CH 283.

The atmosphere of the frontline completely changed after Drachen and his dragon appeared. 

The central kingdoms’ armies, which had seemed like they were just about to breach Iberia’s defenses and march towards Granado at any moment, had long since lost their energy. And the quickly exchanged messages via mages contained only the news of defeat.

“How could the war change like this with just one person participating in the war?”

The commanders of the central kingdoms’ army could hardly believe that all this happened because of a single knight.

But no matter how much they denied it, reality didn’t change. 

Because Drachen joined the war, the central kingdoms' armies could not fulfill their original plan to press the eastern kingdoms by taking the isolated Eastern Kingdoms Alliance troops in the Seville fortress as hostages. And they had to revise their plans of capturing Granado before the Adenburg Empire’s troops arrived. 

Now, the central kingdoms’ armies couldn’t even guarantee that they could maintain the current frontline, let alone occupy Iberia. 

“Does the Temple even know about the situation on the front line?!”

On the off chance, the old commander of Tennessia Kingdom emphasized their disadvantages on the frontline to the Temple, but sure enough, the message from the Temple simply said, ‘Do not retreat. Advance.’

From the start, they didn’t have many options. Even if they complained about it to their home countries, it wouldn’t do anything when the key positions were filled by people friendly to the Holy Kingdom. 

“What the hell happened to the royal family while we were fighting in the war in the West?!”

Since the royal family, the only ones that could restrain the Holy Kingdom, repeated the Holy Kingdom’s position like a parrot, the old commander was confused whether he was a noble of his country or a noble of the Holy Kingdom. 

The nobles of the other kingdoms were in the same position as the old commander.

In the end, all they could do was fight until the last soldier on the frontline fell. 

“At the very least, I won’t leave Drachen alone.”

Their disappointment in their country’s monarch and the frustration of being unable to do anything turned into resentment and it was aimed at the wrong person.

“Send a letter to the leaders of the Allied Forces and ask for their cooperation. If they provide us with weapons and soldiers to fight the monster, then Tennessia will kill Drachen.”

The message from the Tennessia Kingdom was delivered to all units on the frontlines, and the commanders of the central kingdoms, who had been desperately thinking of countermeasures for Drachen, gathered their ballistae and catapults and sent them to the Tennessia’s military camp. 

The support from the kingdoms wasn’t limited to only siege weapons to be used against the monster. All the kingdoms knew that at this rate, they would be devoured one by one by Drachen and his dragon, so they boldly sent their own superhumans to the Tennessia Army.

Like this, 200 knights and 100 mages were gathered. 

Including the Tennessia Knights and Mages, nearly 350 superhumans gathered in Tennessia’s camp. Out of the central kingdoms’ total superhumans participating in the fight on the Iberian front, half of them had gathered here; it was truly a powerful gathering of superhumans. 

This showed that the central kingdoms’ armies’ fear and hostility of Drachen was much greater than the old commander had expected.

“With this many knights and mages…”

The old commander had been prepared to die on the battlefield, but now, hope for victory began to blossom in his heart. 

“Immediately find Drachen’s whereabouts!”

It wasn’t difficult to find Drachen’s location. Wherever there was the most disastrous defeat, Drachen was always there.

Not to mention, the giant monster’s presence couldn’t be hidden even if he wanted to and the monster clearly indicated where Drachen was heading.

“He doesn’t realize that this is where he will die and is foolishly rushing in.”

Coincidentally, Drachen’s route led him to the nameless plain where the Tennessian army and the central kingdoms’ superhumans had gathered. 

Right away, the old Tennessian commander prepared to face Drachen.

He moved the ballistae and catapults to a distance and had it readied so that it could be fired at any moment. Knights and mages from all over the central region lined up in front of them and waited for Drachen.

The grim determination in face of the decisive battle soon turned into confidence and a longing for victory.

“According to the survivors’ reports, the Drachen’s dragon must have to do with water, so the Mage Corp of Tennessia, as well as the mages of each country, should prepare spells for fire.”

While Drachen was stirring up the battlefield, they finished gathering intelligence on Drachen’s dragon. That was why when Tennessia had requested support, the commanders of each country had sent out mages who specialized in fire spells. Amongst them were Spiritualists who had summoned the highest-level fire spirits.

Truly, the greatest talents had gathered to deal with Drachen.

“A cloud of dust in the West! It’s definitely Drachen, sir!”

There was no way that Drachen hadn’t noticed the troops gathered here, not when Drachen was someone who had a situational awareness so strong that it was uncanny. Nevertheless, Drachen was charging forward in a straight line. It was as if the superhumans gathered here didn’t even register to him. 

“That confidence of yours ends today.”

The old commander smiled coldly as he raised his hand. 

“Ballista! Stay in the same direction! Load!

“Catapult! Observe the distance and prepare to launch.”

Creak, creak. 

Numerous siege weapons were fixed to the western direction and all of them simultaneously aimed at Drachen and the monster that were still far off in the distance.

“We, the Tennessian Knights, will take the lead.”

Dressed in armor dyed in red, the Tennessian Royal Knights stepped out to the front at the old commander’s words. Other knights lined up behind them as they drew their swords.

The mages were prepared as well. They chanted the fire spells they were the most confident in and were ready to cast them at any moment.

Roooaaarr.

Just as they finished preparing, a roar that sounded like a landslide could be heard from beyond the dust storm. 

“All troops! Prepare for battle!”

The cloud of dust was getting closer and closer. Glimpses of a blue monster could be seen through it. 

The Allied Forces’ superhumans had dry mouths as they gulped.

Although the monster was still far away, the presence of the monster made their skin prickle. The monster’s speed was several times faster than the rumors had said. 

However, they soon threw back their hunched over shoulders and gripped their swords tightly.

There were enough knights and mages here to adequately fight against a country. If they were afraid of fighting one man and one beast, then their knights’ pride would weep while the mages’ pride would be trampled on the ground. 

Rooooooar!

Although they flinched for a moment at the monster’s roar that pierced the world, they didn’t drop their swords or staves. 

However, it was impossible to expect the same superhuman discipline and strength from the ordinary soldiers in charge of the siege weapons. Unlike the superhumans, the ordinary soldiers had an ordinary mental discipline and were too weak to overcome the overwhelming presence of the monster. 

The soldiers forgot their duties and laid on the floor, trembling. Some of them were so weak that their eyes rolled up as they fainted.

“Since the soldiers have lost their minds, the knights in the back row will have to step forward!”

The old commander had been staring at the monster without blinking an eye, but when he finally grasped the situation, he asked the knights in the back row to help.

Swish.

The knights from each country ran like lightning to the catapults and broke the rope anchoring it.

Snap! Snap!

With the sounds of taut ropes snapping, large boulders flew high into the sky. Because the ballistas had a shorter range than the catapults, bolts as thick as tree trunks shot out a beat later. 

The high-flying rocks and bolts pierced the dust cloud. 

And at that moment, the spells the mages had prepared exploded all at once. 

The sky began raining down fire. Pillars of fire rose from the ground. Huge tidal waves of flames poured down on the dust cloud. 

The fire giant summoned by the Spiritualists gripped a spear made of fire and jumped into the dust cloud. 

It was as if the entire world had turned into a fiery hell. It didn’t seem like anything could survive in it. 

But they couldn’t assume that the monster would’ve died with just that one attack. If it was that easy to deal with, then this many superhumans wouldn’t have needed to gather here.

“Those who still have enough magical power, please continue attacking!”

The exhausted mages were sent to the back while the higher-ranking mages started reciting the third set of spells again to summon a rain of fire. 

How long did the volley of magic spells continue like this?

Soon, they couldn’t hear the massive monster’s torso dragging on the ground anymore. All they could hear were the sounds of flames as it burned the entire plain as well as the giant running around in the fire. 

“Could this be the end?”

The old commander stared at the fiery hell with anticipated, then shook his head. 

“There’s no way.”

While the mages’ salvo of spells was certainly powerful enough to destroy a castle, considering the achievements and legends surrounding Drachen, the old commander wasn’t relieved.

“Tennessian Knights, prepare to charge!”

The others must’ve had the same thought because no one questioned the old commander’s order. 

Just as they had grabbed their swords and were preparing to charge over the flames, the flames that were burning wildly as if trying to engulf the entire world extinguished.

Shhhhhhh.

Pure white vapor rose over the extinguishing embers and began to spread in all directions.

“Howling Wind!”

Even after continuously using powerful magic one after another, some of the mages were still able to use their magic and they tried to summon a wind to push the mist away, but it only earned them a bit of time. 

The hazy fog slowly spread until it had engulfed the entire plain. 

And after the fog had completely covered the world, the ceaseless roar of the fire giant couldn’t be heard any longer.

“Ephrael! The spirit is defeated!”

As if vomiting blood, the spirit’s screams of pain resonated from within the fog. 

“All troops, step away from the fog and prepare the battle lines!”

The old commander shouted loudly. But he didn’t hear a response.

“Tennessian Knights!”

He called out the brave order’s name several times, but the world was strangely quiet. 

“Knights! Mages!”

The old commander was consumed by a sudden surge of fear. 

Swish.

Even the bright sword energy that was characteristic of a senior knight flowing through his sword couldn’t appease the old commander’s fear.

“Is anyone there?! Someone! Anyone! Please answer me!”

He carefully moved through the fog without stopping. It felt like he would be devoured by the silence if he stayed still.

Thud.

“Ack!”

With an unseemly scream, the old commander fell down. When he finally looked, he saw an object hanging from his ankle.

“Ah…”

Who knows when he had been defeated, but a proud knight of the Tennessian Knight’s Order looked up at the old commander half-frozen.

Puh puh.

The familiar face opened his mouth to say something. But there were no sounds. It was like watching a pantomime of a clown that had once been popular among the nobles. 

Woosh. 

The moment he saw it, the commander felt like his hair was rising in shock. He got goosebumps all over his body as his heart grew cold from fear. 

“We can’t hear each other?”

He had finally realized something was out of place. But it was too late. 

Stab.

With terrible pain, something long pushed out of his chest. It was the head of a spear stained with blood. 

“Ah…”

The old commander turned his head and saw a foreigner with black hair. 

“What the hell are you…”

Before he could finish questioning, the old commander’s eyes rolled up until his opponent could see the whites of his eyes.

“Guh.”

Soon, even that disappeared out of sight and the old commander no longer opened his eyes. 

***

“The silence is comfortable, but it’s suffocating.”

Kim Seon-Hyeok frowned as he pulled back the spear that had pierced through the commander’s back. He hadn’t been able to hear the old commander’s last words. 

But that was self-inflicted since it had been none other than himself who had summoned Atiya to cut off the surrounding noise. 

“This is going to take too long.”

When he had felt the presence of troops gathered in the distance, he had charged straight ahead. However, when he had gotten closer, he had realized that the power of those gathered was quite formidable. 

Spells had poured down upon him while he had been thinking about what to do. 

As if they had already grasped Bluegon’s weakness, they shot spells of fire at him. 

Of course, Bluegon didn’t die from that. But that also didn’t mean he was perfectly fine. It had been too long since they left his source and came onshore. 

However, that didn’t matter.

From the start, Bluegon’s greatest power was his ability to regenerate, so any wounds inflicted by the spells would be quickly healed once he entered the water.

The problem was what to do with all the troops spread out in front of them. 

Kim Seon-Hyeok already had the answer. If the powerful force gathered here were to attack the Iberian army, then the Iberian army, which was inferior in superhuman strength compared to the other countries, would never be able to defeat them since Iberia’s army mainly consisted of mercenaries. 

That was why, instead of escaping with Bluegon, Kim Seon-Hyeok had decided to deal with them even if it would be more difficult.

The fog and silence were enough to replace Bluegon.

He dealt with the enemies as he proceeded silently through a fog that was thick enough to make it difficult to see even an inch ahead of him. It wasn’t easy. 

Some of them were terrified and gave up their lives ridiculously easily, but most knights resisted and stabbed their swords whenever they felt even the slightest bit of presence. It was quite an arduous task to covertly handle such people.

“Guh.”

Kim Seon-Hyeok had just finished simultaneously dealing with six unlucky mages when he felt a powerful wave of energy.

“Tsk…”

The fog that had been obscuring him from enemies’ sight was suddenly pushed away and disappeared far away.

“Drachen!”

Atiyah’s power of silence had also disappeared.

“It’s much faster than I expected.”

The fog was lifted and the world was back in view. Nearly one hundred and fifty knights and dozens of mages were encircling him. 

He had believed Bluegon’s mist would have completely hidden him, but to his surprise, his enemies had known where he was. 

“Bluegon, you bastard. How’s this perfect stealth?!”

Quietly cursing, Kim Seon-Hyeok turned to look in the direction Bluegon had fled to heal his wounds. 

“Drachen lost his dragon!”

“He’s no different than a cornered rat!”

All the knights surrounding him grabbed their swords fiercely as they shouted. Seems like they had seen the mages’ lips moving faster and felt a sense of urgency; they didn’t want to give up the prey they had almost caught to someone else.

“Drachen without his dragon is nothing! To the one who catches him…”

Kim Seon-Hyeok had been silently watching but then, he turned his attention to the knight who was shouting. The knight flinched and retreated when their eyes met. 

He was surrounded by hundreds of superhumans, but his strangely calm appearance looked tired of the entire situation.

“Who said that?”

He asked in a low voice as he stared at the knight.

“Who said that I’m nothing if I don’t have a dragon?”

As soon as he finished speaking, Kim Seon-Hyeok’s body began twisting. On the exposed bare skin, yellowish and bluish scales appeared and in an instant, his human appearance began to distort and in his place, a dragonian with scales of golden blue appeared.

The dragonian stood tall, gripping a spear made out of ice from his fingertips. 

Thanks to Bluegon finishing molting, he had acquired a new power, Bitter Frost, and it was being introduced to the for the first time.