Chapter 596

“Chaos Dragon Reikas!”

Tesserina clenched her teeth as she watched the battle unfolding in the air.

Reikas was shunned even among dragons.

It wasn’t that there was a separate species called a Chaos Dragon. Nevertheless, Reikas was called one because his disposition was that close to chaos.

He had neither allies nor enemies.

The only thing that mattered was himself.

For the sake of his own desires, it didn’t matter what happened to those around him.

Countless beings had been swept away and perished by Reikas’s desires, and among them were even dragons.

Originally, dragons had a principle of not harming their own kind unless they were sworn enemies.

If this was violated, they would be sanctioned by other dragons.

The dragons of Kurayan, having great pride, strictly upheld this rule.

The only dragon who defied it was Reikas.

Simply because they displeased him, he killed three dragons.

Because of that, he became a public enemy among dragons.

Even so, he was still alive because he was that strong.

Even when Kurayan was destroyed, he was the first to escape.

While the other dragons gave consideration so that other lifeforms of Kurayan could escape first, he alone fled first to save himself.

Thanks to that, unlike Tesserina, Reikas was able to cross over to Earth without a single injury.

Meanwhile, many dragons failed to make it to Earth and perished along with Kurayan.

Tesserina herself barely managed to cross over after remaining until the very end.

She had been severely injured from overexertion at the time and fell into a deep slumber, which was why she had been taken over by a parasite.

“I thought he was asleep somewhere out of sight… to think he’d be up and moving around like that.”

Boom! Boom!

As if the end of the world had come, flashes of light burst continuously in the sky, and explosions rang out.

It was truly an overwhelming exchange of attacks.

Even Tesserina did not know how long Zeon could hold off Reikas.

She knew well just how great a power Zeon, the Sand Mage, possessed.

Even so, she could not be confident in his victory, because she knew just how powerful Reikas was.

Reikas was the dragon known as the strongest since Krasias.

Anything could happen at any moment.

She wanted to help Zeon, but she couldn’t because of Arisedon, who lay collapsed on the ground, gasping for breath.

“Damn it!”

Arisedon’s condition was utterly catastrophic.

His entire body was broken and torn, and he was gasping as if he could stop breathing at any moment.

Even with the World Tree’s power, his wounds were not healing and were instead worsening.

Because of that, Tesserina had to pour all her strength into healing magic.

Even so, Arisedon’s breathing was growing weaker and weaker.

“Get a hold of yourself! Arisedon.”

Tesserina shouted loudly.

Perhaps he heard her voice, because Arisedon barely opened his eyes and looked at her.

There was no vitality in his pupils, which were larger than those of most humans.

—Tes… serina.

“Pull yourself together! Are you going to die like this?”

—I’m sorry.

“Don’t talk weak. You’re the guardian of the World Tree.”

—Guardian?

“Yes! The guardian chosen by the World Tree. Then you have to protect it, don’t you?”

—But the difference in level is too great. I am no match for him.

“A difference in level? Don’t be ridiculous! There’s no such thing. Your spirit is just broken. Were you ever that weak? No, you weren’t!”

—Kuuuuh!

Stimulated by Tesserina’s words, Arisedon let out a cry and lifted his head, but he couldn’t hold it for long and slammed it back down to the ground.

Thud!

—I’m finished, Tesserina.

“What do you mean finished? You’re giving up over something like this? Look! Just look.”

—What am I supposed to look at?

“Look over there! The World Tree. The High Elves…”

Following Tesserina’s pointing hand, Arisedon’s gaze turned toward the World Tree village.

Though it was far away, the World Tree and the High Elves were clearly visible.

As the guardian of the World Tree, the barrier did not affect his sight.

Into Arisedon’s eyes came the sight of the World Tree swaying precariously and the High Elves crying. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

They were the ones he had to protect.

When he became the guardian of the World Tree, he had sworn to protect the World Tree and the High Elves.

That was why he had been given the name Arisedon.

Arisedon, guardian of the World Tree.

The moment he repeated his name to himself, a great resonance arose deep within him.

—Arisedon!

—Guardian!

Sensing that resonance, the spirits all called out his name at once.

Numerous spirits, including Brielle’s spirit Liri, crossed the barrier and flew toward the fallen Arisedon.

All the spirits carried the wishes of the High Elves.

Rustle!

As if cheering on the spirits, the World Tree shook its branches vigorously. Then, brilliant particles of light scattered like mist from its branches and leaves.

The light particles followed the spirits and settled upon Arisedon’s body.

At that moment, Arisedon felt a warmth beyond words.

He had been born a snake.

Due to the Great Cataclysm, he had evolved into an Imugi, but that was all.

Everyone feared him and kept their distance.

Even so, he never thought of himself as lonely.

That was simply what a snake was.

Instead, he had a dream.

To shed the skin of a snake and become a dragon.

No one had told him.

He had simply come to know it naturally upon becoming an Imugi.

That if an Imugi trained long enough, it could become a dragon.

So he trained. But his training hit a wall, and in the end, he remained a half-formed existence.

Then he met Zeon, and through him became a guardian who could spiritually commune with the World Tree.

Though he had evolved further from an Imugi, Arisedon deliberately kept his distance from the High Elves.

He thought forming attachments with them would hinder his training.

The only exception was Brielle.

Whether he kept his distance or shut himself off, Brielle approached him without hesitation and opened the door to his heart.

Brielle’s spirit Liri was the same.

While all the other spirits feared Arisedon, she approached him freely and played with him.

The rest of the spirits all feared Arisedon. But now those very spirits were approaching him with worried expressions, surrounding him.

This warmth was something he had never felt before.

He wondered if this was what it felt like to receive care and concern from others.

The unfamiliar emotion did not feel unpleasant.

No—it felt good.

Only then did Arisedon realize.

That he had not been the only one protecting them—they had also been protecting him with their love.

—So that’s how it is. I wasn’t protecting them alone. I was being protected by them as well.

Boom!

At that moment, a stronger resonance arose from deep within Arisedon’s chest.

It was like a giant drum being struck by a massive club.

The resonance that began in his chest soon spread throughout his entire body.

And it did not happen just once.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Like a beating heart, the resonance pounded through Arisedon from within.

At that moment, a change occurred in him.

Light began to flow from his limp body.

The first to sense the change was Tesserina, who had been casting healing magic.

“What is…?”

She withdrew her hands and quickly stepped back.

Even in that moment, the light pouring from Arisedon grew stronger.

Seeing this, the spirits erupted into a commotion.

They chattered loudly in voices that could not be understood. But Tesserina could not hear them.

That was how astonishing the change centered around Arisedon was.

Rumble!

An immense energy was gathering toward Arisedon.

Not only the spiritual power sent by the World Tree, but also the mana spread throughout the area was flowing into him.

The tidal wave of mana and spiritual energy left Tesserina nearly dazed.

“This is…?”

Tesserina looked at Arisedon with eyes full of anticipation.

Crack!

Cracks began to form all over Arisedon’s body.

His outer skin tore apart like paper.

Cracks spread between his hard scales and ran across his entire body.

“Is he shedding his skin?”

Snakes grow by shedding their skin.

As they molt, their bodies grow much larger.

That was exactly what was happening to Arisedon.

Crack!

The outer layer that had been wounded by Reikas tore away completely, revealing the hidden layer beneath.

Arisedon’s original scales had been a burning red. But now, the newly revealed skin shimmered with gold.

The spirits widened their eyes in shock at the dazzling golden scales.

Shrrrk!

At last, Arisedon shed his old skin entirely and raised his body.

His appearance was no longer the same as before.

Two massive horns sat upon his forehead, and a pair of fierce, glaring eyes.

Two long whiskers swayed at the corners of his mouth.

His face had become far sharper and more imposing than before.

Around his neck, a mane fluttered like that of a lion, and beneath it, his long body stretched with elegant form.

His long body, covered in golden scales, was as beautiful as a work of art.

But what was even more astonishing were the four legs extending from that long body.

The four legs, each bearing five sharp claws, showed that Arisedon had evolved from an Imugi into a true dragon.

Arisedon looked at his right foreleg.

In it, he saw a radiant orb.

Without being told, he knew.

That this orb was the Yeouiju.

The crystallization of training that allows a dragon to command wind and rain.

Only then did Arisedon realize.

That the Yeouiju could never be created alone.

It was a divine object that could only be obtained when the wishes of many—not one—were gathered.

Within Arisedon’s Yeouiju were not only his own efforts, but also the wishes of the World Tree and the High Elves.

All their hopes—to protect this land from great evil—had gathered into one, granting Arisedon immense power.

—Kwoooooo!

Arisedon roared toward the sky.

At his roar, dry dust shot high into the air.

And that was not the only change.

Rumble!

The once dry sky suddenly filled with dark clouds.

Wind rose and lifted Arisedon’s body into the air.

His massive body, over two hundred meters long, floated upward as lightly as a balloon.

At that moment, rain began to pour from the cloud-filled sky.

Ssshhh!

A torrential downpour, as if the sky itself had split open.

Arisedon rose high into the sky, his entire body drenched in the rain.

Call Wind.

Summon Rain.

A power possessed only by dragons.

Arisedon was no longer an Imugi.

He was a true dragon.

The only dragon born on Earth where dragons had gone extinct.

The sight of his two-hundred-meter body writhing as it rose into the sky was unreal.

All who witnessed the birth of a dragon trembled in awe.

The World Tree. The High Elves.

Even Tesserina could not suppress her shudder.

Kwoooom!

Arisedon rose without hesitation.

The pouring rain did not hinder him.

Rather, it strengthened him.

When he reached the distant heights of the sky, the figures of Zeon and Reikas, fiercely battling, came into view.

Arisedon approached Zeon.

—Zeon!

At his call, Zeon slightly turned his head and looked.

“Arisedon?”

—Climb onto my head. Let’s fight together.

Zeon did not ask why Arisedon had taken this form.

He didn’t need to.

Instead, he nodded and willingly climbed onto his head.

“Alright! Let’s fight together.”

—Here I go.

And so, the Sand Mage and the Dragon became one and charged toward their enemy.