How many have I killed, I wonder?
If I haven’t missed too many, maybe around 30%.
Just counting those who were cut down by my blade, that’s at least four hundred.
Those who were erased by my own kind’s magic would be double that.
It might be over 40%, maybe even more.
Anyway.
As a result of my continued efforts, despite feeling like I was about to wither away.
Under that pitch-black sky, gaps began to appear in the tightly packed forces of dragons.
Their arrogant gazes directed at me started to melt into faint fear.
Their frenzied attacks became more precise.
Because of that, while it became harder to kill them, I felt fantastic.
It takes half of them to realize what’s happening, huh?
Such stupid reptile brats.
Hehehe –
With a light chuckle on my lips, I shifted my gaze to the faraway land.
In contrast to the sky I inhabited, it looked overly calm.
It couldn’t be helped. The Nameless One, who had just awakened moments ago, probably didn’t possess many granted powers.
What worried me the most were that creature’s apostle and the primal beast. I didn’t know what they were thinking, but it didn’t look like they were planning to move right away.
Of course, Laila declared she would take responsibility, and she would put her life on the line to protect, but in this damn world, things have never played out the way I wanted, so I couldn’t completely cast away my worries.
Still.
I should have some faith.
In this situation, there’s one being more reliable than Laila.
I sighed and shook my head.
I swung my blade, trying to shake off these unnecessary thoughts.
Scrape –
Amid the deafening roar, a now-familiar crisp cutting sound echoed. The place the sound came from was, as always, the dragon’s neck. Its severed neck plummeted to the ground, spewing a tremendous amount of blood.
Soon after, the magic circle the creature had prepared just before dying began to manifest with a savage whirring sound.
I suppose because it was a dragon known as a master of magic, it had prepared a spell that could activate even after losing its head.
If you’re going to die, at least do it neatly.
How pathetic, acting all proud while being such a disgrace.
I clicked my tongue and shook the droplets of blood off my blade. Stabilizing the falling dragon’s body, I chased after the glimmering golden thread dancing before my eyes.
First step to the right, two paces.
Whoosh – A gust of wind, barely grazing my hair, split the already dead dragon’s hide.
Next, I took three steps forward.
The spike of lightning that burst through the flesh brushed against its nape.
Going left for four steps, five steps back.
Fwoosh – A column of fire appeared in an instant as if it had always been there, reducing half of the dragon’s body to ashes scattering in the air.
I lowered my stance and extended my leg forward.
With my back leg tensed, I swung my blade with all my might.
Crack! – I sliced through the rocks that densely filled my vision.
Without stopping, I twisted my outstretched leg inward.
This caused my waist to snap back with added force, and I raised my blade horizontally.
Thud! – A chilling claw imbued with icy terror collided with my blade.
To steady the vibrating blade, I supported its base with my other hand and then, with a Bam!, I kicked off the ground, thrusting the blade into the neck of the creature that was gaping at me.
With a satisfying sensation that broke through skin, muscle, and crushed bone, I felt the delightful grip of my palm. The creature’s head drooped weakly. But the killing intent that rang in my instincts didn’t fade. It seemed the neck of the fallen creature hadn’t fully stopped breathing, feeling the beating of my blade.
I searched for the cause, moving my eyes rapidly. Yet, I didn’t halt my movements. Forcibly pulling out the blade wedged deep, I continued to fend off the approaching dragon’s onslaught.
And there it was. The source of death felt all too close. The golden threads that were tangled up had become murky. The very center of death was inside the dragon’s throat.
From the gap of its neck, feeling the heat of breath, I could sense a rising warmth.
I unleashed all my strength, plunging my blade in deeper. Then, with a Snap – I twisted the hilt, completely shattering the vertebrae.
Chop! – From the point of entry, I split its neck apart. Thick droplets of blood gushed from the half-cut surface, marking the white surface I had worked hard to avoid.
“Phew.”
Narrowing my eyes, I reversed my grip on the blade. As a blinding light started to condense, I stomped my feet firmly on the falling body of the creature.
“Hmph!”
At the center of the red light, which was transforming into pure white with all my strength, I thrust the blade imbued with pale blue moonlight.
Whoosh! – At that moment, an overwhelming light engulfed my vision. A heat surged as if my entire body would melt away. The explosion from the breath was so intense that even the dragons could barely withstand it. They desperately began to erect a thick barrier of magical power around themselves.
I, too, gathered magical power like them, coating my body and calmly searched for an escape route.
Immediately, I discovered my path. Throwing myself toward it, I scattered moonlight.
Whoosh – A cool, sticky breeze began to blow through the dissipating heat.
Through the fading light, I spotted the charred bodies of the dragons plummeting.
My own body was also descending alongside them, but I didn’t care. The golden thread, the path to victory, was still connected.
Slowly, I rolled my eyes to find the very first thread I had to sever. Passing the descending bodies just ahead, it lay in a straight line.
Extending my arm, I changed my angle. Simultaneously, I lifted my legs and shifted my position, wielding the blade in reverse.
Thud! – A lack of strength in my swing meant the blade didn’t slice through the dragon’s body but lodged itself in thick muscle. This allowed me to regain stability as I fell, helping me gather my momentum for my next move.
Unlike before, I didn’t resort to climbing on the falling creature. They might look foolhardy, but after dozens of times repeating the same method, they began to show extreme vigilance against that motion.
It was a bit of a hassle, but it posed no problem.
Gripping the blade lodged in the dragon, I Thunk – lay the blade diagonally against it. Confirming that it was firmly stuck in the ribs, I kicked my legs back to lift myself into the air.
Simultaneously, I pulled the blade out and once again.
Thud – I plunged the blade into the falling bodies of dragons as if climbing a cliff, slowly ascending toward the sky.
Every time, these bodies that served as my platforms evaporated without a trace under the ancient magic, but it didn’t matter.
My ascent was quicker than their response.
Finally reaching the peak of the sky, my body landed not on the back of a falling corpse, but securely atop the head of a dragon soaring in the air.
“Phew, I guess I’m getting older. My stamina is slowly running low.”
Wiping the mix of blood and sweat trickling from my chin, I caught my breath.
Then, shaking off the blood that clung to my blade, I surveyed the surroundings.
Thanks to that breath explosion, their numbers had sharply declined.
Now, what remained were the smarter dragons. Or perhaps those who had belatedly realized the seriousness of the situation and were acting cautiously.
Seeing that they weren’t touching me while I stood atop one of their kind’s head, I could be sure it was one or the other.
However, that wouldn’t change anything.
As I raised my blade, wiping the smile off my face, an unnameable killing intent swept across my neck. Reflexively, I jolted my head back with speed. Whoosh! Simultaneously, a wave of unknown magical power brushed past my nose.
Was that a signal heralding the start? The moment I lifted my head again, the dragons’ magic erupted all at once.
The dragon beneath me was no exception.
Flapping its wings as if about to tear apart the sky, it let out a roar filled with resolution. Following that roar, countless chains lunged toward me from behind it.
Crack! – The chains, possessing the power to grip even space, covered the world. Despite this, the faintly glowing golden thread remained distinctly visible.
That means there must be a way out.
I tightened the breath I had loosened. Raising the drooping blade, I corrected my posture.
Hmph –
Drawing in a breath until the very limit, I lowered my eyelids, which glistened with beads of sweat.
As I relinquished my sight, my activated senses began to flood my mind with all manners of information.
Blood gushed from every hole in my face—eyes, nose, mouth, ears.
My brain, in overdrive, felt like it might melt, and my hand still tightly gripping the blade was clamoring to throw it away.
I lightly ignored it.
Instead, I lashed at my insolent body even harder, beginning to filter through the information coming in.
And thus, I found the tangled web.
It was incredibly complex, but not too beyond my grasp.
If it were me a thousand years ago, facing the concept of an end, it would have been impossible.
But now, it’s possible.
It has to be possible.
I am authoritative and a great master now.
I gulped down the blood that threatened to surge up.
Raising my eyelids, which kept wanting to fall,
I laughed lightly as usual, Hehehe.
Calmly, naturally.
I took heavy steps, feeling as light as a feather.
At that moment.
Crash –
A lightning bolt shot up from the ground, piercing through my right arm, which was holding the blade.
And then.
The faintly glowing golden thread snapped.
