I wonder what I should do now… He asked himself after leaving the guildhouse. The lady owner would probably scold me for not returning early. Well, it's not like not going is a good plan but… it's already about 2 a.m. so I should probably just wander around.

Kazuki then turned his head towards the direction where you would find the town gate. He thought to himself for a while. Thinking if it was safe for him to go to the forest just outside the town walls.

He shrugged, then walked off without thinking much of the things that might happen. He didn't really worry much due to the fact that he was at the peak of level 1. And the demon beasts that appear in the surface are normally weak because of the humans that reside near their habitat.

Reaching the town gate then leaving the confines of the walls surrounding the town, he began to jog towards the forest past the eastern side of the town. And because of the time being just a couple of hours past midnight, the sky was still in its dark state. The surroundings were dark, but still calming in a way due to the winds gently blowing past Kazuki's countenance.

Now that he was truly alone within the forest, he had the time and chance to do anything he wanted as long as he could do so. But he did not come here to train or anything of sorts. He only wished to think to himself while he took in fresh air.

First sitting down then leaning into a tree, he sighed. He also wore a calm expression while he stared at the sky past the hundreds of leaves connected to the many branches of each tree. The cool wind made him slightly drowsy, but he was able to keep himself awake very easily.

I could probably just sleep here… He thought to himself. But as soon as he remembered that he would be basically defenseless while he slept, he threw the idea out the window. Though he planned not to fall asleep while he sat there being lulled by the soft wind, he still had the capability to daydream. He had his guard up while he did so of course.

I wonder… Am I still the same as the me that once lived on Earth? He rested his head on his hand. Do I still like that girl?

Though I act as if I'm obsessed, I actually have no idea. My memories of her were really limited. I have so little information about her right now that I don't even know how I truly feel.

But what if I remember everything about her and just not at all be interested in her? Would that make me a different person from who I was? I have no idea. The only way to find out is to remember or meet her again.

Kazuki then turned his head to look at his right hand. He then moved it next to his face and pinched his own cheek. Yup, I'm totally not dreaming right now…

I... probably shouldn't worry about myself changing so drastically. There's no chance of that happening any time now.

"Hahhh… I want to see that cute expression again… Can't she just be the crown princess of a kingdom? That would make my life so much easier~"

Ahh who am I kidding? That's so unlikely to happen. But I won't really mind if she's just a commoner. I will still love her the same way as I did back then.

He then chuckled to himself. "I'm totally not going to change." He continued to smile as if he were the most content person in the world.

A startling scream from the deeper parts of the forest was unexpectedly heard by Kazuki. His time to himself was immediately disrupted due to this and he began to run to find the source of the scream.

It sounded like it came from a person who would be about thirty or more. Kazuki was intrigued on what could be the cause of the screaming. But was also worried if the person was in total danger due to the fear he had noticed in the screams.

After a few seconds or so, he arrived at the scene. There was a carriage that crashed into a tree. Looking at the snapped rope tied in front of the carriage, it seems like the horses already ran away. And seeing the structure of the carriage, it seems to be one that you would use for transporting products. The ones merchants would always use.

Then, as Kazuki looked around to find the man who caused the screaming from earlier, he could only find a trail of torn cloth going deeper into the forest. He had a hunch that the person wouldn't be able to come back out since the deeper you go into an uninhabited area(by humans), the stronger the demon beasts are.

He then peeked into the contents of the carriage. Looking around in the dark space, he could make out shapes that would either be crates or cages stacked on top of each other. But they were completely covered by a layer of cloth. Kazuki then removed the cloth and saw what was under it.

Cages. Not just any kind, but the kind made just for containing creatures of the reptilian family. But these cages were slightly tweaked to match the needed conditions in containing the creatures in it. The metal used was magically enhanced and was very durable. It's tensile strength being beyond average as well as it's yield and impact strength. It was also very resistant to any temperature.

And these cages, were specifically made to contain dragons of a very, very young age. Even a baby is already strong enough to kill a lower level 2 human. And their flame breaths would reach up to 1000 degrees Celsius. Though these creatures were already so formidable, they are still infants, in their growing stage and of course they are still vulnerable. You would think that the countermeasures would be too much but it's actually not perfect.

There are many kinds of dragons. There are even some that have higher intelligence than humans. And of course there are those that have special traits such as nearly indestructible scales, flame breaths that are a lot stronger than others, enhanced sensing capabilities, and many others. But the first one Kazuki had found in the carriage was one of the most abnormal.

What dragon bloodline did this one come from…? Kazuki asked himself in confusion. It's scales are completely black…and it's eyes are like amber crystals…there's even three protruding gold scales on its head… it kinda looks like a crown...

The baby dragon seemed tense, ready to breathe fire at Kazuki. But Kazuki slowly stepped back, somewhat raising his hands to show he had no intention of hurting it. It calmed down slightly right after, but it was still a bit on guard.

Thinking it was probably a bit too dangerous for him to free that one dragon, he looked at the others that were caged. They were the types of dragons you would normally expect. Some of the fire element, others with ice or water, and a bit of earth. They didn't seem to much of a threat and they looked like they weren't all too afraid of Kazuki. So, he looked around to find the keys for the many cages.

While he did so, he also found a batch of eggs, likely dragon eggs and placed them somewhere he could easily see. Then, after finding the keys, he released all of the many dragons one by one. Those who were freed either immediately flew or ran away. But of course, Kazuki was not attacked by any one of them. They all just ran into the forest.

Hahh… Luckily I found this. If I didn't, these guys would've probably turned into sources of mana or ingredients for potions.

When he looked for the keys earlier, he didn't find any kind of permit to sell the dragons so he just assumed that it was probably an illegal importation of the creatures. He also didn't find any kind of a sign that the owner of the carriage was someone who sold familiars. It really was a good thing that he found the carriage since if he didn't, the dragons would likely die of starvation.

And pertaining to the dragon eggs. It was simply illegal to be in possession of any kind of eggs that came from dragons. So he had to think of a plan for finding a home for them. Also, baby dragons don't come out of the egg unless it's absorbed enough mana and has been developed enough that it could live without much help from its parents. But it would take a really really long time if he just left the eggs somewhere. Since the mana in the air would be insufficient for the baby to be born. And it's simply dangerous to leave an egg out in the open. It needs to be protected.

So, he put it aside to be thought of later. And now that he was basically done with everything, he then stared at the black dragon. It looked to be a lot calmer than before. Its guard was so lowered that you would easily think that it trusts you. But Kazuki was still cautious of it while he slowly unlocked the cage.

Kachunk!

The cage opened without fail. But even given the chance, the dragon still did not attack Kazuki. It's the opposite actually. The dragon not only flew towards him and landed on his shoulder, it also nuzzled against his cheek.

Hm? It's scales… it turned into fur? Wait, how is that possible?

It seems like the dragon has taken an interest in him. It doesn't look like it has any intention to hurt or kill Kazuki anymore. More like it wants to learn more about him.

Wha-?!

It's eyes suddenly shone a bright amber light. And to Kazuki's surprise, his left hand also emitted the same light. Before he could react, the dragon had already went to his left arm and fused with it. With a blinding light being flashed as the dragon went into his arm.

After the light subsided, Kazuki instantly checked his left arm. The dragon was nowhere to be found. But, tattooed on his palm, was a four pointed black star.

Kazuki was left in utter silence and confusion. Not knowing what had just happened, he tried to think it through for a little bit. Only to find no good reason for it to happen.

"What...the hell was that…?"