◈ Episode 519. Natural Enemy and Natural Job (3)
Damn.
Maia and Kotein gritted their teeth as the two seniors took mana damage to their hearts. At this rate, the Shadow Mercenaries would either crash to their deaths or burn in flames.
‘……I’m willing to die.’
Maia clenched her fists.
If I torture the barely formed circle any longer…….
Maybe I’ll never do it again.
I might end up with a body that can’t use magical power.
Gooooo.
Still, I couldn’t back down.
If I retreat, I will.
I would be less than the hated Shadow Mercenaries.
I’m already suffering from early magic exhaustion.
Kugung.
I can’t carve a grand scaffold-like before.
Just at regular intervals.
Best to build a rock wall to cushion the impact of the fall.
“……kugh.”
The basic manifestation was enough to make Maia groan in pain.
As if that weren’t enough, her vision began to blur.
It was then.
【Do Not Approach The King Without Permission】
The words rang out again.
“……?”
But there was no greater shock to her body.
It wasn’t directed at her, she realized, but at the Shadow Mercenaries. There seemed to be no reason to speak such words to the falling Shadow Mercenaries.
The quick-witted Kotein opened his mouth.
“Could it be that reinforcements are coming from ……?”
Maia was skeptical.
‘No. They’ll be too busy cleaning up the damage.’
Just healing the civilians who were complaining of extreme pain would be enough to keep them occupied. Even Marcelo the Tower Master and some of the seniors still guarded the city of Seoul.
‘It’s a land of anomalies.’
Seoul is colored with the colors of the Arcana continent.
What will happen to Seoul if the entire Magic Tower is away?
No one could say for sure.
There was only one face that immediately came to mind.
‘Could it be you, Chief Lee?’
Kotein must have thought the same thing, for his face subtly brightened, but expectations were dashed. Another sound rang out as if to counter the barrage of words.
【Ppiyag】
……Is it a bird?
No, it’s more delicate than that.
Isn’t this the sound of a chick?
“What is this……?”
Puzzlement appeared on the faces of the two seniors.
*
【Ppiyag – I’m sorry】
Frostax’s words.
It was a Dragon Polymorph that could completely change its appearance and even its physical properties, which is why Frostnax’s words sounded like a chick’s cry.
But the power of the words remained the same.
【Ppiyagppiyag – Pitiful brother whose name I do not even know】.
As a Dragon Knight in another sense.
Skal served Frostnax and watched over the dragon’s intentions.
Thanks to him, Skal was able to immediately recognize the condition of the Evil Dragon.
“Is it possible that it is beyond purification?”
“Yes.”
Frostnax had been turned into an evil dragon by the evil fruit.
He could clearly see with his dragon’s eye that the evil dragon, the brother, had crossed the river of no return, transformed into a hideous skeleton and unrecognizable.
“The evil fruit has completely consumed the Dragon Heart.”
“That……!”
“Still, look at it.”
Ice Dragon Frostnax judged coldly.
“You must find out. You must guess. How my brother became possessed by the evil fruit. You have a vision that even I, the King of All, cannot witness.”
Skal nodded his head solemnly.
A vision not even dragons can see.
A system message flashed.
[Class Quest: Dragon Knight vs. Evil Dragon Knight]
You are the only Dragon Knight on the Arcana continent.
Slay the evil Evil Dragon Knight and save the suffering dragons by dying. Only you can give the King of All a spectacular end, for you are the only one who is ready for the final battle.
-Defeat the Evil Dragon Knight Copper, 4th Legion Commander (Ongoing)
Thanks, I had a hunch.
‘The King of All That Is.’
Perhaps.
Perhaps the dragons had traveled to the Demon World of their own volition, deciding that if they were going to rampage as evil dragons on the Arcana continent, they would end their days rampaging in the Demon World.
Skal’s gaze turned to the evil dragon.
Old wounds that hadn’t fully healed even with the regenerative power of its dragon skin.
Perhaps that was evidence of the dragons’ rampage in the Demon World.
“In that sense.”
The chivalry of the dragon was not to be denied.
“You have deceived the King of all, demons.”
【Shut up, Human】
Copper spat out the words from his evil dragon’s mouth.
An obvious Dragon Fear.
But it had no effect on Skal.
No wonder.
【How……?】
“A true Dragon Fear is not so frivolous.”
Hidden Class, [Dragon Knight]’s passive skill.
[Dragon Blooded (Master)]: Has greatly increased immunity to status ailments caused only by dragons.
As if that wasn’t enough.
【Ppiyag – That’s right】
He’s a Skal who gained immunity to dragon words while on Frostax.
I also have experience beyond those two reasons.
A new World Tree had taken root in northern Antonium.
Wasn’t this the same Skal who had protected the young World Tree from the primordial evil?
Through it all, Skal was recognized.
By Frostnax.
【Ppiyagppiyag – It’s one thing after another, Dragon Knight brat】
He was still labeled as a brat but as a Dragon Knight.
Soon, the aerial battle between the Dragon Knight and the Evil Dragon Knight began.
The speed of light is invisible to those watching from afar.
Suddenly.
Nam Taemin moved forward, slaying the mobs that flowed from the curse.
He raised his head and looked up at the sky.
It didn’t make sense to him.
“Skal, how is that thing flying in the sky? No, where did I hear the chick dragon that was babbling before? Hisagi, Leonie, am I the only one who can’t figure that out?”
Yes.
No matter how much Nam Taemin is said to have the vision of an animal. It was impossible to see the chick Frostnax flapping around with Skal caught by its legs at such a great distance.
But like I said.
Frostnax may be a chick in appearance.
But its power remained unchanged.
Frostnax declared.
【Ppiyag – The first and last of Dragon Knight brat].
“……?”
Skal looked up at Frostnax in confusion.
But Frostnax didn’t answer him.
Frostnax began to reveal its true colors.
jjeojeojeojeojeog─
“?!”
A chill pours out of him that cannot be completely canceled out by the effects of [Dragon Blooded]. Ice Dragon Frostnax had released his polymorph and revealed himself.
Jeju Island, the burning island.
The Ice Dragon’s appearance from above.
It was a glorious sight.
“It, it’s a Dragon! It’s a Dragon, not an Evil Dragon!”
“I, I got a message! It says it’s an Ice Dragon Frostnax.”
“An Ice Dragon? So, Skal finally……?!”
And finally, the appearance of Skal on top of Frostnax fulfilled the expectations of those who had been watching the Dragon Knight since the beginning of Arcana.
But the man himself was not enjoying himself.
He was worried.
Skal asked cautiously.
” …… Are you sure it’s okay for you to stay in that form?”
“Surely, the Dark Dragon said, little chick Frostnax.”
“I remember.”
Why Frostnax had insisted on being a chick polymorph.
It was because Hoyeol had called himself a sun chick.
But Frostnax was not concerned.
“However, what is needed in this living hell is my cold.”
“……!”
“As long as he’s watching, I’m still just a little chick.”
Frostnax, now a full-grown adult, had grown from a young hatchling. It was only when Skal heard the words that he saw the flashing message.
[Your achievements echo through time and space].
[The beings of space and time speak of your qualifications].
[The examination of your qualifications begins].
[You acquire the title, ‘Transcendent.’]…….
But in this moment, more than the message glittering in Skal’s eyes.
The sight of a Dragon Knight was more important.
Skal spoke up.
“You said it was the first and last time, didn’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Then, I will prove it so it won’t be the last time.”
“You’re cocky, brat.”
With that, Dragon Knight and Ice Dragon rushed at the dazed Fourth Legion Commander Copper, and before long, the players’ vision flickered as they entered Jeju Island.
[The Commander of the 4th Legion of Golden Fragrance, ‘Evil Dragon Knight Copper’ has been defeated.]
Akshan has been resurrected.
Two senior mages prepared to die for others.
And a Dragon Knight.
Three miracles in a row.
A victory, even if it was barely won.
But a victory nonetheless.
“Paimon, my lord……!”
Even if it’s only the beginning.
[Silver, Commander of the Third Legion of Golden Fragrance, appears.]
Because everything starts with a first step.
And the same time.
There were people on Jeju Island who took the first step.
“So, is it our turn now, Senior Vangrit?”
“You know, Senior Bensch, you were so excited from the beginning.”
“I’m not excited, I’m just happy that we’ve been recognized by Chief Lee and the Magic Tower to the point where we can take his place! Mhahaha!”
*
My snout says slyly.
“A promise is a promise.”
If it’s a promise, I haven’t forgotten it, Grandfell.
”Let’s see, roughly three days left.
In a week, I will enter Hell!
Lorenzik, the Romantic Explorer. It was I, along with Elsidor and Kinver, who planned the expedition to Hell. Thanks to Elsidor, we have enough Lycoris Flowers grown from blood to go to Hell…….
‘The problem is.’
I’ll have to be prepared.
First of all, in [Claudi’s Abyss], which was a corner of belief, I floundered.
I should have listened to Grandfell if I knew this would happen.
‘…… But it’s not all my fault, is it?’
Why don’t you tell me what the family secret is in the first place, Grandfell, so I don’t have to learn it later? I, Lee Hoyeol, was trying to shift the blame.
Once again, the snout spoke up.
“There is no such thing as a broken promise.”
……No, I know.
This is the Arcana Continent, after all.
If we have three days left in the real world, we have four times that in Arcana, or nearly two weeks. I calculated the time difference and headed for the eastern part of the Arcana continent.
Why head to the east of the continent?
Because unlike the perfect Grandfell, I, Lee Hoyeol, who has many shortcomings, did not waste any of the messages that passed by. It was to fulfill a quest.
A class quest.
[Class Quest: Gabriel’s Tomb]
In the Shadow Corridors.
Gabriel, the most famous demon hunter in Akshan.
Gabriel once told me.
-“You are well aware that I am a gluttonous demon hunter, excommunicated even in Akshan. And so, as I am, I will leave you a glorious will.”
It’s not a bad will, but as a junior, I’m just grateful.
-“If you find yourself faced with a trial too great to bear, you will find my body buried somewhere in the eastern part of the Arcana continent. And retrieve my artifact from within. That is…….”
Of course, I cut him off and rambled on.
-“There is no such thing as a trial too great for me to bear.”
……On second thought, that’s a ridiculous bullshit.
You’re out of excuses this time, too, aren’t you, Grandfell?
We owe Gabriel a favor.
‘Anyway, it’s all your fault.’
At least I didn’t have to enter Hell completely busted and empty-handed. The artifact was used by Gabriel, the only named NPC in Akshan.
‘If nothing else, it’s good against demons.’
It’s got to have some kind of effect, doesn’t it?
I was kind of looking forward to it.
I looked toward the eastern part of the Arcana continent.
‘I’ve never been there, so I don’t know much about it…….’
Devastated couldn’t be a better description of the landscape.
This is far from the capital of the Empire, Antonium.
It would be a long time before it was touched by the Empire.
‘I don’t have time to look back right now either.’
I immediately raised my magic power. I wanted to spread it out as widely as possible, to detect Gabriel’s movements. But then my lips moved once more.
“Never, ever forget your promise.”
No, how many times have I told you, Grandfell.
‘Well, I don’t forget…….’
I tried to respond but was shocked.
Could it be that you were talking about that promise and not that promise?
The premium Jeju green tea that costs over a thousand won a cup?!
‘Yeah, I guess it’s time for withdrawal.’
I understand how you feel, but hang in there, Grandfell. Even if Seoul is connected to Arcana, it’s only a small part of the continent.
There’s no way a rocket ship could reach the Arcana Continent, is there?
‘In exchange, I’ll grant you a wish if I break that promise.
Do you really think the green tea fields of Jeju Island will disappear in the meantime?