THAT DAY I BECAME A STAR

KEVIN DRAGONROAD POV:

"Young Master… Young master…"

"Tatiana?!! How?!! Why?!!"

"You really thought I would die?!!! Even though we have so many things to do… Come on…"

"I will kill you!!! I make you pay a thousand times for what you did!!! You and all of them!!! You will wish for death so hard even the Goddess will have mercy on you!!!"

***

When I wake up, I am in the inner soul. Though it has changed again. There is not a fire at the center now but a small house. The house where I stayed with Selene and Excafol during the last four years.

"Ah, yeah. She did say that I managed to awake something."

During the fight with the Longinus, when I drank the nectar from his core.. Cissa told me something awoke inside me but I don't clearly remember what she said. I go and enter the small house then find her sitting on a chair, tending to the fire. She would almost look like a young Selene if not for the horns and the bright red snake eyes.

"You are getting comfortable, I see."

"Not really. I was always comfortable. Though I must admit that I am surprised."

"Surprised?"

"Yes. You are a human. Not a dragon. So even if part of your soul is a draconic one, for you to awake a dragon heart isn't something I would have thought possible."

"Ah, yes. You did say something like that. What is a dragon heart anyway? You didn't talk about this at all before."

"Because I didn't think you would…No, indeed, I am sorry for hiding such information from you."

"Nah, it's nothing. I just want to know what it is. And why are you acting all polite now?"

"Because you have won my respect. Perhaps the god who gifted my soul did know something…Hm…"

"Cissa?" Cissa takes a scientific-like posture, just like Rebecca when she didn't understand things. She holds her chin with two fingers while closing her eyes.

"It's nothing. Anyway, the dragon heart is one made of energy. It is normally created when a massive amount of power is focused on one point of the body and regulated. For us dragons, we are naturally born with our dragon hearts. But for a human to create his own. I am impressed."

"Wait. So, you mean I have a second heart now?"

"Basically, yes. It will beat just like your normal heart with the same rhythm. But it is not a physical heart. Just like your heart regulates your blood circulation throughout your body, this one will regulate your Angas and draconic energy as well."

"Wait, wait, wait."

"What is it?"

"The heart regulates the blood's circulation throughout the body? What does that even mean?" Where did she get that information? I never heard of that?

"Why do you think you die if your heart is pierced?"

"Well, you die, duh. I mean, that's a vital organ."

"Hm…No, this example isn't good enough. It is true that you guys die without a heart."

"W-what…Ah, yes. You said some dragons remove their hearts at some point." I remember Cissa said something about them pulling out their hearts at some point. Is it related to the fact that they have that dragon's heart? Or maybe it is something else?

"Okay. What happens when you get poisoned?"

"You die."

"Why?"

"Because…I don't know. You just die."

"Once a poison enters your body, the heart will pump it throughout all the vessels of your body, then into himself. That's why you die." Cissa explains the concept to me while touching her arm with two fingers then slowly dragging them from her arm to her right breast.

"I see. I understand now, thanks for the explanation." Cissa is really knowledgeable. I was right to give her that name.

"Which reminds me. The dragon heart is still a heart. So just like your normal one, make sure it doesn't get poisoned or you will have a worse death than you can possibly imagine."

"Eh? How could Angas be poisoned?"

"I think you know the answer already."

"Regas…"

"Yes. Too much exposure to Regas will most certainly corrupt your power."

Thinking about it, that Longinus was extra strong. I wonder who will win if we ever face again.

"Surely, he will whip my ass clean seeing how he handled the heroes."

But thankfully, we defeated him. Though, I don't really remember what happened after I entered that pillar of light. I wonder what script it was and who was using it. Perhaps Rebecca?

"Surely. If you act so rashly again." 

"I wasn't rash!"

"You fight without a plan." 

"I do most of the time!"

"Then you should change that habit."

"Okay, I will try." 

***

After talking a bit with Cissa about the dragon's heart and its advantages, I sleep peacefully. When I wake up, it's the middle of the night. I thought I slept for a longer time. I am in a room, though. There are no lights but I can hear the breathing of two people on each side of my bed. I wonder they are. Surely the priests in charge of me. And here they are sleeping instead of watching over me.

"They must be tired, I suppose."

"Hrngh…"

Seeing as one of them is waking up, I just close my eyes. If they see that I am awake, they might have to stay up as well. Let's just sleep until tomorrow. I count the sheeps like Rebecca told me to when I was a child.

"Hey, aren't you awake yet?"

Suddenly, I hear Farner's voice right next to my ear. It almost made me shudder. She was the one on the left side of the bed? What is she doing here?

"I am bored. Why aren't you waking up?"

The sweet fragrance of her smell then hits my nose. I also have a harder time breathing. Did she just lie on top of me?

"Fuaaa…What are you doing?"

After her, I hear the voice of the last person I would have imagined here: Lanuvel. No matter how hard I think about it, I can't see a reason that would justify her presence here. The only option would be that I mistook the voice I heard just now.

"Just checking if he is up."

"Didn't the Saintess said he would need another two days to fully recover?" Nope, I wasn't mistaken, it is indeed Lanuvel's voice.

"Yeah, but this guy is way too resilient so…"

"Just leave him alone."

"Hm…You are no fun."

After their discussion, Farner's scent gradually leaves. She must have removed her head. The next morning, I wait and wait with my eyes closed but they don't seem to leave.

"Hey, girls!"

"Hello!"

Instead, I hear everyone's voices and steps as they enter the room we are in.

"He still hasn't wake up yet?" Cordel's voice makes it seem like he really is concerned about me. This liar!!

"No. But he should soon enough, I hope." And you sound way too pessimistic Farner.

"Well, at least, he isn't going crazy anymore." Even Keltia's voice sounds so sad and full of worries. Are they really worried about me? No, why would they?

"I wonder..." Lanuvel…I really don't understand why she is here. From all of them, she is the one who seemed to hate me the most. If I don't count what she said that night. "It didn't look like he was going crazy to me. It was more like a nightmare of something that happened to him?"

"You think so?"

"Yes, my father had those as well after he came back from the war against the Longinus. It was quite ferocious to see. Every night he would jump out of bed and hits anything on his path before waking up to realize his doing. It lasted for quite a while."

"Hm…Maybe he was still fighting that Longinus then." Roxcia is here as well. Okay, now I am worried.

"Can't believe a guy more stupid than I manage to defeat such a thing." Yeah, Esteressa, keep dreaming. Maybe I will really be dumber than you then.

"Nah, I am pretty sure you are more stupid though." Samson replies to her immediately. Thanks, man. It seems Peter isn't here right now. he would normally be the one to answer her at times like this.

"What did you say!!"

Everyone starts laughing at Esteressa and Samson. Those guys are too noisy. Well, I think it's time to wake up then.

"Can't you guys make less noise?"

A veil of silence falls on the room as I speak. Everyone turns to look at me while I sit on the bed. Their eyes opened as if they are about to tear apart.

"What?" I scratch my head while looking at them but nobody seems to find something to say. "A cat got your tongue or what?" Weren't you all talking about me just now?

Finally, Cordel is the one to move first. He comes to me while smiling like some kind of prince and brandishes his fist at me.

"Congratulations, you did well surviving."