…
“Uuuh, aaah!”
Riselia had gone unconscious. It was only for a moment, about ten seconds at best. It couldn’t have been any more than that. But when she came to, Elfiné’s face was right before her eyes, looking at her with a cold, emotionless gaze.
✦ ✦ ✦
✦ ✦ ✦
“Miss… F-Finé…,” Riselia attempted to say, but her voice only came out in a croak.
She was being choked out. Her entire body went limp. The True Ancestor’s Dress, which guarded her body, had already dematerialized.
“Wh-why… Agh?!” Riselia groaned.
The slender fingertips dug deeper into her throat. And—
“—lia…dy Seliaaaaa!”
The last thing she thought she heard before her consciousness went out was Regina’s voice.
✦ ✦ ✦
Imperial standard time, 16:05.
The Seventh Assault Garden’s Central Garden area. The burnt remains of a decaying dragon emanated a repugnant stench.
“Leo…niiiiiiiiis…”
“Learn when to give up, Archsage,” Leonis said, stomping on the vines of the Holy Tree wiggling at his feet.
The Divine Dragon of the Six Heroes, Gisark Saint Dragon, once feared as a great hero of the dragonkin and enemy to the Dark Lords’ Armies, had turned into a Void Lord. And now, he was perishing alongside the Archsage that had been resurrected through much the same means as him.
It seems he turned him into an undead, but in this state, he will never be resurrected again.
As he thoroughly stomped on the vines that still writhed with malice, Leonis turned around.
“It seems even you had trouble facing a dragon-slaying hero, Dragon Lord.”
“…O-oh, tone it down, will you? The Divine Dragon’s always been a difficult opponent for me!” Veira, having reverted to her human form, snapped back at him, her crimson hair dancing like a billowing flame.
“Hmph. What are you doing in my city to begin with? I thought you were pursuing the Devil of the Underworld and the Otherworldly Castle?”
“Azra-Ael gave me the slip, but I was able to reclaim the Almagest. It helped me figure out a lot of things, so I thought I should let you know. But when I came here to do that…” Veira landed on the rubble and glanced at Gisark’s disintegrating body. “I found my old nemesis, the Divine Dragon, running amok.”
“…”
“What’s the meaning of this? I thought only the Undead King could turn one of the Six Heroes into an undead…,” Veira said, her golden eyes fixed on Leonis.
“…True. This would be impossible for anyone but me.”
“That’s right, no one but you would be able to… Wait, did you just admit to it?”
Leonis walked off, ignoring Veira’s confused frown.
“Hey, Leo?!”
He stabbed one large blade into the undead dragon’s front leg. This was one of the swords he had thrown from atop the building during his battle with Gisark.
This could have been dangerously close if this sword didn’t cut through the Divine Dragon’s leg.
Leonis gripped the sword’s hilt and looked up to the cloudy sky. It was then that he spotted a figure on the tower’s rooftop…
“Erm, m-my lord?!”
A girl in a maid’s outfit emerged from the shadow under the rubble.
“Hmm, Shary. You’ve done well this time; your hard work is worthy of my praise.” Leonis turned around and encouraged Shary. If she hadn’t set up a shadow gate inside Gisark’s body, he wouldn’t have won this battle. “You’ve done well to defend the kingdom in my absence. Your distinguished service is deserving of a Special Bone Medal.”
“M-my lord! I’m not worthy!” Shary shook her head in a flustered manner. “I was unable to follow your orders with my own meager powers and had to rely on the Dragon Lord’s help to protect the orphans. If anyone should be honored with a Great Bone Medal, it should be the Dragon Lord—”
“…I don’t want it,” Veira whispered, her eyes narrowing peevishly.
“…Either way, we can decide the matter of your reward later. Give me your report on what happened in my absence.”
“O-of course—I actually have very important news to report regarding that…”
But before she could go on—
“Oh-hoh. So you’re the so-called Zol Vadis.”
Something crashed into the ground like a meteor with a thundering impact, kicking up a large cloud of dust.