Dragon's Awakening: The Duke's Son Is Changing The Plot-Chapter 373 - 372 - “Now you see.”

The orb of light hovered before him, golden and smug, like a divine notification that refused to be swiped away.

Raven stared at it, his arms folding as soon as he heard the question.

He didn’t even need to think. He already knew what he was going to ask.

"Tia," he said, his tone even. "Tell me what’s coming next. The reason I’ve been feeling this... tension. Like something’s wrong."

Omni drawled. "Man, I swear I’m gonna start laughing if it turns out to be nothing."

Raven didn’t reply to the sword because he knew what he was feeling. The unease had been gnawing at him for some time now—like the world itself was holding its breath.

The orb pulsed once—amused and thoughtful—then the reply came.

Tia: "You really don’t waste time, do you? Fine, then. Let’s see what your precious gut feeling could mean."

Her light dimmed slightly, and when she spoke again, her voice had that playful, dangerous calm of someone about to cause emotional damage.

Tia: "Let’s see. Option one: indigestion. You did eat that burnt mana steak Clara made yesterday."

There was a pause before she continued.

"Option two: post-battle trauma. You did nearly get eaten by a black dragon the size of a cathedral."

After another dramatic pause, she added, "Option three: the black dragon’s heart still thumping two feet away from your bed is making your nervous system reconsider its career choices."

Raven and Omni both stiffened.

Omni hissed, "Oh, no. No, no, no—she’s trolling us. She’s gonna waste the question."

Raven’s jaw tightened. "Tia, are you—"

The orb suddenly glowed with angelic smugness.

Tia: "Relax, mortal dramatist. Unlike you, I’m not ungrateful. I actually know how to do my job."

Omni muttered, "She says that like she isn’t the reason my sarcasm detection glitched last time."

The orb flickered red for a moment.

Tia: "Do you want it glitched again?"

Omni: "...I’ll shut up."

The golden hue softened again as Tia’s voice became serious—eerily so.

Tia: "That feeling you’ve been having, Raven... It’s not your imagination. The barrier surrounding the Four Kingdom Alliance—your precious little corner of the continent—is about to collapse."

Raven froze for a second, hearing the first thing about the world.

He had yet to discover what lay beyond the four kingdoms, as he hadn’t even been able to see every corner of the other kingdoms, but now, he knows that there was a barrier around the four kingdoms.

He was sure that this information was already known to Argon and Crisaius, as they had both been the patriarchs of the strongest family in the four-kingdom alliance.

But for now, he decided to focus on the more pressing matter.

He blinked. "Collapse? You mean—"

Tia: "Yes. The wall separating this region from the outer world is fading. The same barrier that’s kept you all safe from what’s really out there."

The orb’s light dimmed further, as if it couldn’t bear to illuminate what it was saying.

Tia: "Once it breaks, you’ll no longer be an isolated world. The outside forces, who always had an eye on your region, would finally be able to enter. And, Raven... they are not kind. Out there, beings exist who could defeat even Argon and Crisaius with little effort. Some might do it for fun."

For a second, the room was silent.

Even the Dragon Heart had gone still, as if the world itself paused to let the words sink in.

Raven exhaled slowly. "So that’s what it was... that dread. The calm before the next disaster."

Omni broke the silence with a low whistle. "Great. Just when we thought the apocalypse subscription ended, it turns out it auto-renewed."

Raven smirked faintly. "Figures. The moment a protagonist starts to relax, the universe drops a boulder on his peace of mind."

He leaned back, running a hand through his hair. "You know what’s funny? I no longer feel surprised. I think I’m just tired of being surprised."

Omni chuckled. "Cheer up, Boss. At least we know the next arc’s gonna have good loot drops."

Raven shot him a look. "Omni, if the world ends, there won’t be loot. There’ll be trauma and tax increases."

"Hey, same thing."

Tia pulsed faintly, a soft hum of amusement in her tone.

Tia: "Well, look on the bright side. At least you know before everyone else. That’s what makes you special."

"Yeah," Raven muttered dryly. "Specially doomed."

The orb flickered mischievously.

Tia: "You could always ask me how to stop it."

Raven raised an eyebrow. "I only get one question per month, remember?"

Tia: "Exactly. So... see you next month~"

And just like that, she vanished in a trail of fading gold light.

The room fell quiet again—too quiet.

Omni exhaled. "Well, Boss. Looks like peace was just a paid vacation."

Raven grinned faintly. "Yeah. And apparently, my leave just got revoked. All because more trouble came knocking at my door."

He was about to lie back down when—

Knock. Knock.

The sound was soft but heavy, like fate itself had politely decided to arrive at his doorstep.

Raven’s eyes widened. "...The fuck? Did it really come knocking?"

Omni groaned. "Please tell me it’s not another dragon."

"Knowing our luck?" Raven stood, rolling his shoulders. "It’s probably worse."

He turned toward the door, the faint pulse of the Dragon Heart echoing behind him like a war drum waiting to start again.

The worst thing about the situation was that Raven couldn’t even tell who it was on the other side of the door, as their aura wasn’t something he had felt before.

The knocks echoed again, slow and deliberate.

Raven’s hand hovered near his sword tattoo, instincts flaring. Omni stayed silent—too silent.

The air was thick.

Even the Dragon Heart in the corner pulsed slower, as though listening.

Raven took a step forward. Then another.

When he finally reached the door, he rested his palm against it, feeling a faint hum—an aura, foreign yet eerily familiar.

He frowned. ’Not an enemy. But not safe either.’

With a controlled breath, he unlatched it. The door swung open with a muted groan.

Standing on the other side was Valeria.

Raven blinked. "...Valeria?"

His older sister—proud, composed, and sharp as a blade—stood before him, her expression unreadable.

Her eyes met his, calm, but not quite her calm.

Before he could speak again, she stepped past him, her boots soundless against the floor.

Her gaze immediately found the pulsing Dragon Heart.

The veins across its surface glowed faintly in the dim light, each beat radiating an aura that bent the air.

"So it’s true," she murmured, almost to herself. "There really is a dragon heart..."

Raven closed the door slowly, not taking his eyes off her. "You came all the way here to stare at it?"

Valeria tilted her head slightly. "No. I came to tell you you’re wasting it."

She glanced back at him, eyes gleaming faintly under the room’s dim light. "That heart’s blood still flows. You could drink it. Its essence could merge with your mana and strengthen your core. Or better—forge it into a weapon. Something worthy of your... potential."

Raven frowned. The way she said it—too smooth, too deliberate.

Valeria had always been careful of how he reacted to her words wherever she spoke, as if scared that it would offend him, but right now, it was different.

Something about her tone was wrong.

And her aura... it wasn’t quite hers.

’Demon?’ He muttered inwardly.

Omni’s voice whispered in his head. "Boss, she’s talkin’ like one of them charm-speak bastards. I don’t like this vibe."

Raven’s expression hardened.

Without another word, the tattoo on his arm flared, black tendrils of light coiling up his wrist.

In a flash, Omni materialized—a black blade, sleek and quiet, pulsing faintly with voidlight.

Raven took a cautious step forward. "You wanna tell me who you really are?"

Valeria didn’t move. Didn’t even flinch.

He kept advancing, his voice lowering. "Or should I skip the part where you lie and just ask what you’re doing in my sister’s body?"

Silence.

Then—slowly—Valeria turned.

Her movements were languid and graceful. And when her face came into view, Raven’s grip on Omni faltered for just a second.

Her eyes weren’t red anymore.

They glowed gold. Soft. Gentle. Almost... kind.

And her expression wasn’t angry or mocking—it was tender. Motherly, even.

The kind of gaze that disarmed you, not by fear, but by a familiarity you couldn’t place.

Raven’s throat tightened. For a heartbeat, something in his chest twisted painfully.

But he shook it off, tightening his grip on the sword. "Who. Are. You."

Valeria smiled faintly. "Why don’t you see for yourself?"

He narrowed his eyes. "What are you playing at?"

"Infuse your soul power into your eyes," she said softly. "It’ll hurt for a moment, but you’ll be fine."

Raven hesitated, as he wasn’t sure who she was.

But still... the way she said it—gentle, certain—made his instincts war with his suspicion.

Above all, there was no way his own soul power would harm him.

"...Fine."

He took a slow breath and did as she said.

His veins pulsed once—twice—before his eyes burned with golden light. A flash of pain shot through his skull.

He winced, almost staggering—but when his vision cleared—

He saw her.

Not Valeria. Not a demon.

A woman.

Golden hair like flowing sunlight. Golden eyes, radiant and infinite, staring straight into him—not at him, but through him.

Every piece of his being froze.

Even Omni went silent, his usual quips dying in the static between heartbeats.

Time itself felt wrong—like the world had forgotten how to breathe.

The woman smiled, tender and warm, a serenity that felt older than anything he’d ever known.

And in a voice as soft as dawn, she whispered—

"Now you see."

The world dimmed.

The Dragon Heart pulsed once—louder than before.

And Raven didn’t move, didn’t blink—because something deep inside him whispered back, ’I’ve seen her before.’