Chapter 314: The Emperor of Death Enters the Scene

Before Ragna could even begin to process what was happening, something detached itself from the dragon’s back.

A figure dropped from the sky and slammed into the ground, right in front of the half-human army’s vanguard.

The impact shook the earth, kicking up a curtain of dust, and for a moment the dwarves feared it was some new threat.

But when the dust settled, what they saw left them speechless.

It was a human woman, with dark blue hair, dressed in gleaming armor with massive gauntlets on her hands.

She rose calmly in the middle of the enemy army, completely surrounded by thousands of half-humans.

But instead of showing the slightest hint of fear, she cracked her knuckles with a smile.

And then the slaughter began.

Every punch she threw obliterated one half-human completely, sending three more flying through the air from the sheer force of the impact.

No weapon could stop her, no number was enough to overwhelm her.

She cut through the horde as if they were made of paper, leaving a trail of shattered bodies in her wake.

The dwarves watched, frozen, unable to believe what was unfolding in front of them.

And while the woman tore through the ground forces, the dragon took care of the sky.

The winged half-humans, the ones who’d tried to take flight to escape, found themselves caught in a fatal dilemma.

If they stayed in the air, the dragon incinerated them in waves of fire that swept across the sky, and if they came down to the ground, they fell straight into the claws of that monstrous human woman.

There was no way out.

But that instant of hesitation, that fatal moment where they didn’t know what to do, was all the dragon needed.

A colossal blast of flame swept across the sky, and dozens of winged creatures fell burning, turned into living torches.

And within minutes, what had been an unstoppable horde began to crumble.

The half-humans, gripped by panic, tried to retreat in disarray.

The dragon, however, wouldn’t allow it.

With a roar, it circled the perimeter of the fleeing army and breathed out a torrent of fire, tracing a massive ring of flames around them, trapping them all inside.

A burning cage none of them could escape.

And at the center of that inferno, the blue-haired woman continued her work, methodical and relentless, finishing off everything still standing.

Ragna swallowed hard, hammer still in hand, unable to tear his eyes away.

"By the beards of our ancestors..." one of his warriors murmured beside him, his voice shaking. "What... what kind of monsters are those two?"

"I’ve never seen anything like it..." another whispered.

Ragna said nothing more, since he couldn’t find the words.

Those two beings, the woman and the dragon, wielded a kind of power that simply surpassed anything he’d witnessed in his entire life.

"Impressive, isn’t it?"

The voice came from right beside him.

Ragna spun around instantly, his heart pounding. And just a few steps away stood a man who hadn’t been there a moment before.

He was human, or at least appeared to be, wearing a dark blue robe with the hood covering most of his face.

The strangest thing, though, was his expression.

He was watching the carnage unfolding before them with absolute calm, as if enjoying a particularly entertaining show.

Ragna felt a chill run down his spine.

No one had seen him arrive. No one had heard his footsteps.

He was simply there, standing among them, as if he’d been part of the scene from the very beginning.

"A sight well worth watching, no doubt," the man remarked with a faint smile, not taking his eyes off the battle.

Ragna reacted on instinct.

He leaped backward, raising his hammer, and the warriors still left around him immediately followed suit, surrounding the stranger with weapons raised.

"Who the hell are you?!" Ragna said, clearly on edge. "Where did you come from?! Speak!"

The man didn’t so much as flinch at the weapons aimed at him.

And before he could answer, a shadow descended from the sky.

The dragon landed in front of the group with a thunderous impact, folding its wings, and let out a roar so powerful it rattled the dwarves down to their bones and froze the blood in their veins.

Several of them stumbled backward, and even Ragna himself felt his legs shaking at the presence of such a beast.

And then, to everyone’s shock, the dragon spoke.

"Insolent insects," the creature growled, its deep voice dripping with contempt, its enormous gaze fixed on the dwarves. "How dare you point your pathetic weapons at my master?"

It slammed one of its claws against the ground.

"Kneel at once before your savior. Kneel before the great Emperor of Death, or face my wrath—"

"Alright, alright, Bayle. That’s enough," Mark cut in, raising a hand calmly. "No need to get so worked up. Formalities aren’t necessary."

The dragon shut its jaws immediately and lowered its head, obedient.

"As you command, my lord."

Mark then turned to the dwarves, who stared at him completely stunned, no longer sure what to think.

"My apologies for my subordinate’s manners," he said with a faint smile, in a surprisingly cordial tone. "He’s a bit... dramatic about these things."

The contrast between the dragon’s brutality and Mark’s politeness left the dwarves utterly thrown.

This human, apologizing so casually, was — according to the dragon itself — the feared Emperor of Death, the being that colossal beast served and called master.

Ragna was the first to recover his composure.

He slowly lowered his hammer, and after a moment’s hesitation, bowed respectfully.

"I... apologize for our reaction," the dwarf said, his voice heavy. "We didn’t know who you were. But whoever you are, we owe you our lives. You, and your... subordinates."

Ragna straightened up.

"If it weren’t for your intervention, we’d all be dead right now," he said, clenching his jaw, holding back his emotion. "I have no way to thank you enough for what you’ve done for us."

"There’s nothing to thank me for," Mark replied with a casual gesture. "We just happened to arrive at the right time, that’s all. Anyone would’ve done the same."

Then the blue-haired woman walked over to the group, shaking the blood off her gauntlets as if she’d just finished a routine chore.

"Master, the first wave of the half-human army has been completely wiped out," Alice reported as she arrived. "Not a single one left standing."

She glanced toward the horizon.

"But from what I can see, the main body of the army is still on its way. And the Great Demon, Focalors, should be arriving with them any time now."

"Understood," Mark replied with a slight nod. "Good work."

Then he turned his attention back to Ragna.

"Listen closely, the worst is still to come, and when it does, this place won’t be safe anymore," he said, his tone turning serious. "So I strongly recommend you gather your people and get moving as soon as possible."

Mark paused briefly and gestured around them.

"Because as you can see, things are about to get very ugly."

Ragna opened his mouth to respond.

But he never got the chance.

Because a new voice, melodic and mocking, suddenly rang out across the entire plain, dripping with unmistakable amusement.

"Well, well, well... look who we have here."