Ch.135Otherworld Alliance

A pair of large eyes gazed down upon the earth. They were said to belong to a being that could see through all the principles of the world. However, there was a significant difference from what was commonly known.

‘How murky.’

The light was murky, as if it had lost all reason.

Yet the overwhelming pressure emanating from its entire body was real. Seo-rin barely managed to loosen her stiffened muscles. Cold sweat trickled down her back.

She followed her instincts. Before that massive creature could do anything, she needed to act first. From the moment she first witnessed the dragon, that was her only thought.

The twin dragon swords in her hands howled fiercely, as if enraged at the sight of the dragon before them.

Whoosh-!

In that moment, Seo-rin’s figure, enveloped in wind, appeared on the dragon’s leg. Her rapidly extending legs stepped fearlessly across the brilliantly colored scales.

A relentless charge began along the dragon’s body.

From atop the creature’s head, she felt an intense gaze. It was the Void Lord.

[You should have quietly awaited your death…!]

“M-madness! To challenge a dragon!”

“It would be better to retreat…”

Seo-rin frowned at the voices carried by the wind. They belonged to some mages and elves who had been merely spectating from behind. Retreat? Where to?

But not everyone shared that sentiment. As Seo-rin’s charge began, mana fluctuations could be felt from the ground. They were preparing supporting fire to coincide with her attack.

Seo-rin’s charge was like lightning. However, even faster, a rough energy wave erupted from the dragon’s body. It would be more accurate to describe it as a tidal wave of mana pouring forth.

Unable to withstand the overwhelming mana, Seo-rin was sent flying into the air.

Crash-!

“Kugh…!”

As Seo-rin’s body spun in the air, strange runic magic circles rotated around her several times. The flow of mana was extending from the ground. Seo-rin realized it was a defensive spell cast by the mages below.

The moment Seo-rin stabilized herself in midair, the dragon’s attack began. It was a simple tail swipe, but with its massive mass and overwhelming mana, it became a calamity that shook the entire forest.

As the tail scraped through the forest, everything that made up the woods became an earthen wave that surged forward. The trajectory of the attack was obvious. Yet no one dared to think of countering it.

Seo-rin and her companions on the ground hastily evacuated.

Kwagaga-!

Just as Seo-rin’s figure drew closer to the moonlight, having evaded the earthen wave, darkness flew toward her. A massive arm extended forward, covering the sky and obscuring everything.

It was the dragon’s second attack.

“This…!”

As soon as she recognized the attack, Seo-rin’s figure blurred. Using the repulsive force of the two energies swirling within her body, she momentarily achieved incredible speed.

But before her figure could escape the dragon’s attack range, the massive arm fell toward the ground.

Thud-!

The moment Seo-rin’s body collided with the dragon’s arm, the mana barrier of Sun Force protecting her shattered instantly, and she was rapidly driven into the ground.

Crash-!

There was no time to feel pain. The instant she hit the ground, Seo-rin leaped back into the air. With each kick of her short legs against the wind, she soared upward with fierce air pressure.

Feeling the intense pain that came belatedly, Seo-rin frowned. Despite the pure cold energy swirling and suppressing much of the pain, it was still considerable. Her head rang, and nausea welled up from within.

Yet Seo-rin raised the corners of her mouth.

She had read many books over the years. To acquire information left by civilized beings in text and images. To learn about the world.

She had also learned about dragons. Transcendent beings standing at the apex of all living creatures. They could manipulate mana from birth, and their bodies, larger than mountains, caused natural disasters just by moving.

Records of them using nearly a thousand spells at once couldn’t be overlooked either.

However, the dragon before Seo-rin’s eyes didn’t match much of those records. At most, it had an overwhelming body and possessed vast mana.

Despite having wings, it didn’t fly, and despite possessing enormous mana, it didn’t use magic.

It must not be a complete being.

Seo-rin drew up mana while maintaining a rough, long breath. The dragon, having finished its second attack, was preparing for another. Each time its massive body moved, the mana spread in the atmosphere vibrated, creating a tremendous resonance.

Its extended wings folded, and the dragon’s enormous body began to rotate. Immediately after, its right arm extended roughly.

The dragon’s movements seemed to mimic those of a human, more precisely, the Void Lord. Despite having sharp claws, it deliberately clenched its fist. Like holding a blade while punching.

Rumble-!

Seo-rin exhaled as she watched the approaching fist, a fist as massive as a mountain. A rough gust of wind burst forth over the sigh that escaped her lips.

It was the energy of the Ice Dragon Sword and Fire Dragon Sword, which had been barely maintaining balance within her body, repelling each other and dispersing.

While Seo-rin prepared her counterattack, the mages and elves on the ground weren’t idle either. Magic rising from various parts of the forest and arrows enveloped in wind continuously pounded the dragon’s body.

Though these attacks were feeble compared to the creature’s massive body and overwhelming presence, they were clearly effective. Each time an impact accumulated on the dragon’s body, the mana it emitted fluctuated.

The moment the dragon’s fist approached Seo-rin, two slashes shot out from her hands. When the two slashes, interlocked in midair, overlapped in a cross shape…

A massive explosion occurred.

Boom-!

It was Seo-rin who was sent flying by the impact. Even as she roughly rotated and crashed to the ground, she didn’t lose her smile. This was because a cross-shaped sword mark remained on the dragon’s outstretched fist.

Thud-thud-

Scales made of mana belatedly fell. Between the split skin, red flesh and white bone were revealed, but no blood flowed.

Atop the dragon’s head…

The Void Lord, who had been controlling the massive body, suddenly frowned. His flowing black hair gently scattered in the direction of the wind.

‘A wound on this body…?’

Although it was a fake dragon he had created, he prided himself on its appearance and durability being identical to the original. He couldn’t believe that mere swords had split its skin.

Drip-

Suddenly, blood flowed from the Void Lord’s fist. He had synchronized the dragon’s body with his own. He had implanted his consciousness into it to control the massive body as if it were his own.

Thus, he shared its wounds as well.

‘Merely a high-ranking member can do this much…’

Rumble-!

The Void Lord moved the dragon’s body once more. With each step of its massive legs, it drew closer to the small girl.

“Do you think there’s a chance of victory?” one mage asked his companion.

The companion didn’t answer. Although the small knight girl was displaying remarkable divine skills, the situation wasn’t favorable.

With each collision, colorful scales fell from the dragon’s body. But the girl also spattered blood. It was hard to believe that such a small girl’s body could withstand so much blood loss.

The battle was tilting in favor of the dragon, the Void Lord.

“Keep quiet. Just prepare your magic.”

At that moment, Seo-rin’s figure, which had been flung far away by the impact, rose into the air. Even with her body covered in blood, as if refusing to give up, blue light poured from her eyes.

In that instant, ten swords that had been floating around her body flew behind her and took position. Soon, the swords began to rotate.

“What’s happening now…?”

Mages, sensitive to mana, couldn’t help but notice. The gaze of every mage present turned to Seo-rin. All the mana in the surroundings was being drawn toward the small girl.

More precisely, toward the rotating swords behind her.

Screech-!

As the rotation of the swords accelerated, a harsh sound erupted. Mana collided with mana, resonating. The force created by this amplified the mana.

The size of the mana grew immeasurably vast. It was a strange phenomenon. Even though they could see and feel the flow of mana, they couldn’t understand why this amplification was occurring.

For a moment, the mana and presence Seo-rin held surpassed that of the massive dragon.

Hot heat and cold chill swirled simultaneously. As the mana amplified, blue lightning sparked at the point where the two forces collided.

“Amplifying mana…? That’s impossible.”

“The flow is too unstable. This is…”

The mages watching Seo-rin expressed their concerns. The external mana amplification mechanism she had created was extremely unstable. The two forces that should have been in balance frequently disrupted each other, and as a result, a significant portion of the amplified mana was being wasted.

Yet despite this, the mana continued to rise endlessly. Though unstable, it was performing admirably on its own.

But in the next moment, what the mages had feared happened. Like glass shattering, the mana vortex rotating behind Seo-rin broke apart.

Clang-!

The ten swords that had broken free from rotation scattered simultaneously. Seo-rin, who had been performing the mana amplification, wasn’t unaffected either. All the mana that had filled her entire body, along with the amplified mana, drained out in an instant.

‘Failure…’

She had failed to maintain the mana amplification mechanism while using both the Ice Dragon Sword and Fire Dragon Sword. It was because the two energies swirling within her body endlessly repelled each other.

Seo-rin’s figure, having lost all mana, fell toward the ground. Through her blurring vision, the Void Lord’s expression was revealed. Surprise, and also bewilderment.

But it was only for a brief moment. The Void Lord immediately moved the dragon to trample Seo-rin.

As the massive leg approached Seo-rin…

[Take a rest for a moment.]

A faint voice was heard. It was a familiar voice to Seo-rin. It was none other than her own voice.

***

Rumble-!

When the dragon’s massive leg trampled Seo-rin, everyone sensed her demise.

But in the next moment…

The dragon’s leg, which had been stomping on the ground, crumbled with a thud-thud sound. As if it had decayed over many years.

[You…]

The Void Lord’s gaze turned downward. Not toward the crumbling dragon’s leg. Beyond the falling debris, he recognized a small but immense presence surging upward.

An unfamiliar yet familiar energy.

[Dragon King…?]

No, not quite. It’s a bit more…

In that moment, the Void Lord’s right leg collapsed. But he didn’t look at his own body. He only stared at one person.

Step-

From the swirling dust, a girl walked out.

Her steps were too light. Between her white fluttering hair, dark energy flowed as if rippling. Because of this, all the wounds covering her entire body healed instantly.

A transcendent healing ability beyond the human realm.

[You are…]

The Void Lord’s words remained unfinished. It was because the small girl brought her finger to her lips. With just that simple gesture, his movement was restricted.

“Big brother is sleeping.”

So be quiet.

With that quiet voice, a pitch-black death descended from the sky.