The Sky Island was an unknown territory where other races hadn’t even set foot yet. In a way, it was understandable. The races here hadn’t conquered the sky yet. And this led to a problem.
The fundamental issue was, how on earth do you get to the Sky Island? There were no airships, and wyverns were more likely to tire and crash before reaching the Sky Island.
According to orc records, back when the orcs had mighty influence, many of them tried to conquer the Sky Island riding wyverns, but most fell to their deaths.
But using magic to reach the Sky Island was fraught with danger. Then the best option would be to rely on the Dwarf Republic’s engineers, but that was still uncertain.
“Can the Dwarf Republic build a machine that can fly?”
“Even for the Dwarf Republic, that seems difficult.”
“I figured as much.”
If it’s a peaceful time, it might be different. Developing a new weapon during a war is incredibly tough. They had already depleted a significant amount of iron ore just to manufacture the Steel Lightning.
While they wouldn’t run out of iron ore itself, the immediate issue was that the total amount of iron ore secured by mining was still tight. Plus, how could new machines be produced all at once?
Countless trial and errors were bound to occur, and obviously, many resources, including iron ore, would be needed. Given these circumstances, the likelihood of cooperation from the Dwarf Republic was quite low.
“Really, I can’t see a solution.”
“For now, I think the best course is to investigate old records, myths, and legends.”
“Legends and myths, huh?”
“Yes, many myths and legends serve as motives for real-life events, and above all, there are many records of people who reached the Sky Island in old writings.”
Cluna’s words certainly held weight. If they could investigate ancient literature or records about reaching the Sky Island, they might find a hint. That was much better than just sitting around doing nothing.
Having made that decision, Hans had intended to gather the members of the Royal Knights to search for records—if only he hadn’t witnessed a dragon falling from the sky like a meteor.
The Sky Island is the homeland of dragons. So when a dragon suddenly crashed from the sky? It could only be seen as a bad omen. Hans anxiously turned to his members and shouted.
“Everyone! Get ready! We have a place to go right now!”
“You mean the place where the dragon fell from the sky?”
“I’ll gladly follow you! Hans!”
“….”
Bayard, who returned after handling this incident, was following Hans so blindly that it was almost burdensome. It wasn’t bad, but sometimes it could be a bit scary.
However, at least to not tarnish the title of veteran, they were sending Hans boundless affection while quickly preparing to march at the drop of a hat.
The only problem was that they used any remaining leisure time to cling to Hans like leeches. They resembled chicks following their mother. Huge too, being too large for chicks, but still.
Anyway, Hans and his members moved toward the spot where the dragon had crashed. Given the Thunder Fortress was built in the territory of demons, anything could happen the moment they stepped out of the fortress.
Thus, it was only natural to be on the lookout while they walked. At least, outwardly, they didn’t seem to be on guard at all. Just then, as Hans sighed and was about to point this out—
“Monsters are gathering.”
“Around approximately 100 of them.”
“Did they sense the dragon’s presence? Those trash.”
“It’s a hunt! It’s hunting time!!”
Uh…?
Thanks to the razor-sharp senses enhanced by the Dragon Heart, Hans had indeed recognized the presence of the gathering monsters. However, their overly quick reactions startled him, and he was slow to respond.
The members scattered like a fan around the area, suddenly disappearing from sight. For a brief moment, the sound of bones and flesh being torn apart echoed nearby. About 10 minutes later?
Covered in blood and flesh, they returned to Hans. The presence of 100 monsters was nowhere to be felt. In less than 10 minutes, they had wiped them all out.
“We’re back.”
“All of them are dead. Good job, right?”
“Uh, a compliment would be nice…”
“Wait a sec, let me grab some food first!”
The atmosphere returned to normal. Well, except for the blood and flesh smeared all over them. Lua was openly chewing on pieces of monster meat while mumbling. Heh heh.
It was clear that something was a bit off with everyone.
*
Personal impressions aside, they reached the site where the dragon had crashed without much difficulty. There, the massive dragon they saw earlier at the Thunder Fortress lay on the ground.
Hans tilted his head. He recognized this dragon from somewhere. But where? However, before that thought could finish, the seemingly dead dragon opened its eyes.
“Grr… Where is this?”
“That voice….”
“Dragon Lord, why did you fall from the sky?”
“Are you… the Guardian of the Forest?”
Instead of Hans, who was unsure, Cluna revealed his identity. The Dragon Lord, the leader of all dragons and the guardian that maintained the balance of the continent, had fallen helplessly from the sky.
No matter how one looked at it, this was not a normal situation. The other members, who had been listening, were likewise focused on the Dragon Lord. The Dragon Lord scanned each of them with his eyes.
Then his gaze fixated on Hans. Unlike a Dragon Lord, his eyes swayed with agitation. But that was only for a moment; soon the Dragon Lord staggered and got up.
“Ah, so you’re alive. Leader of the Royal Knights.”
“You’re not as surprised as I thought.”
“I was quite surprised. It’s the first time in 300 years that I’ve been surprised.”
“Is it that much?”
The Dragon Lord’s body was riddled with wounds. They seemed like battle scars, but some were eerily akin to torture marks. Hans clicked his tongue. Who on earth did this to the Dragon Lord?
“It seems you’re curious about who made me into this.”
“That’s right. It’s hard to believe the Dragon Lord was made such a mess.”
“My daughter did this to me.”
“Your daughter… Yuren?!”
Hans asked in shock, reflecting the Dragon Lord’s calm confession. While it was true that Yuren was a dragon and strong, it was hard to believe she was capable of overpowering the Dragon Lord.
However, there was no reason for the Dragon Lord to lie in a situation like this. Judging coolly with a clear head, Hans could only trust the Dragon Lord’s words.
But then the question arose. Why on earth would Yuren attack her father, the Dragon Lord, and make him crash down to the ground? The Dragon Lord provided the answer he arrived at himself.
“Perhaps it was an act of mercy.”
“An act of mercy? After beating you down like that?”
“Other dragons are still in the Sky Island. Of course, the outcome wouldn’t be very different, but if they stay there, they cannot survive.”
“Cannot survive? The Sky Island is the homeland of dragons and the closest land to the gods. Who would invade that heavenly fortress?”
Cluna’s question was valid. The Sky Island had too many adjectives attached to it. The most famous among those many descriptors was that it was the homeland of dragons and the closest land to the gods.
Indeed, the sky was so high up that even the strongest wyverns, beings that could fly other than dragons, couldn’t reach it. Who could dare invade the Sky Island?
However, unlike the other members, Hans had been listening to the Dragon Lord’s story with an expression that suggested he had already predicted it. The Dragon Lord, noticing that expression, smirked and said.
“It seems you had an inkling all along.”
“Pardon?”
“What do you mean?”
“The condition of the members hasn’t been good lately. Their reason has been consumed by hatred and anger as they blindly moved only for their own goals.”
Cluna and Clara had tried to exterminate demons for revenge, and Bayard had carelessly created nonsensical destructive weapons without considering the collateral damage to obliterate all demons.
They all acted without thinking of the consequences. However, one commonality was that their hatred and anger had been firmly fixed on the majority of demons. But what if not?
Until now, it had merely been a hypothesis. However, after seeing the Dragon Lord, Hans was convinced. Yuren was redirecting all her hatred and anger towards the world.
In other words, her objective was…
“To crash the Sky Island and bring destruction to the continent.”
Hatred for demons, hatred for the continent’s people.
All were targets of her wrath.
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