Chapter 284: The night is not frightening (5)

"How dare you, my lair... my library...!”

Ho.

Cale was impressed.

The Two-Star Dragon, Epley, who always seemed calm, had completely lost her composure.

She really looked very angry.

Cale asked curiously.

“So what?”

No, really, what did she expect him to do?

Get mad at him because her lair was destroyed?

“Doing that won’t bring your lair back. You should go check on it quickly, don’t you think?”

Cale gave her sincere advice.

“Sure, I suppose you protected your lair with magic, but honestly, with the Rage and the Source of the World exploding like you said, I doubt the protective magic will be of much use. But, who knows, maybe you’ll find at least a pillow.”

“Wow.”

Raon was impressed.

“As expected, our Human is an expert at annoying others. Not just people, but also Dragons and even Gods.”

Despite Raon’s words, Epley screamed, filled with fury, trembling.

“How dare you, being just a Human, do this to me? My lair was filled with treasures more valuable than a thousand lives like yours!”

Cale responded casually, shrugging.

“So what?”

“…What?”

Epley, unable to speak due to anger, was questioned kindly again by Cale.

“Shouldn’t you go check on it?”

But Cale’s smile was malicious.

“Human, your face looks very sly.”

Ignoring Raon’s comment, Cale continued talking.

“Of course, if you can go.”

Super Rock spoke hastily.

- Cale, if you use more power, it will be dangerous. Didn’t you say the Dragon Lord destroyed Sichuan in the Central Plains and is now returning? If something happens while you’re unconscious, you’ll be in trouble too.

True.

Cale had no intention of using more power.

But he wasn’t the only one present.

Panting, the Dragon Epley looked around.

“……”

The Ancient Dragon was watching her.

“Damn it!”

Epley raised her hand upon seeing the Black Mage approaching. The Black Mage was trying to keep Choi Han at bay while he headed towards her.

Bang!

A blast of air slammed into Choi Han.

“Ugh!”

Boom!

But the Black Mage could not move further as he faced Choi Han's black aura sword.

Choi Han and Epley.

The Black Mage was caught between them.

Sss~

A strange combustion sound arose from the Black Mage’s wings. The contact with Choi Han’s black aura sword made the wings burn and emit smoke.

“……”

The black aura slowly faded.

Those wings had destroyed Raon’s and Eruhaben’s magic shield before.

Choi Han's frown deepened, his guard still up.

The Black Mage and Choi Han stared at each other.

“……”

The Dragon Epley looked around.

The only ally was the Black Mage.

Choi Han and Eruhaben.

Cale’s companions surrounded Epley from a prudent distance.

Lock, still enveloped in blue flames.

Cale with Raon and Maren next to him.

The Beast People and the Dark Elves returning one by one.

Seeing all of them, Epley looked up at the sky.

The night was particularly bright.

“Ha.”

A sigh that sounded like a laugh escaped.

Her expression reflected resignation.

At that moment, Eruhaben’s calm voice was heard.

“Are you going to flee? Don’t put on a show, you won’t be able to escape.”

Epley smiled.

“How will you stop me?”

Woooo~

She was enveloped in yellow mana.

Eruhaben approached quickly, and silver dust surrounded Epley.

Boom! Boom!

The silver dust clashed with the yellow mana, reducing it to dust.

Woooshh~

What was creating the yellow mana was a teleportation circle.

But Eruhaben didn’t give her time to complete it.

Forcing the mana to interrupt the formation of the circle.

“I’ll help too!”

“Me too.”

Boom!

Boom!

Raon’s and Maren’s attacks continued.

“Damn it.”

Epley’s face was full of frustration. The Black Mage could barely deal with Choi Han and couldn’t help her.

“Why can’t that Chimera defeat a simple Sword Master?”

Epley, filled with doubts, wanted to observe Choi Han better, but she didn’t have time.

An Ancient Dragon and two young Dragons.

The relentless and nonstop magic attacks complicated Epley’s situation.

“Those…!”

Epley’s yellow mana swirled more intensely, trying to push back the mana of the three Dragons.

It looked like a game of capturing territory.

And in the center of that territory was Epley.

“……”

Eruhaben, without saying a word, advanced through the air as if walking on land.

He was about to devour her territory.

Among the yellow waves of mana, Epley’s eyes showed desperation.

“Eruhaben!”

Suddenly, an urgent voice was heard from below.

Recognizing Choi Jung Soo’s voice, Eruhaben felt a chill on his back.

His instinct acquired over the years told him.

‘Retreat!’

He shouldn’t get closer to that Dragon.

Eruhaben retreated quickly.

Flash!

He extended his hand creating a shield.

Despite this, the sense of danger increased, and soon he saw the reason.

In the short time he retreated.

Something repulsive, a mix of black and gray, emerged among the yellow waves.

Was it a sword, a staff?

Or maybe an arm or a bone, it wasn’t clear.

Boom!

It hit the spot where Eruhaben was, colliding with his shield.

Crack!

The shield easily broke while Eruhaben, calm, kept Raon and Maren behind him, moving away quickly.

And among the yellow waves, his eyes met Epley’s.

“What a pity.”

Despite her words, Epley’s eyes showed no remorse.

They were full of anger.

But surprisingly cold.

Sss~

The yellow waves vanished, replaced by a gray and mysterious energy.

It wasn’t just simple gray.

- Cale…

Before Super Rock could say anything, Cale was already looking at the gray energy with a serious face.

Although it looked gray, it wasn’t just one color.

Behind Epley, a gray wall waved like seaweed in the sea, with varied and bright colors, as if reflecting sunlight through water.

It shone.

As if you were seeing the sun and the water’s surface from the bottom of the sea.

‘Or the universe.’

He felt as if he had glimpsed something vast and unknown in the universe.

A feeling of not being able to fully understand what he was seeing.

Epley kept that thing behind her, calmly.

“It’s troublesome to use this power here.”

She spoke as if it was a pity to use it here. She was quite calm.

But the Black Mage reacted differently.

From the moment he saw that gray wall, he was breathing heavily.

“Ugh. Ugh.”

Like a Dragon on the verge of Rage, Choi Han couldn't move recklessly.

In fact, facing that gray wall, his body sent him warning signals.

‘Do not approach.’

Death.

It wasn’t an intuition; it was a certainty. That shouldn’t be touched.

It was like an absolute law, a truth. Choi Han’s instinct, as a living being, gave him a very strong warning.

"Human, this is strange."

Raon felt it too. That gray wall. From the moment he saw it, Raon had a strange feeling. After rescuing Dragon Maren, the space and reality where he existed had felt strange. But that gray wall was of a different dimension.

'It's disturbing.'

His instinct strongly warned him. That shouldn't exist in this reality. However, the emotion that enveloped Raon was slightly different from Choi Han and Eruhaben.

'I must destroy it!'

Huh?

Raon was momentarily surprised by his own thoughts.

'Destroy it?'

Can I destroy that?

Clearly, it's a power related to the God of Chaos, invoked by Epley.

Can I really destroy it?

'I must destroy it!'

However, his instinct continued to stimulate him. Raon observed this stimulation carefully. And he realized what was at its core.

'I don't want to destroy this place!'

Raon recognized his desire. And he realized that the stimulus of that desire came from that gray wall.

"That is the Wall of Chaos!"

Choi Jung Soo’s voice resonated. He spoke from the rooftop.

"It’s one of the powers bestowed by the God of Chaos. The Wall of Chaos alters all rules and brings chaos. Its exact content is unknown. It’s a power that was used before antiquity, and now..."

Choi Jung Soo couldn’t continue speaking. Raon also couldn’t keep listening.

Uuuu~

The gray wall rippled.

Pat!

A magic circle appeared under Epley's feet. The same happened with the black mage.

Both were teleportation circles.

Even though the yellow magic circles appeared, none of Cale’s group could move.

"Ah."

Even Epley.

She was also breathing heavily, and her face showed fear.

The gray wall. Dozens of eyes appeared on it.

"…My, my lord-"

Epley knelt on the magic circle.

"What brings your attention to this place..."

It was a posture too servile for a proud Dragon. It was total submission. Eruhaben couldn’t blame her.

Those eyes.

Dozens of eyes without pupils, only with white sclera, suddenly appeared, and as soon as they lifted their eyelids, his body was filled with chills. It was as if they were facing something they shouldn’t see. That’s why Eruhaben couldn’t attack those eyes.

‘Fear?’

He was feeling fear. Like a human seeing the vast universe for the first time. But he couldn’t stay still.

"Ah!"

And these didn’t head towards Epley. Neither Raon nor Choi Han.

"Human!"

"Cale-nim!"

They were heading towards Cale.

"Ah, ah, ah."

Cale couldn’t breathe properly. His face was pale, and his body was trembling uncontrollably. Choi Han was alarmed to see that and quickly approached while turning his head.

"!"

His eyes widened.

The gray wall with dozens of eyes. Epley bowing to it. And the black mage advancing hypnotically towards that gray wall. But Choi Han couldn’t see all that.

The white eyes of the gray wall. In one of the dozens of pairs of eyes, black pupils appeared. And those pupils were looking in one direction. Where Cale was.

"Ah, ah, ah-"

Cale was rendered speechless. The black pupils were staring at him. From the moment he met that gaze, he couldn’t breathe.

‘What is this?’

An inexplicable fear enveloped him. As if...

‘Submission.’

Cale wanted to submit to that gray wall. It was undoubtedly connected to the God of Chaos. Are those dozens of eyes the God of Chaos?

‘No, just one of those eyes.’

That gaze that watched him. That black pupil.

‘That is the God of Chaos.’

But why me?

Is it because I’m interfering with everything?

Cale couldn’t organize his thoughts.

- Ah, ah.

And there was another presence that couldn’t hide its confusion and trembled in fear. A presence with a Dominating Aura and a deep voice. That presence was losing its composure. At that moment, a strange voice reached Cale’s ears.

- “You also have the power of Chaos.”

What?

- “A child who possesses a power born from the well of death. Why do you oppose my will?”

“Ah, ah.”

Cale was still having difficulty breathing.

- Damn it.

The Dominating Aura, scared, cursed. With that voice, Cale tried to clear his thoughts.

‘A power born from the well of death?’

Is that the power of Chaos?

Cale remembered that, in front of the Gods of Balance and Hope, the Dominating Aura had never been filled with so much fear.

‘That power-’

Cale had obtained it in the lake covered by the dead mana of Dragons.

Yes. It was like a sacred object contaminated. Like the black mage’s body and Maren’s severed wings.

In contrast, Cale had obtained the Dominating Aura. The Ancient Power of the First Dragon Slayer.

Cale had thought that this Dominating Aura had been passed down from the first Choi Jung Gun. But of course.

Even if it wasn’t transformed dead mana, like that of the black mage or Maren’s wings, it was still dead mana from a Dragon. One of the purest and highest qualities of dead mana.

After so many eons since antiquity, could that Ancient Power remain unchanged in the lake covered with dead mana?

...And is it really Choi Jung Gun’s strength?

Have I ever confirmed with Choi Jung Gun that it was his power?

Where did I get the information about this Dragon Slayer power?

What did the White Star say about it?

While Cale’s thoughts tried to organize amid the oppressive fear, a strange voice reached him.

- “Raise your head.”

Cale had no choice but to raise his head.

Is this how enemies who submitted to the Dominating Aura felt?

He couldn’t resist that order.

Tremors~

His body trembled uncontrollably. As he tried not to raise his head, his body trembled even more. However, in the end, Cale’s head lifted.

Dozens of eyes. Among them, a black pupil. When Cale raised his head, another black pupil appeared in another pair of eyes. Two pairs of eyes looked at Cale.

Thump~

When Cale realized, he felt as if something inside him sank.

- “Child who harbors chaos. Become mine-”

The two pairs of eyes spoke.

‘Become mine-’

But those words couldn’t continue. Cale saw an enormous back standing between him and the gray wall. The back of a large young man covered in silver fur.

Lock, enveloped in blue flames, shouted towards the gray wall.

"No!"

Upon hearing that trembling voice, Cale regained his composure. To be precise, it was the back covered in silver fur. The blue flames enveloping that back rose and formed a face.

‘…A wolf?’

The face of a young wolf could be seen. It wasn’t Lock.

‘Is it possible?’

The Blue Wolf?

When he remembered another vestige of a God that existed in this place, a smile appeared on the wolf’s mouth, revealing its fangs. And Cale heard the voice of the God of Chaos.

"Do not interfere. Forgotten God."

Everyone heard that voice. And the wolf within the blue flames opened its mouth.

"Even if forgotten, I am still a God."

Lock's eyes filled with blue flames. He responded to the two pairs of eyes on the gray wall, trembling as always.

"No, do not approach."

“Ha, haha-”

Cale laughed.

When the blue flames blocked his view, all the fear disappeared. The God of Chaos's gaze towards Cale vanished. It was thanks to Lock’s solid back, his other shield.

At that moment, a voice from the blue wolf resonated in Cale’s mind.

- “Child, even though I cannot confront it, I can drive it away.”

Whoosh~

Lock’s blue flames rose again.

“Ah!”

When Lock, surprised, stopped, the blue flames that rose above his head took a small form. It was a very small wolf.

The wolf, perched on Lock’s head, opened its mouth.

"Even if forgotten, I still exist as a God in this world."

Uwuuuuung~

Cale felt the vibration in his chest. The Mirror given by the God of Death, the Sacred Object, vibrated intensely. But he didn’t have time to take it out.

- Cale.

The Dominating Aura, somewhat calmer, began to speak slowly.

- I think I can imitate that.

Huh?

That? The gray wall?

- No. Those eyes. I think I can create those eyes. Of course, it would be a poor imitation, but the important thing is that I can do it, right?

...Ha!

Weren’t you scared?

- I was. But I can’t stay scared forever, right?

It was typical of someone who had dared to confront the God of Balance.

- I am the Dominating Aura! I can’t lose, not even to a God!

A smile appeared on Cale’s lips. He looked at his companions who protected him and the blue wolf, and he smiled brightly.

- H-Human. Are you okay? Why are you smiling like that? Are you trying to trick someone? Hold on a bit!

Cale ignored Raon’s hurried words that echoed in his mind.

***

If you find any errors or have suggestions, please feel free to provide feedback.

Thank you for reading!

[Author – Yu Ryeo Han]

[Translator – Anowa]

[Proofreader – Rai_Mayank]