Chapter 151
Chapter 151
The Iron Emperor — Chapter 151
Chapter 45 — The Wheel of History Begins to Turn Again
It was as if the world had stopped.
A roar that could not be dismissed as merely a great noise.
The Dragon Fear spread out into the world from the Reganza Mountains at its center.
Kuooooooo!
Birds flying through the sky lost the strength in their wings and plummeted to the earth. Small creatures savoring life as they grazed on grass toppled over where they stood. Even monsters faithful to their instincts froze in place in this one moment.
Humans too cannot simply ignore instinct. In a sense, it may be that humans are the most governed by instinct of all. Every human making their way toward the new settlement froze just as they were under the dragon's irresistible Fear.
A being recognizable by its roar alone, even without comparing its form or consulting ancient texts. A being that looks down upon all living creatures of the earth with arrogant eyes.......
The dragon, a creature of legend and the mightiest of all, had emerged through a thousand years of time.
—This domain is a sacred domain. By whose leave do you swarm here.
It was not a voice spoken by mouth and carried through the air. Nor could it be called sound, the way it bored into the very mind. A bird in flight ought to beat its wings, yet as if defying that natural law, it was descending slowly with its vast wings spread wide to either side.
Its size alone appeared to be a full fifty mir. The sheer massiveness and the pressure it exerted defied description. And the golden radiance catching the sunlight was indescribably beautiful.
"Ngh."
A groan escaped Go Jin-cheon's lips as he watched. He felt every muscle in his body thrashing wildly, even cold sweat trickling down his spine. And yet he did not take his eyes off the slowly descending dragon.
WHUMP!
The moment its enormous bulk touched down upon the earth, he felt a vibration that shook his body. Jin-cheon's eyes met the eyes of the golden dragon. Only then did halted time begin to flow once more.
Thud.
"O, O Dragon!"
Thud, thud.
From every direction came the sound of bodies collapsing like sheaves of straw. Jin-cheon turned his head and looked around. His people—faces haggard with exhaustion yet brimming with vitality as they headed for their new home—were now prostrating themselves flat on the ground, the color drained from their faces.
Like a rabbit before a tiger, unable even to flee, pressing its head to the earth. Even the Hawk Corps, even Gowin and Risel, were bowing low on trembling knees.
At that sight, Jin-cheon's face twisted.
—Impudent, human.......
An absolute presence that only one standing in an absolute position could emanate.
Jin-cheon felt the strength gathering in his fist. He turned his head and looked at his soldiers.
Beings like his own flesh and blood, swept into an unknown world, were looking at him. Hundreds of black pupils were fixed upon Jin-cheon. While tens of thousands of humans lay prostrate, they...... clutching their trembling legs, they were looking at Jin-cheon.
Across Jin-cheon's twisted face, a grotesque smile bloomed.
* * *
Dae Mu-deok, who had been leading soldiers forward to greet Go Jin-cheon, lifted his head at the colossal sound that stopped his heart. Though the distance was great, the golden giant body was unmistakably visible.
In an instant, the ranks froze.
Though the distance was great, the great being's voice rang clearly inside his head. Dae Mu-deok's aged eyes wavered. He needed to say something, but his mouth would not open.
'What in the world is that.......'
He watched the being descend slowly to the ground, and only when he felt the earth-shaking vibration did he regain his senses. As he felt halted time begin to flow again, he could see soldiers collapsing everywhere. And Mu-deok too could now put a name to that being.
"Dra...... gon."
All around, soldiers lay flat, trembling uncontrollably. Dae Mu-deok too realized that his own legs were trembling, little by little, against his will. But...... the direction in which that colossal being had descended was precisely where his liege lord Go Jin-cheon was. Where his Yeolje was.
He looked behind him. Out of over a thousand soldiers, barely two hundred remained standing. They were the Gauri soldiers who had crossed over to this place with him. In their eyes, fear mingled with worry and a measure of resolve. They were no different from Mu-deok's own heart.
Crunch!
The sound of flesh being bitten through pierced the heavy silence. And blood trickling from the corner of a mouth.
"Those who can move...... follow me. Our Yeolje awaits."
White teeth were stained crimson with blood. At the sight, the sound of flesh being bitten rang out from the soldiers' mouths as well. Some soldiers even wounded their own thighs with sword-points and arrowheads. They were forcing bodies that would not obey their will to move now. Blood spilled from Mu-deok's mouth.
"Unit, forward!"
It was a shout that burned the soul.
* * *
"Hiek!"
Hwain Stone, Galling Stone, and Mawin Stone had their heads pressed to the ground, trembling uncontrollably. The being their ancestors had drummed into their ears until they were sick of hearing about it had appeared. Every human in this place was no different from the Stone trio. All were prostrate and trembling. Then a familiar sound reached their ears.
CLANG!
A great burst of sparks flew.
Elder Jang's hammer had struck the anvil. The veins bulging on his forearm looked ready to burst through the skin at any moment.
Was it thanks to that?
The dwarves came partly to their senses and looked at Elder Jang.
Elder Jang ran to one side, threw open a chest, and began donning his arms. At that sight, the Stone trio could not utter a word, could only stare.
"M-Master!"
Hwain Stone barely managed to open his mouth and call out to Elder Jang, but he had already launched himself outside.
"How......."
The dwarves, stunned by the sight of him rushing out when they themselves could not even move their bodies, looked at one another. Then, as if making a decision, they clenched their fists.
Thwack-thwack-thwack!
Three dull thuds. A moment later, they began following behind Elder Jang on unsteady legs. Each with one eye blackened.......
They were not the only ones following Elder Jang. Haidia the high elf too slipped into the forest as though seeping into it. As if drawn by something.
* * *
—Interesting humans.
A voice tinged with something like amusement came from the lips of the gold dragon, standing and gazing down with serene arrogance. While every other being lay flattened against the ground, well over a thousand beings were not only refusing to throw themselves down—they would not even kneel.
"Keu-heu-heuk."
In the utter absence of birdsong or insect chirp, a strange laugh began to spread. The one at the very forefront, facing the gold dragon.
It was Go Jin-cheon.
"Keuh-heu-heu-heuk!"
Now his shoulders shook with it, and the strange laugh, cackling aloud, only grew louder. Then it stopped abruptly. And slowly, he turned his head and once more took in the gold dragon with a look of serene arrogance.
—Ho-oh.
An exclamation of wonder escaped the gold dragon. Jin-cheon, who had been staring with serene arrogance, squared his chest wide. With that, the trembling of his soldiers ceased as well.
—Do you mean to resist.
The voice carried no anger. It was a voice that felt as though it had discovered something amusing. Then a great shout erupted from one side.
"All forces, withdraw the common people safely to the rear!"
The voice that rang out like thunder belonged to Yeon Hwi-garam. At his voice, the people who had been flattened against the ground and trembling helplessly lifted their heads as though regaining their senses. The first thing that entered their vision was the back of a single man standing with serene arrogance before the golden giant.
"Everyone, move!"
"Hmph! Drag them if you have to, get them moving!"
The shouts of commanders burst forth from every direction like a bursting dam, and the great column of people began to withdraw to the rear.
'What in the world am I.......'
Through Risel's eyes came the sight of the Gauri soldiers. Before an absolute being, they were moving on command.
'What in the world was I doing.'
He began to whip himself.
A being that every wizard hears of from their first lesson.
The manipulator of magic: the dragon.
No one knows the terror of dragons as well as wizards do. Even without countless books and records, that terror is passed down through one's master.
Risel was a wizard too.
But while his head screamed that he must flee from this absolute being, his heart refused.
He had been a man stuck at the 2nd Circle his entire life. Though he had been used and ordered about this way and that, it was Go Jin-cheon who had first acknowledged his worth, first declared that he was needed and brought him along—and now Jin-cheon stood before him.
'Could I hold it off even once.'
Risel smiled a bitter smile and shook his head. And then he began to walk. Toward the benefactor who had turned his entire life around, toward his Yeolje.
"Risel."
Watching Risel walk past him, Gowin let out a brief murmur. Then he looked around once more.
"Keuk."
For the first time in his life, embarrassment flooded through him. The black-haired soldiers were running about. Yet he, a commander, stood frozen as if turned to ice.......
"Hoooooh."
He closed his eyes and drew a deep breath. Then he fell in behind Risel and spoke.
"Let us go together."
"Let's."
Their smiles crossed. Just then, trembling voices came from behind Gowin.
"W-we as well......."
Turning, he found Beskin and Ravin Sseonion standing there.
The gold dragon watched the movements of the Gauri forces without the slightest stir. Watching, Go Jin-cheon felt for the first time what the composure of the strong felt like from a being other than himself. But that was all.
"We have withdrawn the people. It seems we should advance forward to avoid harm."
Yeon Hwi-garam's composed voice reached the ear of Jin-cheon, who was facing forward. Without turning his head, Jin-cheon issued his command.
"Do not mass together. Dispersed formation."
"Understood."
At the curt command, Hwi-garam spun around and shouted.
"Dispersed formation!"
As Hwi-garam's shout rang out, Eulji Uru and Buru in turn bellowed to the soldiers.
"Archers, fall back, nock Tonga arrows, and stand by!"
"Axemen, prepare to charge! Shieldbearers, forward!"
Following that chain of commands, Gye Ung-sam's voice thundered.
"Swordsmen, stand by in readiness to plunge in at any moment!"
"Long spearmen, behind the Shieldbearers!"
Mong Ryu-hwa backed up Ung-sam with his own shout, while Buyeo Gi-yul, at the head of the Axemen, drew his Twin Axes, his eyes glittering.
"Hmph! Any man who falls back, I'll smash his skull open myself!"
Dupyo's encouragement followed. And the Black Armored Ghost Cavalry, without needing a separate order, advanced to the very front and formed ranks.
The horses too felt fear. But they were War Horses. Their combative spirit, overriding instinct, drove both human and horse into a strange state of excitement. That was true, of course, only of the pure Gauri Gwahama horses, beginning with Gangsoe.
Advancing toward Jin-cheon, Gowin and Risel marveled at the orderly precision of their movements. The blade-sharp fighting spirit of those soldiers was something they had never seen in any army.
The mightiest.
It was a unit that truly deserved that qualifier. The true Gauri army.
'Only, their opponent is.......'
What flickered through the minds of Gowin and Risel was despair. And yet they walked on.