“Ah…”
Looking up at the sky, Jegal Hyemi let out an exclamation without realizing it.
The overwhelming majesty of the dragons that had suddenly appeared, tearing through the dark clouds.
And the sight of monsters appearing one by one, splitting open space around them, then dropping to the ground and beginning to stand before the monster jiangshi that resembled them, was enough to stir a strange emotion within her. ‘The monsters who, for long ages, never stepped onto the stage of history and moved only in the shadows…’ At last, in the face of the world’s crisis, they had revealed themselves in earnest.
To join forces with humans and overcome this hopeless situation together. ‘Well, I suppose it’s only natural. They, too, are members of this world.’ In truth, they had continued to act steadily, just as they had when they cooperated with the imperial court some twenty years ago, but since every part of that process had been carried out in utmost secrecy, very few knew the details.
In other words, this was the first time in several hundred years that they had so openly revealed themselves to an unspecified multitude of humans. ‘So that is a real dragon. Even after seeing them in the ancient texts of my clan, I half doubted they existed.’ As if entranced, she stared up at the sky and swallowed.
Their overwhelming presence made it impossible to tear her eyes away.
If even she, a direct descendant of the prestigious Jegal Clan, was like this, then how much more so must it be for most people, who had thought monsters and divine beasts existed only in legends?
It was no wonder that the majority of the Alliance’s experts, who could be considered among the upper echelons, were staring blankly at the magnificent sight.
For some reason, the Demonic Cult’s side had also halted its offensive.
However, if there was one thing that bothered her amid all this…
‘…But why does the Yellow Dragon alone look like that? There was no description like that in the records.’
It was the alien appearance of the Yellow Dragon at their center, unlike the other dragons with their long bodies.
Great flapping wings, and well-developed limbs attached to a bulky body.
It was not the common form one usually imagined when thinking of a “dragon,” but an appearance completely different, like a gigantic lizard.
In this world, the Yellow Dragon was, in both name and reality, regarded as the foremost among the Five Dragons.
If such a being alone possessed a different appearance, surely there had to be some hidden reason for it? ‘Were the old records left in the clan wrong? Or is there some special reason…’ Just as she was standing there in a daze, lost in her own world.
“Miss Jegal, we’ve reached the inside of the formation now, so I think you may stop here.”
“Ah!”
The sudden voice of a man brought her back from her thoughts.
She quickly came to her senses and looked back toward the man who had spoken to her, Ha Seunghun.
“I’m sorry, Young Master Ha. When I saw that sight, before I knew it…”
“Haha, it’s all right. I was the same. Then I’ll stop supplying qi now.”
“Yes!”
Immediately after that brief exchange.
The moment the flow of qi was cut off, she released the technique she had been maintaining all along. The dragon-shaped something that had carried them down to the ground and was still flaunting its presence slowly blurred, then scattered in all directions and disappeared.
“Whew…”
“Are you all right? Maintaining such a high-level technique for so long all of a sudden must have been quite taxing.”
“Ah, of course! And even if it was difficult, how could it compare to you, Young Master? You supplied all the qi needed for it. I merely shaped the outer shell.”
“I’m fine as well. In truth, if I put my mind to it, I could do that much all day. It’s all thanks to your blessing, Miss Jegal.”
“The blessing I used wasn’t anything so remarkable… You were only able to attain such an achievement because it was you, Young Master! Besides, even putting aside the amount of qi, maintaining it steadily can’t have been an ordinary feat.”
“Even so… hmm…”
“…Pfft.”
The two, who had been busy praising each other while facing one another, burst into awkward laughter at the same time.
After escaping from the underground ritual chamber where they had been imprisoned.
Many things had happened to them.
Demonic cultists and jiangshi continued to appear whenever they had the slightest chance to catch their breath.
They fought fierce, bloody battles, struggling desperately through a rough and perilous path to escape the enemy’s stronghold.
Had most of the Demonic Cult’s forces not been concentrated on the outer battlefield, and had they not been constrained by the need to capture the sacrifices safely, they would have failed long ago.
And in that process, it was only natural that Hugo, the sole combatant, and Jegal Hyemi, who possessed the ability to support him, had rapidly grown close.
There had been more than one dangerous moment when they would have collapsed if they had not somehow matched their timing.
“…In any case, I cannot simply stay still like this. Their arrival has given us hope, but the battle is not yet over.”
“Then I’ll also…”
“Miss Jegal, please protect the others here. Even if this is the middle of the formation, if those bastards decide to charge in, we can’t know what might happen.”
Jegal Hyemi had no choice but to agree with his words.
In truth, it was no exaggeration to say that what mattered most in this battle was the fate of the “children of the dragon.”
The Demonic Cult would want to seize them again and finish the ritual, and the Martial Alliance could not give up on them either, as they were the only possibility for restoring this world. ‘Ah, come to think of it, this isn’t the time to be happy just because we’ve escaped the Demonic Cult’s grasp for now.’ Neither side wanted anything to go wrong with them, but in the end, the fate of the children of the dragon had already been decided.
Only, depending on the outcome of this war, it would change for whom and for what they would be sacrificed. ‘…Yes. Even so, being sacrificed for the world must be more worthwhile than being used according to the Demonic Cult’s will.’ She did not wish to see the world remain broken and collapse.
There were still many things precious to her left in this world.
Her family and the members of her clan, who had spared no effort for her since childhood because of her weak body, were among them…
Jegal Hyemi clenched her teeth as she watched the man’s back recede toward the battlefield.
The flames rising from his body became a fire dragon and swept away the jiangshi ahead.
Perhaps because of the haze caused by the heat, her vision blurred.
“……”
Staring at that sight without even blinking, she raised her head again and looked up at the sky.
In her still-blurred vision, the dragons swimming mystically through the heavens and looking down below were reflected. ‘What a pity. I wanted to properly organize and record everything about the dragons as well.’ She gazed quietly at one of them, the Yellow Dragon that looked somewhat strange.
Of course, with so many people present here, there was no way this historic event would be forgotten.
From the outline of the incident to the participation of the dragons and monsters, and even the appearance of that Yellow Dragon, it would surely be passed down to later generations.
Not only in history books and oral tradition, but also in fields of art such as paintings and songs.
…Though her name would be written somewhere other than the “author” line.
“Ah.”
In the midst of standing there dazedly, she felt for a moment as if her eyes had met the Yellow Dragon’s, but it was probably a simple illusion.
Her vision was still blurred, after all.
If she blinked even once, it would immediately become clear, but she did not close her eyes until the end.
As if that alone were the greatest resistance she could offer.
***
[How exquisite. Had we been any later, it might have been irreversible.]
As Horus silently looked down below, a deep male voice flowed into his mind.
[We could have come faster if you, White Dragon, hadn’t objected.]
[Hmm, I acknowledge that. But one must always be cautious when leaving the Illusory Realm. Even when the world was intact, that was the case. How much more so now, when it is on the verge of collapse?]
When the woman’s voice, the Red Dragon’s, snapped back at him, the man answered calmly.
It was indeed a composed response befitting the White Dragon, the eldest of the current Five Dragons.
Though even he, if measured by human standards, was only in his early thirties at most.
[Tch. What an old fogey.]
[Red Dragon, you should still mind your manners.]
As the Red Dragon, who appeared to be in her early to mid-twenties, grumbled again, apparently displeased with that calm reply, the Azure Dragon, who was around her age, quietly admonished her.
In truth, the Azure Dragon also inwardly agreed with her, but she at least knew where to draw the line.
[But why act so stifling even in this kind of situation? If we lose here, everything ends anyway! If not for Horus this time, things would’ve gone terribly wrong, wouldn’t they? And after all that, now you say, “How exquisite”?]
In truth, there was no other reason the Red Dragon was being so prickly.
When Horus had first proposed this plan to join the battle, the one who had most actively opposed it was none other than the White Dragon.
To her, who had spent no short amount of time with Horus and cherished him no less than the Azure Dragon did, that could not possibly sit well.
[Still, looking at the situation now, it seems this was actually the perfect moment.]
At that time, the young voice of a girl quietly flowed in among them.
It was the Black Dragon, the youngest among the Five Dragons aside from Horus, who had only come of age a few years ago.
[If we had come too early, the humans’ losses would have been too small, wouldn’t they? Honestly, it would have been best to come right before the humans were annihilated, but if we did that, the losses on our side would have become too great as well, so I think now is just right.]
[Black Dragon…]
The content was chilling, utterly at odds with that voice.
It was a statement that contained her dislike for humans, who had seized hegemony over the continent, pushing aside them, the legitimate children of the Dragon God.
That tendency had grown even stronger after the death of her older brother, the previous Black Dragon, who had struggled to maintain the world while humans fought among themselves.
[Horus? But what have you been looking at since earlier… Ah! I see. Those children are…]
The Azure Dragon, unable to say anything to her, quietly looked toward the place Horus had been gazing down at, then slowly nodded.
She could tell at a glance.
The frail humans gathered together at the center of the human camp.
They were the children of the dragon, the key to saving the world.
[…Seven of them. And one among them has an especially high rank. At that level…]
The Azure Dragon, who had been speaking calmly, trailed off.
She was not so brazen as to say outright that they would not be lacking as sacrifices.
As if taking over for her, the Red Dragon spoke in a tone that had grown even more spirited.
[Good. Then if we just beat those bastards down now, everything will be settled. Our chances are more than enough. We won’t be able to take direct action because we have to stabilize space, but in exchange, we brought plenty of fellows who know how to fight, didn’t we?]
In truth, even having all Five Dragons come to this place was quite a strain.
It was not for nothing that they had shut themselves inside the Dragon God Temple, enduring great damage in order to maintain the world’s balance.
But in order to suppress the environment of this demonic realm and transport the monster army, they had no choice but to come in person.
They had sent other dragons into the Dragon God Temple in their place, but that likely would not hold out for very long either. ‘They said that the more power the divine beasts responsible for the world’s balance use in this present world, the stronger the backlash becomes.’
If that happened, everyone would be in danger.
The other dragons who had entered the Dragon God Temple and were barely maintaining the world, those who had forced themselves to use power in the present world, and this world itself, which was in an unstable state.
That was why the White Dragon had been excessively cautious.
One wrong move, and the world might end before they could even carry out the ritual to rebuild the Dragon Heart. ‘Of course, that doesn’t apply to me.’
As Horus silently looked down below, the corners of his mouth rose, revealing vicious teeth.
He was an awakened one from another world, not bound by the rules set by this world.
His circumstances were different from those of the other dragons, who had to move with the utmost caution.
[In other words, from now on, it’s a race against time?]
[Well, yes. We need to clean this place up and return to the Dragon God Temple as quickly as possible to minimize the damage the world suffers.]
Unlike the Red Dragon, who answered Horus’s question lightly, the Azure Dragon looked at him through narrowed eyes, as though she had sensed something.
[Horus?]
But before she could say anything more.
Flutter—
[Then I’ll be off!]
Horus spread his wings wide, wheeled once in the air, and began to dive straight down.
[…Huh?]
[Horus?!]
Leaving their startled voices behind, Horus approached the battlefield, the yeouiju glittering in his mouth.
‘The basic objective has been achieved. All that’s left is to secure as much practical gain as possible.’
This world was already flowing according to his plan.
The amount of karma he would gain from that would be tremendous.
But if there was a way to earn even more on top of that, why go out of his way to avoid it?
‘Leave a great footprint upon the world. A colossal footprint that won’t be forgotten even after tens, hundreds, or thousands of years.’
Humans, dragons, and yokai alike—everyone gathered here stood at the pinnacle of this world.
This was a golden opportunity to etch his existence vividly into the minds of such beings and exert a powerful influence.
Why would he give up such a ridiculously sweet event?
Paaaat—
The yeouiju, which had been glowing faintly, burst forth with light like the sun.
At the same time, Horus’s Dragon Heart pounded violently, and dense energy like an active volcano began to gather deep in his throat.
‘I’m going all out.’
The fundamental abilities of a “Gold Dragon” were joined by the “Elder Dragon’s Heart,” he strengthened himself with “Dragon Speech Magic,” and “Ruler of All Things” and “Seeker of Mysteries” supported him.
“Resister of Providence” ignored the restrictions imposed during the manifestation of power, and “Heavenly Stream Dao Arts” wove all those currents into one.
‘And lastly, if I add “Limit Break” on top of that.’
Crack.
He felt as though something inside him had split.
Not a physical object, but something without form.
A restriction one might call a limit, or a wall.
It reacted to Horus’s full power, unleashed for the first time since his birth.
Whooooosh—
The flow of air changed.
With the appearance of the Five Dragons, part of the favorable wind that had lingered over all of Beijing twisted in direction, then rushed toward a single point, compressing again and again.
“Huh? The Yellow Dragon?”
“Wh-what is that?!”
“Insane…! Fall back! Defense! Defensive formation!”
At that ominous phenomenon, not only the Demon Cultists but even the Murim Alliance flew into a panic and hurriedly prepared to respond.
Only the jiangshi, moving without emotion, remained calm.
Gooooooo—
The boundless mana emitted from an Elder-class Dragon Heart surged out from his throat.
It was not mana limited to the level of an adult dragon as usual.
Then it immediately touched the yeouiju, which adjusted the laws of the world, and began to create an endless synergistic reaction.
Stronger, faster, larger, more brilliant.
And immediately after.
A destructive beam, impossible to believe had come from the mouth of a living creature, shot out like a laser.
Toward the Beijing side occupied by the Demon Cultists, slightly behind the border where the battlefield had unfolded.
And then—
All sound vanished from the battlefield at once.
No, it was buried and crushed beneath a single overwhelmingly enormous sound.
“@!%$!&*…!”
“$@$!#%&…!”
A shockwave swept across the entire battlefield—
No, across all of Beijing.
The fierce battle that had been raging had already stopped long ago.
At that moment, they were hard-pressed just to keep control of their own bodies.
Kugugugung—!
Along with an earthquake and clouds of dust sweeping in every direction, a massive mushroom cloud rose from the city.
The capital of this world, which had accumulated a long history through rise and fall.
At the same time, the scar of calamity that had recently been abandoned for a long period and reduced to ruins.
Beijing.
Vanished.
Along with a portion of the Demon Cult’s forces gathered in the rear.