Chapter 608: Dragon Raid (6)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 608: Dragon Raid (6)
Dragons live for an impossibly long time.
As such, their concept of time is different from that of humans.
The entire lifespan of a human, from their prime to their death, is to a dragon nothing more than a pleasant nap.
But for him, it was different.
Thirty years.
A period that should have vanished in the time it took to wake from a slumber felt like an eternity.
That was how deeply it was seared into his bones.
The thirst for revenge against the human who had killed his sire before his very eyes.
A young dragon is prone to falling asleep at every opportunity.
For a dragon, sleep is not merely for mental satisfaction; it is a time of growth, a process of engraving the rich mana flowing through nature into its very flesh.
But he did not sleep.
He forced his heavy eyes open, endlessly fanning the flames of vengeance.
And at last, the time had come.
The time to bestow the greatest possible despair upon the human who now faced his own death.
“You’ve finally come.”
He could feel it.
The procession of weak humans rapidly evacuating the area around the snowy mountain.
And at the same time, the arrival of a small number of humans with immense mana in the now-empty city.
“They’ve sent some rather impressive ones.”
They were humans of a caliber he had never seen before.
They were likely the most exceptional among their kind.
“That human… the Pope, was it?”
He was surely wary of him as well.
It seemed he even anticipated that a trap had been laid here.
“Grrr…”
The dragon let out a low growl.
But things will not go as you wish.
He himself did not know where his aimless vengeance would turn after the Pope’s death.
So how could the humans possibly know?
A single city—no, an entire nation—could be pulverized by the misdirected wrath of a dragon.
Therefore, they had no choice but to come to him.
Even if it meant breaking through every trap he had personally prepared.
This is the end.
The humans’ departure was imminent.
He made his final push.
“Freeze.”
Crrrack!
“More.”
Crack!
“Rage.”
Whoooosh—!
“Stronger.”
KRAAA!
A great iceberg formed, and a blizzard of razor-sharp winds enveloped it.
With this, it was done.
The preparations to welcome his enemies were complete.
Just in time, the humans were on the verge of setting out.
He would slaughter them all.
He would sever their heads and throw them before the Pope, and then he would show him.
He would show him everything he had built crumbling to ruin.
Only then would he finally be able to sleep.
Having soothed his sire’s spirit, with a heart at perfect peace.
* * *
All the necessary supplies were ready.
Cold-weather gear and food.
And on top of that, all sorts of equipment.
It was an excessive amount for just five people.
“Is this everything?”
“Yes, it is.”
With a single gesture from the old man Merlin, the massive pile of supplies was stored away in a designated space.
“Whoa…”
“All that stuff, in an instant!”
The Holy Knights watched in awe.
I could understand.
The first time you see it, there’s no magic more wondrous than that.
Pretending to be unfazed, but with his shoulders subtly puffed out, the old man Merlin asked me in a solemn voice.
“Should we depart now?”
“Yes, let’s.”
I didn’t want to delay any longer.
There was no telling how long it would take to find the dragon’s hidden lair.
Just as we finished our preparations and were about to leave the empty city, a Holy Knight approached and asked in a worried tone.
“According to those who have scouted the inside of the rift, it’s difficult to gauge its true size. Are you certain the five of you will be alright?”
“What choice do we have, even if we’re not?”
It’s always better to use more people when scouting a large area.
But not in there.
They said it was a place where even a decent Hunter would freeze solid.
“I can’t sacrifice all of your lives just to cut down on search time, can I?”
These men were special, even among the Holy Knights of the Vatican Orthodox Church.
They were, after all, chosen directly by the Pope.
Even they supposedly couldn’t last a full day in the space beyond the rift.
That meant it would be difficult to get help from anyone less than S-rank.
At that, he spoke in a grim tone.
“For the sake of His Holiness the Pope’s will, a life is a small price to—!”
“That’s the point.”
That’s the problem, man.
“I’m saying that His Holiness the Pope would not wish for your meaningless deaths.”
Anyone listening would think I’m not taking them because I value their lives.
Well… that’s not entirely wrong.
No matter how ruthlessly I try to live, I feel like achieving my goals by sacrificing others would give me nightmares.
And I hate that kind of thing.
A man’s got to get a good night’s sleep, if nothing else.
“So, all of you should stay here and prepare for any unforeseen circumstances.”
Though I hope it doesn’t come to that.
“You can’t do everything on your own.”
I lightly patted the dejected man’s shoulder, offering what little comfort I could.
“Let’s just do what we can, you and I.”
“…Understood.”
The Holy Knight slowly stepped back.
I walked past them toward my party members, who were waiting at the city entrance.
“Is the talk over?”
“Yes, let’s go.”
Our destination was the summit of the Matterhorn.
But I had no intention of climbing.
I drew up my mana and enveloped the party members.
「Fly.」
One by one, their bodies began to float.
Leading them all, I soared toward the sky.
The temperature dropped rapidly as we gained altitude.
An unusual chill that pierced the skin of an S-rank Hunter made Ju-yeon shiver once and rub her arms.
“Haa… It’s really cold.”
I remembered.
Ju-yeon had always been a bit sensitive to the cold.
I added heat to the mana I had wrapped around us for levitation.
The air grew warmer.
Just then, the old man Merlin barked.
“You fool, what are you doing wasting mana already?”
The old man doesn’t know what he’s talking about.
“My mana pool is several times larger than yours, old man, so don’t you worry.”
“Several times? Do you think that’s even possible?”
“If you don’t believe me, we can measure it later.”
“Never mind, you brat.”
The old man Merlin hastily ended the conversation and turned his head away.
Guess he doesn’t want to face the harsh truth.
The summit grew closer.
The breath I exhaled froze white and fell away.
This confirmed it.
“This chill was created intentionally by someone.”
Irina beat me to the punch.
Her senses were quite sharp.
Or perhaps she was more sensitive because she primarily wielded cold.
She said, “Everyone, be on your guard from now on. We’ve already entered enemy territory.”
Those who had been shivering in the dizzying cold quickly shrouded themselves in mana to block the chill and composed themselves.
I could feel it.
The mana pouring out from the rift near the summit, which jutted out sharply like a horned peak.
“It’s over there.”
When I pointed out the direction precisely, Irina stared at me and asked.
“…You can feel that?”
“To some extent.”
“Hoh… Your senses must be exceptionally keen.”
“You could say that.”
To be precise, it was beyond keen; it was more like I had a firm grasp on my surroundings.
But there was no need to explain that.
She was an ally now, but she could become an enemy one day.
That’s just how the world works.
Yesterday’s ally becomes tomorrow’s enemy, and then an ally once more.
That’s why it’s important to judge things from a suitable distance.
Don’t see an enemy as just an enemy, and don’t blindly trust an ally.
The key is to maintain a delicate balance of trust and suspicion, to constantly secure an advantageous position for myself.
Ju-yeon pointed to the rift revealed beyond the snowy mountain where a razor wind was blowing and shouted.
“I see the rift over there!”
At the same time, I slowly lowered our floating bodies.
Crunch.
Squeak.
The ground sank deeply wherever our feet touched.
I flicked my fingers and created a gust of wind.
Whoosh-!
The powdered snow on the ground was swept up by the strong wind and scattered into the distance.
“Let’s go.”
As I walked forward along the path cleared by the wind, I heard someone muttering from behind.
“What a monster.”
Thanks for the high praise.
Upon reaching the rift, Angela, our tanker, was the first to place her hand on it.
Thirty seconds later, the rest of us followed suit, stepping into the rift.
Shwooop.
A sense of weightlessness, as if my whole body was floating.
As my senses gradually returned, I opened my eyes to a vast, snow-covered plain.
A sprawling forest of colossal trees that soared high enough to touch the sky.
Covering it all was a blanket of pure white snow and transparent ice.
A world of pure white that left one feeling lost, with no idea which way to go.
Angela, who was maintaining a defensive stance with her shield raised, scowled deeply and said.
“…This is even worse than I thought.”
“I agree.”
I’d heard the reports, but I never imagined it would be this bad.
With the old man Merlin being the last, all party members entered the rift.
At that very moment, a razor wind began to blow.
Swiiish!
The wind felt like it would not just pierce our skin but slice right through us, stealing our body heat.
No.
It wasn’t just our body heat that was being stolen.
This time, too, Irina spoke up before I could say anything.
“Everyone, be careful. This cold… it’s draining not only our body heat but our mana as well.”
Every time the chill that filled the air seeped into our bodies, a little bit of mana disappeared.
It seemed the plan was to slowly wither us to death here.
As I looked around the daunting snowy landscape, wondering where to even begin, I had a realization.
“…This is a Red Dragon?”
The common sense that had been so firmly rooted within me was beginning to crumble.