◈ Episode 209. A Lucky Day (5)
“So it was not your weakened flesh that was the problem, Argentres. Your soul had been ruined long before that. This sorrow is beyond words, my younger brother.”
Elves.
Even in the moment they lost the Mother’s blessing, Yunakseus had been half-convinced.
No matter how worthless a younger brother, he had thought that at least his once-noble soul would remain constant.
It was all my delusion.
Yunakseus’s gaze turned toward the evil upon the earth.
So that was a demon.
The very beings who had reduced the continent and the Mother to such a state.
His boiling emotions made him want to glide into the Demon Realm right that instant—to burn their land to a state more miserable than the continent’s.
However, he could not.
Because my Mother did not wish for that.
Even Yunakseus could not fathom the World Tree’s will.
But it was the first time.
That you had asked something of me, of us.
So I simply obey.
Yes, being lost in slumber forever had been boring anyway.
In that sense, it had been a while since his heart beat like this. ‘The first time since then.’ The Dragon-Demon Great War.
The fleeting diversion had been enjoyable enough in its own way.
This time, however, he could not simply enjoy it as he had in the past.
This time, they truly had to stake their lives.
“If you do not understand, I shall chastise you until you do.”
A battlefield befitting an old and sickly me.
My younger brother, Argentres, and the elves, of course.
A demon suitable for venting suppressed emotions.
Even a human facing such a demon.
Everyone’s eyes seemed resolved.
I can rampage without worrying about dragging anyone down. ‘If it is you all, you can realize Mother’s will.’
Fzzzt!
An immense aura flickered from Yunakseus’s body.
“!!!”
It was insufficient to call it mere mana.
How dense and vast was this power?
Not only did the mana visualize itself, but the climate of the region—even the terrain—began to change.
Fzzzzt!
It was the moment a striking lightning enveloped Yunakseus’s entire body.
Something intruded into Yunakseus’s vision.
Its true form was tiny, yet for some reason it looked enormous.
“!”
It had to be.
Because the place where that something, Haiel, had landed was right on Yunakseus’s nasal bridge.
Haiel faithfully followed the will of her liege, Hoyeol. Without doubting Hoyeol in the slightest, she spoke clearly.
“By the Hierarchy of Blessings, I command you.”
“……?”
“Calm yourself, Yunakseus.”
Dragons and elves are different.
Born from the same World Tree, yet their innate abilities were as different as their appearances. As the race that dominates all things, befitting that title, dragons wanted for nothing.
But elves were not so. The World Tree pitied such elves and bestowed blessings upon them.
Dragons had not been unable to receive the World Tree’s blessings. They simply had not received them. Because they had no need.
Because they were perfect beings from birth.
Because they had never received the World Tree’s blessings.
Naturally, the [Hierarchy of Blessings] should not have been effective against Yunakseus, a dragon. And yet, Yunakseus softened his momentum at Haiel’s words. ‘I see.’ He felt the Mother’s aura from the tiny spirit.
Without even realizing it.
Yunakseus’s eyes softened on their own.
It was a warm gaze, as if looking at a young youngest child.
But you.
“Unfortunately, I cannot grant that request.”
Yunakseus conveyed into his mind.
—Worry not. Everything is the Mother’s will.
Telepathy.
A dragon capable of tearing through dimensions.
Thus, that voice reached Hoyeol as well.
—Even if I die, there is no reason to grieve, O Dawn….
How strong is a dragon?
I could tell from the message.
A battlefield with elves, a Great Evil, and Transcendents gathered.
If converted to an appropriate level, it was probably well over a thousand, wasn’t it?
Under normal circumstances, an appearance message could not even be displayed.
Yet Yunakseus had flaunted the appearance message.
When that Yunakseus had hesitated at the [Hierarchy of Blessings], I had flinched.
Was it not merely a Letter of Luck, but real luck?
For a fleeting moment, I had been counting my chickens before they hatched.
To think I could command a dragon through the hierarchy!
Not to mention clearing the World Quest, [Evil Dragon Hunter].
I could freely enter and exit the Arcana continent using the dragon’s power, right?
Because in the Arcana continent, I could revive even if I died, thanks to the [Last Adventurer] effect.
I would be able to take risks and increase my growth speed as much as I wanted.
But of course, counting chickens before they hatch is just that.
I, Lee Hoyeol.
Because I was the youngest with three older sisters, I could tell.
Yunakseus’s gaze seemed to see through my inner thoughts completely.
It was exactly the same look in the eyes of the sworn enemies who used to stare at me.
The moment I flinched, Yunakseus’s voice dug into my head. ‘Telepathy.’
Reality and the Arcana continent.
Two completely different worlds.
Normally, communication by telepathy is impossible. But dragons must be the exception.
Tearing through dimensions, traveling between the Arcana continent and reality—not being bound by rifts. Telepathy is nothing compared to that.
What surprised me was the content of the telepathy. ‘D-Dawn?!’
How does he know that embarrassing name!
No.
More importantly. ‘……Dying is the Mother’s will?’
Who leaves a will like that upon their first meeting?!
I’m just a child who rolled into this family.
It’s natural that I don’t know the family circumstances or the World Tree’s will.
Of course, I have no desire to pretend to be family, either.
I get enough youngest-child treatment at home as it is.
Besides. ‘No, forget the will or whatever.’ Mr. Yunakseus. If you rampage, it causes trouble for me.
Elves, a Great Evil, and a Transcendent are already more than enough to handle.
And now a dragon on top of that.
Leaving aside clearing the rift, the scale was such that the rift itself wouldn’t hold. After the rift’s creation, it wouldn’t be long before the rift collapse rate surpassed 100 percent.
‘If something like that were created in a downtown area……’
The aftermath of that battle could erase cities, nations, even a continent from the map.
In such a dire situation, I actually had the nerve to open my mouth.
“The World Tree’s will, you say? That’s a severe delusion.”
So calm, even now.
“There is no parent who wishes for their child’s death.”
Not just an emperor, either.
Standing tall before even dragons and the World Tree, as always—Grandfell.
But I could sympathize to some extent.
When I heard only Yunakseus’s words.
It had sounded as if the World Tree wanted Yunakseus’s death.
Still, as the youngest who rolled into the family, I did want to hear the family history.
“We need to talk, Yunakseus.”
Of course, neither telepathy nor mumbling would reach him.
I had simply made a one-sided appointment by myself.
The idle talk ended there.
Now I truly had to act. ‘Haiel and I both did our best.’
Let’s admit what needs to be admitted at this point.
That even so, it had been insufficient to stop this mess.
The only comfort was that we had delayed the rift’s creation.
‘I’ll have to pour everything into the rift.’
Let’s think positively.
If the rift formed, we could meet face to face.
Above all, it wouldn’t be suffocating.
Even while racking my brain, my mouth didn’t rest.
“I don’t believe in luck.”
Somehow, I had been wondering why I hadn’t heard that voice this time. Wasn’t it Grandfell’s stubbornness, spouting superstition and interfering whenever I tried to invest points in the [Luck] stat?
Flutter—
The wind blew at the perfect moment.
“Both luck and fate are forged by oneself.”
Yes, of course you would say that.
It was the moment I was sneering inwardly.
In the sky of the Arcana continent, the light of a portal flickered.
……Wait, is that a broom flying in the sky?
Literally, what emerged from the portal was a broom.
But the woman riding the broom was not unfamiliar.
That drooping attire.
‘Didn’t I see that at the Spacetime Parlor?’
It was certain.
Another Transcendent who had shown no interest in me at the Spacetime Parlor, alongside Urus.
No, in a way, she had been worse than Urus. She had stuck her head into a table and never lifted it once.
‘What now, out of nowhere.’
Naturally.
I had no idea why she had appeared in this mess.
Even so, I shamelessly continued.
“Just like this very moment.”
……
Even when submerged in pride, your snout alone seems to rise, Grandfell….
The Witch of the Southern Sea.
She flew over the vast sea.
Only one 『Spiritual Cigarette』 remained.
Tsk, the witch smacked her lips and glared down at the southern sea below.
“……Octopus head.”
Thousands of legs writhed in the deep sea.
She knew it was a damned hallucination.
But she couldn’t help feeling nauseous every time she saw it.
On top of that.
Auditory hallucinations came from the deep sea where nothing could be seen.
『Running is useless. Accept your fate. Begin the end with your own hands. Do not desperately cling to your painful life.』
“I really want a cigarette.”
『The Great Calamity of the Sea』.
The only moment she was free from its curse was when she burned an expensive Spiritual Cigarette.
She had wanted to stick her head in a table and smoke at the Parlor, if her heart had its way.
Rumble!!
Seeing the continent surging with immense energy, such thoughts vanished cleanly.
Perhaps thanks to enduring her urge to smoke and flying without rest.
She had entered the Arcana continent before she knew it.
She had vowed never to set foot on this land again.
She had forgotten even the scenery to the point where she couldn’t open a portal.
The witch smiled bitterly.
“Time is truly frightening.”
It beautifies even dog-like memories.
Leaving only the good ones behind.
You would agree with my words, wouldn’t you?
“So that is why you have returned.”
The witch did not delay.
The side effect of the Spiritual Cigarette.
In her foggy memories, she recalled the appearance near the Zero Mountain Range.
She painted the scenery in her mind and locked onto the coordinates.
She opened a portal in the air.
The process was swifter than anything.
After exiting the portal, the witch witnessed.
Dragon, elf, Great Evil, Transcendent.
The culprits who had shaken the continent.
The witch clicked her tongue.
Time truly was frightening.
“The Demon Realm, Sisley, the Zero Mountain Range—all the same.”
In the past, they had all been so docile.
The witch rummaged in her bosom.
What naturally slipped between her fingers was the last Spiritual Cigarette.
Since the situation was what it was, she would likely have to use magic. Before that, she needed to clear her head.
—Begin the end right now.
As she inhaled the smoke, the voice of the 『Great Calamity of the Sea』 that had lingered in her ears faded. Yes, shut up like that, octopus head. From now on, you’ll be the one listening.
“Huu—”
Thick smoke billowed out.
The witch looked down at the battlefield.
Naturally, her gaze went to the most familiar face.
Urus.
When he first stepped into the Parlor, he had truly been like a fledgling.
While I had my head stuck in a table.
You chose the crooked path for quite a while, indeed.
“Well, the pointy-ears have always had terrible luck.”
Elves with appearances and abilities far too good for their temperaments.
Just what blessing were they born with?
The witch spat sharp criticism toward them.
“Your loud mouths are still unmatched.”
No particular feelings toward the dragon, Yunakseus.
The witch’s gaze moved one last time.
“And among them, you are especially tactless.”
A glare toward Gluttony of the Seven Deadly Sins.
The witch’s composure, which had been calm even when glaring at the Great Calamity of the Sea, shook violently.
It couldn’t be helped.
Because the story she was about to tell concerned everyone here—not even excluding myself.
Gooooh—
The witch’s surging magic.
Thanks to that, everyone on the battlefield noticed her presence.
But that was all.
The Witch of the Southern Sea.
Leaving aside how strong she was.
Everyone here had a reason they could not back down.
But when the witch began to speak.
“I wonder if you all shouldn’t know your place.”
What followed in her tale.
“……Can this truly be the truth?”
“I-It’s absurd!!”
“No, that can never be.”
“……?!”
Everyone was forced to stop.
“You all know well what it means to speak ‘that name’ on this land, do you not? But it is the undeniable truth. I can swear it on my life.”
The witch continued.
“Claudie has returned.”