700

The sun was shining brightly on the mountains. The birds chirped and bugs buzzed. Nature in an undisturbed form was all that could be seen as far as the eye could see and beyond. On the side of one of these mountains was a cave.

Inside John could be seen sitting in meditation. He had stayed completely still the whole night and in that time his body had healed all the damage it had suffered over the past month. As he sat the air around him began to faintly twist as light and sparks shimmered around him and the stone beneath him faintly vibrated as small plants could be seen sprouting. After only a few minutes a small snapping sound rang out and the phenomena faded like it hadn't been there before.

John at last opened his eyes and stood up. His joints crackled from being still for so long and finally being stretched again. He could feel that he had advanced to the 3rd level. At first he didn't know how to tell when he advanced but had gotten more familiar with it after repeating the process a few times.

He looked outside the cave and saw that the sun was in the sky. It was still before noon meaning he had advanced earlier than he thought. After scanning the cave he couldn't find Liz and Eva.

(Liz probably went to find a good place for Eva to practice. She mentioned that she would be teaching Eva a better method today and probably wanted a change in scenery.... Well I should go and wash my face.)

He walked out of the cave and headed for a river he had seen earlier when he was getting materials. It looked clear but he hadn't got the chance to check any closer since he found it on his way back. As he got closer he could hear a quick pounding sound. After turning at a group of bushes he could see the river and next to it was Eva. She was launching quick strikes against a tree while in a boxing like stance. With each hit her hands would be covered in a dark substance that would be left on the tree causing the bark to corrode a little bit. Liz was a few feet away and seemed to be in her own world while staring into space.

Deciding to not disturb them yet he walked over to the stream and began to start washing his face. As he got up he heard the pounding stop and a small thud. Eva was on her back breathing hard in exhaustion from her practice. Her hands were scraped and some of her knuckles had even began to bleed. Seeing that John walked up to her and started to heal them causing Eva to jump up in fright.

"Hya. J-John when did you get here?!"

"I just walked in and washed my face. You didn't notice me at all?"

"No! It felt like you just appeared next to me."

"Really? Well that has happened a lot in the past as well."

"The past?"

"Well it's due to my bloodline. I, by nature, walk in a quiet manor and often surprise people who didn't feel me coming near."

"So you're like an assassin?"

"Hunter would be a better description but i do see why you would associate them. Either way how is your practice going."

"Great! It was hard to understand at first but now I can cover my fists in darkness and after practicing for only a while I can feel that I can move faster."

"That's good to hear. By the way do you know why Liz is staring of into space?"

"I don't really know. She started to act a bit absent minded after she asked me about what I knew of the world last night. This morning she seemed to be back to normal but after teaching me she kind of went into her own world. I've just been practicing since then."

"Thanks for telling me, also make sure to rest properly. Recovery is just as big a part of gaining strength as training is." John reached out and gave a small pat on Eva's head before turning to walk towards Liz.

"OK!"

John gave Eva small smile before continuing on to Liz. Arriving next to her he sat down right next to her. She was so out of it she didn't even give a response. Finally getting a closer look he could see that she was thinking deeply on something. After waiting for a dozen minutes and watching Eva train John decided to call out to Liz.

"If you have something on your mind you can talk to me about it."

"Hya!" Liz jumped in fright and fell onto he back. Seeing this scene John couldn't help but to chuckle and then help her back to her feet.

"Don't sneak up on me like that!"

"I sneaked up on you about as much as an elephant would. Now what's on your mind?"

"Tha...that. Haa. It's because of something I learned from Eva last night."

"Oh? What could it be?"

"You know how I went into hibernation while waiting for someone to become my partner right?"

"Well ya. Could the situation have changed while you were asleep?"

"Change. Change doesn't even begin to cut it. My hibernation lasted... It lasted over 700 years!"

"What!? But how? And what about the other dragons?"

"I had heard that the hibernation mode of a dungeon core could last at most 100 years but it seems our core is only getting more and more strange. When I asked Eva what year it was she told me it was the 707th year ADGW. ADGW stands for after dragon god war! Over 700 years! Most of the captured dragons will be dead by now! Not only that but the seal on the other dragons has lasted that long. Being sealed for that long will cause a lot of damage to any beings body. Most living being will die immediately after the seal is removed even dragons will likely be in bad shape after that. It wouldn't even be all that surprising for the older generation to die. As for the younger generation many will not be able to cultivate for years afterwords due to the recovery needed to stabilize their condition."

After having ranted Liz's was breathing heavily and with a panicked look in her eyes. Seeing this John did the only thing he could. He picked her up and hugged her body. She was trembling. He slowly began to stroke her back in the hope of calming her.

"It's OK. It's OK. First of you need to breath deeply."

Following Johns words Liz began to breath as beep as she could and slowly her breath calmed down. She had buried her head into Johns chest at some point and her trembling had finally lessened after a few minutes. Still faintly upset she began to talk again after looking back up towards John.

"Thank you. I...I really was panicking right there. Who knows how long it would have taken me to calm down without you."

"It's not a problem. I'm just glad you've calmed down a bit."

"Still, thank you." Liz looked down trodden. Even if the two of them hadn't known each other for more than a month they had spent nearly every waking moment together. This caused John to see Liz as a good friend and naturally he wouldn't let her be sad if he could help it. He looked up into the sky and began to talk.

"Well look on the bright side. At least we still have a chance to save them, right. Even if a few will be lost it doesn't mean that all is for naught. We can still save as many as possible. Besides that chance is far more than others ever get. We can still do something."

Liz had gone completely silent while John spoke and as he looked he could see her looking back at him. She had a few tears in her eyes and she had began to smile.

"Really. Just how often have you tried to cheer people up? Your right. Not all is lost. We still have a chance."

"That's the Liz I know. But before that we should probably try to smooth over this situation. Eva has been looking at us for a while now."

"Eh?"

Liz turned her head in the same direction as John and could see Eva peeking out from behind the tree she was training with earlier.

"E..Eva this... this is."

"So... So sorry for ruining the mood!" With that Eva ran back toward the direction of the cave.

"Wait! This isn't what you think it is!" And Liz followed quickly after.

Now alone John began to think of what he could do to better the situation.

(The only thing that comes to mind would be to get better with healing. That should help in the long run.)