I Received System to Become Dragonborn-Chapter 1213: Next Level

They stood in a loose circle amid fractured stone and collapsed streets, the ruined city stretching outward in silent witness as they began to speak.

No one rushed to fill the quiet. What they had found felt heavy and each of them needed a moment to decide where to begin.

Erend decided to speak first.

"We all found out that the Dragons weren’t conquerors here," he said, eyes drifting back toward the plaza he had examined. "At least not at the start. Everything I saw pointed to structure, the Dragon has authority. They weren’t raging or dominating. They were anchoring the city and holding it together." He clenched his fingers slightly. "But something changed. The later carvings saying that the people weren’t aligned anymore. Some of them still faced the Dragons but the others turned away."

Aesa nodded, taking his words and adding to them.

"The names support that," she said quietly. "At first, they were records that looked carefully and respectfully etched. But later, people started carving the same names again and again, like they were afraid they’d be forgotten. And the symbols—" her voice tightened "—they crossed them out. Whatever those symbols represented, someone rejected them."

She swallowed and looked at Erend and Eccar. "They somehow weren’t united anymore."

Eccar sighed before speaking.

"The council chamber confirms it," he said. "This wasn’t chaos and a sudden collapse. Leaders gathered there. And what happened there, I saw weapons were placed deliberately, not used. They were broken on purpose. There was a crack in the floor that wasn’t caused by battle. It marked a split."

"A decision," Erend said quietly.

"Yes," Eccar replied. "A final decision."

Silence returned, but this time it felt different. The fragments were no longer isolated. They were fitting together whether they wanted them to or not.

"They relied on the Dragon," Aesa said after a moment. "For protection, order, and stability. But reliance turns into dependence. And dependence breeds fear for their leaders."

"Fear of losing control," Erend added. "Or fear of being controlled."

Eccar’s jaw tightened. "I think it was both."

They all felt it then, the uncomfortable truth settling between them.

"This city didn’t fall because of a war or attack. It was abandoned," Erend said.

"Also not because they were defeated," Aesa said. "Because they couldn’t agree anymore with the Dragon."

The idea echoed painfully through the ruins. A society governed, protected, watched over by beings far stronger than themselves. Order maintained for so long that it became indistinguishable from constraint. When doubt entered, it spread through belief, leadership, and identity of these people itself.

"They chose to preserve this story over survival," Eccar said. "They left records after abandoning this kingdom instead of fighting a war."

"And the Dragon," Erend murmured, remembering the final relief. "They turned away but not in anger. The Dragon just wanted to distance themselves from these people."

No one argued.

The silence felt intentional. As if giving them space to reflect on everything they had found.

"So what did all of this have to do with us?" Eccar asked, breaking the stillness.

Aesa crossed her arms and exhaled slowly.

"Right now? I think it’s simple," she said. "We needed to understand that no matter how great our power becomes, it will never satisfy everyone. But that’s still far away." She lifted her gaze toward the ruined skyline. "Our priority hasn’t changed. We still need to kill Zerathul. Not debate a lesson carved into stone."

Erend stayed silent for a while. He stared at the broken streets and the distant towers that leaned like tired sentinels. The city felt heavier now that its story had taken shape.

"I don’t know," he finally said. "Maybe this isn’t about now." He paused. "Maybe this is meant to prepare us for something else later."

Aesa and Eccar looked at each other. Neither of them spoke. They didn’t disagree, but neither of them fully understood it either.

The Dungeon answered for them.

The black door materialized again at the edge of the intersection, its surface now smooth and lightless, standing where broken stone had been only moments before. It waited for them.

Erend turned toward it. "Let’s go."

They stepped forward together and passed through.

The pressure shifted instantly.

They emerged into the next level, level 59, and the ruined city greeted them once more. The same fractured skyline stretched beneath the dim sky but this time the silence felt different.

They were no longer alone.

A figure stood ahead of them in the middle of the street.

He wore a cloak made of dark yellow cloth that draped over his entire body, its fabric rippling faintly despite the still air. The hood shadowed his face but they could see enough.

He looked like a man in his twenties with brownish skin and calm eyes. A faint smile rested on his lips. It looked relaxed and unthreatening.

He inclined his head slightly.

"Greetings," the man said, his voice deep.

The moment he spoke, something stirred inside all three of them.

It wasn’t hostility or pressure. It was familiarity.

Erend felt a resonance deep in his chest. Aesa and Eccar’s eyes narrowed in suspicion and recognition.

They exchanged glances without a word. They already knew what he was.

This man carried the same presence they did. He was a Dragonborn.

"Who are you?" Erend asked, his gaze never leaving the man. "Are you the Dragon who ruled this city and this kingdom?"

"Yes," the man answered without hesitation. His smile did not fade. "I was. Let us talk."

The answer settled quickly between them.

Erend, Eccar, and Aesa reached the same conclusion almost at once. There was no other being who would greet them here with such familiarity. No other presence would resonate with them so clearly. Only a Dragonborn who had ruled this place could stand in this place and wait for them.

They followed him without resistance.

The man led them into one of the few houses that still stood intact. Its interior was preserved as if time had slowed inside it. Stone furniture remained where it had always been, untouched by scavengers or decay.

"Would you like a drink?" the man asked as he moved toward a low table.

Erend shook his head first. "We don’t think—"

Before he finished, the man poured liquid into three large mugs. The substance looked like fresh juice, clear and faintly glowing, cold vapor rolling gently over its surface.

The scent reached them.

Erend stopped. Aesa felt her throat dry instantly. Eccar’s stomach tightened in surprise.

They exchanged brief looks, then accepted the mugs without another word.

The liquid was cold and refreshing in the middle of this desert. Giving them a calming steadiness that eased the lingering strain in their muscles.

The man poured one for himself and sat down across from them.

"I am the Dragon who ruled this place," he said again, his voice calm but weighted with memory. "Yes. But my people drove me away."

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