Chapter 272
Chapter 272
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 272
Chapter Title: Large-Scale Raid (1)
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Vinasa knew instinctively.
Her territory.
In other words, a power had awakened in this world that she needed to be wary of.
- Kraaararara!
A roar burst from Vinasa, laced with countless emotions.
Competitive spirit, wariness, worry, fighting spirit...
And irritation.
She had only been born a short time ago.
So she was weaker than expected.
Much weaker.
To evolve to a higher stage, she needed to cause a certain level of destruction.
But she hadn't even reached 0.000000001% yet.
And that wasn't all?
[Name: Vinasa]
[Vitality: 0/9,999]
She didn't even have any vitality left.
In such a situation, she sensed that the opponent had become aware of her.
"Whoa, that startled me. What's up, Vinasa? Why the sudden fuss?"
The owner who had just emerged from the dungeon called out to her.
"Is it because of the dragon? You're sensing it now? Holy crap, it's all the way across the Pacific..."
As expected of her owner.
Just like her parent, she must have sensed that distant power.
- Kyrurrr, ururrr!
Vinasa let out a worried cry.
She could feel the terrifying power of the predator far away.
Even if she and her owner combined their strength, it was an overwhelming force they couldn't handle.
If they confronted it now, they'd just get smashed, breath attack or not.
Even if it was a dragonkin a notch below her.
Dragonkin were still dragonkin.
"Don't worry too much, Vinasa."
Hmm, don't worry?
Even for our destruction-obsessed species, that thing was on another level.
"I promised, didn't I? I'll raise you to be absolutely good and proper."
Hmm.
Everything else was fine, but...
To catch that thing, I needed to grow more...
"Just hang back this time. I'll protect you somehow, no matter what it takes."
- Kraaararara!
The destruction dragon Vinasa felt frustrated.
At her own situation, where she could only muster hatchling-level power.
And at her owner, spouting unrealistic nonsense.
* * *
Kuguagagaga!
A single flap of the dragon's wings stirred a storm on the ground.
The immense wind pressure ripped trees from their roots, and debris from collapsed buildings clumped together into a sandstorm.
Naturally, the rankers facing it down couldn't keep their wits about them.
They could only cling desperately near the tanks to avoid being blown away.
No time for formations or tactics.
The only reason they held out was...
- Deploy the magic circle!
Hoooooo...
Thanks to the defensive formation cast by the mages of Oxford Magic Tower.
Directly below the dragon, Tower Master Sophia chanted her spell in deep focus.
Behind her, hundreds of mages had thrust their staves into the ground, replenishing mana.
"It's humanity's first dragon!"
"Ancient texts say dragons are the lords of magic! If we lose focus, we'll get countered!"
"Everyone, hang in there!"
Human magic woven together by the tower's elders and professors.
- Hmm, what are these things?
Grrr...
Briyas peered down with an intrigued bellow.
- Fascinating. A race with all sorts of abilities. Newbies that popped up while I was asleep? The world's completely changed when I woke up.
The world he once lived in wasn't like this.
A world of dragonkin.
And countless drakes as their offshoots.
- Humans?
Briyas rifled roughly through one human's mind and sucked out information, gasping in shock.
- Impressive.
Apes.
Petty mutant apes had formed a civilization.
And that civilization had advanced at such breakneck speed.
Magic wasn't even part of the equation.
Kwagagaga!
Humanity's coalition unleashed a barrage of skills at him, but...
- Hmph.
The earth guardian dragon Briyas didn't lose his composure.
It was laughable.
- Just three, huh?
Only three that might be a slight nuisance.
From what he could see.
That guy leaping around with the hammer and shield seemed to be called a Paladin.
And that one over there, bulkier than the rest, called a Raider.
And finally.
- A follower of ancient magic?
Ancient Magic (SSS Grade).
The constellation most closely tied to dragonkin, known as the oldest in the universe.
Even if dragonkin could challenge the authority of constellations.
This one was on a different level.
Of course.
Ancient Magic was fearsome, but its followers were a joke.
- Time to clear them out roughly.
Adapting to this changed world could wait.
The top priority now was finding the remnants of the destruction dragon and erasing the traces.
- Kraaarararara!
The dragon reared back and roared at the rankers gathered below, drawing up mana.
Kuguagagaga!
In that instant, an enormous wave of mana surged from Briyas's body.
The pinnacle of magic for an earth-attribute user like him.
A powerful skill to sweep away these scattered humans in one go and take his leave.
Earthquake (SSS Grade).
This was no ordinary quake.
The ground split, flames erupted.
And razor-sharp rock shards crushed all life atop the earth in a murderous tremor.
Briyas unleashed it without hesitation over Belize and the Yucatan Peninsula.
* * *
"Th-this can't be."
Association President Aira couldn't believe it.
Look at the hunters on site.
All the top guilds' first-stringers were assembled, with over 600 estimated rankers.
And that wasn't all?
Even now, more rankers kept arriving in response to the association's call.
A true large-scale raid with all of humanity's might combined.
Yet.
They were getting utterly demolished by a single monster.
Blown away helplessly by just one flap of the dragon's wings.
"Sigh, maybe."
She let out a self-deprecating sigh from the nearby command center overseeing the scene.
"...the end really is coming."
Everyone knew.
The dragon's moniker was Earth Guardian Dragon.
And its name was Briyas.
How?
[The Earth Guardian Dragon Briyas roars.]
[Exposed to Dragon Fear.]
[High chance of falling into abnormal status 'Fear.']
[Warning! Warning! Warning!]
[Cannot withstand the dragonkin's presence. All stats reduced by 20%!]
The system spelled it all out.
That made it all the more terrifying.
Confirmation that the being before them was truly the dragon of legend.
"Uwaaaah!"
The situation wasn't much different for the Separate Heaven members.
"Crazy! Everyone, group up!"
Their leader, Thunderclap Floa, shouted amid crackling electricity.
"Don't scatter. No controlling from the center anyway! We stick together and survive! Hey, Berserker uncle! Hold your position!"
"...Got it."
Jang Dae-woong, about to charge out, smacked his lips in regret.
Separate Heaven's assembled rankers totaled 17.
Including those who had supported earlier.
"Hey, Matt!"
Pazzzik!
Floa turned around.
"Yes, leader!"
Separate Heaven's newbie.
World ranking 80th, Dragon Knight Matt Gerald, responded.
"So, that thing's an ancient dragon, right?"
"...According to my skill, yes. For reference, even hatchlings make high rankers look like shit—hyper rankers struggle too. Above that are mature dragons, and ancient dragons are... an extreme rarity even among dragonkin."
That was the description from Matt's skill.
Dragon Taming (S Grade).
"Damn it."
Ptoo.
Floa spat.
"We need Hoon for this."
The guide, Kapu, muttered.
"If it's Hoon who handled Drugen and Aranbalon, he might have some way. Judging by the size, those were ancient dragons too."
"That was just scavenging after they beat each other half to death, right?"
Floa furrowed her brow and shook her head.
"This one's a live, kicking dragon in the flesh."
"But now we've got tons of rankers teaming up."
"Dunno, adding a few more here doesn't seem to change shit?"
Even now, a few brave rankers were charging in.
But to Floa's eyes, it just looked like eggs shattering against a rock.
'How the hell did the boss take down something like that.'
In Delaila’s Trial.
Whatever it was, Joo Dong-hoon had taken down two dragons, making him seem even more impressive now.
'If it were the boss...'
What judgment would he make?
What clever method would he use to break through this impasse?
Just as frustration built.
"M-mana's surging!"
"Everyone, evade!"
A shout came from the front.
And in that moment.
'Fuck.'
Floa felt it.
The overwhelming mana erupting from the dragonkin.
"Bl-block it."
Before her voice could fully escape.
Kwagagagaga!
A massive explosion rocked from all directions.
The ground thrashed like it was possessed.
Countless rankers sprang into the sky like pogo sticks, and with kwaduk! kwaduduk! sounds, the earth split and crumpled.
'U-uwaa.'
Floa lost her balance and launched into the air too.
The problem was.
It wasn't just being flung up—sharp rocks were erupting from below.
Pazik, pazzzik!
She shattered them into fragments with electricity.
But...
"Kuaak!"
"Keheok!"
Already, some hunters had rocks skewering their guts like spits.
Top 1,000 rankers who could fly high.
Done in instantly by mere skill aftershocks.
"...!"
Off-balance, the magic tower's spells were canceled.
The Paladin tried shielding with his massive barrier, but one man had limits.
The Raider leaped up, smashing rocks with his fists, to no avail.
The formation shattered completely.
The hunters' will broke.
'This is...'
'It's over.'
'How do you fight something like this.'
'So this is dragonkin...?'
It was on another level.
They'd faced countless bosses in their lives, overcome absurd ordeals.
But this was different—way different.
No need for detailed comparisons.
The magic unfolding before them was from another dimension entirely.
Even the Tower Master was panicking in shock.
And this was just the dragon's first spell.
'Is this how we die?'
Death, the apocalypse...
It crept up more futilely than imagined.
Puk, pubuk! Puk!
Impact sounds echoed everywhere.
Nearby rankers' guts pierced, heads smashed by flying rocks with brains splattering.
Without defensive specialists or high-rankers nearby, dodging Earthquake's aftermath was tough.
Hunters and rankers began dying in droves.
Then.
Woooong! Woo Wooong!
Portals appeared in the air around them.
"Wh-what's that?"
"What the?!"
Holes ripped in space like Swiss cheese, swallowing desperate hunters.
High rankers or not.
No exceptions.
Of course, some...
"Everyone, jump in!"
"To survive, head that way! Gather at the holes!"
Eyes gleaming, ordered leaps themselves.
"Uwa!"
"Uwaaaah!"
Sucked into the abyss like that.
They emerged far from the dragon, outside the Earthquake casting zone.
And before those hunters.
"Hey there, our esteemed ranker lords."
A familiar-faced man stepped forward and muttered.
"I get it's a tough spot, but let's not give up so easily."
Ah.
Who wouldn't know him?
The young ranker recently inaugurated as one of Russia's five presidents.
That's right.
The man was the rapidly rising ranker, now world ranking 490th.
"You know that? Our team leader didn't give up even against two of those things."
Spatial Sorcerer.
Vladimir Rodigin grinned.