“Isn’t that just a new claim? In the end, aren’t we just talking about forming a gathering of fugitives?”
Cha Mu-yeol defined the religious organization called Dependents like that.
‘When it’s time to run, you have to run. You should recognize that Mu-yeol uncle is quite stiff-minded.’
If we can’t protect this world—and if we are still alive until then—we will eventually have to flee to another place.
So, it’s not surprising to bring that forward in advance.
“Who would follow that?”
“Excuse me, do listen to what I’m saying. The followers are rapidly increasing, you know?”
“Oh, really?”
Everyone reacted nonchalantly, but the words added by Hong Soon-won, the vice-guild leader of the Jangwon Guild, had a different weight.
“Well, the problem is that their roots are the Blue-eyed.”
────?!!
The hunters straightened up their previously slouched positions.
“Is it certain?”
“According to our intel, it’s almost certain. It’s a group formed by failures who couldn’t adapt within that organization. But maybe because they experienced such failures, their doctrine has an allure that attracts the vulnerable. And most concerning is the existence of the Awakened One known as the leader of the Dependents.”
“The leader? Sounds grand. What, just some S-rank, right?”
“··· It’s a Transcendent.”
‘··· What?’
“He operates under the alias of ‘God.’ You might not know, but there were two Transcendents who had been in seclusion in our area for a long time, and he is one of them.”
“And the other one?”
“It’s been ages since we lost contact.”
“He’s dead then, trapped in his own space.”
“Quit grumbling about the president being dead or someone else biting the dust.”
“Huh… No, but why would such a being be with a group of losers cast out by the Blue-eyed?”
“We don’t know either.”
‘Dashing into a dungeon to hide seems like a plausible thought. Honestly, that’s one of the options I think of as a fallback. The issue is the connection with the Blue-eyed…’
Even in a time of chaos where even a worm-level ability can aspire to be the head of a snake, a group called ‘Dependents,’ led by a Transcendent, can easily be classified as a major player.
‘This is the true beginning of chaos.’
Religions, guilds, regions, corporations, universities, communities, even large apartment complexes—a variety of powers will emerge and clutter the landscape.
When central power disappears, the local forces are bound to become prominent.
– Ahem…
– Well, they must be here for something serious.
These folks still haven’t completely shed their soft thinking.
In fact, the Non-Awakened are probably quicker at grasping reality.
The emergence of the so-called ‘God’ made the hunters who were about to stand up ponder, but still, it wasn’t deeply discussed.
“An incident must occur for us to enforce. For now, we have nothing. The reason I’m mentioning this here is to save time in case we need to request assistance later, so just remember that such a group has formed.”
‘Hong Soon-won is sharp. He knows there’s no point in asking for immediate help, so he’s focused solely on drawing attention.’
Surprisingly, what caught our interest was the news from Busan as the meeting was wrapping up.
“Did you say Death Crawl’s babies have appeared in Busan?”
The Great Beast ‘Death Crawl’ that emerged during the final battle against the Devouring Creeper.
I definitely heard that Hyeon Joong-gil and his companions took it down, but it seems they couldn’t completely clean up the hundreds of babies that the Great Beast had spit into the sea.
“The grades vary from at least A-rank to S-rank.”
“You said babies? Are you telling me babies are S-rank?”
“When you think of the Devouring Creeper that gave birth to Escalon, it’s not that surprising. We call them babies, but do they have the concept of babies? And who knows, maybe Death Crawl left some potential for the babies by sacrificing itself.”
The hunters who participated in the hunt for the Devouring Creeper shuddered as they recalled past memories.
“No one knows what happened between the mother’s death. We should be careful.”
“So, is it possible to hold out in Busan?”
“It seems tough, so I assume that’s why we got contacted?”
“No, wait. Does that mean Death Crawl’s babies will team up with the Orcs?”
“That doesn’t seem likely. The babies of Death Crawl swallow anything in sight. The Orcs won’t be an exception either.”
The news delivered in a calm tone sounded straightforward, but one doesn’t need to imagine how chaotic the actual scene could be.
‘Dismissing Death Crawl is a mistake. Can we hold out until the Orc Legion Commander arrives?’
At least it is fortunate that ‘Cheonsudan,’ led by Cha Jin-hyuk, is steadily securing its base.
Haseirin and Hwang Tae-wook have been reporting continuously, and beyond the previously mentioned Transcendent ‘God,’ there haven’t been any serious events.
‘Still, the stabilization of the left area is reassuring.’
Among the various plans prepared, it seems the most successful one is fulfilling its role, and I thought I should do something for Cha Jin-hyuk and his subordinates later.
“Anyway, the hunters in Busan will have to take care of it. We can’t go supporting them, can we?”
Cha Mu-yeol advocated for survival of the fittest.
“It seems the area of Haeundae District in Busan already has more than three corrosion zones, which should be the biggest issue. Eventually, it will affect us as well.”
“Damn, if it comes to that, I say they should come up here and regroup with us. Do we need to stay in an area near the sea? It’d be a perfect spot for sea monsters to feast on.”
“Abandoning one’s territory is not an easy thing to do.”
Hunters who were about to rise from their seats sat back down, exchanging serious expressions.
Yet somehow, the words they spoke felt hollow. It’s likely because there’s no sincere feeling behind what they said.
The gap between the capital area hunters and those living in the provinces is considerable.
‘It’s true we’re struggling to think about our situation, but…’
“I hear there’s talk that the sky garden is about to erupt.”
“That rumor has been around for three years~”
“They say it’s real this time…”
“It’ll be quite a sight if a dungeon break erupts in the Eighth Dungeon.”
“Do you think it’ll come all the way from South America to here?”
“It is pretty far, indeed.”
Unconfirmed gossip.
‘······ Useless stories.’
Feeling that I no longer needed to stay, I signaled to Yeon-hee and stepped outside.
‘Are we finally joining up with that guy?’
In the sky, the Sword Dragon spitting black breath came into my view first.
“Hey, babe~”
Yeon-hee, who followed me out, ran over playfully and linked her arm with mine, calling me ‘babe.’
‘Babe… It’s refreshing to hear a term you suddenly don’t use.’
Seeing her throw a sulky face while looking up at me and her undeniable curves made the desire that I had forgotten briefly burst forth like a flood.
‘Huh─ huh─’
Taking a deep breath, I tried to quell my desires.
I wondered if there would ever be another subdued monster like me in this world.
“Our babe, are you ready to merge?”
“Tap…”
I thought it should be the other way around, that she should be the one preparing, but I silently nodded.
Yeon-hee’s new ability is to merge summoned creatures of different entities.
Thinking back to when 40 B-rank regular Ogres merged and became an S-rank giant, this was no small event.
It wasn’t cheerful since it doesn’t strengthen through training and experience, but my curiosity about the result was greater than my trivial sense of pride.
‘I am Yeon-hee’s summoned creature… I have to do my best to maximize Yeon-hee’s ability. And is this really the time to hold back?’
As I recalled the essence of my life, the slight uneasiness I felt vanished as if washed away.
One by one, the participants of the meeting started to exit after Yeon-hee.
I moved to position all the Orc Skeletons along the boundary of the sacred area, then Yeon-hee and I moved slightly outside the sanctuary to an empty spot.
We arrived at the fountain in the park vacated by the Orcs as Kang Yeon-su officially began her activities.
The distinctive Orc stench permeated the area, but it was the only place that was somewhat deserted.
“Shall we, um, get started?”
“Clap, Clap, Clap.”
The sunlight that passed over my head washed over my body, washing away the darkness that enveloped me.
‘Good…’
Thanks to Areina, who had lifted the restriction of light attributes, I feel good when basking in the sun.
In contrast to my relaxed form, Yeon-hee looked extremely tense as she started casting her spell while looking at me.
[Krurur…].
Before long, a shadow laden with darkness thickly loomed over me.
‘Is it here?’
The Sword Dragon that lightly landed beside me ignored my words and stared at Yeon-hee intently.
‘Are you not nervous? You might get eaten by me…’
[Krur? Puhuh!]
‘… Right, what thoughts would you have?’
Seeing the seemingly thoughtless Sword Dragon made me think I didn’t care about merging anymore.
And a few minutes later.
‘Hm?!’
In a fraction of a second I couldn’t comprehend.
With a sensation where only the mental entity was slipping away, my vision turned entirely dark.
*
I am currently flying as if tightrope walking on fluffy clouds.
Around me, dozens of Shadow Drakes resembling the Sword Dragon flap their wings and soar through the sky with me.
‘Wow─’
It felt similar to when I saw the fragment of the ‘fish’ that had become Evil God, one I could never imagine on Earth.
I stole glances at the past memories through the perspective of the Sword Dragon.
An overwhelmingly majestic landscape that one could never imagine on Earth filled my sight, the sky was an extraordinarily clear blue, and on the ground, I saw all sorts of life I had never seen before grazing leisurely.
I am a predator positioned quite high in this world.
I quickly folded my wings and dove down to snatch a plump creature resembling a goat.
Kiiiy-!
A feast of unfamiliar prey left me salivating uncontrollably.
The Sword Dragon’s favorite food.
Unlike the various tales surrounding the fish’s life, the life of the Sword Dragon was extremely simple.
If it’s in a good mood, it can partake in acrobatic flights with fellow Shadow Drakes, and that was its only form of amusement.
Nevertheless, it was incredibly happy until one day, a black energy descended, and not just the Shadow Drakes, but all life disappeared silently.
‘… I see. But is that all?’
As I regained my senses, I couldn’t help but smirk while replaying the memories of the Sword Dragon.
Of course, a Drake wouldn’t possess the significant intelligence of a Dragon; its life was no different from that of an animal.
‘Sword Dragon, you lived carefree. Though the ending was a bit gruesome.’
One thing I realized was that I was not summoning a thriving Sword Dragon from another dimension.
The Sword Dragon had lived a life and died once, then is likely undergoing many brief phases due to Yeon-hee’s abilities.
‘In that sense, Yeon-hee’s ability might resemble the seven-headed dragon…’
Flap-
‘Ugh?! What’s this?’
Feeling something strange in my hands, I hurriedly brought my arms in front of my face.
‘My hands… are here?’
It was a hand that resembled the front paw of a predator snatching a herbivore.
However, it was only up to the wrist; the rest was just bones of my original self.
‘… Is this all? Everything but the hand remained unchanged?’
This was absurd for someone like me who expected a grand change akin to Jo Gi-man’s transformation.
Moreover, next to me, the Sword Dragon was still staring at me mockingly while maintaining its form.
“Uh… um? Is, is something wrong?”
Just looking at Yeon-hee’s startled face made it clear that this wasn’t the image we anticipated.
Since she had previously tested her ability on other summoned creatures before merging me and the Sword Dragon, her surprise was even greater.
Lightly, she had merged what she considered to be the closest species, the Orc and the Ogre, creating a new summoned creature she named ‘Oork.’
The Harpy and Lizardman, she melded into a hybrid named ‘Harpy-man’.
Interestingly, it wasn’t always stronger when merging different summoned creatures.
In fact, we merely confirmed that finding a combination that created synergy was more challenging than expected.
It seemed the new fused summoned creature’s appearance was determined by the more powerful entity being the center, while the most characteristic feature of the weaker entity would merge in.
“Where are my wings? Why hasn’t the Sword Dragon disappeared?”
“Tap…”
She must have expected me to sprout some splendid black wings, but the result was disappointing.
– Fusion failed!
The results were a spectacular failure.
“That’s nonsense… I’ve never had a failure before! There was no explanation that skills could fail!”
Yeon-hee’s bouncing questions were soon answered.
– The Weight of Existence of the summoned creature ‘Il-wol’ far surpasses that of the summoned creature ‘Sword Dragon’.
The system expressed the failure of the fusion that way.
The difference in weight of existence was too immense…
‘How ridiculous. Am I heavier than a Drake summoned from another dimension?’
Yet seeing my scaled black hand, I was certain there would be some change.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.
