The Dragon's Gaze

As soon as I activated Giant Dragon Transformation, my eye level shifted in less than a second.

“Krararara… why do I sense a dragon?”

Oh.

Transforming into the true form of a dragon made the drake’s scream perfectly understandable.

Dragon Form was, strictly speaking, a dragon-human shape. It ranked a step below them.

Now that my body had grown slightly larger than the drakes, their charge attacks no longer pushed me back.

The total amount of power still favored the drake squadron by a wide margin.

However.

The combined assault of the drakes and lesser drakes had several critical flaws in how they concentrated and operated their strength.

No matter how powerful a bodybuilder might be, the force they could exert through a single finger was limited. The same principle applied here. Their mana fusion process was crude; at best, it produced perhaps a tenth of its true potential.

Still, the lesser drakes’ base specs were so high that even that level of concentration was enough to instantly annihilate most opponents.

I simply didn’t belong in the “most opponents” category.

The power radiating from my dragon wings, now spanning dozens of meters, surged even more violently. All stats increased by 700%. Adding the 40% extension to Dragon Form’s duration brought the numerical boost close to twenty times the original.

I had been overpowered in Dragon Form purely due to the gap in raw output. In terms of compatibility, I held the advantage. Now that I also possessed overwhelming strength, it would have been strange if I were still pushed back.

Crack!

The mana unleashed by the drakes and lesser drakes warped and shattered. I trailed behind in total power, yet I surpassed them in the precision of mana emission.

“Be crushed.”

The immense energy dwelling within the membrane slammed into the drake with a thunderous impact, pulverizing it into mush. The enormous quantity of concentrated mana scattered wildly in every direction.

“Krararak?!”

“Kroaaaaah!”

The lesser drakes, which had been releasing mana thoughtlessly, lost their balance in the whirlwind born from the rampaging stray energy.

“You may enter as you please, but leaving is another matter.”

Using both wings, my tail, and even my forelimbs, I tore apart the off-balance lesser drakes with nearly every part of my body.

A skill that captured the essence of explosive force. Using it in giant dragon form meant I didn’t need to drive the power inward. I condensed the heat and then released it, and a miniature sun seemed to bloom in the air.

The lesser drakes caught in the blast were left in tatters and plummeted to the ground. It hadn’t been long since the main drake had burst like a balloon pierced by a needle after taking the Reverse Scale. Most of the remaining monsters soon shared the same fate.

–At least the ones that died afterward left corpses, no?

“They’ll all turn to powder once I devour them anyway. Close enough.”

The lesser drakes were shredded as if fed into a meat grinder.

By the time my bloated body returned to normal, the mountain slope had fallen eerily silent. At the edge of the peak, wrapped in quietude, I felt fatigue from wielding power beyond my limits. Still, I planted my feet firmly and landed without a single tremor.

Dragon Eye was not an ability inherent to drakes, but one granted to true dragons—higher entities. The dragonkin I had encountered during the promotion match were called “true dragons.” They were born possessing powers rivaling the blessings of constellations.

Both the Dragon Heart and Dragon Eye were now mine.

–It resembles the Truth Eyes you created through fusion.

Truth Eyes was an ocular ability I had forged by fusing additional skills with the Thousand Eyes. In battle, I kept it active by default. When paired with the Blessing of All Things Erosion, I could even interfere with the mana flows I perceived.

I could reverse spells or disrupt rearranged mana currents to prevent activation entirely. It wasn’t a decisive finishing blow, but it proved highly effective for restraining opponents.

–It is a shame the properties overlap.

“Why is it a shame?”

Wasn’t it actually a good thing? If I added a few more essences to the combination of Truth Eyes and Dragon Eye, I could obtain the ultimate ocular technique—the Rainbow Magic Eye.

–It means the immediate utility is not that great.

“You’re impatient. Look at the skill name properly.”

–Dragon?

“It is a body part that symbolizes the dragon race, just like this heart.”

Yes. This is it. This is what I wanted!

An increase in mana-to-dark-mana conversion meant faster spell deployment when using Ars Goetia and Cocytus. The grimoire handled the rearrangement; I only needed to supply it with dark mana.

Double conversion rate equals double spell deployment speed!

“Ehehehehehe!”

–It tires this one out merely to point out how undignified that laugh is.

One more thing. Since Dragon Eye was an “eye” ability, I could strengthen it through localized modification. I had gathered a decent amount of dragonkin factors on the 67th floor. Once I collected more giant factors, I could raise the completion rate of my Giant Divine Dragon Body as well.

The message appeared after I had dismantled about half of a lesser drake’s corpse.

Tsk.

I had hoped to squeeze out some extra honey through an exploit, but it really wasn’t that easy.

–Why did you stop?

“Lesser drakes are a subspecies of dragonkin. More precisely, a subspecies of drake. Even the parent drakes don’t qualify as true dragons. Although they are among the monsters classified as dragonkin, they are still quite close to the original. It seems you can’t complete the factors with lesser drakes alone.”

Still, the results were more than enough.

Dragon Form, improved through localized modification. With a one-hour cooldown and forty-five minutes of duration, it was nearly permanent use. Unless the enemy was at the level of an outer god knight, battles would end within forty-five minutes. At this rate, I could maintain Dragon Form for every fight.

The Giant Dragon Transformation duration had nearly doubled as well.

–Hoh. A change that is immediately noticeable.

“Right?”

There were also intangible changes not displayed in the status window. The Giant Divine Dragon’s Factor— a body possessing the properties of giant, dragon, and god. The core axis of dragonkin factors had grown substantially, raising the body’s completion rate.

However, the sudden surge in dragon factors had slightly broken the balance. My body creaked here and there.

“Thanks to the Frigid Snow Moon, I can still breathe.”

–It does not feel like a particularly impressive achievement.

“You don’t understand.”

My body had absorbed countless abilities through Devour. As Sun Wukong had pointed ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠out, using all of them consumed a great deal of mental strength.

It was only manageable because I had the foundation from the era of destruction. Without my pre-regression experience, I would have lost control of these powers.

Having secured the side income, it was time for the main objective.

“Let’s go achieve our real goal.”

A hundred-meter-tall gem tree stood tall at the mountain’s peak. I descended toward the dignified tree.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

The 67th floor collection mission had two rules: only one type of item could be kept, and the maximum weight was ten kilograms.

“It’s a lot if it’s a lot, and little if it’s little.”

–Is there no orichalcum?

“Stop trying to satisfy your personal desires.”

Orichalcum wasn’t an ordinary ore. It was a rare metal called the mineral of the gods. The fact that I had obtained some as a reward before was already remarkable.

–What a shame.

“It’s not like there’s absolutely no way.”

–Truly?

“I can’t guarantee one hundred percent.”

–What matters is that you are willing to consider this One’s feelings.

Hmm.

She turned off her blinker again before cutting in.

The minerals hanging heavily from the gem tree. The most valuable among them was…

“Mithril.”

I plucked a silver fruit with a crisp snap.

It hadn’t been long since I started snatching the mithril growing all over the gem tree.

The system message stopped me. It meant I shouldn’t take any more. Stingy bastards.

Did they think I would just back off?

–Is there a way to bypass the rules?

“I’m just going to keep retrying the 67th floor.”

–Truly… what a magnificent method.

“Right?”

How could they possibly prevent someone from retrying the same floor? Ehehehehe!

This tower was designed by you people. Endure it with malice and sheer grit.

–Mithril. It is a decent metal, but nothing compared to orichalcum. How disappointing.

“Wait a moment. I haven’t received the mission reward yet.”

As expected. The information matched what I knew from before the regression. Clearing the mission by reaching the summit granted an additional reward—an upgrade chance for the mineral—proportional to RP.

“Minerals like adamantite or orichalcum.”

–O-ohhhhhh!

“From here on, it’s prayer meta.”

If orichalcum appeared, the material capable of strengthening Nyx’s divinity, it would be the best outcome. Even if it didn’t, I could sell it through Mors, the dimensional merchant, or use it for reinforcement. Since some guild members like Enrique relied on weapon performance, there were plenty of uses even without orichalcum.

–Orichalcum!

Nyx clasped her hands tightly and cried out as if in agony. Where had the dignity she usually spoke of gone?

The mithril fruits in my hand vanished into thin air. Soon after, something descended from the sky wrapped in brilliant light.

The mineral possessed a clearer hue than even mithril. It was a shame it wasn’t a one-to-one exchange, but I didn’t complain further. Although the tower contained all kinds of miracles, it was not completely free from the laws of causality. Even if the reward was based on my performance, trading a mineral far more valuable than mithril at a one-to-one ratio was impossible. In terms of value alone, it was closer to twenty-to-one than ten-to-four.

–Ah, aaaaaah.

“Oh dear. What a shame.”

–At least make a regretful expression when you say that.

She saw through me.

“Still, it’s fortunate that something useful for me came out.”

–It is a mineral containing a mysterious power. Yet you do not even use weapons. What do you plan to do with it?

“Why are you acting like you’ve never seen it before?”

Eternium. Also known as immortal metal. It was a top-grade rare metal with indestructible and eternal properties. It was also one of the minerals I had stashed inside my Infinite Pocket.

“Eternium pairs excellently with Deus Ex Machina.”

–Ah. Now that you mention it, I saw it during the Great Collapse of France.

The ancient sun god manifested through Deus Ex Machina. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Had it been ordinary iron instead of eternium, it would have ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠melted in 0.01 seconds.

“If I secure more, using Deus Ex Machina will become much easier.”

The more trump cards, the better. Deus Ex Machina could recreate beings from my “memories” with near-perfect fidelity. With more eternium, both the skill’s duration and completion rate would rise. The luck this time was comparable to pulling orichalcum.

–This is impossible! Orichalcum…!

“Ugh. Fine. Let’s try once more.”

Since it wasn’t the first reward, the exchange rate would be worse. Ten kilograms of mithril might or might not yield one kilogram of orichalcum. Even then, luck during the mineral exchange was required.

–A retry. What an excellent mindset!

Perhaps Nyx’s earnest wish had reached the heavens. On the second attempt, orichalcum appeared as the exchange target, and I was able to offer 1.3 kilograms to the goddess.