Chapter 1128 — Book 2: Chapter 325: What cannot be understood (5)
13 min read ·
The first time.
As soon as the Dragon half-blood saw Neo start to overload, he threw Choi Han off his back.
He then headed toward Neo.
‘Overload!’
The Dragon half-blood knew better than anybody else about overload.
He was the only one here who had experienced it before.
He could tell as soon as he saw it.
He saw the difference between the First Saint Dragon, Ryan, and Neo.
Neo.
This guy had already decided to die.
‘No.’
Only one thought filled his mind.
‘No.’
He didn’t know what he was saying no about.
But the Dragon half-blood just started to move.
His black bone body had already flung Choi Han off his back and was rushing forward without any thought.
The Dragon half-blood.
What he saw was Cale and Raon.
Time then slowed down.
Neo's overload had started.
‘Ah-’
The Dragon half-blood couldn't even gasp properly within it.
However, he could slowly start to see properly.
He could see what was happening.
‘No.’
Yes. Just no.
We can’t let things be as they are right now.
I need to do something.
However-
‘What can I do?
There’s nothing I can do.
I can’t use magic or my attribute right now.
All I have left is this black bone body.’
Even this could not use its powers properly without Mary’s help.
He could see what was happening as he was thinking.
‘Fuck-!’
Raon.
He could see the little Dragon stick to Cale's back.
He could see Raon doing his best not to move.
‘Fuck!’
He was so angry.
He didn’t know it would be so frustrating to be able to see without being able to do anything.
The Dragon half-blood truly hated the Dragon dregs remaining in his soul right now.
Inside this slowed time that looked as if it was stopped but kept moving…
Light still shone brightly on everything.
Although the sky had been full of ash-colored clouds since the cataclysmic period and everything was a mess because of the roaring mana, the light that shone through the cracks in the ash-colored clouds wrapped around everything. ŗ𝘢NΟ𝐁Ë𐌔
The light did not stop.
That was why the Dragon half-blood was able to see the things the light was touching.
Maybe it would be better if he couldn’t see it-
‘No.’
The Dragon half-blood recalled the moments.
The moments where he could not see anything properly.
The days he spent in the ditch-like deep underground cave not knowing whether he was a human, a Dragon, or who knows what.
The place he was treated in a way that no living creature should ever be treated…
The moments he lived in the darkness as a living test subject…
He had longed for light in that place.
But to wish he could not see light now that the situation has changed…
‘How laughable.
But that’s who I am.
Yes.
My true nature is so laughable.’
The Dragon half-blood had seen a lot of things staying around Cale, living in the Black Castle.
Nobody had an easy life.
Everybody had things they were carrying on their shoulders.
In that case, what should he carry as he lived?
The lives of the numerous people he killed?
Or the sorrow the people left behind would feel? Anger?
The numerous things he had destroyed?
What should be the burden he carried on his shoulders?
However, the Dragon half-blood could not face the truth.
‘Yes.
I'm a laughable guy like that.’
He had no courage.
The peace right now-
‘Yeah.’
He liked this peace.
Despite feeling guilt and wanting to pay back for it… He liked this peace.
‘Where-’
The world was bright no matter where he looked.
Just like this world, with the light shining down on it…
He liked the moments he stayed in the Black Castle, the peace that he felt.
Of course, the Dragon half-blood recognized and felt that the situation was desperate and urgent as they were fighting the Hunters.
Nonetheless, he thought that it was peaceful.
Because-
‘I don’t know.’
He had no idea why he thought it was peaceful.
But right now-
‘Ah, no!’
But he could not continue that thought.
“How interesting.”
He was caught.
Raon was caught by the Dragon Lord.
‘No!
What should I do?
Do I just sit here and watch?
No. I-
I don’t want to see something like this!’
It was terrible.
The current reality was too dreadful.
Plus, had he not made a promise to himself?
Raon.
‘At least that child, I-
I want to help him.
No.
I want to protect-’
The Dragon half-blood did not dare to finish that thought.
He was still stopped.
The light was shining so radiantly…
‘So why can't I move under this light despite my attribute being light?
I want to go.’
“Little child. You are tearing up.”
The moment Neo looked at Raon…
The moment his hand headed toward Raon…
‘I want to go to Raon.’
Craaaaaaack-
The Dragon half-blood did not think about what would happen later.
Just the thought of moving forward…
Just the thought of needing to stand in front of Raon…
Those were the only thoughts on his mind.
‘I no longer-
Want to ignore the things I've seen.
Just like the light!’
Just like the light shining down all around…
‘I, I also want to reach them.
I want to be able to reach the ones I seek.
If I can do that-
I can do anything-
I can do all things.
I'm willing to throw away anything I have.
But I don’t even have anything to throw away.
Even this body is not fully mine.
All that I have left-’
Craaaaaaack-
He heard a noise at that moment.
Craaaaaaack-
It was the sound of something breaking.
He then realized it.
‘Ah.’
At the center of the Black Bones…
The location where the Dragon half-blood's soul was settled…
The core that was there was breaking.
‘…There are remains.’
Yes. ‘All I have left is my soul, my will.
Yes. That is the only thing that is mine.
The only thing I can move according to my will.’
And-
‘It’s also the reason I can see this light.
The reason I could at least see in this stopped time.
That is thanks to the Dragon dregs that remain inside of me.’
Those dregs were ‘light.’
‘Ah.
That’s a relief.
I found a way.
Since I also have light-
I can reach him.’
The Dragon half-blood had never felt such delight in his life.
The Dragon blood that he desperately desired but ending up loathing the most…
It was finally a moment for it to be useful.
Craaaack-
The Dragon half-blood could feel his black bones starting to crack.
He didn't pay it any attention.
Instead, he looked at the light.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
‘I don’t even have a heart.
So why is my body reacting as if a heart is beating?
No. This must be my soul roaring.’
The Dragon half-blood felt the light that was covered by the black bones.
This was the first time.
Since coming into this Bone Dragon body and getting a skeleton body…
This was the first time he felt the pain of his whole body being ripped apart.
A pain that could not compare to the pain he felt during his overload or even the pain he felt before he lost his body, overwhelmed him.
This pain was his soul trying to get out of this body.
Craaaack-
‘I probably can't come back if it leaves this body.
Yes.
Just like the light disappears once night arrives…
His own light would crumble when it touches something and light up the next person.
‘Yes.
That’s enough.’
Boom. Boom. Boom.
The Dragon half-blood pushed forward.
His body that looked as if it stopped, the bones that formed his body broke.
But he still moved within it.
He looked at Raon and Cale…
He looked at the light shining down all around them.
‘Light.
Yes. This is the light that I desperately wished for in the darkness.
I have no idea what is happening to me right now.
Nonetheless, my light, the Dragon blood that had been inside me is drawing it in.
‘The light-, it is gathering.
The light is gathering to me.’
Yes.
Craaaaaaaaaack—!
The thing seeping into the cracking bones was the light that embraced even the black bones.
The light was gathering to his center, his soul.
The amount was not much.
However-
‘It’s possible.’
With this light-
Boom. Boom. Boom.
Feeling the light seeping into his roaring soul…
The Dragon half-blood did not look away even once.
He observed everything.
That was why he was able to coldly assess the possibility.
‘Yeah. This is possible.’
Craaaaaaack—!
He completely broke.
‘The thing imprisoning, no, protecting my soul is gone.
The thing that Cale and Cale's friends had created for him were broken.
Swoooooooooosh–!
And light was coming to him.
His body was getting bigger.
‘No.
My soul is still black and shabby.
It is still curled up.’
However, the bright light was still embracing him.
It allowed him to reach forward.
‘I am the light now.
How laughable.
I finally became a Dragon.
Yes.
I have finally become a true Dragon.’
The Dragon half-blood felt relieved that he could finally feel it.
At least he recognized it when it was needed.
His body, no, his soul pushed forward.
The light did not stop even within time.
It was still fast.
‘Cale.’
He could see Cale, whose whole body was covered in blood, still trying to cast a silver shield toward Raon.
He moved past Cale.
And finally-
‘I'm standing in front of him.’
He was standing in front of Raon.
Would Raon be looking at his back, no, his shabby back?
Baaaaaang—!
The light crashed into the purple mana.
‘Ugh!’
It felt as if his soul was ripping.
The aftershock of the attack landed on him.
But the light did not die.
‘I still-
I still have something to do.’
“Hey-!”
He heard Cale’s urgent voice.
‘To think the time would come when this punk calls out to me like this.’
He felt like he would laugh.
But he had no time to laugh.
The Dragon half-blood started to move.
No, he was becoming the light.
He had no idea, but his body now had the form of a white gold Dragon.
He had no idea that his movement resembled a Dragon flapping his wings.
He just pushed forward.
“No!”
While listening to Raon’s voice…
He grabbed Neo.
He bit Neo on the back of the neck with his mouth.
‘A mouth?
I have a mouth?
Wasn’t I just light?’
Before he could even deal with that question…
“Ha.”
He saw the look of disbelief on Neo's face.
The Dragon half-blood pulled Neo as far away as possible from Raon, Cale, and the Black Castle.
Yes.
The Black Castle.
He could not allow the aftershock of this explosion to reach there.
“It’s still too late.”
As soon as he heard Neo's voice…
“—!”
“-!”
The Dragon half-blood felt time start to flow normally again.
He then heard Raon's voice.
“No!”
The Dragon half-blood also heard Neo's laugh-filled voice.
"Explode.”
Neo's heart exploded.
This was the first time the Dragon half-blood felt as if time had stopped.
He then realized that it was not that time had truly stopped, it was because the air around the area had been swept up by the explosion of this massive power.
‘No.
Yes, I can't let this happen!
I can't let this large explosion-’
The Dragon half-blood subconsciously opened up his wings to wrap around Neo.
He hugged Neo with his whole body.
He finally realized it.
‘Ah.
I look like a Dragon right now.’
The Dragon half-blood subconsciously moved his head once he realized that.
As soon as he realized where he was looking, he could tell where he had been trying to reach.
In the distance-
It was definitely too far, but…
Why was he able to see it so well?
It was clear.
It was as clear as light.
“No!”
The Black Castle. Former Lord Sheritt was trying to rush to him from there.
He could see her face.
The place he wanted to reach…
The thing he wanted to protect…
‘Ah.
I am dying as a Dragon.’
The Dragon half-blood smiled.
Baaaaang—!
The Dragon half-blood could feel all of his light being ripped apart.
He still curled up his body as much as possible.
‘Become like my shabby and grotesque black soul.’
He needed to embrace this explosion as much as possible.
——-!
The loud explosion even swallowed up the noises around him.
The Dragon half-blood felt the light being swallowed by the explosion.
Craaaaaaack-
‘Ah.
My black soul is breaking too.
This shabby soul is finally reaching its end.’
The Dragon half-blood heard the sound of all that remained of him breaking down.
He still held onto the light as much as possible to embrace the explosion.
There was nothing that could save this broken soul.
His instincts were telling him that.
‘So let’s do this one last thing before I die.
Yeah.
Just like a great and mighty Dragon.
No, I am also a great and mighty Dragon.’
Craaaaaaack-
It was at that moment.
‘Huh?’
He no longer heard his soul breaking.
The Dragon half-blood was well-aware of the reason.
He could feel it.
‘Huh?’
He could feel something wrapping around his shabby black soul.
It was a shield.
A black shield.
‘Ah.’
The Dragon half-blood had never felt like this before.
Yes.
‘This is the feeling of wanting to cry.’
There was only one individual who could use magic in this cataclysmic period where the mana was roaring.
No, there was only one individual who could use a black shield like this.
One black shield appeared.
Then another.
Then they kept on appearing.
An endless number of black shields appeared.
That shield wrapped around the only black existence in the light, the Dragon half-blood's shabby soul.
The Dragon half-blood wanted to say something.
‘Stop!’
There were already ten layers of shields.
‘If you do this, if you do this-
Raon!
This will be hard on you!’
The Dragon half-blood wanted to shout but he could not speak.
More black shields continued to appear.
Drip.
Blood dripped down from Raon’s nose.
However, Raon did not stop.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
His heart was running wild.
No.
He could feel ever so clearly that the world was alive.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
The world was beating at the same speed as his heart.
“Ah.”
Eruhaben gasped.
Raon's first growth phase…
Eruhaben had watched Raon go through his first growth phase.
In his dream or test, Raon had overcome his adult Dragon self to escape with all of his friends.
The relationship between his future self and the past…
The future and the past.
Time wasn’t important to Raon as someone who had overcome the future and the past.
Raon was a Dragon who had even escaped his fate.
What was given to such a Dragon was the present.
“His plate-”
Yes.
Eruhaben once again realized what he had felt at that time.
Raon has no plate.
In the first growth phase, the trial that usually determined a Dragon’s attribute and plate, Raon had even gotten rid of his plate and used mana.
That was why the world was Raon’s plate.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
Raon remained sharp and focused.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
He then felt the world coming toward his chubby front paws and his body.
A reality where an existence that escaped his fate existed…
The young Dragon started to think.
He thought that he could overcome and escape anything.
His family taught him that.
And just as he had experienced during his first growth phase…
Yes.
The present can be changed.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
The world, no, all of the mana in the world reacted to Raon’s heart.
—
Translator's Comments
Go Raon, go!
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