Chapter 123
Chapter 123
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 123
Chapter Title: The Earth Dragon Awakens
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"It's finally starting."
Paon Lichtenauer fiddled with the hilt of Heavenly Wall as he fixed his gaze on the approaching dark elves.
Up until they reached the dragon's tomb, Paon hadn't held Alex accountable for any losses incurred from Drakelas's schemes.
Some sacrifices were inevitable in war.
In fact, the stubborn advance through relentless sabotage and mounting casualties deserved commendation.
Alex had simply fulfilled his mission by arriving at the destination on time.
And, to be brutally honest...
The casualties among the fallen warriors were... lighter than expected. It was said that Ian, the second son rather than the eldest, had earned that merit.
Both sons deserved praise, but Paon's mind was already filled to the brim.
The Earth Dragon, Karaktus.
His head was consumed with the burning desire to sever the neck of the monster that even countless ancestors of the clan had failed to slay.
"I've waited for this moment for so long... so very long."
The true monster of the Great Cataclysm that the Lichtenauer Martial Clan had truly prepared for throughout its history.
The demonic beast that the clan's ancestors, who had subjugated countless monsters, had poured their all into yet failed to defeat, settling only for sealing it away.
Here, he would behead that dragon... and free the Lichtenauer Martial Clan from its ancient curse, its heavenly punishment.
Shring!
At last, Paon, who had silently trailed from the rear for so long, drew Heavenly Wall and bellowed.
"All forces of Lichtenauer, advance! Today, we eradicate the Great Camp. We hunt the Earth Dragon... and bring true peace to this land!"
-Waaaaahhh!!
Dududududu!!
The overwhelming might of the clan's renowned units spurred their warhorses forward to the vanguard.
Leading them, the clan's numerous strike teams charged toward the dark elves.
With the Earth Dragon yet to awaken, the situation was utterly dominant.
They would annihilate every last worm in the Great Camp over the next three days, creating the perfect conditions to focus solely on hunting the Earth Dragon.
"...That's what they're thinking, all too carelessly."
It was a skull devoid of even a single muscle, yet it sneered, exhaling ghostly energy from its hollow eye sockets.
And why not?
The disparity in visible forces was crystal clear.
The fully assembled might of the Great Camp was powerful enough to annihilate a small nation.
But the same held for the Mudflow that dominated the waterways under the Four Dragon Specters, and Golden Heaven, where three orcs and countless great warriors ruled the mountains and forests.
With those two forces now combining to press the assault, defending the Great Camp would be a grueling task.
Decisively, the units of the Lichtenauer Martial Clan.
Arckandor knew better than anyone just how formidable each of those fearsome unit commanders truly was.
'...Even back then, they were the ones who scarred the Supreme Dragon.'
Not to mention, after hundreds of years, their power must have grown even stronger.
In other words... at this rate, they were doomed to fail to hold out for three days, and the Great Camp's entire force would be ground to dust.
Yes.
If things continued like this.
"Had it been hundreds of years ago, we might have failed again, just as those impudent dark elves predict."
But technology always advances, and new discoveries happen regardless of the era.
Especially over hundreds of years, confronted by a genius mage whose name was etched into history.
The possibilities were endless.
Above all, Arckandor's obsession—dreaming only of the Earth Dragon's revival for centuries—was bordering on madness.
He had accounted for every variable that could hinder the dragon's awakening.
Under hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands of imagined scenarios.
Endlessly.
Thus, this situation was merely one among his myriad imaginings.
And so, naturally...
"I had already foreseen even this!!"
Wuuuuuum!!
As the mad Lich channeled mana, the Life Vessel—filled with centuries of obsessive accumulation—thrashed wildly.
The mana amassed over eons was enough to fill the vessel insufficient for a supreme being like a dragon to awaken and accelerate its recovery.
"Lord of the black 'Abyss'." -"Incarnation of 'Destruction' in your long slumber."
The time has come. Enshroud this false world in your shadow. We can wait no longer—awaken your noble fury now. Let the stars weep, the earth quake, and all the world tremble at your name. Our longing, our voices, knock upon the firmly shut gates of the Abyss. Break the shackles the world imposed, and make this foolish realm kneel at your feet. May the time of darkness arrive, and your immortal reign begin upon this land.
⟨ Awaken... right this instant!! ⟩
The incantation spilling from Arckandor's lips was utterly different from the prayer Aelion had recited.
This was Arckandor's trump card.
Hundreds of years ago, he had been a mere ordinary Lich... but now, he wielded power enough to intervene even in the Earth Dragon's descent.
As Arckandor's prayer ended...
The energy slowly swirling above the Earth Dragon's bone fragments mingled with the Archlich's added mana and began to roil violently.
It shook so fiercely it was like a storm had erupted.
Fwooooosh!
With a whirlwind gale, the ominous, translucent mana cloaking the bones materialized.
Muscles swollen to the bursting point wrapped the bones, mere remnants weathered by merciless ages.
Black scales, seeming to devour even light, covered the skin flaked away like autumn leaves in the chill.
Demonic eyes that could incinerate the world flickered to life in sockets that had been empty voids.
Kugugugugu...!!
With the rumble of quaking earth, the colossal body—lying utterly still—rose up.
Its overwhelming bulk, defying perception, conveyed the despair of a small mountain coming alive.
The battlefield, locked in mutual slaughter, fell into deathly silence at that unimaginable majesty.
And then.
Oooooooohhh————!!!!
The Earth Dragon, which had once plunged the entire southern continent into peril, threw open its maw and roared.
The warriors of Lichtenauer, the orcs of Golden Heaven, the lizardmen of Mudflow.
Those of lower realms among the three allied forces collapsed on the spot, eyes rolled back from that mere roar.
Even those who barely clung to consciousness couldn't quell the terror rising in their eyes.
"Th-this... how the hell are we supposed to beat...?"
The hearts of the Lichtenauer clan's lower warriors broke.
"Chwi... chwiik..."
The proud warriors of Golden Heaven trembled like primitive orcs at the bottom rung of the Great Cataclysm hierarchy.
"Kerruk! Kerrruk!"
The Mudflow lizardmen, who once commanded even the western seas, floundered in panic, desperate to reach the water's edge.
Just like the fish they had once feared.
Thumb Arckandor gazed contentedly at the pathetic sight of terror gripping all eyes, then slowly bowed toward the Earth Dragon.
"What a long slumber it has been, O Earth Dragon."
-Ahh...
The Earth Dragon, utterly indifferent to the results of its roar, simply savored its descent into the mortal realm.
-Not a moment have I not craved it. This clear air, this verdant sky... even the faint, salty scent of the Northern Sea drifting from afar. Truly, it has been ages.
Karaktus's eyes suddenly narrowed as it voiced its satisfaction.
-But... something's amiss, Arckandor. Why is my body so incomplete? I clearly instructed you to awaken me only after all preparations for me were complete.
"I am deeply ashamed, Supreme Earth Dragon. One incompetent among your lowly servants failed to manage the incantation properly, forcing Your Excellency to intervene personally and causing you this inconvenience."
-...Tsk tsk. Pitiful indeed. In ordinary times, it would warrant immediate execution.
The Earth Dragon, Karaktus, clicked its tongue briefly at Arckandor's words.
-But I shall forgive it. This meager hunger... I can fill it diligently from now on.
Swooo!
Karaktus's head turned toward the ominous horde battling its faithful servants.
Though far more overwhelming in scale than its own forces, satisfaction—not alarm—rose on the dragon's face.
-Behold. Delicious morsels scattered across the heavens and earth.
Creak!
Why was it?
Why, upon meeting the black dragon's gaze, could they not move—like a frog before a serpent?
It was probably the instinct ingrained in every living being.
The same kind that froze the legs of prey before a predator.
Fwoooosh!!
Black flames gathered at the corners of Karaktus's gaping maw.
Black Flame that transcended ordinary fire's heat, black enough to render the word "flame" meaningless.
That ruthless blaze, capable of incinerating souls, erupted violently toward the three forces.
Kwaaaaaah!!
No.
This couldn't be dodged.
It was the breath of the legendary dragon that had endangered the entire southern continent.
Before that overwhelming violence, numbers meant nothing.
Just as no matter how many ants gathered, they were insignificant in human eyes.
Even the great warriors of the Mangryang class, the Four Dragon Specters' aides, the elite of Lichtenauer's renowned units.
Before the descended Earth Dragon's Black Flame, they seemed as precarious as leaves before a tsunami.
"Ahh..."
Aelion sighed from the rear, beholding the Black Flame.
"Damn it... I never imagined that was possible."
His prayer held no such content.
He had only known that offering the prayer and sufficient sacrifices would awaken the Earth Dragon in a month.
"...Young human, forgive me."
Aelion spoke dejectedly to Ian.
He had thought that, since things had come to this, crushing the Great Camp decisively would create an environment to face only the dragon, opening his path to survival.
He was wrong.
Arrogant.
The Five Fingers were far more exceptional than anticipated, and among them, Thumb Arckandor wielded the sublime ability to even control the Earth Dragon's revival.
Having lived for such ages, it was only natural he could counter Ian's feeble schemes.
'...In the end, all I've done is waste time.'
Not content with betraying the force he served, he now faced death as the price for his spectacularly off-base predictions.
"Well, for a traitor's end, it's reasonably clean."
"...What have you been muttering about?"
Ian looked at the mumbling Aelion with pitying eyes.
Like one gazing at someone lacking.
...Grr!
"Eek!! Can't you see that?!"
Irked by the gaze, Aelion pointed accusingly and spat venom.
"Who can handle those flames?! Ants are ants no matter how many gather, and leaves can't withstand a tsunami no matter the pile!"
So give up and meet your end!
"True, no pile of leaves can stop a tsunami. But..."
Ian saw it differently from Aelion.
A surging tsunami might sweep away leaves, but it couldn't topple a mountain.
Fwaaah!
Amid the frozen terror gripping everyone at the dragon's tomb, three shadows moved boldly, unfazed by the Black Flame—proving Ian's point.
Thwack!
Opposite the Black Flame sweeping from the high sky, a single figure leaped from the firmly rooted earth.
Golden aura blossomed radiantly, befitting his sturdy frame.
Gripping axes in both hands reverse-style, he linked them.
Clank!
The already massive axes connected into one, evoking the dignity of a heavenly general.
Wuuuung!
A colossal axe-shaped aura formed atop the linked weapon.
And began to spin.
Pararararak!
To those on the ground, it appeared like a massive golden shield.
Kwaaaaaah!
The Black Flame, poised to annihilate the world, crashed onto the golden shield, which buckled under the onslaught.
"Huuuugh!!"
Golden Eye, chieftain of the orcs, groaned in agony.
Yet... the flames could not pierce the shield.
As Golden Eye held back the Black Flame to protect allies...
Papapak!
Another figure vaulted into the center of the elongated Black Flame.
"Seems this relic from a bygone age just woke up from a long nap and lost its touch..."
Krooook!
Twisting both hands over his shoulders to flex his muscles, he intoned coldly.
"While you were asleep and limp, the homeowner changed!"
Chwaaaaa!
The scimitar swung by the lord of seas and rivers shredded the burning black flames into pieces.
With the black inferno bridging sky and earth severed, Karaktus's massive form was fully revealed.
And amid it all...
A man faced Karaktus directly.
"This might be too harsh for a freshly awakened lifeform, but..."
Swooo...
Paon Lichtenauer raised Heavenly Wall high toward the heavens and declared arrogantly.
"There's no longer room in this land for ancient demonic beasts like you."
Goooooo!!
The single stroke of the clan's slumbering giant—who had rarely ventured out—now revealed itself to the world.
"Begone."
With Paon's chilling verdict, Heavenly Wall plummeted from sky to earth.
————————!!!!!
It transcended perceivable thought.
In the storm of such colossal power, even sound vanished.
The blinding flash seared the eyes if beheld directly—no one dared lift their head.
They could only infer from wildly flapping clothes and hair.
That an unimaginable single strike had just assailed the Earth Dragon.
...Kuuuwaaaah!!
The lingering shockwave of Paon's full-powered strike belatedly reached everyone's ears as a deafening roar.
That mere aftershock rivaled the destructive force of a full strike from an average master-level warrior.
The three forces, trembling in terror at the descended dragon's presence, now revealed varied emotions.
'That is our Patriarch!'
Pride swelled in the hearts of the Lichtenauer warriors.
'Chwiik... The Lichtenauer Patriarch is a true monster. Even the boss would have to yield a move.'
'Kerrruk... If we'd clashed as enemies, it'd have been a headache.'
For the monsters of Golden Heaven and Mudflow, relief that he was an ally—such was the devastating strike.
No matter the legendary Earth Dragon, it couldn't emerge unscathed from such a blow.
Amid the widespread anticipation, the figure shrouded in the settling sandstorm began to slowly emerge.