My SSS-Rank Clone Talent: I Level Up Endlessly! novel Chapter 89

Chapter 89: The Truth behind Gates!?

For a moment, Eryke didn’t know what to do. But in the end, he sighed, took the baby dragon into his arms, and looked up at the dragon crying in the skies.

"Hey, you big lizard!" he shouted.

The dragon squeezed its eyes shut, forcing back its tears. Then, with a sudden snap, it opened them again, its gaze locking onto Eryke.

A terrifying pressure rippled through the air as its stomach began to glow.

The very atmosphere coiled and trembled under the overwhelming force as the dragon opened its jaws, a beam of light building within, ready to strike.

But just then, its vertical pupils landed on the small figure cradled in Eryke’s arms.

At the nick of time, the dragon turned its head skyward, and the beam shot upward, piercing the heavens in one go.

For a moment, the entire sky blazed orange, so bright that even the sun seemed to retreat behind its brilliance.

The beam lasted a solid two minutes before finally fading, leaving the sky clear and devoid of clouds.

Eryke felt a chill run through his heart.

’That ray was stronger than before. If it had even grazed me...’ He swallowed hard.

The dragon fell silent, its gaze fixed once more on Eryke.

"Human, give me my child back."

"Will you let me go if I do?"

"Yes."

"...But I don’t believe you," Eryke replied.

"If you don’t give me my baby, then die with him."

The dragon opened its jaws, ready to strike.

But Eryke only sneered:

"I don’t believe it. Go on, kill me right now, if you truly don’t care about your baby."

Silence.

Heavy, absolute silence.

Tension brewed in the air like a storm held just at bay.

Then, after an uncomfortably long pause, the dragon let out a rough cough and finally spoke:

"Human... what must I do to earn your trust?"

"Tell me the truth," Eryke said, staring straight at him. "I thought all the monsters in the Gate didn’t have minds, that they just hunted humans. But this place... it feels like an entirely different world."

"Gates, you say?" The dragon touched its chin in contemplation. "Do you mean Ruined World, human?"

"Ruined World?" Eryke narrowed his eyes: "You mean... this is a ruined world?"

"That’s right. Those world’s balance have already collapsed and are actively dying. Fractures in space appear from time to time, those are where you aliens come through."

"...What if the space fully breaks down? Will you all die with it?"

"That’s right, human. This world is at the very end of its lifespan. When it finally collapses, everything in it, us included, will cease to exist."

"Is that why, after the gate stays long enough, the monster inside invades my world?" Eryke said with an unflinching expression.

"Every living being has the instinct of survival. When the world falls apart, naturally the creature won’t want to die, so they follow the rupture in space."

"Then the final question: what makes this world so special?"

Eryke’s eyes shone.

"I don’t know," the dragon shook its head. "There are many mysteries in the world that you have to explore on your own."

"..." Eryke just stared straight at the dragon’s eyes, and it didn’t flinch a bit.

’He doesn’t seem to be lying?’

"...I want to change my question then."

"What is it?"

"Have you seen a space rupture recently in this world?"

"No, human." The dragon shook its large head. "Although this is a fallen world, it has not reached the complete point of destruction yet. From my knowledge, there should be no space ruptures."