980: Sacrament of the Dragon G.o.d

The dragonkin rushed Izario completely furious after getting taunted. Well, they seemed really quick to anger even beforehand.

Though they behaved like typical small fry, their combat ability was no joke. All ten dragonkin were on the level of Rank C adventurers. The leader and the one next to him seemed even stronger.

With such abilities, they could easily be a first-rate adventurer party.

Except their equipment wasnt up to par. Dragonkin tended to dislike heavy armor due to pride in their durable scales. Even so, the dragonkin in front of us clearly had gear unbefitting veteran warriors.

All of their armor was the stuff you would see worn by Rank D, or high Rank E adventurers. The same could be said of the weapons in their hands.

They acted like your average thug with similar c.r.a.ppy equipment. And yet, their stats were very high.

That seemed really peculiar to me.

But whoever they were, they were no match for Izario. I couldnt imagine Izario losing, even if hes slightly fatigued.

Fran wasnt worried about winning or losing, but rather afraid that Izario would exhaust himself further.

Urooooh!

Die!

Hahaha, thats not enough to kill me.

f.u.c.k!

Doryah!

Such obvious moves. Youre making me yawn.

Izario repeatedly taunted the dragonkin as he continued dodging their attacks. The dragonkin were already right where he wanted them.

They were so preoccupied with Izario that they failed to realize what he was doing. Meanwhile, we saw the ambient temperature rising little by little.

By the time they felt something out of place, its already too late.

Sure enough, the dragonkin started falling to the ground, unable to move after about five minutes.

But thats when something strange happened.

The dragonkin were clearly at their limits, but they continued struggling. The leader of the group in particular. He kept on fighting despite barely managing to keep his balance.

Gubu Ugh Ugah!

Hey, hey, dont push yourself man.

Gaaah!

Despite vomiting up gastric juices, he refused to stop. His eyes clearly showed a hint of insanity.

This was something weve seen before.

The dragonkin we captured in Sendias underground room. Right as we were about to destroy the evil crystals, they went into a strange frenzy. These dragonkin seemed to be in a similar state.

Perhaps theyve been brainwashed by the Dragon Kings Dragon Domination skill.

Izario must have intended to capture and interrogate the dragonkin. However, none of the dragonkin stopped their rampage even after we restrained them.

Their mana and life force continued depleting rapidly, until eventually all of them took their last breath. It seems they had been ordered to continue rampaging until their own deaths.

Dang, sorry. I was hoping to get some info out of them.

Izario spoke apologetically, but the result would have been the same for anyone else.

No, I dont believe you are to blame. This was out of our control. Those dragonkin must have been manipulated somehow.

You think so too? Dragonkin generally looked down on other races, but those guys were terrible. First time hearing them call us foolish inferior beings.

And they didnt seem to recognize you, Crimson Blade-dono.

Yeah, I guess I am kinda a celebrity around here.

Izario also found the behavior of the dragonkin unusual. Well, they were pretty terrible even from our point of view.

Frederick looked over the corpses of the dragonkin and went deep into thought.

Whats on your mind, dragon dude?

Ive seen these people before. I believe they were novice warriors from the northern reservation.

Novice warriors? You sure about that?

I am certain.

Izario looked very surprised. He had been trying to provoke them, but he didnt think they were really such small fry.

I have to say Im surprised too. Novice warriors with that strength? Despite being on the level of stronger adventurers? I guess the equipment and behavior was something I would expect from that level though.

Thats when Frederick called over Fran, Izario, and s.h.i.+kimi. Apparently, he knew something that he didnt want anyone else to hear.

They may have ingested the Sacrament of the Dragon G.o.d.

Sacrament of the Dragon G.o.d?

Yes, a magic potion Trismegistus was said to have developed a long time ago, which dramatically increases the abilities of any dragonkin. Its thanks to that potion that Ive obtained my newfound powers as well.

I thought you said its your abilities as a half-evil dragonkin.

Thats only part of the truth. To be more precise, I drank the Sacrament of the Dragon G.o.d, which also boosted my innate abilities. That allowed me to take in much more evil energy.

I see. This potion sounds very troublesome.

It also has nasty side effects.

This is apparently a forbidden potion only known to a select few of the dragonkin race. Knowledge of the production method is limited to the priestesses, and there are strict rules over who is allowed to possess it.

The potion stimulates the dragon factor in the blood of dragonkin, which amplifies their abilities. This is no temporary boost, but a permanent power up.

Of course, that makes it incredibly valuable to any dragonkin. They can gain additional power without the effort of leveling up.

However, the side effects carry an equal amount of danger.

First, the physical transformation causes a terrible reaction in the body, so great that half of the patients die immediately after taking the potion. That alone is horrifying enough, but another half die within a few days after their bodies are transfigured irreversibly.

In other words, 75% of those who take the potion die. Its truly a miracle that Frederick was still standing next to us right now.

This information cannot be revealed to the public, so avoid spreading it around if possible.

Okay.

Sure. These guys were low-ranking warriors to begin with, right? Could they even handle the side effects?

Actually, theres a way to reduce the side effects.

Oh? Then shouldnt it be pretty easy to use?

Not quite, the method greatly reduces your lifespan.

The Sacrament of the Dragon G.o.d is a liquid about the volume of a sake gla.s.s. Drinking all of it activates the enhancement.

Then, what happens if you drink only a few drops? You will be strengthened only half as much, but the side effects arent enough to kill you instantly.

Just hearing that, it sounds perfect.

However, theres a trap hidden in this method. By only partially enhancing your body, the burden on the unenhanced parts increases several times over, resulting in a dramatically shortened lifespan. The dragonkin who fought Izario would probably have lost their lives within ten days at the most.

They died much earlier as a result of continuously overexerting themselves while ignoring the burden.

So the Dragon King brainwashed his men and forced them to fight after giving them a lethal enhancement drug. What a truly disgusting b.a.s.t.a.r.d!

The Dragon King, huh Seems like he really needs to go down.

Izarios mutter was filled with killing intent, something weve never seen from him before.