The Constellation's Game [Laika]

Somehow, today felt like the reward for the past two weeks of suffering was all pouring in at once.

In a sense, compensation so far beyond common sense was raining down right before my eyes.

Skill proficiency grades… were they supposed to jump three steps at a time?

Why are there so many messages I've never seen before today……?

I'm sorry, what?

This is… actually real……?

Transcendent sits a full step above Mythic.

On the current Earth server, it was a grade only the absolute top-level rankers could even equip—or so the rumor went.

Impossible it is.

I can hardly believe it myself.

I'd rather… not… know that, hyung-nim.

"……."

While I was mulling that over, a small dragon revealed itself atop the formation that had been spewing out brilliant golden light.

Krurung—!

It looked almost identical to the golden lizard I'd seen in Raphael's memories, but with a slightly more ornate appearance and even a pair of tiny wings—a hatchling dragon through and through.

If the Drakiel I'd seen through the possession had been a somewhat lizard-like dragon, this one looked so unmistakably dragon—anyone would have called it a hatchling on sight.

And so, as if under a spell, I had no choice but to open its information window.

Ring—!

Excellent.

No—this is euphoric.

So I really did obtain something incredible…….

There seem to be a few problems, but.

I'll… somehow… manage, won't I?

At the very edge of the map of the Alterion Continent.

According to the top players, the moment one crossed beyond that vast open sea, a new world opened up.

After all, the portal to 'Demonic Realm'—the most recently discovered region—had been found in the 'Waste Lands' that lay beyond that same boundless ocean.

But only top rankers approaching Level 100 could ever reach a new continent across those waters.

Players between levels 60 and 80 typically made their home in the 'Novark Archipelago', which sat right on that boundary.

It was far more dangerous than the Alterion Continent, but it was still territory within the continent's reach.

And so 'Brellin Port'—the harbor closest to the archipelago from the mainland—had become a hub city for high-level players who had succeeded in their 2nd Class Advancement.

Ziiiing—!

Whiiiine—!

And now, right here where a massive portal had opened.

The open plaza in front of the 'Return Stone of Brellin Port' often saw players in this kind of sorry state emerge.

This plaza was where the countless player parties that had set sail to conquer the dungeons of the Novark Archipelago arrived upon tearing their Return Scrolls.

"Requesting medical support!"

"Healers! Keep them breathing as long as you can!"

"Which guild are you with?"

"Aegis Guild raid team."

And yet, the condition of the Aegis Guild members returning here today was, by any measure, unusually severe.

Most of the returnees were so gravely injured they could barely stay upright.

Some of them had already stopped breathing by the time they returned.

Considering that the Aegis Guild ranked within the global top 100 and thirteenth domestically… this was a genuinely shocking incident.

Raid teams of this caliber normally layered multiple safety measures to protect their guild members' lives.

"May I ask your player name?"

"It's… Brion."

"Understood. Rescue teams have been called; they'll arrive shortly. Do you not require treatment yourself, Mr. Brion?"

"Potions should be enough for me. Tend to the others first……."

"Of course."

In that light, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the Aegis Guild player Brion—Kim Gyeongjun—wore an utterly hollow expression.

More than five comrades had lost their lives in this raid alone.

He had been with the Aegis Guild for over seven years, and accidents of this scale could be counted on one hand.

Even those had been back in the early days of the Gate Incident, before the raid system had properly taken shape…….

Recent years, one could say, had seen nothing like this even once.

Where exactly did things go wrong?

What could possibly explain a dungeon conquest that should have wrapped up within a week dragging on for a full three weeks?

And what was the cause of every single one of them ultimately tearing their Return Scrolls without even clearing the dungeon?

Granted, it was a newly discovered hidden dungeon with no existing data…….

But he had never once imagined a place dangerous enough to do this to a party averaging Level 80.

That difficulty absolutely did not belong in the Novark Archipelago.

If it had been a dungeon in the Waste Lands, he could have understood.

Out there, even ordinary hunting grounds—not dungeons—were too much for anyone below Level 80.

But this was Novark, and moreover, a place the guild's scouting team had explored ahead of time.

They had clearly assessed it as a Level 70-range dungeon… and he simply could not comprehend how such a major accident had occurred.

The responsibility weighing on him as team leader felt terribly heavy as well.

"Team Leader, support has arrived."

"Transport the critically injured first, as fast as possible. Anyone unhurt returns to the guild."

"Yes, Team Leader!"

"The raid leader… is he alright?"

"By some fortune, his life doesn't appear to be in danger."

"Phew. Thank god for that, at least."

Kim Gyeongjun drew a cigar from his breast pocket, let out a long sigh, and slowly lit it.

Sss crack—

Come to think of it… maybe even this was a blessing—that they'd made it back alive at all.

I need to call my parents, too.

Being a hunter meant, by definition, always risking your life.

But his heart grew heavy thinking of the family who had been worried sick about him for the better part of two weeks.

Once the scene was cleaned up, he'd have to leave the Gate immediately and call his father first.

His father knew the situation on the ground better than anyone outside the Gate, which meant his worry would only run that much deeper.

Having thought that much, Gyeongjun threw himself back into the bustle.

For now, wrapping up and clearing the scene was the most urgent matter.

The specs of my newly acquired Drakiel truly deserved the word catastrophic.

Setting aside the Level 60 start—comparable to a 2nd-advancement player—the raw stat spread was simply beyond reason.

The Constellations were right.

This adorable little lizard carried stats comparable to veteran players who had completed their 2nd Class Advancement from birth.

But there were two major problems…….

One was that my mana pool was far too low.

The other was that the creature's Loyalty was far too low.

In other words, it was an out-and-out peach with the pit still in it.

Like a picture of a rice cake you can't actually eat.

"Hmm."

Still, it was the first summon I'd ever obtained, so I gave the summoning a try.

No matter how low its Loyalty, surely it wouldn't actually attack its own master.

Krururung—

The name—I'd have to go with 'Kiel' for ease of calling.

Summoned in a swirl of pure white light, my first summon was striking a far more gallant pose than it had through Raphael's eyes.

Was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠it because of the added 'Primordial Dragonkin' modifier?

Its body looked a bit larger, and above all, its wings had grown in far more properly.

Whew.

If I could have sold this thing, a few hundred thousand LP would have been entirely within reach.

In any case, as my eyes met the newly summoned creature's, I swallowed dryly and approached it.

Up close, it was quite large.

The height at which it sat calmly seemed to be at least one and a half times my own.

By the way—could this thing actually hold a conversation?

Every spirit I'd encountered had been able to talk…….

This was my first time handling dragonkin in all my beta playthroughs, so even I didn't know the answer.

Hmm.

In any case, I spoke to it as gently and kindly as I could manage.

"Hello, it's nice to meet you. Your name is Kiel, from now on."

Why, you ask?

Because from this moment on, I need to win this thing over.

Even if the Constellations retched at my tone, there was nothing I could do about it.

I had to raise that Loyalty somehow… or I'd never get any use out of this creature, would I?

And right at that very moment, as I was thinking all this—

A voice—someone's voice—suddenly began to reverberate inside my head.