Chapter 138
Chapter 138
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 138
Chapter Title: The Legend's Return (1)
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Screams and explosions had filled the battlefield, but silence rapidly spread across it. For a moment, everyone thought they had misheard and turned to look at Reygus.
“…Azel? You don’t mean the actual Azel?”
The Dragon Demon Worshippers shot him disbelieving glances.
The great sinner who slew their mighty king—Azel Karzark, a human who was like absolute evil straight out of myth to them.
It was said he had slain the king but paid the price with an eternal curse, plummeting into hell.
The Dragon Demon Worshippers weren’t the only ones stunned. His comrades and the Shadow Guardians were frozen in shock as well.
Reygus ignored their stares and fixed his gaze solely on Azel. The skeletal Undying had no expression. Yet Azel felt as if he were grinning like a mischievous brat—the same way he used to get childishly thrilled at the sight of a strong opponent, without a shred of hatred.
Thinking back to those days brought an involuntary sigh. Azel spoke in exasperation.
“What kind of nonsense is this, you overgrown Undying? The hero Azel died over 220 years ago.”
[I thought so too, but here you are, the same cocky punk I knew, standing right in front of me, alive and kicking.]
“Humans can have descendants who look shockingly like their ancestors. Did dying and losing your brain make you forget even basic common sense?”
[Oh, that’s the lamest joke I’ve heard since coming back to life. The Azel I knew was a bit more confident. Then again, 220 years is plenty of time to turn into a coward.]
“Argh, you’re pissing me off. Fine. Want me to tell you something utterly ridiculous?”
[What?]
“Wild Boar Reygus. Seeing you actually makes me happy. Does that make any sense?”
[Kuhahaha!]
Reygus burst into狂 laughter at those words. His thunderous guffaws echoed across the battlefield.
Once his laughter subsided, Reygus spoke.
[If it had just been the Sword that Cleaves the Heavens, I might’ve thought you were a descendant. But you advertised yourself way too obviously in your fight with Lady Niberis. And now you’re trying to deny it?]
“Guilty as charged. I’ve been telling the truth this whole time, but no one believed me. So yeah, I got a bit timid.”
[That’s too bad. Anyway, I feel the same way, Azel. Back in the day, I was always wondering how to best chew you up and eat you. Now even hearing you call me a wild boar feels nostalgic? It’s enough to bring tears to my eyes. Not that I can cry anymore, of course.]
“Good for you. You’ve gotten handsome in the time I haven’t seen you. Your old face was so ugly, I wanted to puke every time I saw it.”
[Heh. Your smart mouth hasn’t changed after 220 years.]
Just then, Kairen’s voice came from behind.
“…So that story back then was true?”
Kairen’s voice trembled. The first time Azel had told him the truth about himself, he had dismissed it as nonsense. But during their travels together, he had gradually begun to wonder if that absurd tale might actually be real—something he found ridiculous even as he thought it.
Azel replied.
“Not the best time to chat about that.”
“…Haha. We’ll talk later. You’d better brace yourself.”
“Not something to say to the guy who told you the truth and you didn’t believe.”
Azel snorted and turned back to Reygus. No more words were needed. Kairen and Leticia knew exactly how to make use of the breathing room Azel had created.
Of course, Reygus knew it too. And yet he didn’t attack right away. The emotions surging from reuniting with Azel after so long were simply too overwhelming.
[You’ve had your share of troubles too, it seems.]
“People with circumstances no one else can accept as reality are always like that. You 1st-Gen Dragonkin, living detached from the world, probably can’t relate.”
[I see. So what are you doing here?]
“You think I’d tell you?”
[No, of course you’re plotting to screw us over. But it’s still shocking. How the hell did that punk Kallos keep you alive all this time? It wasn’t enough to bury my friends in the Lion’s Mausoleum…]
“Come to think of it, I heard you were asking around about where Kallos is. Why go around asking that? Did losing your brain make logical thinking impossible? Though you weren’t exactly logical even with a brain.”
[Hahaha. How pathetic. You think I’d believe that guy’s dead when you’re standing here perfectly fine? He’s been slinking around in the shadows like a rat, hiding his identity…]
“Oh, gotta correct you there. I’ve never hidden who I am. Like you said, I was obvious against Niberis. If I’d wanted to hide, don’t you think I would’ve? Your young ones these days just aren’t well-educated enough to recognize me.”
[From their reactions, even your comrades didn’t know?]
“Sadly, yes. It’s a harsh world where even blunt honesty gets you nowhere.”
Azel chuckled. But Azel’s true identity was so utterly unrealistic that no one from the same era could confirm it without facing him directly.
Azel figured the day would come eventually. There were survivors of the Dragon Emperor War in the Dark Snowfields, and the time would arrive when they stepped forward.
But he never imagined…
That Reygus would return as an Undying.
“Even as an Undying, isn’t a big shot like you too exalted to jump into the front lines? Coming out yourself instead of sending the kids—looks like you’re not getting the VIP treatment.”
[As if. They all wish I’d stay in the back like some old fogey… But my personality didn’t die with me.]
“Doesn’t seem that way. If it were, a few higher-ups would’ve come with you…”
[Dragonkin and Dragon Demon Hybrids aren’t immune to the ravages of time either. You humans might not get it since you’re still kicking after all these years… Ah, damn it. Shouldn’t be babbling like this.]
“Oh?”
Azel’s eyes gleamed.
It made perfect sense, now that he thought about it. 223 years after the Dragon Emperor War ended, the survivors from back then would all be old and frail. There couldn’t be many still spry enough for frontline combat.
The organization’s structure was an issue too. During the Dragon Emperor War, the Dragon Demon King’s army had the higher-ups fulfilling their duty as the strongest on the battlefield. With Dragon Demon King Atein and the four Dragon Demon Generals leading the charge, slacking off in the rear just because of high status wouldn’t have been tolerated.
By contrast, the Dark Snowfields was a secret organization lurking in the world’s shadows. Bound by fanatic worship of their deified Dragon Demon King, they formed a rigid class society. They treated humans as lower class, and even among Dragonkin and Dragon Demon Hybrids, bloodlines determined superiority.
In such an organization, those in power gave orders—they didn’t carry them out. They built and managed systems to train and deploy combatants, but they themselves rarely fought.
After 200 years, could those people still maintain their combat prowess from the Dragon Emperor War days?
‘Got some crucial intel.’
Even from what Laura had said, the upper echelons of the Dark Snowfields never moved personally. Thinking about it, if they had combat ability surpassing their old selves, they wouldn’t have bothered appointing successors and passing down the Dragon Demon Armaments of the Dragon Demon Generals.
Reygus said.
[I can hear the gears turning in your head. Damn it. I slipped up.]
“Same as ever in that regard. Good thing Baltazak or Aunsor aren’t here to flip out over it.”
Reygus had always been the type to act on impulse without much thought during the Dragon Emperor War. Spotting a strong foe, he’d ignore formations and strategies, eyes sparkling as he charged in. Even when victory was assured, if he suspected a hidden trump card, he’d toy with them, urging them to show it…
‘Same boneheaded idiot through and through.’
Over a thousand years old, and still such a man-child. In a way, he was the epitome of a pure warrior.
Reygus laughed at that.
[Kekeke. Calling your elder a kid, you punk. Fine then. Let’s see what you’ve got…]
Reygus spoke in a cheerful tone as he raised the Seal of Soul Shackles.
[Enough chit-chat with an old friend… It’s been a while. Shall we test our skills?]
Before Azel could assume a stance, Reygus charged. Even Kairen, watching from the side, could barely track him with his eyes.
By the time Kairen shifted his gaze to follow the afterimage, an astonishing sight met him. Azel, ambushed by Reygus, had somehow circled behind him and landed a blow.
[Kugh!]
Azel’s single sword strike delivered a solid hit even to Reygus. He nearly toppled but steadied himself and swung the Seal of Soul Shackles. Azel didn’t dodge—he met it head-on.
…Or so Reygus thought.
The moment sword met hammer, the blade dissipated into motes of light after a slight repulsion. Then, from behind it, Azel unleashed a Dragon Demon Sword blazing with lightning.
Boom!
Reygus’s massive frame rocketed into the sky. The scattering lightning converged at one point, forming a blue Dragon Demon Sword that Azel seized. His form multiplied into six, attacking Reygus in rapid succession with split-second delays.
[Kaaak!]
Reygus screamed.
He barely blocked the first attack and was sent flying, only for another Azel to appear as if waiting and strike him upward. Before he could brace, yet another Azel added a blow, and from where he was flung, still another…
After seven consecutive heavy strikes launching him skyward, the final Azel—clad in lightning-wreathed Dragon Demon Sword—smashed down.
‘Horn of the Thunder Dragon!’
Lightning crashed.
In an instant, a flash like daylight tore the sky asunder. A ferocious wave of Dragon Demon energy shook the earth, followed a beat later by a massive plume of dust.
It all happened so fast that everyone thought Reygus was dead. Azel’s assault had left that deep an impression.
[Damn… you… bastard! Uwaaaah!]
But a furious roar echoed from the dust cloud. A boom scattered the dirt.
Immediately after, Azel and Reygus clashed.
Crackle!
Lightning mana and crushing mana fiercely contended, boiling the air. Reygus ground his teeth.
[You bastard! Since when did the Sword that Cleaves the Heavens have this kind of power?]
“What era are you talking about? You haven’t progressed at all, even in death? No, you’ve gotten weaker. Losing your Dragon Demon energy will do that!”
Azel sneered.
Reygus had died without witnessing the final battle at the Dragon Horn Citadel. That was why he didn’t know Azel at his peak.
Right now, mana overflowing through his entire Spirit Veins swirled with terrifying momentum.
His vessel wasn’t complete yet. But the total output he could generate in an instant had reached a level equal to his prime.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
With each heartbeat, tidal waves of mana surged.
The Life Rings encircling Azel’s heart numbered seven—a Septuple Master by normal standards. But six of them were Dual Banded. Their synergy produced mana beyond common sense.
‘The perfect opponent to test my new solution!’
When Laura had told him earlier that Atein had revived in the exact state of his death, Azel had concluded he couldn’t win.
But whether then or now, he never gave up or despaired, no matter how hopeless reality seemed. He always sought a way to overcome.
Dual Banding was one of the few advantages he held over his past self. Incomplete for now, but completing it up to the seventh Life Ring would grant mana output far surpassing his prime!
“Come on, Reygus! Be the sacrificial offering to my advanced techniques, you ghost of the past!”