Riley blinked, not expecting her to share her full na just like that.
She had said it so casually, like sharing her full na with a stranger pointing a dagger at her was completely normal.
’Miranda Dawson...’ he thought, trying to rember if he ever heard that na in his past life.
However, it didn’t spark up anything in his mories.
He frowned, digging once again into the depths of his past mories, even the little parts he felt he might have ignored.
He couldn’t say he recollected every little detail about his past life, but he could proudly say he would at least rember any event which sparked up sothing huge.
But still, nothing surfaced, nothing about a player nad "Miranda Dawson" or about the userna "Lonely_Butterfly."
He found that strange.
It was practically impossible for a beta player like her with a dragon for a first summon to simply be forgotten.
Once it grew, it should be extrely powerful, a force none could easily challenge.
Miranda would surely grow along with it, and together, they should have made waves within the ga.
And yet, he couldn’t rember her.
That could only an one thing.
She had died—early. Long before the real chaos began. Before the ga fully rged with reality. Before the world truly began to crumble.
He stared at her again, this ti a question stirring within his mind.
How did she die?
As if sensing his thoughts, Miranda reached up and gently stroked the small creature on her shoulder.
It leaned into her touch and purred softly, a sight Riley found strange due to its terrifying race.
"You’re right," she said suddenly, her lips curling into a proud smirk. "This is indeed a dragon."
Riley’s eyes narrowed slightly.
"When I tried summoning my first monster," she continued, "I don’t know how... but I sohow pulled in this beautiful creature."
The smirk on her face widened, her hand still gliding over its smooth, scaled head.
"It was just an egg at first," she added, "but I could sense it was special. Great, even... thanks to my talent."
She looked back up at him, her blue eyes bright.
"And oh—my talent is S-rank Divine Eye."
Riley’s brow twitched.
’I didn’t ask to know that...’ he thought. ’Why is she sharing so much with ?’
Her sharing that much made Riley even more suspicious.
Who just casually told a stranger their full na, their talent, and the fact that they had summoned a dragon—especially when that stranger still had a dagger pointed at their throat?
It didn’t add up.
There was a strange air about her. She seed calm—too calm. Like she was used to being in situations like this, or like she didn’t see him as a threat at all. Either way, her behavior only raised more red flags in his mind.
And then there was that talent she just ntioned: S-rank Divine Eye.
Riley’s eyes narrowed slightly.
He had heard of many talents before, but he didn’t know much about the one called Divine Eye. It wasn’t one he ever personally encountered in his past life.
But even without knowing the specifics, the na alone spoke volus about its power.
S-rank Divine Eye—a na and rank like that clearly weren’t ant for an average talent.
And now, it made sense.
’So that’s how she knew my player ID...’ he thought.
No other player had been able to see it, but it wouldn’t be surprising if soone with a talent called "Divine Eye" could.
He kept his gaze locked on Miranda, every part of him still on high alert.
He wondered what else she could actually see even as she stared at him—his talent, his attributes or even his weaknesses?
Her talent was probably why she had been able to ’sense’ sothing great within the egg she summoned... which turned out to be a dragon.
Even now, it stared at him without blinking, its golden eyes calm and utterly still.
Riley’s grip on his daggers tightened slightly.
He didn’t like feeling so ’naked’ before anyone,
Just then, Miranda sighed.
She must have noticed the tension hadn’t gone down at all, because she tilted her head again, this ti with a small frown on her face.
"I already told you everything about ," she said softly. "There’s really no need to be so wary."
Riley scoffed, his lips curling slightly.
"Sharing too much is the fastest way to make soone seem suspicious," he replied coldly.
Miranda blinked.
For a mont, she didn’t say anything. Then she exhaled and leaned back slightly, propping one arm against her bent knee.
"I guess..." she said with a shrug. "Whatever suits you."
Her gaze lifted again, eting his with a curious look. And then, to his surprise, she smiled.
A slow, genuine smile.
"You’re a very interesting guy," she said. "I’d like to get even closer to you."
Riley’s brow twitched.
"No way in hell," he said, his voice cutting through the air like a blade.
’So opening up makes people more suspicious of you... shouldn’t it be the complete opposite?’ Miranda thought, tilting her head.
Her lips pressed together in a tight line, and her eyes narrowed slightly.
Still, she gave a small shrug and leaned back, deciding not to think much about it. It was his choice whether he decided to trust her or not.
Even though she’d saved him. Even though she’d practically laid her cards on the table.
That part still rubbed her a little wrong. Saving Riley had been risky on her part, and not sothing she did lightly.
But thanks to her talent, she could tell that he wasn’t a bad person, and that he wouldn’t just attack her without having a valid reason.
She could ’see’ it even now, the truth about that kind of person Riley was.
"Where did you co from?" Riley asked suddenly, breaking the silence.
Miranda blinked.
The shift in topic caught her off guard, and her brows furrowed slightly. It wasn’t the kind of question she expected from him, especially not now.
Still, she didn’t question it.
"Kindale," she replied simply. "I’m from Kindale."
Riley’s brows twitched at the ntion of the na.
’So she’s from Kindale...’ he thought, a strange glint flashing across his eyes.
Since Kindale was where the first rift opened, and the mutated dark fanged boar ran amok, it made sense why Miranda didn’t achieve much in his past life.
She had probably been one of the victims, wiped off during those first few days of the ga rging with earth.
He fell quiet for a mont, his gaze drifting slightly.
Now that the boar was dead, he couldn’t help but wonder... how much of the future would change?
That monster had killed hundreds in his past life, turning the city of Kindale to a war zone, but now, things were different.
He had killed the boar far earlier than it was supposed to descend on earth, and Terry didn’t end up facing it.
That act alone would cause a huge butterfly effect in both the real world and the ga.
No rift should open up, at least not anyti soon.
Which ant... the people who died then would live this ti, including Miranda.
He glanced at her again. She was leaning back with her arms folded behind her head, that little dragon still resting on her shoulder, except it had closed its eyes again.
If she survived, and if that dragon grew with her, then the world would change in more ways than he could imagine.
A player like her, soone with S-rank Divine Eye and a dragon for a summon... she could grow into sothing terrifying.
Either way, the effect would be massive. Just like that, the world would turn out very differently than it did in his past life.
"...I should leave now," Miranda said suddenly, breaking the silence. "I don’t want the Hungry Demon coming to get ."
Riley’s eyes widened, and his jaw clenched.
Those words—Hungry Demon—sent a slight shiver down his spine.
He gnashed his teeth, his brows twitching in annoyance.
But Miranda didn’t elaborate, only smiling at him.
A teasing, almost knowing smile.
"I hope to see you again," she added, her gaze lingering on him.
And then, a golden portal swirled open behind her, its edges sparking violently.
Without another word, she stood up, walking backwards into the portal.
Her figure soon vanished into the portal, and in the blink of an eye, the portal itself collapsed inward and disappeared like it had never been there.
Riley didn’t move, and for a few seconds, his gaze lingered on the spot the girl just vanished.
Eventually, he frowned slightly, his voice low.
"...Hungry Demon," he muttered, the words barely more than a whisper.
It felt like Miranda’s final sentence had been aid at him.
He exhaled, shaking his head lightly.
"That girl’s really annoying," he muttered under his breath.
Everything about her was weird, and the way she made him seem like an open book was unnerving.
But then again, he supposed that was expected.
Soone with a dragon for a summon couldn’t exactly be called normal.
He glanced again at where she had stood, the image of her summon popping back in his mind.
What kind of power would it wield once it matured?
And just how powerful would Miranda herself beco later on?
He didn’t know the answer yet.
But if her eyes could see what others couldn’t... then she might already have seen sothing even he hadn’t realized.
’I guess that’s enough ga play for today...’ he thought, letting out a low exhale.
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