"Get up."

  "Wow, what's this?"

  While sleeping, Zephyr suddenly felt his body weight increase several times. Even with his eyes open, he couldn't get up at first, shocked to see several rings had appeared on his limbs.

  "Go running." Loris pointed to the end of the street, "Run around the town ten times, then hunt."

  "I... this... how can I run?" Struggling to support himself, Zephyr said with a conflicted expression. He tried lifting his foot but was nearly crushed by the added weight.

  "Run with your feet, or you could choose to fly."

  "...What is all this for?"

  "Training."

  "Isn't magic enough? I'm learning it very quickly!" Loris gave him three days to study, and by the second day, Zephyr had already mastered his first spell.

  Just as she said, after mastering the spell and engraving it into his mental consciousness, Zephyr could vividly visualize the array pattern whenever he thought about it.

  Each time he used magic, the activated array would connect with external forces. Since the array was closely linked to him, part of the external force would flow into his body.

  Part of this energy would be absorbed and digested like food, becoming his own power. Though the amount was minimal, he could clearly feel it. Previously, his body felt empty, but now he could sense mana.

  However, practice revealed that this absorption wasn't unlimited. First, using magic consumed mental strength, preventing constant use. Accumulating mana also involved a digestive capacity.

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  Eating too much in a day makes one feel stuffed; accumulating mana worked similarly.

  But because he was a dragon, his digestion was stronger. Zephyr hadn't experienced the 'stuffed' feeling Loris mentioned. The spells he knew were too low-level, limiting daily mana accumulation.

  "Magic is just one aspect. You have more conditions and talents to learn other powers," Loris removed a long glove and waved her hand through the air, forming an energy whip that could extend...

  Stunned by the over thirty-meter-long crack she easily created, Zephyr silently began running. If that whip hit him, he'd be rolling on the ground in pain.

  "You're too slow. Speed up." Hearing the sound of the whip cracking, Zephyr quickened his pace, though he really wanted to turn and see what Loris looked like now.

  While running, he wondered why the ground didn't crack under his multiplied weight. Shouldn't it have been destroyed?

  The town wasn't large but not small either. After running, Zephyr was left gasping for breath. Without any break, Loris approached him, lightly swinging a whip that had shrunk to about a meter in length.

  "I'm hungry."

  "..." Lying on the ground, Zephyr rolled his eyes. Hungry? In these days, he hadn't seen Loris eat anything except drink water. She never seemed hungry, making him suspect if she needed food at all.

  Struggling to stand with his exhausted body, he hadn't steadied himself when his back suddenly sank!

  Loris was light, but the multiple gravity effect made her sitting on his back amplify the pressure significantly, almost crushing him.

  "Is this training just to strengthen my body?"

  "A dragon's body differs from humans or humanoid races, so you can't use their combat techniques, but you can try battle aura."

  "Doesn't that shorten lifespan!? And magical beasts can't learn it either!"

  "You're a dragon, though similar to magical beasts. Normal dragons can't learn it, but your physique differs." Loris sat steadily on his back, swinging her legs, "Even if unsuccessful, it strengthens your body. You likely won't have a metamorphosis sleep phase, so you must compensate through training."

  "If successful, being a dragon allows you to ignore the side effects of battle aura due to strong physique."

  "Really?" Zephyr remained skeptical, sensing Loris was confirming something.

  "That's only part of the reason. We'll discuss more once you can produce battle aura. Move."

  "...Why is there such a thing in the forest!?" Zephyr stared in shock at a giant snake coiled around a dozen trees ahead. Over thirty meters long and as wide as an adult's waist, Zephyr thought his own size was considerable.

  Only the large lion he saw before compared, though it couldn't match him. But against this snake, he seemed insignificant. How many times could it wrap around him!?

  Moreover, the snake had an irregular horn on its head, occasionally emitting electric arcs, clearly dangerous.

  "You can't defeat it yet. Take a detour." Loris glanced at the snake indifferently.

  Zephyr nodded, preparing to retreat quietly, but the snake seemed unwilling to let them go, staring directly at him.

  "Oh, dragons are great nourishment for some magical beasts. It's a pity; it could be a good future opponent for you." Seeing the snake approach quickly, Loris shook her head slightly, flicking her whip.

  The whip extended dozens of times, instantly splitting the approaching snake in two. The horn on its head was wrapped by the shortened whip and tossed into a rift Loris opened.

  Zephyr stared in shock at the instantly killed snake. Its blood splattered but quickly corroded, turning black and foul upon touching the ground. Its body rapidly decayed until nothing remained!

  "This death is too thorough!" Zephyr exclaimed, realizing in this world, the stronger the beast or magical beast, the better its meat.

  "There's still blood!" Loris said with a serious face.

  "..." That's sewage!