◈ 685. [STAGE 40] Falling Slowly (2)
Crossroads. smithy.
“…is it. “Did even Damien go missing during the operation?”
Lucas, who was checking the equipment, blurted out coldly.
“I guess I’ll have to fight without Damian’s sniping support. i get it.”
“…Is that the end of what you have to say?”
Evangeline asked with a trembling voice.
“Damian is missing. This is our Damien oppa. But how did you do that…”
“The number of casualties is estimated at 30,000, Evangeline.”
Lucas answered in a low voice and adjusted the armor in front of him.
“Archduke Bringer is missing, and even my lord is missing. Just because one more sniper is missing… the situation doesn’t get any worse.”
“mister!”
As Evangeline cried, Lucas let out a soft sigh.
“…More than anything. “It’s not a warrior, it’s a disappearance.”
“yes?”
“Neither the lord, the archduke, nor Damian have been confirmed dead yet.”
Lucas’ stiff voice became softer, albeit blurry.
“Isn’t that Damien? Among us, he is the one who sees the farthest and most accurately. “I’m sure I’m looking at my future path clearly.”
“….”
“So let us prepare well for the battle ahead.”
In fact, Lucas had already given up all hope.
Damian, Dusk Bringer, Ash… everyone who was missing was thought to be already dead. Actually, that was much more likely.
Lucas was not the type to believe in false hopes. He was the type of person who faced reality and prepared for what came next.
But I also knew that hope was still needed to keep the remaining people moving until the end.
thud!
After finishing adjusting his armor, Lucas looked back at Evangeline. Evangeline’s shoulders trembled when she saw his cold expression.
“Evangeline, you remain here on the walls.”
“yes? but!”
“The special team has completed its formation and training. “You continue to take charge of the defense of your nature.”
Evangeline still had a human face. I’m not ready to step foot in hell.
On the other hand, Lucas and the special team have been training together for the past few days and are ready to jump into death.
The companions Lucas needed were demons who were willing to die and inflict mortal wounds on the black dragon’s body. It wasn’t Evangeline.
“….”
And if, just by chance, the special team defeats the Black Dragon.
Because someone has to stay… and continue to take charge of this front in this world.
So Lucas tried to leave Evangeline behind.
Turning his head forward again, Lucas began gathering the rest of his equipment. Evangeline, swallowing her words several times, stretched out her arms towards Lucas’ back.
“too.”
Evangeline’s fingertips carefully came up on Lucas’ back.
“Don’t go too far, uncle…”
“….”
“If you disappear too, then I…”
“Evangeline.”
Lucas tried to answer, but swallowed it hard.
He took his equipment and left the blacksmith shop.
“Let’s get ready. “It’s a decisive battle soon.”
“….”
Evangeline slowly lowered her head as she watched Lucas’s retreating back.
In a collapsing world, people’s hearts were also collapsing.
‘Senior…’
Evangeline closed her eyes tightly as she pictured the commander not returning.
‘Please… come back before it’s all over…’
I know this is all a vain hope.
Still, if it were him, maybe….
***
Crossroads. Collapsed warehouse area.
Serenade, who was checking out the items inside the only remaining warehouse with the people at Winter Silver, heard footsteps and turned around.
And I was startled when I recognized the person who entered the warehouse.
“your majesty…!”
Those who entered were Emperor Traha and his lieutenants.
Serenade and the people at the top all knelt down on the floor to show respect.
“Long live your majesty, the great emperor! “I meet the Supreme Lord of the Empire.”
“Remember to be polite. “That’s not the case.”
Traha waved his hand, looked at the ‘stuff’ piled up inside the warehouse, and stroked his chin.
“I came to check after receiving your report. “This thing… indeed.”
After thinking for a moment, Traha finally nodded and looked towards Serenade.
“Jim wants to take a gamble in his final battle.”
Serenade’s eyes, which had been lowering her head, trembled.
“This is also the last strategy Ash has left, the last gamble.”
“….”
“Jim wants to bet on this. “Can you help me with my luggage?”
Serenade knelt on one knee again on the ground. Everyone at the top took the same action at the same time.
“If it is an order from His Majesty, and if it is the will of His Majesty the Crown Prince, I will follow whatever it is.”
After looking at Serenade’s silver eyes that sparkled with strong will, Traha chuckled.
‘Are you going to leave your true daughter-in-law like this and become an immortal guest like this, Ash…?’
Traha glanced up at the pitch-black sky.
‘Without even telling me the answer to the ordeal I gave you?’
But the prodigal son who left still has no answer.
The emperor laughed bitterly, stretched out his hand forward, and gave a command.
“Okay, no time! “Let’s start working immediately!”
***
Time passed helplessly, but in this world where only night remained, time no longer had much meaning.
People have forgotten the passage of time. I just look at the darkness of the sky becoming darker and guess that it would normally be midnight.
Approximately three days had passed since the Black Dragon’s royalties landed.
Crossroads. On the southern wall.
Thump…
Thump…
Thump….
Something huge slowly approached from across the southern plains, shaking the earth.
The heroes and soldiers swallowed dry saliva as they prepared for the final battle on the castle walls lined with torches.
thud…!
The thing approaching with a roar seemed not like an evil dragon, but rather like an endless wall of darkness reaching up to the sky, slowly pushing in.
The south, covered and obscured by a wall of darkness, could no longer be seen.
A tall, thick fog-like curtain moved forward, constricting visibility, and people felt as if the end of the world was materializing.
I was out of breath.
“….”
Lucas and the special heroes who followed him stood quietly at the edge of the castle wall, staring at the approaching destruction of the world.
Lucas closely observed his opponent’s condition.
The Night Bringer had swelled and multiplied incomparably compared to when we met in the Lake Kingdom just three days ago, but it also clearly had an unprecedented defect.
‘wound.’
A clear sword mark remained on the chest of the Night Bringer as it slowly crawled across the floor.
It was a dazzling wound running diagonally across the center of the huge black dragon’s chest, as if light had penetrated it.
The wounds on the body of the giant monster made of night were emitting a soft light.
Thanks to this light, even in the deep darkness, the presence of an enemy moving in the shape of a dragon could be detected.
‘That light is nameless…? ‘Is the pillar of light from a few days ago related to that?’
In addition, there were large and small scars engraved all over the Night Bringer’s huge body.
These were scars that proved that the process of its advance was anything but smooth and that there was resistance from the humans who attacked to defeat the evil dragon.
However, despite all the resistance, the monster finally reached the Crossroads.
“Lord Lucas. “I can’t even see its six secondary heads.”
“….”
“Is it hidden somewhere? Or…”
Lucas narrowed his eyes.
According to reports, the Black Dragon’s auxiliary heads attacked the observation tower where Damian was.
Maybe… Damian knocked down all those heads?
‘You’ve done enough, Damian.’
Lucas’s clenched fists gained strength.
‘Just wait. I and we… will show we can do what we can.’
Lucas, who was glaring at the advancing figure of the Night Bringer, turned his body back. Behind him, the heroes of the special team were standing in an orderly manner, waiting.
Vengeful spirits who honed their hatred to kill the black dragon.
Lucas did not say a single word towards the special rental heroes. Because language no longer has meaning to them.
Instead, he looked back at the defense team on the castle wall and nodded.
“Then everyone. Good luck.”
The king, hero, and soldiers of the defense team nodded with pale faces.
The operation is simple.
While the defense team on the castle wall attracts the attention of the black dragon, the special team approaches the Night Bringer and finishes him off.
thud…! thud…! thud…!
The Night Bringer finally reached the end of the southern field.
The black dragon raised its huge mouth and smiled in the darkness, then its golden gaze flashed, gathering an evil gaze.
It seemed like they were preparing the strongest attack aircraft, ‘Forged Chestnut’.
Even though there was no auxiliary head, there didn’t seem to be any problem with the guy who had already absorbed as much chestnuts as he could.
That wasn’t all.
All kinds of magic were loaded with geometric patterns on the left and right sides of the black dragon’s head, and feathers were ready to shoot from its huge, wide-open wings.
“Prepare for defense!”
Accordingly, the defense line was also prepared for defense.
The wizards, led by Junior, prepared defensive magic, and the artifacts that had been urgently repaired shined in their own way.
And the Skyrian, who had to block the ‘Forged Night’ and Breath, also stood on the castle wall and finished preparations.
Next to him was [Shining Dark], a defensive artifact made from Aipian’s magic core, and… Violet, who was sitting on top of Parekhian with a nervous expression.
Skylian looked towards the special rental unit and smiled.
“That’s a great strategy.” This
is the most problematic thing when dealing with the Black Dragon.
The point was that even before it could approach the black dragon, it was stopped by its powerful interception means.
Most of the knights and cavalry that had previously left to kill the black dragon were intercepted and killed before they could reach the black dragon’s body.
This was also the biggest problem for the special team trying to kill the black dragon.
We had to approach while reducing damage as much as possible, but no matter what method we used, there was a high possibility that we would be annihilated before we could reach it.
But Lily found a way.
“Is everyone ready?”
In front of the special rental booth lined up neatly.
Lily asked carefully and adjusted the artifact in front of her.
Artifact [Again from scratch!].
This large golden metal plate can forcibly teleport the opponent whose entire body is captured by shining the light on the opponent within the shooting frame.
The point where the monster first appears when viewed from the main crossroads. To borrow Ash’s expression, it is the starting point of the wave. Right to the end of the field spreading south of Crossroads Castle.
It may vary depending on the use, but it is basically a means of buying time by pushing monsters that have crossed the field and approached the castle wall back to the edge of the field.
Lily changed her thinking here.
What if you use this artifact to shoot an ally instead of an enemy?
Isn’t it possible to teleport all allies in the frame to the end of the southern field?
Alchemists studied the artifact to verify the theory, and the operation was established.
At that time, the black dragon that had come north reached the end of the field south of the Crossroad. The very moment when its gaze is focused on the walls of the Crossroads and it launches an attack.
Assassins holding awls that can kill the guy teleport over the guy’s head.
Without giving him a chance to intercept, he approaches the Night Bringer closely and pours out all the evil weapons he has…
and kills him.
These creatures are tiny creatures that explode to death at the slightest gesture from a bastard, but they can at least dig into a bastard’s wounds with the tip of a forged awl.
Kill before you die – a simple strategy that does just that.
Gooooooo-!
Night Bringer has completed its attack stance. In a few seconds, the top of this castle wall will become a sea of fire.
Lily, who was calmly looking towards the black dragon and measuring the timing, muttered softly.
“For some reason, because I’m going to take pictures like this, I feel like I’m drawing a commemorative portrait before I go on a mission.”
“….”
“Okay then. Old friends. “Be sure to come back to make sure your face looks good.”
After looking at the comrades leaving for the dead. Lily managed to smile through her trembling mouth.
“Three two one- Smile!”
Quaaaaa!
The ‘forged night’ poured out by the black dragon, and all kinds of magic and feather bombardment rushed towards the castle wall at once,
and click!
At the same time, the artifact [Start over!] was activated.
The special heroes disappeared from the castle wall as if they were lying, and the next moment they were precisely teleported into the air above the black dragon’s body.
《…?!》
Night Bringer, who was pouring out attacks towards the Crossroads walls, was taken aback by this unexpected situation. At the same time, he raised the corners of his mouth as if he was happy.
Squirt-!
As they descended from the blizzard-filled air towards the evil dragon on the ground, none of the heroes belonging to the special team were smiling.
With eyes that have dried up with bloody tears and dead faces, they each grab their weapons and strike down to kill their enemies.
Both the Nightmare Slayer and the Dragon Slayer holders fell, staining their entire bodies with pitch-black darkness and polishing off their hatred and resentment to the fullest.
At the forefront is Lucas.
“Haaaaa…!”
It already looked like a beast.
Underneath the tangled blonde hair blown by the gust of wind, two bright blue eyes flashed like a wild beast in the middle of the night.
Lucas held up the [Granted Sword] in his right hand and the [Excarnival] in his left hand.
Churrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr…!
The [Granted Sword] trembled uneasily, forming a blade of light, and
Quaaaa!
[Xcarnival] roared and fired pitch-black magic in all directions.
The bandages wrapped around the burns were torn apart, revealing a left arm with black magical energy seeping through it like veins.
“Aaaaaah-!”
At the same time, the ultimate skill [Full Body Advent] is activated.
A dazzling aura emanated from Lucas’ entire body.
The usual golden aura, the black aura of the magic sword, and the unique deep blue aura of the beast flower were all mixed together.
Such a turbid aura coalesced into a round halo behind Lucas’ back, and
then-!
The next moment, Lucas was shot down faster than anyone else.
The knight who gave up being human to kill the monster screamed.
“I’ll kill you!”
Looking at the shooting star-like avengers pouring towards him, the Night Bringer’s huge mouth smiled as if it were splitting open.
And then the decisive battle began.
