Chapter 1043 — Book 2: Chapter 241: Lunacy, Worship. And the Way (3)
12 min read ·
“Oh, you’re resisting pretty well?”
Kendall kept his mouth shut at Cale’s lighthearted comment.
His pupils were shaking relentlessly but he still did not reveal any information.
“Pfft.”
Cale chuckled before calmly commenting.
“You told Rasheel-nim that the Holy Water is the foundation of this world. It’s obvious you guys ripped the sap out of the World Tree or cut off a root or vine and boiled it in water or some nonsense like that, right?”
‘Would the World Tree have sap?’
Cale thought about the World Tree he knew before peeking at Kendall. He remained quiet.
Cale's gaze moved and he nonchalantly commented.
“Nine? That’s your name, right?”
Nine raised his head to look at Cale.
Nine was with Kendall in this tent.
Cale recalled the information about Nine.
‘He’s known as the biggest trash of the First Knights Brigade members who came in the subjugation squad.’
Bailey had given him that information.
Nine was also the punk who had his hand wrapped up because Choi Han had pierced it. He was pummeled while visiting the village as a scout with his fellow Dragon half-blood, Wei, and a knight of the Haru Kingdom, Sam.
Cale purposely brought this punk among the numerous Dragon half-bloods.
‘This guy should be good, young master-nim.’
He had used Beacrox's judgment as foundation.
“Do you know what the Holy Water is?”
‘Ha.’
Kendall sneered inside.
He was certain that Nine would not open his mouth.
‘Plus, that guy doesn’t know much about the Holy Water! There’s no way he does!’
That information was quite secret.
However, Nine opened his mouth.
“That-”
Kendall's eyes opened wide. He subconsciously started to speak.
“Hey, Dragon half-blood! Watch your mouth!’
He was then shocked.
‘What is up with that bastard?!’
Nine didn't even look toward Kendall.
To be more specific, Nine was avoiding him.
That situation was shocking for Kendall.
‘He dares-!
He dares to ignore what I said?’
These Dragon half-bloods should not do that.
“Hey!”
However, Nine continued to not look toward him.
Kendall could not hold back his anger.
“You motherfucking bastard who doesn’t know how to pay back gratitude! You're shit without Dragon blood!”
Nine's shoulders flinched at Kendall's angry voice as well as the Dragon Fear that seemed to be responding to Kendall's emotional state.
However, he did not look toward Kendall until the end.
“This son of a bitch-”
As Kendall's eyes filled with rage…
Clap.
He heard someone clap.
‘!’
Kendall then felt a gentle aura filling the tent.
Domination.
It was an extremely faint aura that flowed like air. However, this aura only made him think of that word.
Kendall clenched his mouth shut.
He thought about the formidable aura he felt before. This was weak compared to that, but the fundamentals were the same.
The true nature was the same.
It was a crazy power that tried to even dominate Dragons.
No, it was a power that enjoyed crushing the strongest of powers. That was why it suppressed Dragons so much.
“…….”
Kendall was silent again.
‘Fuck, damn it!’
He swore internally.
Nine watched all of this happen.
‘Fuck! This incompetent Dragon bastard!’
Nine's gaze was full of contempt as he looked at Kendall.
‘How can a Dragon do this?!’
Nine was unable to believe what he saw when he saw Kendall beaten up until he was unconscious by Rasheel.
Kendall. Who was he? Despite being in the last seat, he was one of the 10 Dragon gods.
‘Fine. Let’s say that all of the Dragons in the Black Castle are abnormally strong.’
Honestly speaking, that Dragon Rasheel looked terrible as well. So did Kendall fight almost evenly before he lost?
That he could understand.
‘But he lowered his head to a human?’
Cale Henituse. The moment he saw Kendall shaking in fear of that human to the point that he couldn’t even make eye contact… Nine couldn’t help but loathe Kendall.
Nine. Until now, Dragons were the greatest creatures in his mind.
But such a great and mighty existence showed a side like this?!
Nine's eyes filled with rage.
Cale just quietly watched.
‘Nine. This guy is weak mentally.’
He recalled Beacrox’s assessment.
‘Furthermore, his personality is extremely twisted. He also has a grudge toward Kendall for being unable to save him.’
Beacrox then said the following.
‘The more you show Kendall being squashed… Nine will stick to us in order to survive.’
The corners of Cale’s lips curled up.
‘Nine. That guy treasures his own life the most.’
He then added on.
‘Based on my research, although he has not awakened his attribute… He is said to have Kendall’s blood inside of him.’
Beacrox was talented in torture and interrogations.
This did not mean that he was great and causing physical and mental pain to his enemies. Beacrox was even greater at assessing an individual's true nature or their personality.
That was why he was able to figure out an opponent’s bottom line even without putting in much effort.
‘Of the Dragon half-bloods here right now, Nine is the most angry and disappointed in Kendall. Also, potentially because he has Kendall’s blood, their personalities are very similar.’
A coward who valued his own life the most.
Cale stood up from the chair.
He then walked over to Nine.
Nine flinched but Cale spoke warmly to Nine, who was tied up on the ground.
“Why do you think I brought you here?”
“…….”
Nine’s pupils started shaking. Cale spoke gently.
“I am giving you an opportunity before I give it to anybody else.”
Opportunity. That word made Nine's eyes shine.
"As for Kendall… That guy will not be able to get out of here.”
That comment about how Kendall would not be able to escape from here stabbed into Nine's ears.
“…What opportunity, sir?”
Nine subconsciously spoke respectfully.
Smile. Cale started to smile.
‘Knight Captain Zenyu’s mind seems to be most chaotic right now and he seems to have a lot of thoughts about the current situation, but… He will not open his mouth. He is at least able to assess the current situation.’
He knew that there would be no benefits to gain even if he revealed information.
‘However, Nine will speak. That guy can’t understand what is what.’
Beacrox had been spot on.
‘That is probably why the team leader keeps having Beacrox by his side.’
Beacrox's judgment was reliable.
“Nine.”
Cale gently asked.
“What is the Holy Water?”
Nine hesitated before making up his mind.
‘He definitely called it an opportunity!
That should mean that he will let me live, right?
That should mean that they will treat me better, right?’
He didn’t recognize that Cale didn't answer his question about what kind of opportunity it was and opened his mouth.
“The Holy Water is the ‘aura’ that the majority of Dragons have consumed, sir.”
“…It’s not liquid?”
“No, sir. It is not liquid. It is actually in solid form.”
Kendall interjected at that moment.
“Hey! Are you crazy?!”
However, Nine continued to speak as if he couldn’t hear anything.
"The reason the World Tree is the World Tree is because it can see the flow of this world.”
Cale quietly nodded his head.
When he first met the World Tree… The World Tree had said that it saw the flow of things and had told Cale about three things.
“Basically, it means that it can reach the foundation of this world.”
Cale flinched.
“Shut the fuck up, you motherfucker! What the hell do you know?! You know nothing, you little bitch!”
Nine snorted at Kendall's angry rant. He then addressed Cale.
It was easy to talk now that he had made up his mind.
“The Dragons see the church as their subordinates. They put the church to work quite a bit, and we are the ones who end up with the most of that work.”
The First Knights Brigade. Although they looked extremely dignified and honorable to the onlookers…
The truth was that they were just the ones to do the grunt work.
‘Yeah, that’s the truth.
We've just been grunts for the Dragons!’
Nine eyes were full of rage.
“It may be a little part at a time, but doing a lot of things will allow us to see a certain flow after a while.”
“So-”
Cale calmly interjected.
“You guys, no, the Dragon Lord's side suppressed the World Tree and used it to reach the foundation of this world. They then consumed that aura… And that aura is the Holy Water?”
“Yes sir. “I don’t know what it does, but I believe that is the reason all of the Dragons got stronger compared to before the cataclysmic period.”
Cale knew that Aipotu’s World Tree had lost its intellect.
He had assumed it was because the Dragon Lord was dominating it or had brainwashed it, but-
‘I guess it couldn’t have been helped.’
The World Tree in Cale’s world had lost some branches and had to rest because it shared a portion of the flow with Cale.
But to take that flow, the aura of the foundation-
‘Of course the World Tree is not in its correct state of mind.’
Furthermore, this world…
It was also understandable why Aipotu could not speak or act like Central Plains or Xiaolen.
‘If it is having its power sucked away, I don’t know how much it would be, but…
It would be quite a difficult situation.’
The world was honestly being destroyed.
Destitution was to be expected when it was having things stolen from it.
‘Maybe the reason it can’t respond and the reason the Divine World wasn't saying anything-’
It was highly likely related to having its foundation taken away.
‘Yes.’
Now it made sense.
The white snake had said the following.
‘Mommy said that the destroyed world was trying to ostracize the Dragons from here.’
The results were clear.
‘The world is alive.’
As long as they found a way-
‘I should be able to talk to it like I did with Central Plains and Xiaolen.’
Once he could do that, he would be able to learn how the Dragon Lord was able to suppress all of the auras of this world and take it away from the creatures.
And once he learned that-
‘I can change the whole playing field.’
The world would flip over once the reins on the suppressed creatures were released.
‘The pieces are coming together one by one.’
Cale could finally understand how things had been until now.
He nonchalantly asked.
“Is the start of the cataclysmic period when the Dragon Lord completely suppressed the World Tree?”
“yes sir!”
Nine answered without any hesitation, and…
“Fuck! Is that son of a bitch crazy?!”
As Kendall’s screech-like shouts continued…
Cale arrived at the answer.
‘Suppressed the World Tree, reached the foundation of this world, and took away the aura.’
As a result, abnormal climate issues started happening around Aipotu and the cataclysmic period arrived.
Cale subconsciously mumbled before quickly closing his mouth.
He suddenly had a thought.
‘The young monk statue.’
The statue Central Plains had used as a clone broke a bit after being hit by Raon.
However, it was fine now after being repaired.
‘The aura of a World Tree is inside it.’
Furthermore, it was the aura of the World Tree from Aipotu that the Dragons had planted.
‘They said this was a seed.’
He might be able to grow a new World Tree through this statue.
‘Then-’
Cale started to think.
‘If I use this statue, shouldn't I be able to reach the foundation of this world if things go well?
Then I can chat with it?’
Cale was seeing a new possibility.
‘If things go as I expect and the playing field of this world can change-’
The corners of Cale’s lips curled up.
"The situation will flow in quite an interesting direction.”
It could become an extremely advantageous situation for his allies.
As someone who liked one-sided battles, this was extremely interesting for Cale.
“Umm-”
Nine was warily looking at Cale before he spoke up.
“Hmm?”
Cale, who was now happy, gently responded. Of course, Cale had no intentions of being nice to Nine, but he could still converse gently.
Nine’s face lit up before he quickly spoke.
“It is believed that some of the Elves have consumed the foundation as well, sir!”
“No!”
Kendall screeched as if that information really shouldn’t have been shared.
‘Aigoo.
Why is he so loud?’
Cale had been shocked at Kendall's reaction, but he realized why Kendall had reacted that way after hearing what Nine said next.
"Those Elves are believed to be the inquisitors, sir! We believe that they are stronger than normal Elves and as strong as the Dragons before the cataclysmic period started, sir!”
“Hooo.”
Cale gasped in admiration.
He looked toward Kendall.
He then smiled brightly.
“This must be why you continued to resist.”
It was quite a vicious smile.
“The inquisitors that will be here soon. No, you were hoping those Elves would kill us and rescue you.”
Kendall avoided Cale's gaze.
On the other hand, Cale stared at him some more. His gaze sank down.
‘As expected, the strong are slowly starting to appear.’
He asked Choi Han a question.
“How many inquisitors are with the subjugation squad?”
“Three, Cale-nim.”
Cale contemplated for a bit before opening his mouth.
“Tell Miss Rosalyn about this and let me know what she says.”
Cale walked back to the couch and sat down.
“She is the Commander for this plan.”
He also asked the Dominating Aura a question.
‘How far can the aura stretch?’
The imposing voice answered in a refreshing manner.
– No clue. I can’t even fathom it.
As Cale scowled…
– The density will go down but it could probably easily cover the size of the Roan Kingdom’s capital?
‘That big?’
This was the first time Cale was a bit shocked at the Dominating Aura's capabilities.
* * *
Paaaat.
The moment a bright light revealed its presence on the snowy field and disappeared…
Pss pss.
One individual got off the teleportation magic circle and pulled off her hood.
Shhh. Beautiful blonde hair flowed down like silk.
“The enemies are in front of us.”
The Elf’s blue eyes looked toward the large ice wall in the distance.
The inquisitors and the subjugation squad had arrived.
—
Translator's Comments Dun dun duuuuuun.
TCF is currently posted Mondays and Fridays at evening time GMT. Join our discord to be notified as soon as the chapter posts!