Chapter 308
Chapter 308
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 308
Chapter Title: Chapter 7-1. The Sixth Fragment, Requiem
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Even though it didn't taste good, the effect seemed certain—Arhil's expression had noticeably improved. I worried the drug might have put her in a state of utter detachment from life, but since she'd only taken a small amount, it seemed instead to allow her to maintain composure and focus even amid this chaotic situation.
However, Lime wasn't faring as well. His complexion was poor.
"Are you okay?"
He gave a wry smile and nodded.
"It's just nerves. Just nerves."
Watching him exhale a deep breath, Judah let out a soft chuckle.
"Don't worry. You won't die."
Lime stared at Judah with a blank look.
He never imagined hearing words like those from his leader—a young man far younger than him—that he'd only ever heard from the Tower Lord. When he'd complained that practicing magic felt so grueling he thought he'd die and couldn't stomach it, the Tower Lord had responded just like Judah: "Don't worry, you won't die." A strange sense of déjà vu sent chills down his spine. Sometimes, he suspected this youth not even twenty years old might actually be as old as him—or even older.
"...Usually, that just means you're in for a world of hurt."
As expected, not a wasted year in his life.
Seeing Lime grasp the meaning of his words right away, Judah shrugged without adding more and called for the dragonhead. The dragonhead, which had been picking up and devouring the severed or dead bodies of nearby heteromorphs one by one with its three long tongues, turned its head. It swiftly scooped up a burly orc from the rubble of a collapsed building with its tongue, popped it into its mouth, and approached.
Crunch, crunch!
After swallowing the meat in its mouth like a snack, the dragonhead finally lowered its head to carry Judah's group. Riding the dragonhead was far faster than walking or running. Its speed was incredibly quick despite appearances—faster than a carriage and dozens of times sturdier, so there was no need to worry even if it collided with something.
Of course, if it fell into the hands of the dragonkin, that might be another story.
Confirming everyone aboard, Judah directed the dragonhead toward the pillar of fire. Iris and Judah gripped its horns, while Lime and Arhil secured themselves firmly to the chairs Iris had created. The dragonhead crushed uprooted trees and dodged debris from collapsed buildings as it sped forward.
"Grraaaah!"
Hearing the roar, he turned to see a berserk dragonkin charging rapidly. Scales protruding from torn clothes and eyes gleaming with madness were especially striking. The dragonkin glanced briefly at the rumbling dragonhead but didn't charge it.
'But the dragonhead seems unaffected compared to the dragonkin?'
In a way, the dragonhead was a lesser kin of dragons too, yet unlike the dragonkin, it showed no reaction to the alluring mana flowing from the pillar of fire. Perhaps it was protected by the barrier Lime and Judah had created.
Still, the mana permeating the surrounding air boiled intensely, and from the direction of the soaring pillar—even if not as powerful as the earlier shockwave—came a strangely seductive force.
"Ah, there's a survivor over there!"
Arhil shouted, pointing to an alley between buildings. The dragonhead passed too quickly to get a good look. Turning back, Judah spotted an orc cautiously peeking out from the alley. Those without much mana talent seemed unaffected by the waves.
But the elf staggering far ahead told a different story. Dressed in short shorts exposing her thighs and legs and a short-sleeved shirt, covered in dust, she limped along. Blood trailed long behind her from some injury, yet the elf kept walking—as if entranced—toward the pillar of fire.
'Practically a zombie.'
The elf's state suggested that races with high magical aptitude, like fairies, suffered the same as the dragonkin. Spotting the elf, the dragonhead deliberately veered toward her and scooped her up to eat. The crunching sounds came right from beneath their feet before anyone could stop it.
"......"
Perhaps the dragonhead's immunity to the pillar's alluring mana stemmed from its subservience. Iris and Arhil merely found the mana uncomfortable, showing no real effects. Lime seemed a bit uneasy, but thanks to Arhil's blessing, he was holding up better than expected.
'Or maybe it's resisting instinctively because it's not used to this abundant mana.'
Whatever the case, as long as it didn't go mad and rampage, it was fine. Along the path to the palace, scenes of mana-berserk individuals clashing—blasting magic at each other and tearing into flesh—were commonplace.
Kyaaah!
Frowning at the dragonkin roaring like beasts, Judah watched as the dragonhead spotted two fighting in the middle of the road ahead. Too bothersome to avoid, it charged like a bulldozer to crush them.
The two dragonkin, locked in a frenzy biting at each other's bodies, startled at the oncoming dragonhead, broke apart and retreated. Barely avoiding being flattened, they glared at each other before switching targets and closely pursuing the dragonhead.
The two charging at tremendous speed suddenly vanished before their eyes. Watching, Lime sensed mana reactions above and looked up.
'Short-range spatial jump!'
Similar to what war mages from Langritis Tower's combat clan used for close combat or escapes. Tense-faced Lime extended his hand and cast a spell at once.
In the process of raising the hand gripping the chair armrest Iris had made on the dragonhead, the spell's formula was already complete overhead, ready to activate by the time it rose fully.
'His condition's good?'
He'd thought the boiling atmospheric mana would harm him, blessing or not, leaving him in poor shape. Worried the spell might fizzle, it instead activated flawlessly.
The moment the dragonkin reappeared, Lime unleashed it. Icy chill gathered at his fingertips, fanning out in a sector. Point attacks like ice spears wouldn't hit fast-moving targets, so he went for area denial.
Crack!
The fanning frost froze both dragonkin solid mid-air. They shattered the ice and landed soon after, but by then the dragonhead had pulled far ahead.
'Magic...?'
Lime gaped, eyes wide at his spell's effect. Without extra mana, its power was nearly double normal. And he'd used less mana than usual.
This environment seemed to amplify magic. High-tier spells he couldn't cast due to mana shortages before might now be possible. Glancing at the pursuing dragonkin, he prepared another attack spell experimentally.
But as Lime was about to cast, Judah tapped his shoulder.
"Save your mana. You'll need it later."
Judah then pulled the fragment, Gaia, from <Bag> and activated a skill. The ground shook violently as four massive fists of rock and earth erupted. Two smashed down immediately upon emergence.
Boom!
The ground cracked and heaved, sending the charging dragonkin leaping up. Wingless, they had nowhere to dodge mid-air. The remaining two giant fists swung at them.
The dragonkin used short-range jumps again to evade the fists, chaining them to close the gap instantly. Judah eyed them irritably, about to hurl Altemia, when Iris beside him swung her scythe, cleaving the two reappearing in mid-air.
Their upper and lower bodies hit the ground separately, swiftly left behind. Judah turned his gaze forward again. The palace—housing the pillar of fire—was now markedly closer.
Naturally, the palace from which the shockwave and mana pulse had erupted wasn't unscathed. Walls stacked as high and sturdy as ramparts lay half-crumbled into hills, once-grand buildings half-collapsed, belching black smoke or wreathed in flames.
But if Judah's memory held, this otherworldly place—untouched by his meddling with fragments and fates—would have high-tier dragonkin, still sane, blocking intruders inside just like in the game.
Among them, a gatekeeper stubbornly guarding the palace entrance. Unable to stop those leaping walls, but holding the gate to the end.
A bit farther, and they'd see it. Nearing the palace, a wide plaza appeared—identical to the game. Instead of buildings around the palace, there were flowerbeds, now blasted away by the shockwave, leaving only dirt mounds.
Entering the open space revealed the high-tier dragonkin guarding the palace entrance. He blocked dragonkin and heteromorphs charging the gate without crossing the walls himself.
"You shall not pass this gate!"
Corpses already piled substantially around him. His fierce scowl turned to Judah's group on the dragonhead, but he didn't abandon his post. Believing gate defense his duty, he felled only those lunging past it.