“Since your mighty self has believed us, can I take the dragonification process?” Jack asked.
Broidrireg eyed Jack again. “Hmph! If you think you can acquire the dragon form just because you have a strong draconic bloodline, you should think again. You still have to pass my trial. And let me tell you, even rare elite natives above level 60 are having trouble with my trial. You are not only the first outworlder that comes to attempt the trial, but you are also by far the weakest one! Are you sure you want to attempt the trial? Failing this trial will not leave you unscathed.”
“I am sure,” Jack said with a determined expression.
“Hehe. Fine. Let’s see how you perform then,” Broidrireg said with a grin. Jack then received a notification that he had received a quest called Dragon Form Trial.
“So, where should I go to take the trial?” Jack asked.
“You don’t need to worry about that,” Broidrireg said, still grinning.
The grin made Jack feel uneasy.
“Um, what about the trial itself? Can your mighty one tell me what I need to do?” Jack asked.
Broidrireg lowered himself and stared straight at Jack. He said, “If you wish to become a dragon, then you should fly like one.”
Jack felt Broidrireg’s eyes becoming larger. He felt himself getting drowned in that large blue eyes. It was as if all his surroundings turned into liquid and he was floating inside. He lost sense of weight. He also lost his vision, everything around him was blue.
He didn’t know how long he was in this state. He couldn’t feel anything at all, yet it was not uncomfortable. He felt to be in extreme peace. He closed his eyes, the blue that enveloped him slowly turned to darkness.
“a?| ake upa?| Waka?| Hey!… willa?| akea?| wake upa?|!!!”
Jack’s eyes snapped open. Peniel was beside his head, grabbing his right ear while shouting frantically. He felt a strong draft hitting his face and hair. It took him a while before he grasped what was happening.
He was in the air, way high in the air. So high he couldn’t see anything. He knew that he was falling because of the wind. But all he could see around him were white clouds.
“Whea?| Where are wea?|?!” Jack yelled.
“You are finally awake. You doofus! How do you sleep through all that?!” Peniel yelled back.
“Through what? All I remember is that I’m still in the cave talking with Broidrireg about the trial. The next thing, I am here. What am I doing here?”
“What are you doing? You are doing what every other thing does when they get thrown from the sky. You falla?|!”
The clouds parted at this time, revealing the view below. And the view took Jack aback. He couldn’t tell how high he was, but he knew for sure he was crazily high. In fact, he remembered the only time he ever saw this kind of scenery was when he was in an airplane looking out from the window. Except for this time, there was no window, nor was there any airplane.
<br/>”F*ck! What is this? Is this the trial?” Jack asked.
“Duh!” Peniel returned.
Now that Jack could see the land below, he could also gauge how fast he was falling. He would be paste if he fell to the land below with this speed. he took a deep breath and exhaled. He calmed himself.
He then took out his magic staff and grinned. He said, “So, the trial is about surviving a fall. Hehe. If I didn’t fall the last time when climbing down Mount Audacias, I probably will be confused. But not now, I know the way already. I only need to cast the Float spell just when the ground is close. Or, I can also use your Invulnerability and Second Life spell. Then, I can land safely. Hahaha! This is a piece of cake!”
“You wish!” A rough and powerful voice was heard. Jack recognized the voice to be Broidrireg’s.
He then sensed the dragon, coming at high speed from behind him. He looked back and all he saw was an enormous claw. This claw closed around him, trapping him inside. He couldn’t move. He was now in the clutch of a gargantuan long dragon with brilliant blue scales.
Broidrireg’s large wings flapped as he gained altitude. With Jack in his hand, he flew up into the clouds. The clouds that Jack had fallen through before. The blue dragon continued to go higher and higher until he burst out of those clouds and flew even higher. Jack saw the sky above turn a darker blue. If the dragon continued to fly higher, they might fly into outer space. Jack wondered was there even outer space in this game world?
“Sir mighty Broidrireg, can you tell me what I should be doing?” Jack called out. He was still trapped inside Broidrireg’s grasp.
“Hahaha. As I said, you have to fly like a dragon,” Broidrireg uttered. Without any warning, he threw Jack out from his claw. “Now fly! Hahaha!”
“F*ccckkkkka?|!!” Jack shouted as he fell back down.
Jack saw the blue dragon dive at high speed. The dragon zipped past him and disappeared into the clouds below, laughing all the while.
“Bloody hell! Why does it seem like he is enjoying this a bit too much?” Jack uttered.
“Probably because no one comes for this trial often,” Peniel offered her opinion.
“What trial? He didn’t even tell me what I should be doing!” Jack yelled. “Do you have any idea?”
Peniel shook her head. She was gripping Jack’s shoulder armor tightly. Jack’s falling was faster than her flying. She needed to hold fast or she would be left behind.
After a while, Jack burst through the layer of clouds and the view of the land below came into sight again. While Jack was still thinking, he sensed the dragon again. He was then grabbed again, being brought high up before being thrown again.
When he was caught by the dragon for the third time, he asked, “Are you going to just continue to ping-pong me in the sky like this?” Jack asked.
“I have no idea what ping-pong is,” Broidrireg replied. “However, I will only do this ten times. By the tenth time, I will let you fall and you will then fail this trial.”
“F*ck! Then what should I do to pass this trial?” Jack asked.
“I have said it several times already,” Broidrireg answered. “Fly with me.”
“For the love ofa?| How do I flya?|?!” Jack yelled with frustration.
Instead of answering, Broidrireg just laughed.
“You are nuts!” Jack uttered. He didn’t bother to be polite anymore. “Shit! I should have waited until I get that flying spell that you said I can get,” Jack said to Peniel.
“If you use that kind of spell, I will dispel it,” Broidrireg said when he heard.
“What thea?| Then how do I supposed to fly with you?!” Jack yelled, to which Broidrireg replied with another hearty laugh before throwing Jack again. This time he threw Jack with even more force, causing Jack to reach further height than previously.
“Dammmnnn yoouuuua?|.!!!” Jack scolded as he fell back down.
The cycle repeated. On the sixth time, Peniel noticed that Jack was not yelling curse words anymore.
“Are you giving up?” Peniel asked. However, Jack’s face was calm as he watched the clouds below. Broidrireg’s huge shadow was seen swimming inside the clouds. He still didn’t see Broidrireg’s dot on his radar. So, it was not because of the cave, the dragon had a way to conceal itself from his radar.
He answered, “I’ve been thinking. Why does that overgrown winged worm keep on flying down there after throwing me up here?”
“So that he can catch you again later?”
“With his speed. He can do it even if I fall firsta?| I’m going to try something.”
“Oh? What do you want to try?”
Instead of answering, Jack positioned his head down, put his arms to his side, and straightened his legs and feet. He reduced air drag as much as possible. As a result, his speed increased. He shot down towards where Broidrireg’s shadow was swimming. Peniel was taken aback by his sudden increase in speed, she was left behind instead.
“Hey! Why didn’t you give me a heads up!” She complained while flying forward with all her might.
With his posture, Jack dove into the cloud at high speed. With this timing, Jack estimated he should be able to fall right where Broidrireg was passing through. Thank goodness the serpent had a long body, which meant it would take some time for Broidrireg’s body to move out of his current position because his body moved in the same path where his head passed through. Jack had targeted the position near the dragon’s neck, so he would have a large window to arrive there before the dragon passed through.
However, just as the dragon’s body came into view inside the clouds and when Jack was about to touch it, it moved to the side. Jack fell right through the empty air.
“Haha, you don’t think I will make it that easy for you now, do you?” Jack heard Broidrireg’s laugh as he passed by.
Jack had failed to catch Broidrireg. However, from what the dragon said just now, Jack was sure he was on the right track. Now, all he had to do was get a jump on the dragon.
