Chapter 224: Leviathan, Prabur'kbal (2)

Hearing Vivian’s words, Jake’s expression slowly changed.

‘The Azure Dragon…’

For some reason, that name immediately brought back a memory.

….The cloaked figures.

Back when he had been caught up in that whole mess, he remembered hearing them talk about using the Leviathan to deal with someone.

Someone they called the Azure Dragon.

Jake’s eyes narrowed.

‘Wait… Could it be her? If Lord Blauer really is the Azure Dragon…’

Then the situation was far more complicated than he had initially thought.

“Vivian.”

“Hm?”

“Lord Blauer… where is she right now?”

Vivian glanced at him, slightly surprised by the sudden question.

“Why are you asking?”

Jake looked back toward the battlefield.

“Because I might have heard her name before.”

Noticing the serious tone, Vivian’s expression changed slightly.

“You have?”

Jake nodded slowly.

“Yeah. But not from anyone friendly.”

Vivian’s eyes narrowed.

“What do you mean?”

Before Jake could answer, another tremendous explosion shook the entire fleet.

BOOOOOOOOOOM!!!

The Leviathan’s crimson beam slammed into the golden barrier surrounding the Alliance.

The entire shield rippled violently.

For a moment, the sky was completely illuminated by crimson and gold.

Then, without warning, the Leviathan suddenly raised its massive head.

The crimson beam that had been pressing against the barrier abruptly shifted upward.

“…What?”

Jake’s eyes widened.

The Leviathan wasn’t aiming at the fleet anymore.

The enormous beam shot straight into the sky, piercing through the clouds and disappearing into the heavens.

For a brief moment, nothing happened.

Then—

The sky began to glow even redder

Countless crimson points of light appeared high above the battlefield.

One.

Ten.

Hundreds.

Thousands.

Jake’s expression changed.

“Wait…”

The advisor’s face instantly pale.

“Everyone, look up!”

The crimson lights began growing brighter.

And then—

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!

The first beam fell from the sky.

It slammed into the ocean with enough force to send an enormous pillar of water hundreds of meters into the air.

Then another came down.

BOOM!

And another.

BOOM!

BOOM!

BOOOOOOM!!!

Suddenly, the entire sky erupted.

Countless crimson beams rained down from above like a meteor storm, each one falling with terrifying speed.

They struck the ocean.

They struck the battlefield.

They struck the surrounding ships

Massive explosions erupted one after another, covering the horizon in fire and water.

The sea itself seemed to boil beneath the barrage.

Right now,

It looked less like a battle and more like the end of the world.

“WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!”

One soldier screamed.

“SHIELDS! MAINTAIN THE SHIELDS!”

The golden barrier surrounding the Alliance began trembling violently as beam after beam crashed into it.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOOOOOOOOOM!!!

Golden ripples spread across the enormous shield with every impact.

The force of the bombardment was so immense that even the massive ship beneath Jake’s feet began to sway violently.

“Whoa!”

Jake’s body shifted with the sudden movement.

Without hesitation, he tightened his arm around Grace, who was still clinging to him, keeping her firmly against his chest.

At the same time, he reached out with his other hand and grabbed Aria’s hand, pulling her closer so she wouldn’t lose her balance.

Another beam crashed into the barrier.

BOOOOOOM!!!

The entire ship lurched to the side.

Jake looked up at the apocalyptic scene filling the sky, his expression slowly becoming more serious.

‘This is just one head… and it’s already this powerful?’

He couldn’t imagine what would happen if all twelve heads were here at once.

Thankfully, the strange golden barrier didn’t only cover the flying ships. It extended across the entire Alliance fleet, protecting the massive warships below as well.

But even Jake could tell that the barrier had its limits.

With every crimson beam that crashed against it, the golden shield trembled more violently, and the ripples spreading across its surface were becoming increasingly frequent.

It won’t be able to protect them forever.

Jake’s eyes narrowed.

If this continued, it was only a matter of time before the barrier reached its limit.

And when that happened…

Everyone beneath it would be completely exposed.

Vivian, who had been standing nearby, was thrown off balance and stumbled several steps before catching herself against the railing.

She glanced toward Jake.

He was still holding Grace firmly with one arm while keeping Aria close with his other hand, making sure neither of them was thrown off by the violent shaking.

“Well, well… Seems like you don’t care about me at all.”

Vivian straightened herself and brushed a few strands of hair back into place as she gave him a playful look.

“You’re making sure both of them are safe, but what about me?”

Hearing that , Jake blinked and coughed awkwardly.

“Uh… you’re standing perfectly fine, aren’t you?”

Vivian smiled.

“Fortunately.”

But then-

Another explosion shook the ship.

BOOOOOOM!!!

Vivian immediately turned her attention back toward the battlefield.

Her playful expression disappeared, replaced by the calm and commanding look she usually wore during battle.

“Alright, enough messing around!”

She raised her voice.

“All crews, maintain your positions!”

The surrounding soldiers immediately responded.

“Yes, Captain!”

“Keep the cannons firing!”

“Don’t let up for even a second!”

Vivian pointed toward the enormous Leviathan.

“Continue the bombardment! We need to keep its attention and distract it!”

“Yes!”

One after another, the cannons began charging again.

WHOOOOOOM…

Countless beams of energy gathered across the fleet.

Vivian narrowed her eyes.

“Fire!”

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!

The entire Alliance fleet unleashed another devastating barrage toward the Leviathan.

Jake watched as the fleet continued its relentless bombardment.

Beam after beam struck the Leviathan’s enormous body, exploding across its dark scales in flashes of golden and crimson light.

BOOM!

BOOM!

BOOOOOOM!!!

Yet when the smoke cleared, Jake could barely see any damage.

A few scales had been scorched.

But that was it.

The enormous beast barely seemed bothered by the barrage.

Jake’s expression slowly turned incredulous.

Isn’t this useless?

Jake couldn’t help himself and looked at Vivian.

“We’ve been firing at it this whole time, but we’re barely doing any damage at all.”

“At this rate, we’ll run out of firepower before we even scratch it.”

Vivian remained calm.

“Of course we’re barely hurting it.”

Jake stared at her.

“…You say that like it’s obvious.”

“It is.”

Vivian looked toward the Leviathan.

“That thing has been alive since the First Era. Do you really think ordinary cannons are enough to kill it? Even these magic cannons provided by the Alliance are nothing but a tickle to a Leviathan.”

Jake was silent for a moment as his face filled with confusion.

“Then why are we still firing?”

A faint smile appeared on Vivian’s face.

“Because we’re not trying to kill it.”

Jake’s eyes narrowed.

“Then what are we trying to do?”

Vivian’s gaze shifted toward the distant Leviathan and replied simply.

“Buy time.”

Smash that golden ticket and power stone ~