Black Lotus and White Marigold -11-
I led Kangjang and the undead straight to the center of the forest where Geist No. 12 was waiting. Any monsters that dared block our path were slaughtered without mercy as we pushed forward at full speed. Strangely enough, the closer we got to the center, the slightly stronger the monsters became. Still, none of them had reached the level of a Starving Asura yet.
After advancing relentlessly, we finally arrived.
"We're here."
"Uuu~"
We had reached our target. It was an utterly alien structure smack in the middle of this vast underground cavern forest—a place that perfectly embodied the words great wilderness.
"A castle."
"Uu?"
Surrounded by dense trees and undergrowth, this was no natural formation. It was a blatantly artificial castle made of the same stone as the labyrinth I'd explored before entering this underground forest. The design was beautiful, like something straight out of an old fairy tale.
And that wasn't all.
Bubbling lava
A moat encircled the castle to fend off invaders, but instead of water, it brimmed with scorching lava. Naturally, the area around the castle in this cavern's heart was a barren wasteland scorched by the lava's heat, a stark contrast to the lush surrounding forest. Spanning the moat was a single, beautifully sculpted stone bridge—wide enough for an army.
One might question the point of such a wide bridge for defense, but a quick glance explained it.
"Grrr..."
A massive reptile with red scales and wings, sporting four legs. By eye, it measured about 30 meters from head to tail—a dragon. Its tail and long neck made up most of its length, but there was no denying its enormous size.
This behemoth lay sprawled across the broad bridge, right by the castle's massive entrance gate, fast asleep.
I remember reading about dragons back in the imperial palace.
Modern dragons were degraded descendants of the ancient world guardians created by the gods, nearly wiped out in the gods' ancient wars. Unlike the intelligent ancient dragons, these had devolved to clever beast level. I knew it wasn't an ancient dragon because those were far larger, according to texts and records.
Still, that's beyond adult size—it's an elder dragon tier.
In isekai power terms, something that big was black grade. Only a handful of black-grade powerhouses in the world or massive armies could handle it. A prime example was Benefict Pendragon, commander of the Praetorian Knights, the imperial guard.
Thinking about it that way, it doesn't seem so impressive...
Stronger than a Starving Asura, maybe, but weaker than Flamma.
Come to think of it, I've never seen Benefict's true power. No clue who wins between him and Flamma.
Anyway, at my current level, I could crush Flamma—who'd given me trouble before—with ease. This dragon wouldn't be much harder. The issue was how to deal with it.
Got to be careful. If we fight too fiercely, that thing might get damaged.
The real prize—reason for half this trip—could be ruined. Geist's scan showed it in a small hole under the castle wall, right behind where the dragon slept by the gate. I considered having Geist fetch it, but manifesting to grab something would make noise, alerting the dragon. And the dragon was probably stronger than Geist anyway. For the item's safety, that wasn't viable.
Time to dust off an old gaming trick.
Conveniently, it was asleep.
"Kangjang, hang tight. I'll make us a friend."
"Auu~!!"
Kangjang replied excitedly. I summoned two undead nearby.
"Death Knight Lucky No. 7 and Shadow Walker Death No. 4—come to me."
"Grraaah!!"
"Ah... ah. Oh!!"
I'd made plenty of Geists from monster corpses, but I'd crafted a few non-Geist undead too, so I had a decent number on hand. Among them approached a knight fused with the concept of death into armor-like form, and a massive humanoid shadow.
"See that dragon?"
"Bwooo!!"
"Oh!!... Ah!!... Oh!!"
They nodded. Their mental affirmation reached me through our link. They could speak fluently when ordered last time, but now they sounded like beasts. Whatever—not important.
"I need your help to kill it. The kind of sacrifice where your bones grind to dust and your body shatters—powdered bone and shattered flesh."
"Bwoooo!!"
"Ah!!!... Ah!!!!!"
They sent thoughts of honor in serving me. Probably expecting a meat shield or suicide rush. But I had no intention of such basic tactics.
"Good, perfect. Your enthusiasm is spot on."
"Bwooo!!"
"U... ah...!!"
"Yeah, yeah, count on you. [Bow] and [Arrow]."
Bow and Arrow
-Snap-
Their excited voices cut off abruptly.
"Bw, bwooo...?"
"Oh...?"
"I won't forget your sacrifice. [Corpse Refinement]."
Corpse Refinement
Ignoring their puzzled looks, I activated the skill.
-Crunch-
Their bodies compressed rapidly, reshaping into new forms.
-Crunch-
The Death Knight first: its hulking form curved into a bow-like object.
-Crunch-
Soon, in my hand was a massive bow crafted from the Death Knight's armor design and material. Nearly two meters tall from its huge frame, it dwarfed even my ogre-like height and was thicker than any normal bow. The string, like reinforced tendons, had tension no ordinary person— not even a hero—could draw.
-Thud!!
I slammed one end into the ground to anchor it. This wasn't for handheld use.
-Ssshh-
I gripped the arrow from the Shadow Walker in my other hand. Though shadow-born, Corpse Refinement gave it solid form. Matching the greatbow's scale, it was enormous.
-Hummm-
Black shadows steamed from the arrow, exuding menace.
-Twaang!!
I nocked it and drew. My strength made the insane tension effortless. Aiming at the dragon.
You might wonder if I could shoot, but in my past life, I'd mastered every weapon, bows included. I outshot instructors so fast I quit from boredom, but even then, I'd have swept golds at nationals.
Plus, this Shadow Walker arrow auto-corrected aim. Perfect lock.
"Wheeeee!!"
I whistled mana into sound.
"Grrr?"
The dragon stirred, eyes opening, unaware of us till now.
That instant—
-Bang!!
I released.
-Boom!!
The shadow arrow streaked faster than sound, sonic boom trailing. Greatbow tension + my strength + weightless shadow = devastating.
Too fast—the dragon's head rose lazily as the arrow hit its eye.
Literally—
-Squelch!!
"Kraaaang!?"
Straight into its softest, weakest spot. Normally, dragons have passive mana shields, but this arrow, my power, and the greatbow pierced it effortlessly.
Even if not, Plan B with Shadow Walker's traits was ready.
"Kreeeeee!!!"
It thrashed in agony—probably a first.
I followed up.
"Release."
Release
-Ssshh!!
The arrow reverted to Shadow Walker form.
"Krawaaah!!"
-Thud!!
The dragon swiped futilely. Physical hits need spirit-strike skills or magic against incorporeal undead.
"Kraaah!!!"
-Hummm!!
It realized, trying something amid screams—
-Crunch!!
Shadow Walker thinned its body, thrusting deeper into the eye, gouging. Weaker than the dragon, it couldn't breach bone, but flesh tore easily.
"Kraaah!!!"
Head vital—critical hit. Once shadows pierced deep enough—
Attribute Grant: Black Flame
[Detonate Astral]
Detonate Astral
-KABOOOOOM!!!!
-Black Flame Explosion-
-Roarrr!!
Black flame explosion erupted from the Shadow Walker's core inside the dragon's head.
"Krut... Shadow Walker No. 4..."
I couldn't hold back tears for my subordinate's sacrifice.
But—
-Smirk-
"A necessary one."
"Uuu~"
