Chapter 337
Chapter 337
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 337
Chapter Title: Dragon and Dragons (1)
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A neatly manicured, tidy garden.
In one corner, beneath a small pavilion, two women sat facing each other across a tea table.
"...Red Dragon, it's you, isn't it?"
One of them, a woman with long blue hair neatly tied up, set down her teacup with a small sigh and spoke.
"What are you talking about?"
"Don't play dumb. You don't seriously think it's a coincidence that Do-ol happens to be over there right now?"
"Who knows what that fool's thinking? How should I know?"
"Red Dragon."
At the calm interrogation, the red-haired woman sitting across from her scowled and clicked her tongue lightly.
It was practically an admission.
The one watching her silently took a deep breath and shook her head.
"Why are you doing this? You know this isn't just for our Golden Jade Island. It's for the whole world. He's the key to making it happen."
"That's exactly why. We can't move forward entrusting something this important to some unproven outsider. This is the bare minimum verification needed."
"Verification...? This is the Dragon God's direct decree. You know th..."
BAM!
Her calm words cut off as the tea table shattered.
Sudden silence fell.
Red Dragon casually shoved the wreckage aside and spoke evenly.
"Dragon God... Yeah, the Dragon God. The one who never gave a damn while the world's fallen into chaos and our kin died in droves to hold the crumbling balance. And now he deigns to toss us a few benevolent words."
"...It's not just that. The Dragon God has long protected the 'Children of Dragons'..."
"Ha! Children of Dragons. What a joke. More like sacrificial lambs. Or does the Dragon God have a hobby of devouring his own young? What a remarkable fellow."
"Sar-in!"
"Stop. Don't call me by that name. I'm Red Dragon now. You're Azure Dragon."
At her firm words, the blue-haired woman—Azure Dragon—slowly closed her eyes.
Names representing their clans.
Names permitted only to their representatives.
And now, with all those above them dead, names they had inherited.
"...Fine, Red Dragon. Regardless, we can't just sit by while the conflict with him escalates. We've already sent people to stop the fight. Keep that in mind."
"Doesn't matter. A prolonged commotion won't do anyone any good. Still, if it's Do-ol, he's decently tough, so holding your own against him proves something...?"
Red Dragon's casual words trailed off midway.
Azure Dragon, sensing the unnatural silence, opened her eyes and tilted her head at her.
"Red Dragon?"
"......"
No reply came to her question.
Her gaze seemed fixed on some distant place, laced with inexplicable bewilderment.
Realizing where she was looking, Azure Dragon shifted her own consciousness, redirecting her sight.
To the island's entrance, where the commotion was likely in full swing.
Where her guest and the thorn in Illusion Realm's side, Do-ol, were.
'...What the?'
The first thing she saw was a sturdy back covered in rippling muscles.
Thinking the 'gaze' zoom was off, she adjusted it absentmindedly...
Then realized that wasn't the issue.
The surrounding scenery remained exactly as she'd first perceived it.
Except for one person.
The owner of that massive back that had filled her entire view.
"What... is that...?"
Red Dragon's hollow voice brushed her ear.
But Azure Dragon, stunned by the scene before her, couldn't react.
Strictly speaking, that one person wasn't the only giant there.
Do-ol, facing him, had a familiar form to her and a hefty build to match.
But the matchup was far from what she'd expected.
KABOOM!
What she saw was...
A burly adult man relentlessly pummeling a furry figure that barely reached his solar plexus.
'Well, looking closer, it's not entirely one-sided.'
But the size difference was so vast that Do-ol's resistance seemed pitifully futile.
Violence that dominated the senses through sheer visual overwhelm!
Staring blankly, Azure Dragon muttered unwittingly.
"...We'll need to send more kids to break that up."
"Mm..."
Naturally, there were no objections.
***
"Graaaah—! I'll kill you!"
"Stop! That's far enough!"
"Whoa, fall back! Grab him!"
"Form ranks!"
The sudden arrivals quelled the fight before it could intensify further.
In the ensuing chaos as the enraged Do-ol was forcibly subdued, Harley willingly retreated, gradually shrinking back to his normal size.
'Come to think of it, it's weirder they took this long.'
This was their home turf, and Harley was an invited guest.
Under normal circumstances, a fight shouldn't have happened at all.
'Either Do-ol's outburst caught them off guard with a slow response, or...'
Their superiors tacitly encouraged or permitted it.
Whatever the intent, Harley had no real complaints.
Thanks to them striking first—
Munch munch— Gulp!
—he'd gotten a satisfying 'bite.'
'Good call enlarging myself.'
Back to normal size, he patted his sated belly and nodded contentedly.
Do-ol was still raging partly because of that.
The size gap was so huge that a single bite to the shoulder had nearly torn off the thick arm.
Its yokai-level regeneration would fix it soon, but Harley's Gluttony devoured even the mystery within.
It must have consumed considerable power in recovery.
'Not my problem. Yokai brawling might involve some biting now and then. Right!'
Ending there was lucky enough.
The surest, most efficient way would be taking their inner core—like a yokai's mana stone—but he couldn't go that far yet. Collecting new genes was plenty for now.
Patting his belly, he calmly observed the Ultimate Evolving Lifeform stirring after so long.
'Intriguing. Strong Illusion Realm yokai are a new type. Heteromorph-like yet monstrous. A hint of spirit body too...'
Unlike monsters with hyper-developed peripheral cells for bioforce maximization, these emphasized central energy circulation pathways.
That was likely the foundation of their yokai martial system, akin to human meridians.
'This could accelerate Mad Emperor Heart Art completion.'
Feeling his cells evolve for better energy flow, he smirked.
Exchanges between civilizations and ecosystems were evolution's shortcut, after all!
As he clenched and unclenched his fist in satisfaction...
"Uh, Lord Mad Demon? Are you hurt anywhere?"
Blue Robe, who had stayed back during the fight, approached cautiously.
"Of course not! Sweating it out lightly feels refreshing—great mood booster! Haha!"
"Phew, glad to hear it. So, about that..."
Relieved by Harley's nonchalant attitude, he got straight to the point.
Sticking with this man any longer felt like tempting fate.
"If it's alright, could I escort you to Lady Azure Dragon now? She wishes to formally apologize for this incident."
The message from above was a perfect excuse.
A chance to finish his duty and escape the storm's eye.
***
The Illusion Realm lay far from the human-dominated continent.
Golden Jade Island there was a collective of diverse yokai.
'What they call "yokai" here lumps all non-human races together.'
Including gumiho, dokkaebi, and even kirin or haetae spirit beasts.
At the pinnacle of all yokai stood the dragons.
"...This feels off."
The red short-haired woman eyeing Harley suspiciously was one such.
After Blue Robe's guidance and Azure Dragon's apology for the commotion, Red Dragon, standing boldly beside her, glared at him with glowing reptilian eyes.
As if peering straight into his soul.
And—
"You're a dragon slayer."
The subtle expression in her eyes since their first meeting sharpened into clear hostility.
Laced with inexplicable disappointment.
"...Red Dragon."
"I know, Azure Dragon. But this is different, isn't it?"
"But he..."
"Sure, his power's impressive, but that's it. Better if he were a normal human—he couldn't even enter the Dragon God Temple from the start. Isn't this an impossible condition outright?"
"Haa—."
"Unbelievable. I had hopes. Thought the Dragon God had at least a shred of conscience! But the 'key' is a monster who devoured a dragon and stole its karma? Is he mocking us?"
Blue-haired Azure Dragon trailed off with a sigh, closing her eyes, while Red Dragon spewed furious rage.
As if betrayed.
Her emotions stirred the ambient qi, filling the air with unease.
'What's their deal?'
Harley couldn't care less.
Whatever baggage they carried, he had enough on his plate—who cared about others' issues?
Hmph!
Arms crossed, he shot them a sour look and cracked his neck insolently.
"Hey, save your chit-chat for when it's just you two. You drag a busy guest here—what's this nonsense?"
"What...?"
Red Dragon whipped around, face twisted mid-rant, but Harley didn't flinch, continuing casually.
"I'm busy enough without this. I didn't come all this way for fun, so let's cut to the chase."
"Hah!"
At his brazen demand, both Red and Azure Dragons stared in disbelief.
Wondering what gave him the nerve.
Harley, ever welcoming a fight, met their gazes with chin held high.
"...Sorry, but talks end here. We invited you first, so stay a few days. Sightsee, we'll even send you off with gifts. But that's it."
Red Dragon eyed him coolly, her tone softened.
Azure Dragon, shoulders slumped in disappointment beside her, offered no rebuttal.
Facing him directly, her view aligned with Red Dragon's.
Tsk.
Harley scratched his head at their reactions, piecing it together.
'From what I gather, the issue is me eating a dragon and forcibly taking its karma?'
Made sense—Auterica's grand sorcerer had spotted it instantly.
Usually passing as dragonkin worked fine, but here it was different.
'Right, never actually met a real dragon in Auterica.'
The only one he knew, Shurihartgen, holed up in its lair observing via magic.
Other surviving dragons probably similar.
More surprising that karma crossed dimensions.
Dragons and yong were different species, no?
'Nah. Humans vary across dimensions too.'
Gods sharing templates? Bland elements popped up often.
No shock if dragons and yong were linked.
'...Should I just wreck everything?'
Things were getting annoying.
He'd come solely for info—what they wanted didn't matter.
He'd cooperated for their aid, but force could yield results too.
'Restoring Strong Illusion Realm's taken enough groveling. Time to act first...'
As thoughts veered extreme, violence crept into his mind.
Suddenly.
Another idea flashed.
'Wait, ultimately, me eating the dragon's the problem?'
They wanted something from him.
He didn't meet the criteria.
What if someone who did—better yet, perfectly suited—stepped in?
'No loss either way. One last shot.'
Decision came quick.
***
"Huh?"
Red Dragon's mouth hung slack.
"Ah..."
Azure Dragon was equally dumbfounded.
Their gazes fixed ahead.
In front of Harley, who nodded smugly with arms crossed.
"Ehehe—."
A golden-haired toddler squirmed bashfully under their stares, twirling hair with tiny fingers and beaming innocently.
""...Yellow Dragon?"
The moment Auterica's juvenile gold dragon Horus arrived early for his Illusion Realm study abroad.