Chapter 318
Chapter 318
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 318
Chapter Title: A Faded Promise (10)
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Flames raged.
Fierce and wild, as if to devour the entire world.
The flames, swimming freely through the air as if alive, coiled around the charging demonoids, incinerating their bodies.
“Aaaaaargh!”
The acrid smoke from burning flesh filled the cavern, thick as the mists in the Sky Mountains.
Overwhelmed by the soul-searing heat, the demonoids couldn't even get close to Ha-eun, letting out screams filled with agony.
“Q-Quickly, we have to kill that bitch!”
But among them, a few demonoids managed to break through the flames and reach Ha-eun.
“Who the hell are you, calling me a bitch the moment you see me?”
Ha-eun took a boxing stance, her steps light.
Though her Stigma specialized in long-range and area-of-effect attacks, her innate reflexes and consistent training had given her formidable close-quarters combat skills.
*Crack!*
Leaping lightly as if to a rhythm, she slammed a straight punch into an approaching demonoid.
With the sound of a nose bone shattering, the charging demonoid was sent flying backward.
“That’s it!”
Her body felt as light as a feather.
Even a light punch carried terrifying power.
With nimble steps, she broke through the flames and struck down the charging demonoids one by one with her fists.
“Kuaaaaargh!”
Screams as horrifying as the roars of demonic beasts.
Engulfed in the flames that scorched everything, the demonoids began to fall one after another.
“H-Holy crap. I’m so damn strong now, right, Oh-jin?”
Ha-eun stared down at the fallen demonoid's corpse with wide, disbelieving eyes, as if she couldn't believe her own actions.
Just as she was reveling in the thrilling sensation coursing down her spine.
“Kuh!”
“Huh? Wh-What the?”
A fallen demonoid, covered in horrific burns, grabbed Ha-eun’s ankle.
*Rumble!*
Dark, ominous clouds began to pour out from the horn on the demonoid’s forehead.
“Die…!”
As the dark clouds flowing from the horn gathered in the hand gripping Ha-eun’s ankle.
*Thwack!*
A black spear flew in at high speed and pierced straight through the demonoid’s head.
“…Ah.”
“You can't let your guard down until the very end, Ha-eun.”
“Ugh. Sorry. I guess I got too excited.”
Looking embarrassed by the sloppy finish, Ha-eun scratched her head.
Oh-jin approached Ha-eun, who had transformed into her dragonoid form, and marveled inwardly.
*‘She’s gotten unbelievably strong.’*
Originally, Ha-eun’s ‘Star’ level itself was higher than Oh-jin’s.
But in reality, she had been the weakest member of their group.
It wasn't that Ha-eun lacked skill, but that Isabella and Oh-jin possessed power that was off the charts.
However.
*‘In terms of sheer power, those flames just now might have surpassed Isabella's.’*
To turn nearly thirty demonoids to ash in less than ten minutes.
Even for Oh-jin, that would have been impossible without using Gaecheon.
*‘When it comes to facing multiple opponents, I won’t be able to keep up with her anymore.’*
Ha-eun’s abilities were already optimized for one-versus-many combat, but...
after absorbing the dragon's soul, her power had strengthened to the level of a strategic weapon.
*‘Though she still seems a bit lacking in one-on-one fights.’*
In game terms, Ha-eun was a mage-type, pouring out powerful area-of-effect spells from a distance.
Although she had learned some close-quarters combat, her skills were still far from those of a warrior like Oh-jin who specialized in it.
She might have been caught off guard, but she had panicked just from a half-dead demonoid grabbing her ankle.
*‘But if she has a solid frontline to protect her...’*
Ha-eun’s power could be equivalent to an 11-Star Awakened, or perhaps even greater.
“So? So? Aren't I awesome, Oh-jin?”
As if realizing she had obtained incredible power, Ha-eun puffed out her chest proudly.
Oh-jin chuckled and nodded.
“Any other symptoms?”
“Other symptoms?”
“Yeah. Like the Dragon God’s voice echoing in your head.”
“Hmm… No, nothing like that.”
Ha-eun shook her head.
“What about your body right now?”
“Oh, this?”
She touched the red scales covering parts of her neck and cheek.
*Sssss.*
The scales retracted into her body, and Ha-eun returned to her original human form.
“It seems I only turn like this when I use the power of Yong'an.”
“Can you control it freely?”
“Yup. I’ve always used Yong'an. It just gets a little tiring if I use it for too long.”
In that case.
Does this mean Ha-eun has obtained immense power without any risks or side effects?
Without any particular effort.
Without any particular hardship.
Like a protagonist who falls off a cliff and finds a fortuitous encounter in a cave.
*‘What is this feeling?’*
It felt like watching gears that didn't mesh.
Oh-jin frowned, biting his lip with an anxious expression.
“Oh-jin?”
“Ah, sorry. It’s nothing.”
He forcibly cut off the thoughts rising in his mind.
There was still work to be done.
He could think about it later.
“*Sob*… *Hic*. Lord Kalleios.”
Kellion was still crying, clutching the half-melted corpse of the Dragon God.
Ha-eun hesitated before approaching Kellion.
“Um… I-I’m sorry. I didn’t know this would happen.”
It wasn't intentional, but...
because the Dragon God's soul, which had been dormant in the soul stone, had unexpectedly inhabited Ha-eun, it seemed certain that the Dragon God had died without ever waking up.
“…It is not your fault. I was the one who brought the Dragon Maiden here.”
Kellion, still crying, shook his head with a listless expression.
He had broken the barrier with his own hands and brought her to the place where the Dragon God slept; he couldn't blame her now.
If there was blame to be placed.
it lay with his own powerless self, who could do nothing as the Dragon God died before his eyes.
“Let’s move outside for now.”
He wanted to leave the grieving Kellion alone for a while longer, but...
as long as the demonoids who had invaded the kingdom remained, they couldn't afford to waste time here.
*‘Even if fifty died here, there are still that many more left.’*
Including the army of demonic beasts that didn't come to the lair, their forces would be even greater.
And.
*‘There were no executive-level ones among the group that came to the lair.’*
Executive-level demonoids, like Kalike whom Oh-jin had faced in the Khan Kingdom, possessed strength far greater than ordinary demonoids.
There should have been a commander leading the group of over a hundred demonoids, but they hadn't shown themselves at the lair.
*‘There’s no way such a large force would have invaded the kingdom without a commander.’*
They must still be outside, commanding the remaining demonoid troops.
*‘If I can rendezvous with Isabella.’*
Now that Ha-eun has received the Dragon God’s power.
if they could join up with the dragonoid forces led by Isabella, it would be entirely possible to drive the demonoids out of the kingdom completely.
*‘I should try contacting Isabella first.’*
Oh-jin took a communication-type Sacred Relic from his pocket.
Just then.
*Vroooooom.*
Was it as if their minds were connected?
Before Oh-jin could even make the call, a communication came in from Isabella.
-Did you succeed in awakening the Dragon God?
Isabella immediately asked if the Dragon God had awakened.
“No, we failed to awaken the Dragon God.”
-What? You failed?
Her voice was filled with bewilderment.
“I’ll tell you later. How are things outside?”
-I was actually calling to tell you about that.
Isabella continued in a low, somber voice.
-The demonoid forces are retreating.
“What?”
The demonoid forces are suddenly retreating?
“…What do you mean?”
-I’m not sure myself. Just a moment ago, some of their troops were pursuing us… but then they suddenly said a retreat order was given and started pouring out of the kingdom. That’s why I thought you had succeeded in awakening the Dragon God, Mr. Oh-jin.
So that's why she was so surprised when he said they failed.
“So, anyway, all the demonoid forces have retreated?”
-Yes. The dragonoids are in a completely festive mood, saying the Dragon God has awakened from his slumber.
“……”
An unpleasant feeling, like chewing on sand, spread through him.
Did he now have to go out and pour cold water on their festive mood by telling them the Dragon God hadn't awakened, but had died?
“…I’ll tell them, Oh-jin.”
“You will?”
“Yeah. I think I should be the one to say it.”
Ha-eun clenched her fists, her expression firm.
“…I shall go with you.”
Kellion stood up, supporting himself with his staff.
“……”
With a bitter expression, Oh-jin watched the backs of Ha-eun and Kellion as they walked toward the lair's exit.
The war was won.
There were few casualties, and they had reclaimed their stolen kingdom.
However.
The god they had eagerly awaited for the past hundred years would never open his eyes again.
Not ever again.
* * *
Although they had reclaimed the kingdom from the demonoids.
the atmosphere within the kingdom was as somber as a funeral home.
The death of the Dragon God.
It was a greater shock to the dragonoids than Oh-jin had anticipated.
He wasn't an abstract god they simply believed in and followed.
The death of the benevolent god who had actually sacrificed his life for them in the past plunged the dragonoids into deep despair.
Having lost even the will to restore their broken kingdom, the dragonoids sat slumped on the streets like soulless dolls.
“*Sob*… *Waaaah!*”
“Lord Kalleios… How, how could you leave us….”
“We believed you would awaken…!”
The sounds of wailing that echoed through the kingdom did not cease even after several days.
They had won the war, but they looked no different from a defeated army.
To them, the existence of the Dragon God Kalleios was, quite literally, ‘hope’.
The despair that filled the void left by hope consumed the dragonoids faster than any disease.
It even reached the point where some dragonoids began to make extreme choices.
“Haaah. What are we supposed to do about this?”
Ha-eun let out a deep, frustrated sigh.
Today alone, three dragonoids had taken their own lives.
“…Is a god that important?”
Ha-eun, squatting on the bed, muttered as if she couldn't understand.
Isabella patted Ha-eun’s shoulder comfortingly.
“To the dragonoids, the Dragon God was less a deity and more a parent.”
A being who had stayed with them to the very end to protect them when they were nothing but slaves.
For the dragonoids, the Dragon God Kalleios was more than just a god to believe in and follow.
Their only hope and salvation.
The pillar that had supported them for a hundred years had collapsed, so it was only natural for them to fall into such deep despair.
“Besides, the dragonoids were a race created to serve dragons, weren't they?”
It is engraved in their lives, in their very souls.
The mindset that they can only live by serving someone.
“They absolutely need a dragon… a ‘god’ to believe in and follow.”
But.
That god was already dead.
“…There’s no way.”
A deep sigh escaped Ha-eun’s lips.
“No, there is a way.”
“Huh? What way?”
Oh-jin, who had been sitting in a chair lost in thought, stood up.
He gently placed a hand on Ha-eun’s shoulder and continued in a low voice.
“You just have to become their ‘god’.”
If a god has died.
Then all you need to do is make a new one.