beast, but as the Dungeon Master died, the Dragon's massive form began to flicker.
The energy was too much for my body. The massive beast started to shrink, spinning into a vortex of light until it was no bigger than a small lizard. It landed softly on my shoulder, its wings folded tight.
I looked around. The kitchen was empty. No witnesses. No Marek. Just me and a tiny, extinct legend.
"I am awake," the dragon hissed in my ear. "And now, so are you."
I stood up, the pain in my ribs vanishing as my stats finally began to move.
[NAME: KAI]
[RANK: AWAKENED]
[BEAST: PRIMORDIAL DRAGON]
This is the story of how I became the world's most powerful and elemental master.