Ch.166Chapter 166. Ancient Serpent (7)

Chapter 166. The Ancient Serpent (7)

The slime demon turned to ash and disappeared, and Gukbap’s body, riddled with holes, slowly crumbled.

“Gukbap!”

Jackson, who had been close friends with him, supported Gukbap just before he collapsed to the ground.

Hannah examined Gukbap’s body. The blood loss was enormous. He wouldn’t survive no matter what healing he received.

“Be…tter…one…than…all…”

Gukbap mumbled something. Though she couldn’t catch everything, she could roughly guess what he meant.

Better one person dies than everyone.

That’s probably what he was trying to say.

“Friend. It’s okay. It’s me, Jackson.”

Jackson embraced Gukbap with a grim face as his friend’s eyes began to lose focus. The damage would have killed an ordinary person instantly, but a Paladin’s uniquely resilient body and Malak’s blessing were mitigating it.

Hannah thought that in a situation like this, where he would ultimately die in pain, the blessing might actually be more of a curse.

“Everyone survived. You saved them.”

Jackson’s words didn’t seem to reach Gukbap. His eyes were looking somewhere else, not here.

Perhaps he was reminiscing about the past.

“Warrior… you made a noble choice.”

Former High Priest Goga approached with sorrow. His eyes were clearer than usual, as if his mind had temporarily returned.

“Roa will guide your soul.”

Sola, Goga’s daughter and Hela’s mother, also approached, making hand gestures Hannah had never seen before. It looked like some barbarian ritual.

‘Roa’ and ‘soul.’ Those words made Gukbap’s eyes flash.

“Sp, spirit…”

Even while coughing up a handful of blood, Gukbap continued speaking.

“Spirit realm…”

Spirit realm.

The name of the world or dimension where the Roa live. It’s where those who serve the Roa are believed to go after death if they achieve great deeds.

Was Gukbap asking if he could go to such a place now?

The funeral held right after Malak’s return must have made quite an impression on him.

Hannah thought no such place existed, but she kept that to herself. Just because powerful monsters pretending to be gods existed didn’t mean there was an afterlife.

That was just Hannah’s opinion.

“Of course. You will belong in the Hall of Ancestors.”

“A great warrior’s soul that saved many lives will surely go to the spirit realm.”

Goga and Hela responded encouragingly. They were smiling—the smile of those who believed death wasn’t the end.

Gukbap swallowed hard, nodded, and then breathed his last.

“Gukbap… is dead. He sacrificed himself for us.”

Jackson shed tears. A devout Christian from Florida, he was a sensitive man who cried easily.

“Yes. It was a heroic act.”

Hannah comforted Jackson. For a brief moment, she wished the spirit realm really existed.

“Let’s go! The demons are coming!”

“Hurry!”

But the war wasn’t over yet. A horde of demons was rushing toward the hole in the wall like fireflies drawn to light.

‘These insufferable bastards.’

Grooooar-!

At the earth-shaking roar, Hannah looked up at the sky as if entranced. Giant monsters were battling in the heavens.

Boom! Boom!

Each time they collided, a thunderous sound erupted. They were beings of unimaginable power.

Perhaps it was fortunate they weren’t involved in that fight.

Hannah clicked her tongue and raised her sword. The battle—this night—wasn’t over yet. They had to fight to remain standing until morning.

***

Crunch!

I snapped the neck of the last dragon as I gripped it. It had been about to spew a flame breath with its widely opened mouth, but the broken bones pierced through its skin, causing a misfire.

Whoosh-!

Flames leaked from the dragon’s neck. The pain must have been immense as its eyes rolled back.

Yes, it hurts a lot, doesn’t it? Now die.

I bit into its neck and tore it off. The headless body fell toward the ground.

If that had fallen on the fortress, it would have been catastrophic. Fortunately, we were fighting some distance away from the tribal alliance.

Anyway, I’ve killed all twelve dragons that were being such a nuisance. Their breath attacks and aerial physical assaults with those massive bodies weren’t particularly threatening.

Even though they persistently bit the same spots to draw blood, it wasn’t a fatal blow. Still, they served their purpose well as meat shields and obstacles.

There was a moment when the Seven-Headed Dragon and the dragons hesitated briefly. I don’t know why, but that opening made it easier to deal with them.

Perhaps they received coordinate transmissions from mid-level demons or a call from an evil god? I can’t tell.

Ah, I’m getting tired.

– …!

No. It’s too early to lose focus. I haven’t defeated the final boss yet.

Shaaaaa-!

The Seven-Headed Dragon approaches. I thought I’d bought some time when it retreated after being struck by lightning, but it seems to have already recovered from the status effect.

Let me assess both our conditions.

I’ve lost a few teeth, had scales torn from my waist area, and lost some blood from the dragons’ attacks. My scales are slightly singed all over as a bonus.

It has lost one head, suffered a severe injury to its left leg where the bone is visible, and had part of its tail torn off.

Looking at our conditions, I might seem better off, but the reality was the opposite. It was stopping its bleeding with excellent regenerative abilities, growing new flesh and bone, and above all, it was still full of energy.

Even the head that shattered like glass after being frozen by my ice breath was slowly regenerating.

As for me? I just passed the 20-minute mark, which is probably the duration limit of my divine manifestation. I’m somehow holding on through sheer willpower, but it’s killing me.

Ishtania… did you throw 100 level 1 Paladins into another world to kill this monstrously powerful beast? You crazy bitch.

Whoosh!

It spewed green flames from six heads. The flames spread like a mushroom cloud, approaching me.

A veritable nuclear explosion breath.

The visual image isn’t the only threatening thing. Earlier, when I was dealing with the dragons, I took a direct hit because I couldn’t avoid it, and I thought my entire body would burn up.

That skill is what singed my scales.

I made my long body into a U-shape to avoid it, and I also spewed an ice breath. My target was one of its heads.

That’s how I knocked off one of its heads earlier with the ice breath. It froze rapidly and fell off on its own.

Recognizing it as a threatening attack, the Seven-Headed Dragon hastily twisted its body to avoid it. It looked quite ridiculous, but I couldn’t laugh.

Having been badly hurt once, it won’t be hit easily again. The lightning wasn’t very effective.

In the end, this means only physical combat remains.

After a moment’s deliberation, I charged. I had thought of a way to kill it.

Boom-!

The moment we collided, I used the “Totem of Confusion” that I had been saving for a decisive moment.

Shaat!

The creature spewed blood from six pairs of eyes. I moved behind it and bit into its wing membrane.

From what I’ve observed so far, unlike me who flies by surrounding my body with divine power, this thing uses wings to fly.

It probably doesn’t have enough divine power to cover its entire body. With wings intact, it wouldn’t want to use divine power unnecessarily.

Or unlike me, it might not have the skill to fly while surrounded by divine power.

Rip-!

I used my hands and mouth to completely tear apart its wing membranes. The Seven-Headed Dragon frantically flapped its wings, but there was no way it could fly with torn membranes.

It falls. Since it still doesn’t surround itself with divine power, the latter must be correct.

I grabbed the Seven-Headed Dragon. Even at this moment, its eyeballs were regenerating with smoke. It’s almost Wolverine-level regeneration.

Still, fighting on the ground gives me a significant advantage. Walking on foot, it won’t be able to avoid my next ice breath.

Boom! Boom!

Its front legs, as heavy and solid as elephant feet, mercilessly strike my body. It’s extremely painful. Not just the physical impact, but the mental fatigue makes me feel like I’m about to lose consciousness.

I must endure. I have to endure. Everyone lives if I kill this thing. My head felt like it was about to explode, but I brainwashed myself into thinking I was still okay and endured.

Thud!

I slammed the Seven-Headed Dragon to the ground. Falling from higher than a mountain, it staggered and rolled, flailing to regain balance.

Although its entire body was covered in blood from the impact of the fall, its six pairs of eyes had already regenerated. Tough bastard.

If it and Malak had fought without penalties, even several worlds wouldn’t have been enough.

Now, let’s finish this. I’ll subdue it and blast ice breath at all six heads. It still hasn’t regained its balance.

I moved like falling from the sky to the ground. My target: the Seven-Headed Dragon.

I’ll show you a full-power headbutt. One. Two. Now!

The Seven-Headed Dragon screams in pain as my antlers pierce its abdomen. A direct hit.

Ignoring my spinning head, I prepared to shoot an ice breath.

Oh, my nose is bleeding.

Come to think of it, I can’t hear anything anymore. Normally, I should have heard a “shaaak-!” sound when my antlers pierced its abdomen just now.

My body suddenly feels much heavier too. Perhaps Malak’s physical form has become unstable because I’ve exceeded the duration limit of the divine manifestation.

…It’s okay. I can still see well. I can still shoot one more ice breath. I just need to land this one properly and then release the divine manifestation.

Enduring the maddening mental pain, I pulled my antlers out of its abdomen.