#54 Truth (2)
#54 Truth (2)
"Kyuu~!"
Perry's cry jolted me back to my senses. I had returned from the World of Nothingness, but not to the Reality Realm — it was the Illusion Realm. Had Perry moved me here because we might have been discovered? Either way, I had reason to stop by. I needed to speak with the Queen. As I walked through the Illusion Realm with Perry, I heard urgent footsteps and turned my head. A White Deer was rushing toward us, clearly in haste. Baekrok, glancing around with visible tension, soon spotted me and let out a relieved sigh.
"...Hoo. So it was you."
Judging by that reaction, had he thought I was an enemy? This was my first time in the Illusion Realm since evolving. Baekrok shook his head.
"For a moment, I thought... that he had returned."
"He?"
"...Forgive me. It is nothing. More importantly — have you evolved?"
The odd remark made me tilt my head, but I nodded at his question. Meanwhile, Perry fluttered around Baekrok, whom she hadn't seen in a while, expressing her delight.
"I see."
Baekrok studied me closely and furrowed his brow. Even Kang Tae-jun's Square's Masterpiece couldn't read me, so there was no chance Baekrok's Eye for Detail skill could discern anything. Soon enough, Baekrok shook his head again.
"It is a relief that it was you."
I caught the weight behind those words and gave a bitter smile.
"Can I meet the Queen?"
"......She won't refuse. There should be no problem."
I nodded. If she truly didn't want it, the Queen — the ruler of the Illusion Realm — never would have permitted my arrival in the first place.
"You, and the Young Dragon too..."
Baekrok trailed off, but I knew exactly what he had been about to say. I had grown stronger, certainly, but Perry's growth was nothing to scoff at either. After devouring the Silent Mouth's medium and consuming Juggernaut's flesh, calling her "little" even as a joke was no longer easy. Unless you were about my size, perching on someone's head and coiling up was difficult. For one thing, she'd grown to nearly ten kilograms now.
[Perry (Fairy Dragon)]
[Length 108.9cm] [Height 7.4cm] [Weight 8.72kg]
[STR 61] [AGI 56] [VIT 64] [MP 196]
[Skill List]
[Superior Blink (C)] [Mana Regeneration (D)] [Faint Poison Resistance (F)]
Not only had her stats improved, but the Blink she frequently used had become Superior Blink, and because she'd consumed impure matter, she'd even developed Poison Resistance. I wasn't the only one growing day by day. I lifted my head and saw that the Illusion Realm's landscape had changed.
"It is thanks to you."
Countless Fairy Dragons filled the sky — the ones I'd fed Bicheonmang's flesh. They must have succeeded in Metamorphosis while I was away in Neverland. I stared, briefly entranced, and the flying Fairy Dragons noticed us and began to approach.
"Kyuuuu!"
"Kyuuu~!"
As the Dragon Bugs and Fairy Dragons gathered, Perry communed with her kin, clearly delighted. Among the tiny creatures, Perry's growth stood out even more. She looked almost like a mother dragon with her hatchlings. Perry led the way, and hundreds of Fairy Dragons scattered Light Powder as they flew — I caught myself letting out an awed breath.
"Kyukyukyu~"
The creatures, initially wary and cautious, now regarded me with open curiosity and treated my back like a slide, scampering along my spine to play. Eventually the fairies flew over too, adding to the cheerful commotion, but it didn't feel unpleasant.
"......Heh heh."
At Baekrok's greasy grin, the fairies' eyes went round and they chattered among themselves. In the middle of it all, a large butterfly descended from high above, dancing as it came — a Flame Butterfly. It meant the Queen was summoning me. I climbed onto it, crossed the emerald sea, and opened the doors of the upside-down tree palace. A Herald Fairy wearing a crown came rushing at me, whining about how long it had been. I soothed the fussing creature, and once I put on the crown, the World shifted again. ...Or rather, only my consciousness did.
【Child, you have come.】
Another pitch-black World. A form that seemed wrought of stars. The Queen greeted me, unchanged as ever. Her gaze swept over me from head to toe before she nodded.
【You have truly grown so much.】
"Enough time has passed."
The last time I'd seen her was before I evolved into the Shadow Wolf. I got straight to the point.
"......I've learned the truth about the destruction and The End you spoke of."
【Indeed. I heard every word you said, child. When you declared you would stop the End, I couldn't help but feel a thrill of excitement.】
The Queen covered the spot where her mouth would be and laughed.
【Have you come to confirm it? Whether I will become your enemy or not.】
"No."
She tilted her head, bemused.
【No?】
I nodded at her echo. I had no need to doubt the Queen, who had shown me nothing but goodwill. That wasn't to say there were no questionable aspects, but if she were truly my enemy, I wouldn't even be able to enter the Illusion Realm. I had come to see her for a different reason.
"I know the truth. But I still don't know anything about your kind."
【So you mean...】
I had used Insight the moment I saw the Queen, but as always, I could read nothing at all. At least I hadn't collapsed this time — perhaps that was proof of my growth. I had expected as much, but I still couldn't reach her. No — her Hierarchy was on a completely different plane. I'd thought that no one could be an enemy unless they were one of the Seven Heroes, a Square Master, or a Section Boss in Neverland... but against the Queen, I couldn't feel even a sliver of a chance. And she wasn't the first being I'd felt that from.
'Heukrin.'
A mere fragment borrowed, yet his Black Will-o'-the-wisp had burned away the Black Rose and even Greed like they were jokes. It meant there were still unknowns in this World, hidden from me — Transcendents who existed far outside the bounds of common sense, beings that hadn't even warranted a mention in the novel.
"So tell me. About your kind."
I'm done being at anyone's mercy. And I can't afford to stay ignorant about them if I want to make sure of that.
【......Heh heh.】
The Queen, who had seemed briefly surprised, soon smiled as if she were proud of me. And then, slowly, she began to speak...
***
Afterward, once a few more matters had been confirmed, I returned to the Illusion Realm. Baekrok and Perry were waiting for me.
"Oh~? Wolf~!"
And there was a fairy — the Child of the Third Winter — as well. It really had been quite a while, and I felt genuinely glad to see her.
"Wolf, you've gotten so~ much bigger, too!"
She'd ridden over on Perry's head and stretched out both arms, but the best she could manage was wrapping them around my snout. If I exhaled right now, wouldn't she go tumbling away? I was thinking that when I shifted my gaze and saw Baekrok shaking his head.
"I don't need to be told anymore."
***
Inside the vast labyrinth of the dungeon, Wolf walked in perfect calm. Shadows bloomed from him, spreading without limit and swallowing the area whole. Monsters caught in it vanished without a sound. Monsters that were at least B-class could hold out for a moment, but that moment meant nothing at all.
"———!"
Taurus and the other monsters thrashed inside the Spiritual Field before their breath gave out.
"Wow~!"
The fairy was utterly delighted by the sight, but Baekrok furrowed his brow. It wasn't that beings as powerful as Wolf didn't exist — he'd seen the Volcanic Horned Dragon not long ago, after all. The issue was how little time it had taken. Wolf, who had once been weaker than Baekrok himself, had become an untouchable monster in less than half a year. Watching him devour one after another sent an involuntary chill down Baekrok's spine. He knew it would never happen, yet he couldn't help imagining — what if that shadow stretched toward him? —At the end of the dungeon, the monsters had bunched together, shrieking and hammering at the doors.
Wolf nodded as he took in the sight of the fleeing monsters huddled together with nowhere left to go. Even using Detection, he felt no other presences. When he unfurled his shadow, the desperate monsters lunged, but the surging Spiritual Field swallowed most of them. Those that dodged the shadow bared their fangs at Wolf. But avoiding the shadow didn't mean it was over. Wind-wreathed mist gnawed through the horde, and countless tentacles shot from Wolf, skewering their vitals with perfect precision.
[Raikusu ingested. Experience Points and Satiety increased.]
From Taurus to the enormous rhinoceros-like Raikusu, he consumed every last one without leaving a trace, and silence settled over the chamber. As if confirming something, Wolf glanced back for a moment. There stood the fairy, hands covering her mouth, eyes stretched wide with astonishment.
—Now only one remains.
When Wolf turned his head forward again, his eyes saw clearly beyond the labyrinth doors that the horde had clawed and battered.
'A Drake...'
[Drake]
[Length 12.71m] [Height 4.84m] [Weight 14.1t]
[STR 519] [AGI 503] [VIT 567] [MP 461]
[Skill List]
[Dragon Blood (B)] [Dragon Scale (C)] [Tough Skin (E)] [Devouring (E)]
The boss of the labyrinth. Wingless, but known as the monster closest to a true dragon. I'd seen a Drake before, in the volcanic zone, but that one had been an inferior subspecies. The Drake before me now possessed both Dragon Blood and Dragon Scales — a genuine article, beyond all doubt.
It must have sensed something, because it rose to its feet, carrying itself with all the arrogance of a dragon species. It wouldn't be long before it pushed open the doors and emerged. I looked back again and saw that Baekrok had already withdrawn, taking the fairy and Perry with him. Moments later, the Drake braced its weight on its hind legs and shoved the doors aside, revealing itself.
"———."
The enormous wyrm glared down at me and huffed out a powerful snort, sparks of fire leaking from its nostrils. As if I weren't worth a second glance, it lifted a foreleg to crush me. I leapt clear of the stomp and sank my fangs into its nape — but the hide was as hard as expected. My teeth didn't pierce. —Its Stats alone, that is. Snatch Devour activated, and the dragon scales vanished and blazed away. The Spiritual Field had already shrouded the Void around the Drake's head. The Drake thrashed in agony, drawing up its Mana, and the shadow scattered.
"———!"
But by then, the Dragon Scales covering its head had already been torn away, and both eyes were gone. It had Devouring itself, so it might endure. How long could a blind monster truly hold out? The Drake's maw gaped wide, and a crimson flame flickered deep in its throat. It inhaled with all its might. Its diaphragm swelled. Breath drawn, Mana condensed. The moment it exhaled— A breath attack never came. What it had inhaled wasn't just air — it included the Black Mist as well. Even the Dragon Breath condensing alongside its Mana was greedily devoured by the Black Mist. The wyrm retched, trying to expel the mist, but wind-wreathed mist isn't so easily shaken off.
—In an instant, the wyrm froze solid under Wolf's gaze. Realizing too late that it was already enveloped in the Haze, it thrashed in desperation.
[Drake ingested. Experience Points and Satiety increased.]
Escaping the Void that consumes all things was impossible. As the collapsed Drake was devoured, the fairy riding Perry approached.
[Snatch Devour (C) Lv.7 proficiency at maximum. Snatch Devour (C) Lv.7 → Snatch Devour (C) Lv.8]
[Experience Points at maximum. Lv.16 → Lv.17]
Watching the dungeon collapse and return to its original form, Wolf nodded. He needed more Experience Points. For that, he needed dungeons — dungeons in the Illusion Realm. The problem was that the dense Mana made them impossible to clear. So he would solve that problem. That was what he'd gotten the Queen's confirmation for, after all.