“Grab on to the wall!”
At Deruth’s order, the troops rushed to grip the wall or flatten themselves against the floor.
The explosion shook the entire area. Although the blast had occurred in the sky, the aftershocks rattled the walls.
“This war goes beyond mankind,” Deruth muttered. Indeed, the conflict far exceeded the traditional hostilities between people.
He looked over at his wife and son—then loosed a half gasp, half laugh. Cale, who had gotten back up at some point, had deployed a small shield to protect the countess, the doctor, and the priest. At the sight of it, realization dawned on Deruth. This is a war beyond human capabilities, and my son is at the center of this battle.
Seeing his son on his feet and looking much better left the count with a complicated feeling. He pushed off the wall and stood up.
Cale, on the other hand, had no idea what Deruth was thinking as he stared into the burning darkness, spotting a momentary flash within the explosion. “What the hell is that?”
Like most people without martial arts training, Cale didn’t have enhanced vision; he couldn’t make out any details. What he’d seen was Choi Han’s power. Choi Han’s all-but-perfect darkness had absorbed the dead mana, and the combination of light and darkness had resulted in a detonation.
As for what remained at the site…
Drip, drip.
Rain continued to fall. Few drops landed directly on the ground, instead drenching the corpses of wyverns and bears, mixing with their blood. As the wind and the rain washed away the dust and debris in the air, the full scene finally came into view.
Audible fractures skittered across the helmeted knight’s armor, and pieces began to chip off. Soon the set of armor, forged by a dwarf who dreamed of seizing a dragon, shattered and fell to the muddy ground.
“You bastards!” the knight swore, gritting his teeth. “Ugh!” He hacked up blood as he hobbled to his feet, staring straight ahead with red-rimmed eyes.
The white tiger, Gashan, had used his incantations to protect Choi Han. Holding his wounded shoulder, Choi Han regarded the dragon slayer—but the dragon slayer wasn’t looking at him.
“Ha… Ha ha…”
Though the helmeted knight was spitting blood, Choi Han could see that he was otherwise unharmed. That armor of his had been truly incredible. And Raon had destroyed it all the same.
The knight’s glare turned ice-cold. A pack of natural disasters roiled inside his body, enveloping him as if he’d turned into the Dragon-Slaying Sword himself.
With a mad cackle, he mumbled, “There’s a dragon here. Right this minute.”
Only a dragon could destroy an item forged by the Flame Dwarves. He’d assumed a talented mage was imitating him, but now he knew a dragon was somewhere nearby, looking down at him over its snout. It had probably lent his foes its power just this once to eliminate him.
The dwarf who’d given him the armor had said the following: “This cannot withstand Dragon’s Breath, but it should be able to guard against your average mature dragon’s magic.”
“Even a dragon lord?”
“Why bring up something that doesn’t exist? The dragon lord is the emperor of magic; this armor wouldn’t hold up against it. If there really were such a thing as a dragon lord, would we be doing this? Anyway, it should deflect an ancient dragon’s magic at least once as well. That’s the limit.”
The dragon slayer’s instincts told him an ancient dragon, or one beyond that level, was present. But isn’t there only one? He only knew of a single ancient dragon, and that one was close to death. Was there another?
More laughter bubbled out of him. These scaly bastards sure are persistent. The ancient dragon had probably bided its time, watching with a haughty expression as these forces of nature clashed. It had no other reason to step in when it did. Had it been involved from the beginning, it would have used Dragon Fear and Dragon Breath to kill him. Since he hadn’t completed his development, it would have had no trouble bringing him down.
“Ghk!”
The knight spewed out more blood. The moment the armor cracked, he had yanked the sword-shaped Ancient Power out of Choi Han to guard himself. Still, Choi Han’s aura and the dead-mana explosion had battered his internal organs. It felt as if his insides were all twisted up. He hadn’t experienced this for quite some time.
If only I had the crown! That was the only reason he’d bowed his head to that crazy bastard in the first place.
As the knight thought about the reason for his incomplete state, he ground his teeth, stewing in disappointment. He couldn’t achieve his full power because some lowlifes had stolen the crown.
Furthermore, his weapon—the Sword of Disasters—had shattered and reformed a couple of times, so he was reaching his limit. He could only use the sword once more in this battle. His vessel couldn’t take more than that.
While he possessed one more dragon catcher ability, it was a pitiful power he didn’t need: the Dominating Aura. Only a scammer would use that laughable power; it didn’t suit the dignity of a dragon slayer. The aura it produced was an illusion without any real might.
Looking around, the knight made up his mind to capture the ones who had stolen the crown, no matter what it took. “These bastards don’t know when to quit.”
Another arrow mimicking his power hovered in the air. The swordsman’s black aura yet lingered. Then, with the smack of shifting mud, the wyvern and bear corpses clambered to their feet. The Tiger Tribe flanked them, with the white tiger at the center, and the humans on the wall aimed their arrows and catapults at him.
The knight closed his eyes. “Looks like I lost.”
Anybody could see that the battle was over.
Even after the knight flashed a self-pitying smile, Choi Han remained alert. His left shoulder still bore the wound from the Sword of Disasters; if the knight hadn’t pulled back the power to defend himself, Choi Han’s left arm would have been rendered useless. He clenched his right hand into a fist.
Just then, the final piece of the armor—the helmet—toppled to the ground. Plop. The moment his face was revealed to the world, the knight made his move. His power took on the shape of a sharp blade, which pointed at a single target.
“Stop him!” Gashan bellowed, and the tigers rushed forward. Choi Han likewise lunged for the knight.
Screeching, the dead wyverns darted over to block the knight’s attack and restrain him. The dead bears charged through the muck, pursuing him as if they’d never been allies. Though the undead creatures frantically dogged his steps, they disappeared the moment they came into contact with his Ancient Power. Nothing could stop him.
The knight continued his unyielding advance, heading toward the wall—or more specifically, toward Cale. Reinvigorated, he burst out laughing again. “Bwa ha ha ha! Ha ha ha! I knew it would be like this!”
The arrow imitating his natural disasters hung in the air, unmoving; it didn’t fly toward the wall.
As the knight made eye contact with Cale, he shouted, “So you’re under a dragon’s protection!”
He already didn’t approve of Cale possessing Ancient Powers, and now this human had a dragon looking out for him! He deserved to die. Profound hatred filled the knight’s eyes as a power more potent than ever before encircled his body.
“I’ll destroy you and this castle!”
The arrow shining in the air winked out of sight. In its absence, Cale felt a small form clinging to his torso. The invisible Raon stuck to Cale like a shield, embracing Cale with his wings as if prepared to absorb the power of the disasters himself.
‹I won’t let go.›
Warmed by Raon’s body heat, Cale took a look around and then gave the dragon a pat on the back.
Choi Han had been sprinting in their direction, but he stopped in his tracks. Something’s off. If Mr. Cale is this calm, then he can’t be in any danger.