Chapter 88
Chapter 88
Chapter 88: Squama One (2)
Translation: godtl
Swish!
Like a flail tipped with chains,
a thick, whip-like tongue sliced through the air.
Si-mun narrowly dodged Drahel's tongue with the [Black Panther's Body Tissue], now over 50% complete.
"You damn rat!"
It was no accident that Drahel was the leader of the upper-level Dragonkin.
Unlike the tongues of the lesser Drags, his—
Crrack!
—didn't falter after missing. Instead, it lashed out wildly like a rubber ball, relentlessly pursuing Si-mun's movements.
"Tch."
Clicking his tongue in annoyance, Si-mun increased his speed.
Under normal circumstances, he would've kicked that damned tongue aside and countered immediately, but—
Hssss.
One of the defining traits of an upper-level Dragonkin like Drag was their venom.
Though it hadn't been an issue against Si-mun's overwhelming strength until now, Drahel's tongue was thoroughly coated with it.
Striking the tongue and launching a counterattack would be pushing his luck.
Si-mun's brow furrowed.
'If this keeps up, I'll have to spend more Achievement Points...'
He had around 20,000 points saved up, but—
after using three Astrapēs in his fight against Gong Geol-ryun—
'I wanted to minimize the loss as much as possible.'
Between the World Tree's Growth Buff, the Obsidian Tablet, and the Heavenly Demon Arts,
Si-mun had a mountain of future expenses where Achievement Points would be crucial.
This was far from an ideal choice.
Perhaps Drahel mistook Si-mun's hesitation for desperation.
"Kehahaha! No matter how much you squirm, you'll end up in my tongue's grasp!"
With a booming laugh, Drahel continued whipping his tongue around.
And behind the scenes—
"They're coming!"
"It's Drag! Dvali's here too!"
"Focus on long-range attacks first!"
From behind the shattered remains of the massive Golem,
the supply unit's counterattack was already in motion.
The only silver lining was that the large monsters—
Groooowl...
—the giant toxic toads—hadn't joined the fray.
"I'll handle Drag! Focus on healing Dayna first!"
A man standing courageously at the front line of the main force—
Choi Jin-su—swatted away Drag's incoming tongue and roared.
Si-mun's eyes gleamed faintly.
'As expected of the Beast King. With him holding the line, the main force is secure.'
True to his future as a high-ranker,
Choi Jin-su was bravely holding his ground despite a situation that would terrify most Gold-rank players.
Si-mun glanced regretfully at Dayna, now surrounded by healers.
'If only Dayna were still standing, I wouldn't have to worry about this.'
He never expected the mighty Dark Elf to be taken down so easily.
Swish!
Dodging the relentless tongue, Si-mun scanned the chaotic battlefield.
'Come to think of it, this is way different from the usual Poisoned Supply Route.'
The appearance of an upper-level Dragonkin like Drag was understandable.
After all, the Poisoned Supply Route was a notorious Checkpoint map even among Platinum players,
and upper-level Dragonkin like Drag typically appeared in high-tier Platinum matches.
But—
"How long do you plan to keep running, you damn rat?!"
Swish.
This Drag named Drahel—who had even taken down the Dark Elf Dayna—was someone Si-mun had never encountered before.
In fact—
-Whoa! That tongue is crazy fast lol. One hit and you're toast.
-Fr, that tongue's insane. Unless you're an Agility-focused combat class, dodging it is a pipe dream.
-And yet, Kim Si-mun—a Gold-rank Magic Class—is pulling it off.
-The venom on that tongue's no joke either. Seems even more toxic than a regular Drag's.
-When I got matched in Poisoned Supply Route, I never saw a Drag like that.
-Same. I've run this map a few times, and he wasn't there.
Even the Platinum-rank viewers were questioning Drahel's presence.
As the barrage of tongues grew fiercer, Si-mun clicked his tongue again.
"Tch. No choice, then."
Achievement Points could always be earned back later.
With that thought, Si-mun flicked his fingers.
Krakoom!
A bolt of lightning struck down beside him.
"Gahk!"
Drahel's tongue was pierced clean through by the lightning.
"My tongue! Hff! Hff!"
He frantically clutched his tongue, blowing on the steaming wound.
And it wasn't just for show—
Gulp.
The gaping hole rapidly closed up.
A regeneration speed befitting a Drag, renowned even among upper-level Dragonkin for their resilience.
Once his tongue had fully healed,
"You bastard! How dare you damage my—!"
Drahel roared in fury—but that was all.
Crackle.
"Hrk!"
He barely managed to dodge the lightning bolt that came flying like an arrow.
The power of that lightning had already been demonstrated by his fallen subordinates.
And then—
Fzzzt!
Crackle.
From the Astrapē that Si-mun wielded, bolts of lightning poured forth without pause.
This was a completely different situation from before, when he had been merely evading.
"Damn it! How is he sustaining this much lightning— Wait. No way!"
Drahel, who had been nimbly dodging despite his bulky frame, suddenly widened his eyes.
"A-Astrapē?!"
He had realized the identity of the weapon that was endlessly spewing lightning.
And what followed was—
"That can't be! That arrogant Zeus would never allow a mere human to wield his divine weapon!"
—denial.
Drahel's large eyes frantically scanned the Astrapē.
Come to think of it, the shape is off too. The Astrapē I know was far longer and more ornate than that.
Moreover—
If that really were the Astrapē...
Drahel, a member of Squama One—a secretive order only accessible to the awakened Dragonkin known as "Draconic," who had shattered the limits of their species—had once witnessed Zeus' Astrapē firsthand on the mythic battlefield where the Dragon Emperors clashed.
If it had even a fraction of the power he remembered—
I should've been reduced to a handful of ashes by now.
Even a Draconic like him should have been incinerated in a single strike.
But this Astrapē—
Fzzzt.
"Keh... Huh?"
Even when struck directly—
Huh? It doesn't even hurt that much.
—the damage was negligible.
Of course, some of that could be attributed to Drahel's innate resilience as a Dragonkin, but—
That thing is either a fake Astrapē or a severely degraded version of it.
But there was another, bigger reason.
Hmm.
Drahel glanced at the thick necklace barely clinging to his bulky neck.
The artifact Lord Apophis bestowed upon me. Now that I think about it, I still have this.
The Third Dragon Emperor, Apophis.
This very necklace, personally gifted by the Dragon Emperor he served, granted him considerable immunity to lightning-based attacks.
Once that realization struck—
Wait... Did His Majesty already know this human wielded lightning qi?
Why else would the wise Third Dragon Emperor, out of all the elemental artifacts available, specifically grant him one that countered lightning?
"Kuh... Kuhahahaha!"
Drahel, who had been rolling his eyes wildly, suddenly burst into mad laughter.
Si-mun, who had been about to swing the Astrapē again, tilted his head in confusion.
"So that's it! That's what this was all about!"
Drahel's lips curled up so wide they nearly split his large face in half.
"He knew everything from the very beginning! He foresaw all of this!"
Had he truly been within the Dragon Emperor's palm this entire time?
"As expected of His Majesty! He had already foretold my victory! In that case..."
As if victory were already in his grasp—
"There's no need for me to keep running like this."
He stopped evading and strode straight toward Si-mun.
"What the hell are you babbling about now?"
The approaching target.
At the absurd sight, Si-mun let out a scoff before immediately swinging the Astrapē.
One.
Lightning Rod.
"Kuhah! That tickles! It tickles!"
Astonishingly, Drahel was completely unaffected by the Astrapē's lightning this time.
Instead, as if to flaunt it—
"More! Hit me with more!"
He spread his arms wide and shook his massive body defiantly.
Si-mun's brow twitched slightly.
What the hell? It's not working this time either?
Thanks to his earlier battle with Gong Geol-ryun, Si-mun was somewhat accustomed to attacks being nullified.
After all, magic nullification was something any Magic Class user would experience at least once.
But unlike with Gong Geol-ryun—
"What's wrong? Not gonna shoot that fancy static electricity anymore? Huh?"
Drahel had demonstrated complete immunity to the Astrapē's lightning not once, but twice in a row.
Si-mun took a few steps back and swung the Astrapē several more times, but—
Lightning Rod.
"Kuhahahaha! That tickles! It tickles!"
All that returned was Drahel's sneering laughter.
And then—
[Constellation Zeus' eyes twitch in irritation.]
[Constellation Black Goat bursts into laughter:"LMAO! XD! Static electricity my ass! Kekekeke!"]
[Constellation Zeus, his face slightly flushed, sponsors you in frustration.]
[You have acquired 2,000 Achievement Points.]
Zeus' sudden sponsorship arrived.
Probably.
'He must want me to use up my Achievement Points and wield the more powerful Astrapē.'
They could've just given this as a mission if that's what they wanted.
'He must be seriously pissed.'
For Zeus to immediately sponsor him like this, he must be deeply displeased.
Accommodating Zeus's wishes wasn't difficult.
However.
'Burning all 2,000 points would be such a waste.'
The problem was that it was too inefficient.
'Isn't there a way to deal with Drahel without using all of them?'
Si-mun wanted to save even a fraction of his Achievement Points.
As he paused his attack, lost in thought—
"Hee hee. Have you finally realized your limits? Stay right there."
Interpreting his hesitation as fear, Drahel cracked his thick fingers one by one, advancing slowly like a predator cornering its prey.
Yet despite his leisurely movements, as if wary of Si-mun fleeing—
"Hyaaaak!"
He spewed thick poison mist in all directions with a wide-open maw.
Tauntingly.
"Hee hee! Let me show you firsthand how a rat feels trapped in my poison!"
Si-mun's surroundings were instantly engulfed in the toxic fog.
"Where should I start? Arms? Legs? No—"
Before he could even attempt escape.
"You're the one His Great Majesty the Dragon Emperor has taken such an interest in. I'll snap every single finger joint first."
He intended to torture Si-mun alive.
Yet despite Drahel's enthusiastic threats—
"Right. That'll work."
Si-mun's inner monologue was entirely different.
'I can just finish him off with Astrapē.'
After all, what Zeus wanted was simple.
To punish this arrogant dragonkin who dared belittle his divine weapon—with that very weapon.
In that case.
'I just need to smash that artifact with another weapon first, then finish with Astrapē.'
And for this situation—
For Drahel's exact weakness—
'The Philosopher's Stone.'
—Bzzzt. Transmutations are always welcome~.
A cheerful chime.
[Your Transmutation Power is insufficient to meet the required threshold.]
[To compensate for the imbalance in Equivalent Exchange, 500 Achievement Points are required.]
[Do you accept? (Yes / No)]
Faced with the familiar prompt, Si-mun naturally selected 'Yes.'
Vwoom.
The converted equivalent gathered at Si-mun's fingertips.
And when it reached its peak—
Snap.
His fingers flicked outward.
Scorching—
No.
Whoooosh!
Murderous heat erupted outward.
"Kuh—kuhul?!"
The sudden wave of heat forced Drahel to recoil violently.
For a creature that thrived in humid tropical swamps—
This panicked reaction to fire was quintessentially Drag-like.
His shock quickly morphed into rage.
"What the hell is this heat?!"
He bellowed.
But that was all.
"Th-that's—?!"
Drahel's fury was short-lived.
Naturally.
Sssssss!
The thick poison mist melted away in an instant.
What effortlessly incinerated a Draconic's toxic fog was none other than—
"L-Laevateinn?!!"
The weapon of Muspelheim's ruler, a high-ranking Constellation—
Surtr's legendary blade.
"This is impossible!!"
Drahel immediately erupted in disbelief.
And understandably so.
"Laevateinn?! Laevateinn?!"
As a member of Squama One who had encountered numerous Constellations under the Three Dragon Emperors—
To his knowledge.
"Constellation Surtr should be dead!"
Surtr was a Constellation who had met his demise.
Of course, Drahel wasn't wrong.
'As expected of a dead Constellation—no reaction at all.'
Gripping the crimson-black sword, Si-mun gazed blankly at the sky.
Unlike other Constellations who immediately took notice whenever he transmuted their artifacts—
Constellation Surtr sent no messages.
This mirrored his experience when transmuting the sand of Cronus, another perished Constellation.
Thus, Surtr's death was certain.
However.
[Constellation Odin frowns at the Laevateinn you transmuted.]
[Constellation Black Goat snickers, 'X bastard, relax. Isn't it better if our kid uses it? Might even increase your survival chances.']
[Constellation Odin nods reluctantly with a displeased expression. 'That... might be true.']
Only Odin showed an inexplicable reaction.
It piqued his curiosity, but—
"This is absurd! Utterly absurd!"
There were more pressing matters.
Clutching the blade so scorching it created heat waves—
Yet radiating nothing but comforting warmth to him—
"W-w-wait!"
Drahel frantically shook his head in denial, but the sword was already raised toward him.
And then.
"Burn."
With that activation word uttered.
"Laevateinn."
The moment the sword swung down—
The crimson blade erupted in flames.
Whoooooosh!!!
The very heavens and earth were set ablaze.