Chapter 59 : Identity

“This has become troublesome.”

The figures that emerged above the clouds all had bizarre appearances.

I didn’t know what kind of creatures they had been mixed with to achieve such forms, but even those who looked like ordinary humans or

other demi-human races, not just bird-folk, now had wings on their backs.

Demonic wings resemble those of bats, a type of mammal, consisting of a membrane and the bones supporting it.

Bird-folk wings are shaped like basic bird wings, with sturdy bones densely covered in feathers.

However, despite their different appearances, the commonality between these two types of wings was that they were traits found only on the

bodies of specific non-human races, namely demons and bird-folk, respectively.

But right before my eyes were dozens of examples thoroughly denying such basic common sense.

“To think they can attach wings of other races to humans and make them fly…”

The enemies, who until moments ago fell at least within the category of ‘human’, had now become something that was neither human, nor

demon, nor bird-folk.

Forget the wings on their backs; having three arms or four legs was comparatively normal.

Some had entirely changed skin color, some had heads replaced entirely with wood, some had internal organs spilling out and dangling—

grotesque figures appeared en masse, making the sight of zombies, literal moving corpses, seem tame by comparison, all focusing their gazes

on me.

“…It seems they tried to draw my attention by appearing all at once, but that won’t work.”

Using the cover of the clouds, I instantly froze several, no, several beasts that had audaciously flown behind me.

There was no longer any reason to maintain the self-imposed handicap of using only natural mana.

Most potential witnesses had completely lost their sanity, and even if they hadn’t, judging by the disgusting amount of mana they emanated,

this wasn’t a situation to hold back.

‘I’ll just kill them all and feign ignorance. Seeing the <Red Cliff> guild marks they bear, it’s highly likely they contributed to human

experimentation…’

Once the decision was made, it was time for action.

I chanted a spell fitting for the sub-zero temperatures of this altitude, thousands of meters high.

The higher the altitude, the greater the power of weather-altering magic.

This was one of the several insurances that had allowed me to act leisurely until now.

Using this magic together with <Emptiness>, which darkened the surroundings, could shake off most pursuers.

As the magic circle began to activate, clouds from far away—located between the vast expanse of space and the sky—started gathering around

me.

The moisture comprising the clouds soon responded to the cold generated by my mana, beginning to snow so heavily that visibility dropped

to near zero.

A mana field spread around, and pure blue mana pushed aside the natural mana, creating an abnormal pressure difference.

A fierce wind, commonly called ‘knife wind’ for its skin-biting quality, accompanied by flurries of snow, swept through the enemies.

This natural phenomenon, described as a blizzard in English or ‘nunbora’ (snowstorm) in Korean, displays enough power to freeze a living

human to death.

The knife wind, raging with snow flurries, capable of freezing and tearing skin, is a significant threat to human survival itself.

However, my opponents were users akin to superhumans, and monsters who had transcended being users to become something non-human.

They were charging towards me even in this ultra-low temperature environment where an ordinary person’s limbs would freeze and break off

within seconds.

This wasn’t magic that mere level 100-something users, likely with little PvP experience, could withstand in the first place.

As expected, experiments involving mixing the bodies of various races to create enhanced physiques seemed to result in bodies

fundamentally sturdier than the original.

“Still, they’re nothing but mindless monsters. Dealing with slightly tougher, stupid punching bags is easy.”

It was unfortunate news for those struggling through the blizzard to reach me, but the name of the magic I cast was the high-rank spell

<Icicle Blizzard>.

A regular <Blizzard> would barely affect them in their highly enhanced state, but this magic had one special added effect—

—Icicles (Icicle), ranging from 10cm to several meters long.

Hailstones are mere lumps of ice, but hurricanes or blizzards accompanied by them cause tens, sometimes hundreds of times more damage

than ordinary disasters.

But what if the objects falling with the wind amidst the snowstorm weren’t round, ordinary hailstones, but incredibly sharp icicles?

Furthermore, what if they weren’t made of ordinary ice, but icicles boasting hardness exceeding military-grade alloys, generated by artificial

‘Dragon’s Mana’?

The answer to that question would be demonstrated by the carnage unfolding before my eyes.

Holes were being punched through the bodies of the melee-type users, whose monstrous physiques wouldn’t easily be pierced even by bullets.

Some among them regenerated wounds instantly, perhaps having received a troll’s heart transplant, but it was obvious whose resources

would run out first—their regeneration or the mana gathered in my heart.

Those who still seemed to possess some will were desperately dodging or shattering the incoming icicles, pushing towards me.

The bird-folk, whose bodies hadn’t visibly mutated like the others, were doing the same.

Indeed, those bird-folk, having stepped forward as reinforcements, seemed to have experienced numerous real battles.

The scars on their bodies alone suggested as much, and they showed no sign of shock while witnessing the mass production of corpses before

their eyes.

They were cold-blooded individuals, seemingly devoid of human feeling, much like ‘me’, experienced veterans who had navigated many

battlefields.

Wait, people like ‘me’?

‘I’ have a weak stomach.

I had never once been able to watch gore containing anything resembling corpses, nor movies or dramas featuring ghosts with broken limbs,

with both eyes open.

There was no way someone like me could properly look at fragmented corpses.

Even if I saw them, there was no way I could maintain my sanity—

Suddenly, a monster that had approached close enough to seemingly touch lunged towards me.

However, an icicle, appearing much taller than my own height, thwarted its life-risking charge.

Blood splattered, skin tore, and the organs, tissues, bones, and flesh within scattered into the air.

Naturally, plenty of that debris splattered onto me, less than a meter away from the carnage.

‘I’ stared blankly at the corpse of the ‘formerly human thing’ falling into the abyss of <Emptiness>.

[Synchronization Rate has increased.]

The moment the word [Synchronization Rate] filled my vision, the reality of my situation struck me.

As soon as I perceived reality and recognized the blood and debris flowing down my <Mana Shield>, nausea surged.

While frantically vomiting stomach acid, a thought suddenly occurred to me.

Isn’t it ‘unfitting’ for me, inheriting the blood of the great Dragon, to retch at the sight of such insignificant corpses?

…Retching.

Such an undignified act doesn’t suit the true ‘me’.

I suppressed the rising nausea.

But, why was I retching again?

Groaning from the overwhelming headache, clutching my head, I struggled desperately to recall the memory from mere seconds ago when I

sensed a menacing presence.

It was a killing intent I hadn’t felt since genuinely sparring with Siana and Yejin, yet its concentration was even thicker than back then,

sending shivers down my spine.

Moreover, the source of this killing intent wasn’t far.

Merely tens of meters from where I was hovering.

At a level capable of freely emitting such killing intent, tens of meters couldn’t even be considered a safe distance.

And this presence, this movement of mana, and the flawless, perfect stance—

I knew intuitively.

The owner of this technique, so familiar it was a certainty…

Piercing through the white blizzard, like a single streak of light cutting across the dark night sky of ancient times—

The fangs of a single white wolf streaking across the sky shall pierce the enemy’s heart.

Ignoring even the shattered Mana Shield and the foreign sensation of an arrow embedded deep in my chest, I turned towards the source of

the intense killing intent.

A mysterious assailant, clad entirely in a black robe, was literally ‘standing’ in mid-air without any magic or trickery.

Looking closely, there was only one body part visible outside the robe.

A blunt hand, calloused and with the top joint of the ring finger severed.

An incredibly familiar hand.

I was certain.

The identity of that man was Eunrang, one of my oldest friends.