Chapter 601
We Must Fight the Dragon. (2)
Ghislain gazed at the dragons with eyes full of wonder.
He had seen countless past wars in his dreams, but never once had dragons been involved.
Yet now, just when he needed to prepare for battle against dragons, a dream like this appeared.
"Is this meant to show me something? Or was it simply time for this vision to come?"
The sequence of his dreams was beyond his control, and he had no way of knowing how they were determined. All he could do was be curious.
Regardless of the Saintess’s intent, this dream itself was intriguing. He had never seen so many dragons gathered in one place before.
A chill ran down his spine. Right now, the United Human Army was struggling to deal with just one dragon yet here were dozens.
If those dragons had chosen to be humanity's enemies, the human race would have been wiped out long ago.
Fortunately, the ones they sought to fight were not humans.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Kuwaaaaaaah…!
Massive beings approached from the opposite side.
A white giant with a hawk’s head and wings on its back.
A giant with a bull’s head, wielding a massive hammer.
A giant with countless arms.
A giant holding an enormous spear, breathing fire from its mouth.
They were monstrous, terrifying giants beings that did not belong to this world.
Their only common feature was their pure white bodies.
‘Lords of the Rift.’
In his past life, they had been called the Lords of the Rift. Some had simply referred to them as colossal beasts.
At the time, their existence had been utterly fascinating. Many of them wielded weapons, wore armor, donned ornaments, or were dressed in clothing.
This meant they either possessed civilization or had once possessed it.
That was why everyone had questioned what they were and where they had come from.
‘Lesser gods of another realm.’
According to the myths told by Ereneth, these beings were referred to as lesser gods from another world.
Myths could not always be trusted, but from Ghislain’s experience fighting these giants firsthand, it was a plausible theory.
They were powerful enough to be called lesser gods. That was why, in his past life, the United Human Army could not afford to be distracted by anything else.
If even one of them appeared, the strongest warriors of the entire continent had to mobilize to fight it.
"So back then, they moved in packs like this?"
If so many of them had appeared in his past life, humanity would have been annihilated instantly.
It was only because they had appeared sporadically, in small numbers, that they could even be fought at all.
In the dream, the dozens of dragons and colossal beasts clashed.
Kwaaaaaaaaaaah!
The dragons in the sky unleashed their breath attacks, pouring out their most powerful strikes from the start.
They were tense.
Kuwaaaaaah!
The colossal beasts did not remain idle. They hurled their massive spears into the sky or leaped upward, attempting to seize the dragons.
Boom! Boom! Booooom!
The battle was so intense that no other beings could dare to intervene.
Dragons, revered as the masters of magic, unleashed transcendent 9th-Circle spells across the battlefield.
The colossal beasts, however, lived up to their reputation as lesser gods, radiating immense power to withstand the magic. They didn’t just defend they pulled dragons down from the sky.
Kaaaah!
A dragon’s fangs sank into the neck of a colossal beast. The beast, in turn, grabbed the dragon’s wings and tore them apart.
One colossal beast had its abdomen pierced by a dragon’s attack. Some dragons were devoured whole, starting from the head.
It was an excruciatingly brutal and savage battle one that only beings of transcendental power could partake in.
The dragons and colossal beasts mercilessly slaughtered one another.
Boom! Boom! Booooom!
The heavens and earth trembled as everything in the vicinity was shattered to pieces. Enormous boulders were torn apart and scattered like paper.
The shockwaves from the dragons and the colossal beasts' clashes split the ground, creating deep fissures. Lightning streaked relentlessly across the sky, forming a fitting backdrop for this cataclysmic battle.
Amidst the surrounding destruction, only the dragons and the colossal beasts remained at the center, locked in a relentless struggle.
One dragon stood out in particular the Dragon Lord, Arterion.
Kwaaaaaaaah!
The pure white breath unleashed by Arterion slowed the movements of a colossal beast. He scattered an array of spells around him, effectively restraining and attacking the monsters.
His overwhelming power was more than worthy of the title Dragon Lord. Thanks to Arterion, the tide of battle began shifting in favor of the dragons.
Ghislain watched the fight with a hardened expression.
"This is different from what I knew."
The dragons and the colossal beasts both were far stronger now in his dream than they had been in his past life.
"Ereneth has become much stronger than when I saw her in Ritania."
If her words were true, it meant that as time passed and her restraints weakened, her original power was returning.
It was highly likely that even in his past life, Arterion had never been able to wield his full strength. The way he fought in this dream it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he was akin to a god.
"I suppose I should be relieved."
In both his past life and now, Arterion was moving urgently. It was fortunate they could engage him before he fully regained his strength.
Ghislain also had an idea why the colossal beasts were stronger than before.
According to Ereneth, in this era, the Adversary was active, and the Demon God’s energy that had spread across the world was far more potent than it was in the present.
That energy empowered even the colossal beasts, allowing them to unleash even greater strength.
Ghislain, who had been watching the battle, felt a slight heaviness in his heart.
‘The Demon God's energy…’
The longer time passed, the stronger those colossal beasts would become. If the rift wasn’t suppressed and sealed, they would eventually break free.
Ereneth had said that as the Adversary revived and grew stronger, the influence of the Demon God's energy on the world would also intensify.
Whether or not that was true wasn’t the issue. The undeniable fact was that an unknown force was actively affecting the world.
‘The Adversary…’
It wasn’t yet clear whether the Adversary had truly resurrected, as Ereneth claimed, or who they might be.
The only certainty was that, as time went on, this world would become increasingly dangerous. A solution had to be found before the rifts fully opened and their inhabitants emerged.
Ghislain surveyed his surroundings once more.
The battle between the Dragon and the colossal beasts was reaching its conclusion. Both sides were so grievously wounded that they could barely move.
Fwooooosh!
A figure cloaked in black energy appeared - the Adversary. He moved forward, leading a host of priests and Riftspawn.
From the United Human Army, the Hero was the first to react. Countless comrades and soldiers followed closely behind.
Before long, the Hero and the Adversary clashed once again.
Boom!
Watching their battle unfold, Ghislain’s eyes darkened.
* * *
In preparation for dragon hunting, the entire United Human Army was moving busily.
Ghislain, too, was occupied, inspecting the troops and ensuring that all necessary supplies were arriving as expected.
It was during this time that Ereneth approached him.
“I’m sorry, but I’m sitting this battle out. No matter how much I think about it, I just can’t do it.”
“…Do you really have to?”
“Yes. Even just bringing you this information doesn’t sit well with me.”
“…Tch.”
Ghislain clicked his tongue lightly and gave a small nod.
He could understand her feelings. To Ereneth, Arterion was not just an old comrade but also a friend from past battles.
For her, fighting against Arterion was impossible. Just sharing this information had already been a significant decision on her part.
“Alright, I get it. So, what do you plan to do now?”
Ereneth fell into thought for a moment.
She had been searching for Arterion and the Adversary. Eliminating the Adversary was her ultimate goal.
That was why she had re-emerged into the world the moment her seal was lifted.
After some contemplation, she finally spoke.
“Well, since it’s come to this, I think I’ll go after Gartros.”
“Gartros?”
“Yes. That bastard is dangerous. I need to find and kill him, no matter what. After that… I’ll have to track down the Adversary.”
Ereneth trailed off at the end.
She still seemed to suspect Julien.
Regardless, Ghislain agreed with some of her words.
He intended to find out whether the Adversary had truly resurrected. Gartros was also someone who absolutely had to die.
But there was no need to do it right now.
“Gartros was going to form a pursuit team anyway. It’ll be faster if we search together. Instead, let’s take care of something more urgent first.”
“What do you mean?”
“Dealing with the remnants. Originally, I was going to assign Tennant to Claude. We need at least one superhuman. But how about you go instead?”
“...You want me to go with Claude?”
“Yes.”
“......”
“You have to follow Claude so that Tennant can focus on hunting monsters and dragons. Having even one more person would be advantageous, don’t you think?”
“...Hmm.”
Ereneth slightly furrowed her brow. Of all people, why did it have to be Claude?
Whenever she talked to Claude, she always ended up getting drawn into his pace. Just thinking about it made her feel exhausted.
After a long moment of hesitation, Ereneth finally gave a small nod.
“...Alright. I’ll help with the subjugation of the remnants for now.”
She thought it was the better choice as well. Searching for Gartros would be much easier with more people involved.
And in any case, Amelia would take the lead in hunting down the remnants. Ereneth had already witnessed Amelia’s capabilities firsthand. She was reliable.
Besides, she had a feeling Claude wouldn’t be able to act recklessly in front of Amelia.
Seeing Ereneth accept, Ghislain beamed.
“Great, that’ll be a huge help. I’m counting on you.”
“Alright, I’ll try to wrap it up as quickly as possible.”
It was a relief for Ghislain as well. Although dealing with the monster wave and dragons was the more urgent matter, eliminating the remnants was still important.
If Ereneth fought actively, there was nothing to worry about. It would take time to travel, but once she was in battle, no one could stand against her.
As she was about to leave, Ereneth suddenly stopped in place and stood still.
Ghislain, finding her behavior odd, asked,
“What is it? Do you have something else to say?”
“...Do you still have the relic?”
“Yes, I’m still wearing it around my neck.”
Ghislain pulled out the necklace and showed it to her.
Ereneth stared at it for a moment before asking,
“Has the relic ever shown any reaction to Julien?”
“……”
Ghislain didn’t answer immediately.
Everyone knew that Gartros had sought the relic first in his search for the Adversary.
Ghislain felt uneasy about that. The relic had clearly reacted to Julien.
After contemplating how to respond, he simply nodded. There was no point in lying when so many had already witnessed it.
“Yes, when I met Julien, it emitted light.”
“……”
Ereneth’s brow twitched slightly.
Arterion had also been searching for the relic, knowing that it was necessary to find the Adversary.
And now, this very relic had reacted to Julien. It only added fuel to her suspicions.
Shaking his head, Ghislain continued,
“Don’t jump to conclusions. Julien isn’t the only one it has reacted to.”
In fact, the relic had once saved Gartros when he was on the brink of death. It had also briefly responded to Jerome’s will. And when Ghislain met Julien, it had displayed a similar reaction.
He shared all of these details.
However, he deliberately left out the part about the dreams he sometimes had and how divine power had been absorbed into him.
Ereneth was hiding too many secrets of her own for him to reveal everything just yet.
“Phew…”
Ereneth sighed deeply, closing her eyes. Learning that the relic had saved Gartros only made her even more confused.
And now, hearing that it had also reacted to both Jerome and Ghislain, she felt even less certain about anything.
Shaking her head, she finally spoke.
“Understood. I’ll decide after we capture Gartros.”
With that, Ereneth turned and left, her entire demeanor exuding the desire to stop thinking about it altogether.
Ghislain watched her leave for a long while before finally lowering his head and refocusing on his work.
As he reviewed the documents piled before him, checking the soldiers’ formations and strategies, he muttered softly,
“We’ll find out soon enough.”
He had already formed several hypotheses. Now, all that was left was to see if they were correct.
However…
Ghislain hoped he was wrong.