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“I’m heading out then. The meat party yesterday was fun. Thanks for the invite.”

“Yeah. Say hi to Lily for me. And can you keep Yuria from constantly looking for the camera?”

“Ahaha… Hmm, I doubt she’ll listen to me. Well then, goodbye, Yuria! See you tomorrow!”

“…!”

After spending a night at the office, Alice only stayed until lunch before heading home.

She seemed to want to stay at the office longer, but it was clear she couldn’t sit still, worrying about her older sister Lily.

A pretty and kind younger sister who prepares meals without being told and worries first.

Certainly a dream creature that every older sibling would adore.

Still, maybe because they knew they didn’t need to see each other off, Raven and Yuria watched Alice leave the entrance and then returned inside the office.

As Raven poured chocolate milk into a glass from the fridge, he glanced at Yuria, who was crawling into her closet, pondering.

‘Why is she going into the closet like that? Is that cramped space really that nice?’

No matter how hard he thought about it, the inside of a closet wasn’t really a pleasant place.

First off, it was too cramped for someone to properly stand up in. It was damp and dark, not even considering the human presence.

Since Yuria was small, she wouldn’t hit her head on the ceiling if she sat still, but even so, giving it a 5 out of 10 as a relaxation space would be generous.

Besides, if Raven had snuck in a freshly washed blanket for her or placed a portable air purifier in the corner to remove the dust, it wouldn’t even have scored a 5.

‘Well… if you want to talk about that secret base vibe, I can’t say much. I guess that stuff can be fun at that age.’

Kids will be kids, huh.

Raven placed the empty glass in the dishwasher and returned to his bed with a yawn.

There was a rustling and thumping sound coming from the closet.

What on earth was she doing in there? The noise did seem somewhat loud.

Of course, it wasn’t enough to bother him.

It was just a small noise that he could ignore if he just closed his ears a bit.

As long as it wasn’t the sound of a blanket tearing again, he thought.

With that in mind, Raven laid back on his bed and tapped on his terminal.

He was looking for information about the dragon racing broadcast happening today.

Sundays were the day when dragons raced vigorously.

The results of dragon races, which set a man’s heart ablaze, were sensitive to slight changes.

Weather, wind, competitors’ levels, starting positions, dragon racing arena, number of spectators, and so on…

Even the tiniest differences could separate first and second place, so checking this information beforehand was essential for a pro dragon racer.

“Oh, what’s this? Mega Briar and Starlight Highway are participating today? This could turn into a great match.”

“…”

“But for such a legendary duel, there could be other dark horses. Maybe the Starmist Comet, who’s not looking too great, might surprisingly take first…”

“…!”

“Wait, what? When did you get here? Weren’t you going to the bathroom?”

Raven, who was focused on his terminal, looked up in surprise as Yuria had come closer without him noticing.

He had felt her presence coming out of the closet but hadn’t expected her to come over.

But regardless of how he reacted, Yuria, holding a terminal in one hand, glued herself to the bed frame with an expression full of curiosity.

What appeared on the terminal screen was a scene from dragon racing that he was quite familiar with.

Seeing that, Raven wondered if she had developed any interest in dragon racing.

Yuria tilted her head a bit, nodding as if to say she was feeling that way now.

Raven quickly adjusted his posture and said with a rather suspicious smile,

“Ah, the timing is just right. It’s a perfect season for getting into this. So, first, watch this race. This was the DR Final League finals held at Night Haven Royal Stadium two years ago. The participants here all have impressive histories and stories…”

“…”

On the screen of Raven’s terminal, a creature often referred to as Drake in this world – a bipedal dragon – charged forth with great force.

Though it wasn’t a dragon given its lack of intelligence or magical abilities, it was an monstrous creature that far surpassed ordinary beasts.

Naturally, the race they were running was also conveyed with a grandness and power that felt like a huge mountain was moving.

Dragon racing boasted itself as the largest sport of this era. How could there be anyone who didn’t like this?

Lost in the romance of it all, Raven eventually realized that Yuria was also bouncing with excitement, deeply focused on the race.

Haha, have I just added another companion?

He glances at her as she stood entranced, staring at the screen with delighted amusement.

‘Wait, what is she looking at right now…?’

Given the timing and her reaction, it seemed Yuria was cheering for the gray dragon, Gray Manister, which was limping behind in the race.

It had been raised under abuse by an illegal organization in its youth but had been rescued by a fixer and was now racing.

Though it performed close to the first division, it couldn’t be said to be a popular dragon at all.

Of all the dragons, why was she cheering for this one?

Did she perhaps relate to its situation somehow?

Completely oblivious to the fact that Yuria was simply fascinated by the named dragons, Raven felt a splash of cold water douse his earlier cheerful mood as his brows furrowed slightly.

And he thought while looking at Yuria, who was intently focusing on the screen,

‘Every time this happens, I am reminded that she’s a ghost. She probably thinks she’s not showing it much but…’

A ghost, an irregular of the city with powers that shouldn’t exist.

No matter how he thought about it, Yuria could only be seen as that ghost.

Of course, he hadn’t yet seen with his own eyes the mysterious powers that the ghost had displayed.

But the sometimes grossly insufficient common sense and her speed that defied all logic hinted at a troubling past…

Her actions, which surely suggested she had a bad past, made it painfully obvious that she was the very ghost.

Well, Alice, who was still obsessed with the ghost, seemed completely unaware that Yuria was indeed the ghost.

‘But the fact that this is related to the Nexus project… I still don’t know that. I can’t directly ask what kind of past she has. All I can do now is wait for an opportunity…’

Raven’s thoughts became quite muddled.

He knew that Yuria was the same as the ghost, but that alone didn’t offer him any course of action.

Initially, his aim in uncovering the ghost’s identity was to secure the ghost, who likely came from a dismal environment, and then uncover any ties to the Invaders…

But no matter how he looked at it, Yuria didn’t seem to think poorly of herself and had a cheerful outlook on life, plus he couldn’t find any clue about her link to Invaders.

Moreover, directly asking her seemed tricky since she had become too close with the fixer office crew.

What if Yuria, if discovered to be a ghost, panicked and fled from the office?

He would certainly miss her if she disappeared the next day.

Imagining how hurt Alice, who cared deeply, or David, who might not show it but held strong camaraderie, would feel was dizzying.

‘Sigh… If I had known I’d end up convinced she was a ghost, I wouldn’t have invited her to stay. All I can do now is hope she’s not a bad one.’

As he thought that, he grabbed Yuria’s head, which was swaying left and right in tune with the dragon’s movements on screen, and started shaking it.

Startled by this sudden roughhousing, Yuria swayed helplessly like a reed, tapping him as if to say stop it, but he just laughed and kept teasing.

“Hehe, sorry, sorry. Your head is so round I just had to shake it a bit.”

“…!!”

“What do you want for dinner? Should we slice up some steak?”

“……!”

What are you doing!?

Yuria raised her hands over her head, wary of Raven, who suggested they might have steak. She slowly nodded while thinking over it.

Just by saying he’d buy her tasty food, her anger dissipated quickly. What in the world do I do with such a docile kid?

Raven chuckled to himself and stood up.

But soon, when Greg arrives, things will change somehow.

Even though he couldn’t get in touch right now, Greg was a considerable powerhouse in Raven’s eyes.

As long as he wasn’t up against a monster like the Dragon Mayor, he wouldn’t easily be taken down.

Ding!

Just when Raven was thinking that, a message popped up on the terminal screen showing the dragon racing video.

Coincidentally, the sender was Greg, the very person Raven had been thinking about.

Yuria noticed this and bounced around excitedly, urging him to show her quickly.

How did he arrive right at this timing? Was he watching somewhere?

With those thoughts racing in his mind, Raven tapped the screen to reveal the message.

Yuria and Raven exchanged puzzled glances after reading it.

[Raven, sorry, but I need help.]

The message was ambiguous, as if it had been sent in haste, with no clear indication of what he needed help with.

It seemed that something was definitely going wrong.