West Sea Dragon King (3)
West Sea Dragon King (3)
A wild eel appeared.
Nidhogg chose to fight.
"Ah, this is a delicacy."
"Are you okay with eating it raw?"
"What do you take me for?"
"Well, you are a Dragon, after all."
The closer they got to the palace, the more various types of seafood appeared as Monsters.
Crabs, red sea bream, eels, octopuses, squids, clams, and more.
Seafood that wasn't its original size, but at least over 2 meters long, was even more delicious than expected.
Is this the sweetness and umami Shin Su-ah was talking about?
I think I'm going to like seafood even more from now on.
After defeating one, tasting it, and moving forward again, they soon arrived right in front of the palace.
Looking up, the palace was so dilapidated that it wouldn't be strange if a ghost popped out right this second.
The walls surrounding the palace, which should have blocked intruders, were collapsed in places and failing to function, and the palace entrance, which must have once been grand, was so rotten and twisted that it looked like it would crumble at the slightest touch.
She didn't even seem to put much strength into it, but when Shin Su-ah gave the door a light nudge, the old door simply fell over, opening the entrance.
"Shall we go in?"
"Why are you asking us that?"
"The atmosphere is a bit..."
"What else could be in there besides more seafood? Let's go."
Passing through the door and entering the palace, the inside was even more disastrous than the outside.
A garden and a pond, for reasons unknown in the middle of the sea.
The flowers in the garden, which must have once been in full bloom, were withered and twisted, and the pond, which should have been transparent, had rotten water that gave off a foul stench.
They passed through the garden and went inside, but it was filled only with dust, and there were no signs of anyone having lived there.
Even Monsters were nowhere to be seen inside the palace.
For some reason, it felt even colder inside the palace than outside.
"Uuu, doesn't it feel cold for some reason?"
"It's not 'for some reason,' it's actually gotten cold."
"Indeed. If it weren't for receiving Nidhogg-nim's power, it would have been difficult to endure."
It wasn't quite as bad as when I was in Niflheim, but the surroundings had definitely become colder.
"There was no mention of this... Etchi!"
"We'll catch a cold if we stay like this. Let's head further inside quickly."
Everyone agreed that it would be better to clear the Gate quickly, so they picked up the pace and headed deep into the palace.
And finally, they arrived at the palace's audience chamber.
The two let out exclamations of admiration at the sight of the grand doors, which had dragon patterns engraved on both sides facing each other.
"Should I take this too when we go back later?"
I didn't feel any particular power from it, but I liked the carved dragon patterns.
"Etchi! F-first, let's clear the Gate. As I explained earlier, once we go inside, the Azure Dragon will appear and start attacking us. The Azure Dragon's abilities include its massive body, manipulating water, and wielding lightning. And the Breath it spews from its mouth. Every single one of them is dangerous if we allow even one hit, so we must be careful... but if Nidhogg-nim steps in personally, it can be handled easily, right?"
"Yeah. So let's get in there already."
If the seafood we ate on the way here were the appetizers, the Azure Dragon we're about to face is the main dish. Licking my lips at the thought of the Dragon's heart I'd be eating for the first time in a while, we entered the audience chamber.
At that moment.
[$@#%&^...Confirming the Dragon's entry]
[Starting the Dragon King's Trial]
Simultaneously with the System message, a thick mist flowed out from beyond the door and swallowed the entire party before they could even react.
The mist was so thick that even Shin Su-ah and Baek Yeon, who were standing right next to me, were invisible. When the mist cleared, the place was no longer the interior of a dilapidated, crumbling palace.
-♬♪♪♬♪♪
Under bright lighting, an octopus-headed musician in neat attire held a baton and showed off his musical skills, conducting other musicians such as shrimp, fish, and softshell turtles.
Squids danced to the song, and various fish wearing official robes sat in their seats, tilting their glasses and exchanging conversation.
In the highest seat, an old man wearing a royal dragon robe sat on the throne, looking down at them while saying something to a long-bearded catfish.
"What is this now?"
I looked around, but Shin Su-ah and Baek Yeon were nowhere to be seen.
The surrounding mermaids? Fishmen? Those kinds of guys didn't even care about me, as if they couldn't see me.
Since it clearly said it was the Dragon King's Trial, I figured it was testing something, but I couldn't understand what on earth it was trying to test with this.
Should I just flip everything over?
Just as I was contemplating.
"How is it? Isn't it lively?"
Turning around at the voice heard from right behind me, an old man who looked exactly like the one sitting on the throne was standing there with his hands behind his back, looking at me.
He certainly wasn't there until just a moment ago, but I was a bit surprised by the old man's appearance, as if he had been there from the start.
Furthermore, the magnitude of power felt from the old man was so great that even I couldn't simply ignore it.
Of course, it wasn't as overwhelming as mine, but it was enough to remind me of other Dragons I'd seen in the past.
Wait, no. He might be a step above them.
"Who are you?"
"My, my. Straight to the point from the start, are we? You may afford to be a bit more relaxed."
The old man nonchalantly pointed toward the musicians and the dancers performing their choreography, telling me to look over there.
However, I did not lower my guard.
No, rather, I glared at him while letting my power show.
"Are you the one called the Dragon King?"
"Hmm. It seems you have no intention of conversing."
"Well, of course I'd be on guard when you suddenly show me something strange like this."
"Huhu-hu. You don't particularly need to be on guard. I have no intention of doing anything to you."
"And how am I supposed to believe that?"
"Then look at this."
At the gesture of the old man presumed to be the Dragon King, water appearing from somewhere gathered into a sphere and projected something inside.
It was the sight of Shin Su-ah and Baek Yeon, who had disappeared somewhere.
The two were standing in a place with nothing else, facing Monsters that looked somewhat familiar.
The opponent Shin Su-ah was fighting was the shark-looking guy who had been standing behind the Dragon King as a guard in the scenery he showed me, and Baek Yeon's opponent was the catfish-looking guy who had been talking with the Dragon King.
"What. Are you trying to blackmail me?"
"My, my. Please do not misunderstand. They are merely undergoing a trial. Once they defeat my subordinates, Shark General and Catfish Minister, they will be able to come here immediately."
"A trial?"
"Yes. A simple trial. Furthermore, if they pass, I intend to give them at least one of the treasures I possess, so it will be a profitable deal for them."
"Then why am I here? Shouldn't I be taking a trial too?"
"What was that?"
Huhahahahahah!
The Dragon King, who had been laughing while holding his stomach like someone who had heard a funny story, wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes and spoke.
"Haa. To test a Dragon like myself. With what? And I am not such an ungrateful fellow as to test my benefactor."
"Why am I your benefactor?"
"Well, isn't it thanks to you that I've regained my senses like this? While their trial finishes, come over here for a moment. It's not much, but I shall tell you the story of my past."
I didn't know what he meant by regaining his senses, but since I couldn't feel even a speck of hostility from the Dragon King from beginning to end, I believed his words and followed him, and a lavishly set table appeared.
He sat in one seat and gestured for me to sit in the opposite one.
"Do you drink?"
"I don't drink often."
"Still, it is the finest alcohol I know, so have a bottle."
As for alcohol, the most I'd ever had was a few sips of the mead the gods used to drink.
I said it as a refusal, but the Dragon King, who poured a separate glass for himself and handed the rest to me by the bottle, took a drink with a "Keuuuu" sound as if it were his first drink in a long time, and then wore a somewhat wistful expression.
"I'm not sure where to start..."
"Just start from the beginning."
"Right. Then, around the time of creation, Pangu..."
"You piece of shit."
"Huhahahah!! It's a joke. A joke. Keu-heum!"
When I told him to start from the beginning, I reflexively cursed at his attempt to literally start from the creation of the world.
The Dragon King, who waved his hand saying it was a joke, cleared his throat, set the mood again, and spoke.
"The time was the distant past. It was around the time when I reigned over the sea as the Dragon King. Ruling the vast ocean, mediating disputes, and purifying the sea—that was my job."
His gaze, reminiscing about the past, was looking far away rather than at me.
"The world I lived in was a world where gods and Monsters were in conflict, and I, along with my subordinates, maintained the peace of the sea by defeating the Monsters that invaded our territory."
His face contorted as he reached that point.
"But the Monsters kept increasing without end, as if they were springing up from nowhere, and there was a limit to how much I could block them with my power."
"As my strength gradually began to fail in blocking the Monsters, there was almost nowhere I hadn't asked for help. I thought peace was maintained for a short while like that... but the place where the Monsters increased wasn't just here."
A reliable subordinate died.
The people who were promised peace died.
The family who was more precious than anyone else died.
After dying, and dying, and dying again, he said the only one left to him was a single young granddaughter.
The Dragon King, who wanted to resist until the very, very end but could not bear to lose even his granddaughter, had to make a choice.
"I sealed my granddaughter in the safest place and accepted the power of destruction."
The scales that should have been a clear azure became corrupted and stained dark, his mighty divine powers were lost to evil karma, and his reason vanished, leaving only instinct.
Thus the world was destroyed, and the Dragon Palace became a ruin, wandering according to fate to destroy other worlds.
He had been waiting for the time to destroy the world he arrived in this time, Earth, as well, but it is said that by another Dragon entering his Dragon Palace, a spell he had prepared along with the seal a long, long time ago before losing his reason was activated, allowing him to regain his sanity.
"So, how could I possibly blackmail you, my only hope?"
The Dragon King smiled benevolently, saying he had let go of everything and had been waiting only for this moment.