Chapter 321

The moment I stepped out of the cabin, what came into view was a host of figures advancing from somewhere far off in the distance.

Looking at them — packed across the plains thick enough to swallow the horizon — what crossed my mind, oddly, was the question of why Venus and Juno had this many followers and underlings while Minerva had no one at all.

…I knew the reason well enough myself, but I had no particular intention of saying it out loud or letting it show on my face.

If I did, the one in my shadow would no doubt make her displeasure very clear.

There was no need to put on the King of Thorns, no need to circulate Dragon Blood.

What I needed was one sword.

That alone was enough.

And so I went on cutting down Venus's and Juno's underlings as they kept pressing in like insects, one after another.

It was as if their fear of death had been carved out of them — they hurled themselves at me without the slightest hesitation.

I lost track of how long I'd been swinging the sword and tearing through them.

"Hup!"

Mid-swing, slicing the head off a fish-man that had charged at me, I threw myself backwards.

An instant later, a crystal body swallowed not only that fish-man but everything around him whole, surfacing in midair without warning. Watching the almost ravenous greed of the thing, I let out a small snort of contempt.

"You think I'm an idiot? Falling for the same trick more than once?"

— …Indeed. At least. You're… a step above. A worm.

That low, humming voice I'd heard before rang out again.

The ground split open in its wake, and out of the rift rose a golem patchworked together from every kind of stone, gravel, crystal, and even lava.

The Seven Calamity, Juno.

Getting fired up in a fight isn't a bad thing, but losing your head is.

A simple truth, and one I knew perfectly well.

But the moment I laid eyes on it, the feeling that dropped through my chest was beyond anything I could manage.

This piece of shit, the one I'd kill ten times over if I could.

Did that to Ji-na.

To my little sister — turned her into that.

[Wait — you absolute idiot…! Get a grip!]

Sbeungali was practically screaming at me, trying to hold me back, but it was already far too late.

Before the King of Thorns had even finished sheathing my body, I'd already launched myself at it, and Juno — for all that it looked sluggish — responded to my movements with surprising agility.

I was simply faster.

— Gah, urgh…!

The fist I swung with everything I had crashed into the massive golem's body, and it tilted, staggering back.

I pulled out the World Tree's Branch right after, latched onto it, hauled it back toward me, and drove my fist in again with everything I had.

— Krrgh…!!!

Its body shattered apart, shards spraying out in every direction, but I didn't let the tension go out of me for a second.

I knew its strength didn't end there, and I already knew what its ability could do.

[And where do you think you're going, asshole.]

— What…!?

It would take one of the broken fragments and use it as a core to reconstruct its body.

That was one of Juno's abilities, and one of the most aggravating ones.

It was also an ability that, if you knew about it in advance, you could handle just fine.

For instance, by using the World Tree's Branch — itself a piece of nature, perfectly attuned to sensing the rhythms of the natural world — as a detector.

— Hnnngh…ah!

When I drove the mana-laced edge of my blade into its body, a scream of pain came out, even more agonized than before. I was pouring more mana into the sword, intent on driving it right up to the edge of death — when:

— …That you. Fought Minerva… to a draw. I already… know.

— Which means. You're… stronger. ……than I am.

— …This much. I had. …already accounted for……!

The instant it said that, crystal began crawling not only across its body but mine as well, spreading like a layer of frost.

…Using this much of its own body as bait — I didn't see that coming.

Honestly, I couldn't help being a little stunned.

I hadn't expected it to go for a gamble of this scale.

— Ha, hahaha…! …Done. At last. My. Long-held wish…?

In the middle of laughing, Juno cut itself off and stared at me, blank.

I looked back at it and let a small smile curl onto my face.

[…What? You were looking pretty pleased with yourself. Why don't you keep laughing.]

— What. How. The hell…?!

I left it standing there in shock and started circulating mana through my body, hard.

The crystals that had been swallowing half my body promptly burst apart like an explosion, and in the process a massive crack tore across Juno's face where it had been latched onto me.

— Krgh…hh!

The instant it lost its bearings, I drove my fist into that mask-like face of its again.

That was the one place you could call its weak point.

— How. The hell…! How, did you escape my, authority…!

[Beats me. Why do you think?]

I just muttered it as I kept rushing at it.

…The actual reason I could come out of Juno's crystals without much damage was simple.

A Seven Calamity's ability is, ironically, mostly useless against another Seven Calamity.

It was the same logic behind why I — carrying a Seven Calamity's power — had been able to wound Minerva while her Perfection hadn't yet been broken through.

And inside me, there were four Seven Calamities' worth of energy steeped into my body — Margo, Sbeungali, Minerva, and Milited.

Last time, I'd had no warning at all — caught in what amounted to an ambush, my response had been a beat too slow. This time I hadn't let my guard down for an instant, and I could react to it immediately.

The second reason was that tucked into my coat right now was something Ji-na had handed me — an item that, for all intents and purposes, could be called Juno's weak point.

"……"

I clenched my fist tight.

Juno — that one, I was not leaving alone. With that thought, I tightened my grip on the sword again — and then:

— Khh, ah! Graaah!!!! Aaaaaaah!!!!

It was a Seven Calamity, too.

And the fact that its strength was on a par with Minerva's was no exaggeration.

The instant I felt the raw power detonating out of it, I jumped back and pulled out the World Tree's Branch, weaving it into a shield. Don't tell me it's planning to self-destruct, I was thinking — when:

— I am. ……not. Like… Minerva!

The earth quaked in answer to its cry.

[The hell…!]

I went pale and scrambled to keep my balance, retreating step by step.

Juno paid no mind at all to the cracks spreading across its body, just kept pouring out power.

— …I am! Not a warrior. Nor… a duelist…!

— Just Juno…! The Seven Calamity. …Juno, that's all!

While it bellowed in that booming voice, the earthquake kept going.

But contrary to expectation, it didn't do me any damage at all.

If anything, its own subordinates and Venus's — the ones who couldn't get clear in time — were dropping through the gaps in the splitting ground or being crushed under collapsing rock, dying off without recourse.

What's it actually trying to do? — I was thinking that when:

[Oh no, don't tell me…!]

Minerva jolted in surprise, then turned a panicked voice on me.

[You — block it, now! You have to stop it! Whatever happens, do not let this earthquake continue!]

The instant she shouted, I threw myself forward.

Juno saw me coming and went right on shaking the earth.

It murmured very, very quietly.

— That is why. …Two of us. Against one… is not… something. I would. …balk at…!

The instant the words left it, water began bursting up out of the cracks in the ground.

Water.

Cracks in the ground.

A massive lake.

It couldn't be.

It couldn't be…!

— …Come. Forth…!

In a cracked, splintering voice, Juno whispered the name of another Seven Calamity.

— …Ve. Nus!

Before the call had even finished, an enormous whale rose into view in all its overwhelming presence.

— BWOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

The ability to teleport anywhere there was enough water to hold its body.

That was one of Venus's countless abilities.

And just as I knew Venus's abilities, Juno knew them too.

Venus began thrashing wildly in the cramped gap that barely held her body.

— BWOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

Waves rose like a tidal surge and swept across the surrounding terrain, and every time she lashed her body, the lake spread wider.

She had her own ability to generate water on top of that, which meant if we left her to it, the entire area would gradually morph into terrain that favored her — and that was as obvious as watching water run downhill.

[No….]

Sbeungali murmured in something close to a quiet groan.

[…Pull back, for now. One I could manage — two is impossible.]

Minerva was right.

This was the time to retreat.

But the two of them had no intention of letting me pull back quietly.

— Trying… to run?

Juno taunted me in a low, whispering voice.

— …There's. A cabin. Behind you, isn't there…?

— That Minerva. …turned. Human. We know… that too.

— Going to dodge?

It said it one more time, in that same whisper.

— Venus's. Waves… can swallow. …an entire. …city.

…It didn't have to say any more for me to get it.

Right after, as if it had been waiting for Juno's signal, Venus's body swelled massively.

[Oh, shit…!]

I bit out the curse and threw myself forward.

If it was just Su-yeong, she could keep herself alive.

Yeah, just her — she'd manage.

But not Minerva.

The Minerva right now was no more than an ordinary person with a faint trickle of mana to work with.

There was no way someone like that could weather a tidal wave large enough to swallow a city and come out unscathed.

— BWOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Venus's roar tore the air behind me again.

What followed it was a sound I'd never heard before, and the most ominous one imaginable.

I knew, without being told, that this was the sound of a tidal wave bearing down on us.

Could I do it?

No — I had to.

Su-yeong, by now, would be reading the situation and bracing the defenses.

If that was the case….

[Khh…!]

I gave up on making it back to the cabin and stopped where I was. I tore the World Tree's Branch out of my palm with everything I had. The branches surged outward, swelling to such an enormous volume that they looked like a single great levee.

[Are you out of your mind, hold on — don't tell me you're—!]

Before Sbeungali could even finish his panicked shout, I was already braced head-on against Venus's tidal wave.

[You lunatic, are you actually insane?! Where in the world is the idiot who stands head-on against a tidal wave?! Even Minerva wouldn't do something this brainless!]

Sbeungali was shouting something or other, but I had no room to answer.

The pressure and impact alone felt like my entire body was about to come apart, and just staying on my feet was as much as I could manage. More than that, the tidal wave Venus had thrown out wasn't ordinary water. She'd laced that vast volume of it through with her own venom and her own power.

That was when it happened.

[…What?]

Something stung.

And like a massive fire taking hold, it spread through every corner of my body in an instant.

[Wait — what…?]

A sudden weakness dropped through my shoulders and knees.

It sounded as if someone was shouting something at me. But all my ears could pick up was that low, droning hum.

— Forgot about. Me, did you…?

A cackling, gloating voice, savoring its little moment.

A burning sensation right at my sternum.

I looked down to find a red, glittering crystal pushed clean through my chest and jutting out the other side.

A transparent crystal, smeared with blood.

It had gone straight through the spot where my heart was.

[…Ah.]

That was all I could manage to say.

By the time I came back to myself, I was already tumbling in the tidal wave, my hand clamped against the crystal that had pierced my heart.

…Someone was telling me, over and over, to stay with them.

Minerva, or Sbeungali.

Maybe both.

They were right.

I had to hold on.

Had to.

I had to….

[WARNING]

[A wound severe enough to threaten your life has been detected.]

[Authority — Dragon Blood is being forcibly activated.]

[Skill — Dragonification is being forcibly triggered.]

[You are about to become a dragon.]

…I had to pull myself together.

As Yu Ji-hyeok had expected, Han Su-yeong had been using the wards and protective spells she'd laid in advance to read the rough shape of the situation.

The first thing she did was grab Minerva's hand.

Then she wrenched out spell after spell to push back the tidal wave, and only once the surge had finally lost some of its force did she break out of the collapsed cabin to find Yu Ji-hyeok.

She knew perfectly well how strong he was.

She knew he was strong enough that her help wasn't needed, and she knew that throwing herself into a place where things on the level of natural disasters were converging wouldn't help a thing.

Even so, sitting still and doing nothing wasn't an option.

She kept pushing herself forward.

Minerva — who would normally bristle and snap at being touched — followed quietly along wherever Han Su-yeong led her.

Eventually the two of them caught sight of a dragon up in the sky, breathing fire at an enormous whale.

"What in the world…."

Minerva looked at the black-scaled dragon and her brow furrowed faintly.

A strange sense of déjà vu prickled at her.

Have I — seen that dragon somewhere before…?

She was still chasing the thought when Han Su-yeong, walking just ahead of her, murmured in a dazed voice.

"…Ji-hyeok?"

Ji-hyeok.

Yu Ji-hyeok.

Yes — of course. It was him.

Minerva, still mumbling to herself, looked more closely at the dragon, and her breath caught.

Where the heart should have been, thorns were writhing.

"What is that…?"

She was still murmuring when a scent — sharp enough to make her dizzy — hit her.

It was a scent she'd taken in countless times by now, and the moment it reached her, a fierce, overwhelming hunger crashed down on her.

It was Yu Ji-hyeok's scent.

As if drawn by something, she turned her head — and even in the middle of the chaos, found a pool of red liquid resting quietly on the ground.

The moment she saw it, she was certain.

That was Yu Ji-hyeok's blood.

And not just any of it — the kind closest to the source of his life. Something almost like his essence.

As if pulled along by something unseen, she began walking toward it.

"Hold on… Minerva?"

Even Han Su-yeong's call didn't stop her.

She slowly knelt down, and carefully lowered her head to press her lips to the pooled blood.

Watching her, Han Su-yeong thought it looked like nothing so much as a pilgrim who had finally reached a holy site after long, long years, pressing her lips to it.

And it seemed she wasn't the only one with that impression — somewhere, someone began to clap, slow and dry.

— Quite the… sight. Minerva.

It was Juno.

Even after going through a knock-down fight with Yu Ji-hyeok and unleashing an earthquake to call up Venus — even after spending an enormous amount of power — it still held a formidable presence.

Enough that if it had any mind to, it could grind both the kneeling Minerva and Han Su-yeong, who'd stepped in to shield her, into dust without a trace.

— Hah. To think you'd. Come to. This.

Juno looked down at Minerva, sounding genuinely stunned.

Either way, she stayed where she was — kneeling, head bowed, not moving an inch.

When Juno caught the quiet sound of her swallowing, it muttered in pure contempt.

— Picking. Things up off, …the ground. To eat. No manners. Minerva. Haven't even. …mastered. The basic… courtesies?

— …The red-haired. Wench, I cannot. …kill. But you are. A different matter.

— …Die.

— Minerva.

With those words, Juno ignored the spells Han Su-yeong was firing off and swung its fist straight down at Minerva.

"No!"

Han Su-yeong's sharp cry rang out, and a sickening sound rolled through the air.

The sound of something shattering apart.

— …What?

Juno took a half-step back without meaning to, staring at its own pulverized arm.

Its eyes — unable to believe what they were seeing — fixed on Minerva, who had risen to her feet at some point.

"…You talk a great deal, don't you."

Minerva murmured it quietly.

A great, sharp horn — the symbol that had always been hers — was sprouting from her forehead, and her eyes, with vertical slit pupils once more, were burning a deep crimson.

"You worm."

And then, another dragon — scales black — stepped into view alongside the first.