Azure Dragon Supreme Essence Style

Nia suddenly felt an oppressive tightness in her chest, as though it had been stuffed with a ball of wet cotton.

So from beginning to end, she had been the only fool who thought everyone could stay in this little town forever, play cards together forever, and be happy like this forever.

It turned out Grayrock Town had no place in everyone else's future.

Her nose stung, and her eyes reddened at once.

But she remembered that today was Lance's housewarming celebration.

Everyone has a broader future ahead of them. Their lives will get better. I shouldn't be sad. I can't spoil the mood at a time like this.

Nia desperately admonished herself in her heart.

I can't cry.

But her tears refused to listen, already welling in her eyes.

Her lips puckered uncontrollably, as if she were trying her hardest to hold the tears back.

"Sorry..."

Nia abruptly rose to her feet, her chair scraping harshly across the ground.

"I... I might need to go home first."

After saying that, she did not dare look at anyone's expression. With her head lowered, she hurriedly rushed out of the courtyard.

Bang.

The instant she stepped through the courtyard gate, the strength she had been forcing herself to maintain completely crumbled.

Lance clearly heard a loud wail from outside the gate.

"I'll go with you!"

Without a second thought, Flora grabbed her shoulder bag and chased after her with a worried look.

Only Lance and Amber remained in the courtyard.

Lance sighed and looked at the red-haired girl seated across from him.

"You should go keep her company too."

"Finding out that three friends are leaving all at once would be hard for anyone to take."

"It'll be easier for you girls to talk to each other. Try to comfort her."

Amber nodded. "I'll go over."

When she reached the gate, she suddenly stopped, turned back, and gave Lance a radiant smile.

"Happy housewarming, Lance."

"Thanks."

Lance looked at the empty courtyard, his gaze falling on the crystal cards scattered across the table.

"Amber, these cards..."

"They're yours."

Without looking back, Amber waved her hand.

"They're your housewarming gift."

With that, her figure vanished into the night beyond the gate as well, chasing in the direction of the crying.

Lance walked over and gathered the faintly glowing cards one by one.

These were magical tools personally crafted by that witch. On the market, they would be worth a fortune.

Looking at the heavy deck in his hands, Lance could not help but give a bitter smile.

It seemed Amber was the true hidden rich heiress.

She had given away such precious tools without a second thought.

The courtyard fell silent once more.

Only the remaining charcoal in the grill occasionally crackled softly, sending out a few dark-red sparks.

After tidying everything up, Lance sat alone in the empty courtyard, his gaze resting on the neatly stacked crystal cards.

As if possessed, he reached out and drew another card from the deck.

King of Clubs.

As magic suffused it, a new line of text emerged on the card's surface.

[If time could turn back, would you still choose to meet this group of fools destined to part ways?]

He fell into a long silence.

Those memories that had once grown hazy surged into his mind like a tide.

He remembered the summer from his previous life.

That high school graduation ceremony filled with laughter and tears.

That day, everyone had cried and hugged each other, solemnly swearing they would be friends for life and carve out a place for one another on the maps of their futures.

Yet reality was always so stark.

After entering university, they kept in touch less and less.

In the end, those once-familiar faces became nothing more than people who occasionally liked each other's posts.

Those brothers who had pulled all-nighters gaming in internet cafés, those friends who had drunk cheap beer and bragged at roadside stalls, all eventually became gray names in his contact list that never lit up again.

Life was like a train with people constantly getting on and off.

Every ticket clutched in someone's hand had a different final destination.

Some boarded and traveled with you for part of the journey. When their stop came, all they could do was wave goodbye.

Lance closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

Though his past experiences had taught him that parting was a normal part of life, and though reason told him that investing emotion was bound to bring pain.

Still.

He could not deny the time this group of friends had spent together.

Meeting itself had meaning.

It was like the old dog he had raised for more than a decade in his previous life.

From the moment he brought it home, he knew a dog's life lasted only a little over ten years, and that he was destined to face the pain of separation by life and death.

But if he were given the choice again.

He would still raise it. He would still walk it through countless sunsets.

Because the time they spent together had been real.

The same was true in this unfamiliar otherworld.

It was through countless mundane yet warm moments of everyday life that he had gradually found a real sense of being alive and truly become part of this world.

Lance looked at the card in his hand and answered softly but firmly:

"Yes."

Though he knew full well that everyone would eventually part ways and set off toward their own futures.

He was still willing to return to that sunny afternoon.

To push open the doors of the Adventurers' Guild and say to the brown-haired girl behind the counter:

"Hello, I'm Lance."

The instant his words fell.

The card in his hand suddenly erupted with dazzling azure light.

Immediately afterward, the hard crystal began to melt, turning into countless blue motes of light in Lance's palm.

Rather than dissipating, those motes floated gently toward Lance as though alive, ultimately merging into his body.

In a daze, Lance heard a woman's voice ring in his ear.

Her voice carried a hint of languid relief as she softly said:

"I like your choice."

The next second, the familiar system panel appeared before his eyes.

[You faced the truth deep within your heart, and your answer pleased the witch]

[The witch bestowed upon you an unarmed combat art created by the man she loved most]

[You have obtained: Azure Dragon Supreme Essence Style]

So this was the greatest value of the item.

Not only could it help people face their innermost feelings, it also granted unimaginably generous rewards to those who answered honestly.

Before Lance could react, an enormous flood of knowledge about the skill began pouring madly into his mind.

Countless figures shifted and moved within his consciousness.

They were attacking movements that imitated the posture of a dragon.

Fingers like dragon claws, arms like dragon tails, spines like dragon bodies.

Every move and stance radiated a chillingly vicious aura.

A new skill line appeared prominently on the system panel.

[Azure Dragon Supreme Essence Style LV1 (0/250)]

Only after fully absorbing all that knowledge did Lance slowly open his eyes and let out a long breath.

This martial art was far too powerful.

It could even be called brutal.

The core of every move could be summed up in two words: savage violence.

It did not care about stopping short of the limit. Every strike was meant to tear apart the enemy's defenses and break their bones.

And this was also an advanced magical body art.