V53C1P2 – Black Dragon

Weed received the a.s.sistance of the Hermes guild and pinpointed Geomchi and the apprentices flying towards the black dragon while on top of their camels.

– Mapan : This is urgent news. A red dragon by the name Landony has appeared in East Orc land. It is viciously attacking the orcs as we speak.

The appearance of another dragon aside from the dark dragon Kaybern! However, in their current situation they could not divide their attention.

“Such pathetic flies. I will blow you all away. Global Thunder!”

Kaybern activated a ma.s.sive lightning spell. The sky filled with dark clouds, sparks of light emitted between the thick clouds. Hundreds of bolts of lightning struck down on the earth.

*Tremble!*

*Cras.h.!.+*

The ruthless waves of lightning spell.

“Defend. Block it!”

“Aghhh!”

Lightning pierced and struck the Hermes guild members.

“Eternal Blessing!”

“Soul of the Protector.”

“s.h.i.+eld of silence.”

The mages and priests on the ground cast protection spells, but the lightning continued to penetrate through the bodies of countless Hermes guild members.

“Arrrgh!”

Whether the users were on Kaybern’s back or on the ground, they were all subjected to taking damage.

Lightning struck down on a knight’s sword held high, split into hundred lashes and obliterated everything within its vicinity. It was a spell of devastating force, but the Hermes guild members had experienced a boss monster raid many times.

The dark clouds that had gathered due to Kaybern’s lightning spell began to slowly dissipate.

“Now is our chance!”

“Strike in the moment just after he casts a spell!”

The weak spot after a large-scale attack. The moment that cannot be let slip away in a boss monster raid. More users than the ones who were immobilized by lightning flew towards Kaybern with full speed. Geomchi and the apprentices also led the desert warriors and joined the charge.

“Hahaha. This is exciting.”

“Now this is how it’s supposed to be.”

“It’s great that I get to fight as much as I want!”

Tens and thousands of users were rus.h.i.+ng towards Kaybern.

‘What are those things with their tops off?’

‘Aren’t they comrades of the infamous Weed?’

‘What in the world is going on?’

The Hermes guild members that had gathered to commence an attack on the dragon saw Geomchi and the apprentices flying over on their camels.

“Hehehe. It’s a dragon.”

“A black one at that!”

“I will become a dragon slayer. Large lizard. I will chop you up into little slices!”

Kaybern roared ferociously in response to the shouts of the apprentices with thin clothing.

“How daring of you to humiliate me. I will not let you off with an easy death!”

Kaybern flapped his wings and charged at Geomchi and the apprentices. Geomchi-2 and Geomchi-3 shouted.

“Be careful of the lizard’s magic spells!”

“We have nothing else to worry about this lizard other than its spells.”

“Krrrrrh! I will stomp and squash you all to death!”

Kaybern maneuvered his tremendous body swiftly, striking down with his front paws and swinging his tail, engaging in aerial tactics. The taunt was unintentional, but ended up being surprisingly effective!

“This is it!”

Geomchi and the apprentices stuck onto the dragon’s body. The Hermes guild members that had already boarded earlier were launching attacks with high spirit since the magic attacks died down.

“What should we do about this?”

Arkhim was also on his way towards the dragon with his warriors. He had to decide, but lacked intel in such an abrupt situation. Everything beginning from the defeat at Garnav Plains had led up to the appearance of the dragon.

‘Of all things…’

Lafaye, who decided the course of the Hermes guild had been swept away in the by the breath and died.

‘I have led small skirmishes, but a battle with a dragon… Doesn’t matter anymore.’

Arkhim decided to ignore Geomchi and the apprentices. Steal and kill without questions asked. He knew they were active as bandits on bulls, but for some odd reason they were attacking the dragon instead of his forces.

‘Those are thick-headed humans. More reckless and bent on fighting, beyond what the rumors say.’

Arkhim felt a small release in his mind. They say you can trust no one in this world, but it wasn’t that those maniacs decided not to attack from behind; they were just incapable of doing so.

– Arkhim : All men ignore the presence of the desert warriors for the time being. All Hermes guild forces concentrate on bringing down the dragon.

Black dragon hunt! It was a difficult task even with the maximum force of the Hermes guild, but no one realized that it would happen during a retreat from their defeat in Garnav plains. Even so, they were prepared to use everything they had to overcome the battle at hand.

***

Weed shook his large, bone-dragon head sideways. It did not matter that Geomchi and the apprentices were a.s.sisting the Hermes guild. They can fight alongside each other in the spur of the moment, and he was not so biased to be offended by such an act. Though he would feel betrayed if they blindly picked up money on the ground before he did.

‘I’ve been observing for a while, and things seem to be changing rather subtly.’

The Black dragon. The dragon was the symbol of harmony and balance in the continent of Versailles. They were known for expressing themselves with their impressive physiques rather than with sugared words; they were the indomitable rulers of the sky. They were beings that wrecked anything that opposed them with breath, magic and powerful physical abilities. They rendered borders between kingdoms meaningless, and their true influence was on another realm.

‘I didn’t expect them to fight so foolishly.’

Tiny wounds were forming on Kaybern’s solid body. No one would have imagined that a dragon would stay afloat in the sky and get beat like a pinata. It was being cut up by the warriors, and by the mages’ offensive explosive spells alike . The dragon had great defense and magical resistance, but even then, it was weird for the dragon to be taking hits mindlessly. This could not be compared to the chaos dragon Ausoleto. It was in a severe state, at a loss of memory and unable to cast any magic.

‘If this ends up being a child’s war of exchanging blows straight up, the Hermes guild may have the slightest glimpse of a chance.’

Weed thought that if he were in the dragon’s position, he would maximize his use of power advantage.

‘I could use various tricks, but I could keep things simple, fly up high into the sky and use breath or any long-range offensive magic spell which would allow me to attack one-sidedly.’

If the Hermes guild’s warriors or knights flew up, all he must do is maintain the advantageous position and continue the magic attacks. If he got an opportunity, he could also launch fire, earth, and wind ultimate spells to the ground.

A dragon’s style of battle that renders armies into haystack scarecrows.

‘Large-scale destructive magic, breath and flight. The chain link effect of these three aspects is near invincible, making it difficult no matter how well you prepare for it. If the dragon is in the sky but is too close to the ground and turning it into a blunt close-combat, it is sealing away dragon’s the most powerful traits.’

Weed never thought he’d see a day where he would find himself cheering and hoping that the black dragon Kaybern would fight more wisely. Back in the past, he had a grudge for stolen gem sculptures, but that didn’t mean he didn’t want the Hermes guild to be wiped out.

“He is arrogant! Do not miss this opportunity and kill him!”

Arkhim’s shout encouraged the Hermes guild members. Right when everyone in the area was focused on hunting down the dragon, the black dragon Kaybern’s atrocious roar exploded.

“Thygorn’s Hurricane, Merisha’s Anguish, c.o.kran’s Menace, Geneda’s Judgement! You vermin-like humans. I will slaughter you all!”

Kaybern unleashed four area spells. Compared to a human mage, his casting speed was tenfold quicker. The hurricane raged and the earth shook from the impact. Countless Hermes guild members perished, but even more sprang into action and swung their weapons against the dragon. Hope! They could see a glimmer of hope!

“We are the Hermes Guild!”

The Hermes guild members have all become frantic after the series of defeats at Garnav plains. Fierce shockwaves and beams of light shattered away. It was a spectacular sight, thousands of remaining users in the Hermes guild launching an all-out attack. Each one unleas.h.i.+ng their best a.r.s.enal of skills and losing their life in the process did not hinder their advance.

‘A lone alliance that was most powerful in combat, and they were the elite users that had been aligned since the pioneer days of Royal Road.’

Weed, during his observation of the battle, thought that it was fortunate.

‘The Haven empire fell because it was too ma.s.sive. If it hadn’t united the central continent, it would have sustained a strong force and continue to grow.’

This was an instance of swallowing too big of a prey and paying the price. The battle between the Hermes guild and Kaybern was indeed important but Weed decided to check the spoils first. He had no chance to skim over the things he acquired after defeating Bard Ray. This was more important to him than anything in the world.

***

Seoyoon looked down from the sky, leading the Avians while riding on top of her Baraag army.

– Weed : Take care of the strays from the Haven imperial army for me. We need to hold back as many of the retreating forces as possible. So that the Hermes guild can crumble in this fight.

Many stragglers arose from the defeat of the imperial army. Weed chased down the main Haven imperial army, however a significant number of them managed to escape in all directions.

“It’s that way.”

In the eyes of Seoyoon riding a Baraag high up in the sky, moving ground forces were detected.

“They are Hermes guild members. Begin the a.s.sault!”

Users riding on Baraags fired arrows and contained the enemy below, and some set foot on the ground. It was the objective of the a.s.sault team led by Seoyoon to make sure that the enemy could not escape alive!

‘Battle… I do not wish to fight, but I must.’

Seoyoon also jumped off onto the ground. A crimson glow was flowing out from her eyes.

< Your body has tapped into blood and rage.

The berserker that laid dormant in everlasting peace has awakened again. You are a presence of fear. As the battle persists, enemies will quickly lose their will to fight and escape.

Forgiveness and mercy are words that do not fit a berserker. Even the weak shall not be left alive. You must slaughter every last enemy.

Compelling rage increases attack in relation to the strength of the enemy.

Until the end of battle, 95% additional damage is applied to all straggling enemies.

Enemies with less than half the health points or who are wounded are twice as likely take critical damage or die instantly.

The area of range on your attack spells is increased by 50%.

The body can go beyond the limits and can move in overdrive.

Defense against indirect hits and grazes is increased to a maximum of 600%. Movement speed is increased by 30%.

Stamina does not diminish for a short period of time.

Kill, and continue to kill. Until your breath ceases! >

Berserker mode activated.

“That’s the Gra.s.s Porridge G.o.ddess!”

The fleeing Hermes guild members were thrown off by Seoyoon and stopped in their tracks. She was wearing helm and armor but her beauty could still be recognized. They were taken aback by the users riding on Baraags and the Avians, but Seoyoon was approaching them. Their hearts pounded by her beauty, but they quickly realized that she was also an enemy.

“In any event, it will be great to remove one crucial character.”

“My apologies, but you’ll have to die by my hands!”

The Hermes guild members swung their weapons and cast powerful skills. They were prepared to unleash several skills in sequence. Seoyoon kicked off from the ground and spun in mid air like an acrobat, swiftly swinging her sword. They were outside the normal attack range, but the effects of the berserker had been activated.

*Ta-ta-tap!*

She narrowly slipped past the enemy skills and attacked simultaneously. She wasn’t one to hold back. She took on unavoidable attacks head on and counterattacked. Weed had long before appreciated Seoyoon’s style of combat while travelling around with her.

“Those are some bone-crus.h.i.+ng attacks. In a way, it is an ineffective method of hunting because you cannot sustain enough health points… But she didn’t hunt like this just for a day or two. She naturally gained enough endurance and perseverance and even accomplished the combat achievement of the berserker. I knew there was a reason behind her power.”

Seoyoon never liked combat like she did in the past, but it was a favor for Weed and also to protect the Arpen kingdom. Therefore, she swung her sword without hesitation.

‘To protect what is precious to me.’

She became the berserker once again.

(To be Continued…)