Chapter 236
Chapter 236
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 236
Chapter Title: Black Dragon (2)
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“Kyaaak!”
Karphago couldn’t regain his senses after the massive body slam from the giant bee, which was as big as himself.
No, that wasn’t all.
Rokan immediately activated wing mode and leaped from atop Kai, landing on the back of the beast’s neck. He slid down its scales like water and swung his battle axe downward.
“Carnage!”
Boom boom boom boom boom!
Though Rokan was only at master level, concentrating the damage of Carnage in one spot caused even the dragon scales to shatter.
What Rokan was aiming for was the Dragon Heart—the spot under the throat where all the dragon’s mana was concentrated.
However, it was impossible to inflict a fatal wound for that very reason. A mana barrier had risen on its own to protect the Dragon Heart.
His attack power wasn’t enough to pierce through both the dragon scales and the mana barrier.
If he had reached the high master realm, the situation might have been different, but there was no helping it. After all, he wasn’t the protagonist of this fight.
Simply shaking it up was more than enough to fulfill his role.
“Grrrrraaah!”
Boom!
Unable to endure the pain any longer, Karphago exploded mana centered on itself.
In a way, it was attacking itself, but the beast had its dragon scales.
They could drastically reduce damage from mana-infused attacks, so even if its health dropped somewhat, it decided to shake them off.
“Trying to buck us off, eh!”
“No chance!”
Screeech!
However, the three clinging to it were no ordinary foes either.
Rokan and Gaokan were basically wearing the ‘Lion King’s Breastplate,’ which halved all damage by default, and Kai had timed his Elemental Barrier perfectly.
Thanks to that, they managed to cling on tenaciously somehow, and Rokan and Kai were able to tear parts of the membranes on both its wings.
“Get clear!”
Wobble.
The creature with torn wings struggled to control its body.
It was an unfamiliar experience, and given its enormous size, the wing damage proved fatally debilitating.
Karphago’s massive body lost balance, spinning in place before crashing to the ground.
Boom!
“Phew! Nearly got squashed there.”
Fortunately, Rokan had used his wings to escape the impact zone just before it fell.
Kai was reverse-summoned, and Rokan soothed his poison-melted skin with a potion while catching his breath.
This was as far as he could go.
Having confirmed that Rokan’s attack power sadly couldn’t overcome Karphago’s defenses, he had no intention of pushing further.
“Time Reversal.”
He used Time Reversal to restore his body’s condition and watched Gaokan’s fierce duel with Karphago.
“Heh heh heh, it ain’t over yet, punk!”
Even up to the moment of the crash, Gaokan had held on by stabbing his sword into the reverse scale. After the fall, he stubbornly stuck to the beast like a leech, dealing damage relentlessly.
No matter how Karphago twisted and rolled on the ground in resistance, Gaokan clung on mercilessly.
He attacked the beast so savagely and relentlessly that even onlookers grew numb.
[You have leveled up.]
[You have leveled up.]
[You have leveled up.]
[You have leveled up…….]
[Impossible Achievement! You have successfully hunted the Black Dragon Karphago.]
[You have acquired the title ‘Dragon Slayer.’]
[You are the first to acquire this title.]
“Oh!”
And after a long while, Karphago finally collapsed.
All Rokan had done in the meantime was poke at it occasionally with the other Lion Legion members to draw its attention, but it seemed his early contributions were recognized.
His level shot up by twelve in one go, and he even acquired the ‘Dragon Slayer’ title.
[First][Dragon Slayer][Legend]
A title granted to those who greatly contributed to dragon hunts.
This title is both an honor and a curse.
[Effects]
-All stats +300
-All resistances +30%
-Attack power +300% against all dragonkin
-Physical penetration +30% against all dragonkin
-Magic penetration +30% against all dragonkin
-Relationship with all dragons fixed at [Hostile]
-[Dragon Hunter’s Valor] usable
“Insane.”
A legend-grade title!
Its effects were truly staggering.
It was limited to dragonkin, but if even a single toe overlapped with anything called dragonkin, Rokan could become a walking catastrophe for them.
And that wasn’t all.
[Dragon Killer][Quest]
O bearer of the glorious name Dragon Slayer. Prove that your feat was no fluke.
-Success condition: Slay dragons 1/7
-Success reward: ????
Along with the Dragon Slayer title, a special quest activated. Hunt six more dragons.
The description was awfully curt, but Rokan instantly grasped its meaning.
‘One of each color, huh?’
Even if he returned to the modern era and took down Kartago, said to be Karphago’s descendant, he doubted the count would go from 1 to 2.
The reason it specified seven dragons was very likely because it meant one each of red, blue, green, yellow, white, black, and gold—representing each attribute.
‘That’s a distant goal.’
However, aside from Black Dragon Kartago, no dragon lairs were known.
Even in literature, only faint traces had been found—nothing pinpointing exact locations, or even confirming their existence.
So Rokan set aside thoughts of the quest for now.
It was time to focus on reality.
“Gaokan!”
While Rokan was checking the title and quest, lost in various thoughts, the Lion Legion rushed toward Gaokan in a clamor.
A vicious poison emanated from the dead Karphago’s corpse, but mere poison—not a breath attack—was something they could all resist in some way.
To be precise, they could endure being poisoned.
“Vicious bastard. To think you took down Karphago.”
Right then, a voice filled with resentment rang out.
The Orc Lord, Troll Lord, and Goblin High Priest had sneaked up without additional forces.
In contrast, their side had no support from other races, and the Lion King and Lion Legion were all poisoned by Karphago’s toxin, their conditions wrecked from the battle’s aftermath.
Most critically, the Lion King’s Unwavering Awakening was nearly at its duration limit.
In this state, even the Lion King couldn’t confidently claim he could take them all out.
“Ego ego ego, I’m beat, so let’s wrap this up quick, yeah?”
But the Lion King didn’t give up. Maintaining a somewhat weary grin, he charged at them in one breath.
By shifting the battlefield to their vicinity, he aimed to protect the Lion Legion.
“Hmph! As if we don’t know your game. Come on!”
At that moment, the Goblin High Priest manipulated something. A shadow dropped from above the clouds.
“Bone Drakes……”
They were unmistakably the bone drakes that the Death Lord had commanded.
The Goblin High Priest wasn’t a necromancer, but those at the pinnacle could wield power in other fields too, it seemed.
Whether through some magical interference or enchantment, the bone drakes obeyed his command and plummeted toward the poisoned Lion Legion.
Even having reached the transcendent grand master realm, he was still human. Anyone could see this was an attempt to put his subordinates in peril and prevent him from going all out.
“Rokan!”
But Gaokan didn’t hesitate.
Instead of hastily turning to block the bone drakes or faltering, he bellowed someone’s name loudly.
His eyes held a conviction that Rokan could handle it.
“Of all things, bone drakes…… Perfect timing. Storm Incarnation!”
As Gaokan thought, Rokan rose to the occasion.
He leaped off Karphago’s corpse, dashing ahead of the ten plummeting bone drakes toward the ground.
And in that instant, the awaited effect triggered.
[Combat with dragonkin confirmed.]
[Title Dragon Slayer’s effects activate.]
They were undead revived from bones, but their root was ‘drake’—half-baked dragons.
Clumsy compared to true dragons, but dragonkin nonetheless. Rokan’s attack power exploded accordingly.
The bone drakes crumbled pitifully before his swinging battle axe.
“Th-this……!”
“Worry about yourself.”
Splat!
Buoyed by Rokan’s exploits, Gaokan pressed the attack too.
The Goblin High Priest, who had been caught off guard expecting Gaokan to hesitate and was chanting a spell, had his head split in two. The Orc Lord, lunging late to body-slam him, had his chest caved in.
The Troll Lord desperately fired arrows in resistance, but Gaokan was faster.
Like a lion pursuing a deer, he severed the beast’s nape and ended the fight.
‘He was holding back back then, huh?’
A level of strength worlds apart from their first encounter.
Seeing Gaokan unleash his power in earnest made Rokan feel a wall in his mind—the one imposing his own limits—shatter.
“Man, I’m really gonna die!”
Thud.
With everything settled, Gaokan flopped down dramatically once more, but no one around would dare ambush him.
Even in that lax pose, anyone approaching would feel like he’d snap his jaws and tear them apart.
“Still a long way to go.”
He’d gained a legend-grade title among many, and even acquired sealed gear comparable to Gaokan’s, yet he was no match.
If they’d sparred and Gaokan had used even half his power, what then? Rokan might’ve been slain before even activating Storm Incarnation.
He laughed at himself for growing arrogant, thinking he was the best, nearly at the end.
The Lord.
What an intriguing game.
“What’re you all standing around for? Loot up! We’ve got three grand masters and a dragon corpse. What if some other bastards swoop in and steal it?”
Since all the grand masters were slain, the other races wouldn’t have the will to oppose humans anymore, but Rokan made a fuss anyway, taking charge of cleanup in Gaokan’s stead.
Dragon bones, scales, meat, blood, tendons, and the Dragon Heart. Not a single part was waste—prime materials all. The artisans would be busy for a while.
Considering how these were depicted as crafting the ultimate weapons in typical fantasies, perhaps something surpassing even the Lion King’s gear would emerge.
Anticipation building, cleanup began, and news spread across the continent.
Humans had triumphed over all races, emerging as the final victors.
And just a few days later, new tidings shook the continent once more.
The Lion King had vanished.
The Lion Legion disbanded.
Rumors flew—from wounds from battling Black Dragon Karphago and three grand masters simultaneously worsening to death, to eloping with a beautiful (??) female orc met on the battlefield—but no one knew the truth.
Except Rokan and the Lion Legion.
“You’re really not unifying the continent?”
Rokan knew, but asked once more.
He knew from history this would be his choice, but it didn’t make sense in his head.
Having defeated all races’ grand masters to become the unparalleled absolute being, and then leaving?
Even having indulged in wealth, power, luxury, and pleasure to his fill, it was a hard choice to comprehend.
“I have to. Nothing but headaches left here now, haha. I survived that massive Karphago body, no way I’m dying under a pile of paperwork.”
It seemed the disillusionment from ‘no worthy opponents left’ weighed heavily. Rokan held his tongue.
“Where to?”
“Dunno. ‘That thing’ needs time to finish anyway…… Figure I’ll travel the world a bit. Set up some treasure hunts too. Sound fun, right?”
Treasure hunts—not to find an heir, but just for kicks?
He’d left the sealed Lion King helm behind with talk of ‘Hero’s Trial,’ but it was all a joke, apparently.
Seeing Rokan’s dumbfounded look, Gaokan blinked as if remembering something, turned, then turned back.
“Oh right, almost forgot. Meant to give this to you.”
“This is……”
What he held out was a pair of boots. Combat metal boots that felt familiar at first sight, though he’d never seen them before.
[You have acquired the Lion King’s Sealed Boots.]