Chapter 836

The Regressed Mercenary’s Machinations

I'm Not Saving the World (5)

Threads of mana instantly bound the dragons.

At the same time, Ghislain spread a massive mana field, suppressing the dragons' mana.

Julien widened his eyes in surprise.

“Ghislain…?”

That crimson aura was a power only Ghislain could wield. He thought Ghislain had already left. It was hard to believe, even seeing it with his own eyes, that Ghislain had suddenly appeared.

Gripping the threads of mana tightly, Ghislain shouted again.

“Move quickly!”

At once, all the dragons' gazes turned to Ghislain.

“How dare you!”

The dragons were enraged.

A mere human, daring to deploy a mana field against dragons on his own!

To punish such arrogance, the dragons focused their mana on Ghislain. But they were thrown into confusion by an unexpected situation.

Drrrrrrr!

They couldn’t move easily. Moreover, their spells wouldn’t manifest properly.

Incredibly, a mere human had bound the dragons' bodies and mana—if only for a moment.

Of course, Ghislain had to endure a tremendous backlash for it.

“Urgh!”

Blood streamed uncontrollably from his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth.

Activating all his cores and drawing out mana to the limit produced a power no human could withstand.

Ghislain’s body was wrecked in an instant. The dragons quickly tore through the restraints and regained their freedom.

But Julien had already moved, not missing that brief opening.

BOOOOOM!

A stream of darkness shot toward Deneb.

Arterion whirled around, releasing an explosion of mana.

BOOOOM!

A massive wall of ice rose up to block Julien's path.

CRACK!

Julien shattered the ice wall in a single blow and charged forward. But immediately, countless spells from the dragons came crashing down on him like a storm.

It was as if every natural disaster manifested by magic was pouring down on him.

The dragons desperately tried to block Julien’s advance. They were now burning their own life force.

As time passed, Deneb’s body grew stiffer. Julien grew increasingly desperate, but breaking through all this magic at once was impossible.

Then, Lionel leapt in, colliding head-on with the dragons’ magic.

BOOOOM!

Tremendous spells fell like meteors and exploded as they clashed with Lionel’s energy.

Coughing up blood, he shouted,

“Go!”

Lionel too was burning his life force to resist the dragons’ magic.

His hair began to turn white. Even so, he grit his teeth and held on.

He understood Deneb had devised a plan they weren't aware of. There must have been a reason she resolved to sacrifice herself.

But there was no time to think it through.

How could he stand by and watch as a friend was trapped forever right before his eyes?

So he risked his life to help Julien.

“…Thank you.”

Julien left only those few words and pushed forward.

But Arterion, who had reappeared at some point, blocked his path once more.

Now covered in blood, the pure-white dragon roared, eyes radiating a chilling, blue murderous intent.

“You will never reach the Saintess! Not now! Not ever! For all eternity!”

As he hurled out that cursed proclamation, Arterion opened his jaws wide.

KWAHHHHHH!

A blizzard-like typhoon surged from his mouth.

The other dragons also unleashed their breath attacks at Julien once more.

The more breath they expelled, the weaker their energy grew. But now wasn’t the time to worry about the aftermath.

KWAHHHHHHNG!

Julien shrouded himself in darkness and endured the dragons’ breath.

He wasn’t injured, but neither could he advance. Under the immense pressure, his steps were actually being pushed back little by little.

Just then, a red light stirred once more in midair.

Seizing the moment while the dragons’ attention was fixed on Julien, Ghislain moved toward Deneb.

‘Julien, hold on.’

Ghislain grit his teeth. Even just breathing now made his body feel like it was breaking apart.

But it would still be better than sending Julien in. The divine power radiating from the altar was in direct opposition to the darkness Julien harbored.

So if he could just be the one to go in first…

“You think dragons are to be taken lightly?”

With that chilling voice, a torrent of fire breath engulfed Ghislain.

He reflexively deployed a shield and curled up to endure.

KWAHHHHHHHHHH!

The ultra-high-temperature flames devoured him as if to melt him down completely.

The red dragon Kvarnex, while keeping Julien in check, had kept his attention on Ghislain.

That’s why he noticed Ghislain’s maneuver right away and immediately launched his attack.

“Grrrk…!”

Ghislain had no choice but to halt his advance toward Deneb.

He withstood the breath, but Kvarnex’s spells continued to pour in relentlessly.

BOOM!

Landing on the ground, Ghislain quickly pulled out Gramdyr and Cardnach from subspace.

Gripping his sword and spear in each hand, he ignored Kvarnex and charged straight toward Arterion.

KWAANG!

In an instant, Ghislain’s sword slashed and his spear pierced through Arterion’s body.

“You bastard!”

Focused on Julien, Arterion had let his guard down and took the hit before turning his head. But Ghislain was already moving toward another dragon.

KWA-KWA-KWA-KWA-KWA-KWA-KWANG!

Ghislain darted between the dragons like a bolt of lightning, unleashing attack after attack.

‘I won’t last long.’

The feeling in his fingers gripping the weapons was already growing numb. But still, he had to fight up close.

In his current state, keeping distance would only make him vulnerable to the dragons’ magic and breath attacks. So Ghislain chose melee combat to scatter the dragons’ focus.

‘Julien, this is your task.’

Julien was exhausted too, but he was still in better shape than Ghislain.

No one knew how long he could withstand the power of the Sacred Stones, but there was no other way now.

KWAANG! KWAANG! KWAHHHHNG!

Blood-soaked, Ghislain rampaged through the dragons in a trance-like state.

Even in his fatigue, his attacks remained sharp, always aiming for vital points. Even the dragons couldn’t ignore his deadly precision.

Their massive bodies couldn’t easily catch Ghislain, who moved like lightning.

When they tried to fight with magic, Ghislain quickly used another dragon as a shield.

The dragons, unfamiliar with such a battle, grew flustered. Their spells struck their own kind, throwing them into chaos.

And Julien didn’t miss that moment.

KWAHHHNG!

Once again, a streak of darkness traced a long arc and shot forth.

“Stop him!”

As expected, Arterion reacted first.

Trusting in the divine power of the altar, he turned to unleash a breath attack toward Julien’s back. That was how desperate he had become.

But Ghislain suddenly appeared and drove Cardnach into Arterion’s forehead.

KAAANG!

A powerful shield erupted, blocking Cardnach.

Arterion’s eyes burned with fury.

“Astion… You damn—”

As the enraged dragon prepared to cast a spell at Ghislain, Ghislain released Cardnach.

Then, gripping Gramdyr with both hands, he swung with all his strength.

KAGAGAGAK!

The crimson blade cut through the shield and finally slashed Arterion’s forehead.

“Grhhhaaa!”

Arterion winced in agony and threw his head back.

But Ghislain couldn’t follow up with another attack.

“Urgh!”

Unable to endure any longer, he coughed up blood and crashed to the ground.

Immediately after, the furious dragons unleashed their spells like a torrential downpour.

KWA-KWA-KWA-KWA-KWA-KWAAANG!

At the critical moment, Lionel snatched Ghislain and rolled across the ground.

Some of the spells struck Lionel directly. But he grit his teeth and used all his strength to shield Ghislain.

“Huff, huff…”

Lionel, too, had reached his limit. His body had been wrecked for some time now.

Still, he was in better condition than Ghislain, who could do nothing but cough up blood, unable to move.

Cradling Ghislain in his arms, Lionel charged forward blindly. The priority now was to escape the dragons’ line of sight.

The dragons couldn’t focus on them anymore.

What mattered to them was the Saintess. Julien couldn’t be allowed to rescue her before the seal was complete.

But it was already too late.

Before the other dragons could stop him, Julien had entered the veil of divine power.

SSSSSSSSHHHH!

His darkness began to burn violently.

“……”

This sacred space didn’t allow him even a single step forward.

Even so, Julien grit his teeth and kept walking forward.

All around him was filled only with white light.

A world of light without form, without paths, without hope.

“Deneb…”

But he knew—he knew Deneb was at the end of it all. So Julien continued walking.

SSSSHHHH…

The darkness burned and screamed.

His black wings writhed in agony.

With every step he took, the darkness twisted violently.

“Deneb…”

No matter how painful, he couldn’t stop.

Deneb had sacrificed herself to save him from the darkness.

He didn’t know exactly how she intended to save him, but he trusted her—Deneb wouldn’t have said such things without reason. If her plan succeeded, then he would be saved.

But Julien couldn’t allow her soul to remain trapped in this place.

He would rather suffer eternal torment in darkness than endure the pain of knowing she was imprisoned here. There was no greater agony than that.

And Deneb knew Julien’s heart.

Her voice echoed gently from within the light.

“Julien.”

“Deneb…”

“Don’t suffer anymore. I’m okay.”

“Deneb…”

Just hearing her whisper made him feel as if he couldn’t breathe. Merely calling her name felt like his heart was being torn apart.

Julien reached out with a burning hand.

Toward the unreachable light, the darkness struggled with all its might to extend its grasp.

Because that was the only meaning left in his life.

But the light, in order to bring salvation to the darkness, deliberately pushed that hand away.

To walk the path toward a single future.

SSSSSHHH…

The darkness couldn’t endure the light and burned even more fiercely. The pain of a soul being extinguished dug into his very bones.

And yet, Julien understood.

This light wasn’t pushing him away. It was embracing him—one last time.

From within the light, a gentle voice rang out again.

“Don’t worry. We’ll meet again.”

“Again…”

“Yes, someday far away… in a very distant future…”

“In the distant future…”

Julien stopped walking.

Deneb would never lie to him. So the words she spoke now had to be true.

Now, he finally understood.

There was no way he could break through this light and reach Deneb—not yet.

Swallowing a trembling breath, Julien gazed into the depths of the light.

“Deneb…”

There was no answer, but he felt it clearly.

She was listening to him right now.

“I swear I’ll…”

“…”

“I’ll come back for you.”

Deneb smiled.

Julien wouldn’t be able to see that smile, but even so, she spoke with a smile on her face.

“…I’ll wait.”

Even if it takes a thousand years.

If it means seeing you again…

FWAAAHHH!

Suddenly, light exploded and enveloped the city. The divine power swept past everyone within the dragons’ barrier.

Moments later, the light vanished as if it had never been there.

And atop the altar, only a white statue remained—its eyes closed in prayer.

GUOOOOO…

Soon, all the darkness of the Demonic Abyss began to pour into the city.

The darkness squirmed and tried to flee outward, but it sank downward instead, as if drawn by an immense gravitational force. Thus, the encroaching darkness weighed heavily upon the land.

Julien stared at Deneb, now turned to stone, for a long time.

Then Arterion, seeing that, burst into maniacal laughter.

“At last! At last, the Demonic Abyss is sealed! Hahahahahaha!”

He could no longer contain his excitement.

The darkness that once filled the Demonic Abyss was now flowing into this place. It was the first time this had ever been attempted, but there was no doubt in his mind—it had succeeded.

The other dragons also couldn’t hide their joy. This was the moment their long-cherished wish as a race was finally coming true.

At that moment, Julien turned his body.

His dwindled darkness surged out again in an explosive wave. His twisted wings unfurled as if reborn.

And in the next instant—

He became a black flash.

FWAAANG!

Arterion was exhausted. And unguarded.

He had no way to avoid Julien’s sudden charge.

No—it was more accurate to say he couldn’t react in time because Julien had suddenly grown stronger.

SHLUNK!

Before anyone knew it, Julien’s sword was driven into Arterion’s chest. The darkness spewing from the blade twisted like a serpent, burrowing into Arterion’s insides.

“GRAAAAGH!”

Arterion screamed in agony.

But he was the strongest of the Dragon Lords. Arterion gathered all his mana to resist the invading darkness.

He looked down at Julien and spoke.

“You… will die here…”

A cruel smile formed at the corners of Julien’s lips.

“You said Deneb would be trapped until the end of the world, didn’t you?”

“You…!”

“Then I’ll end the world for her.”

FWAAAK!

Destructive light flared in Julien’s eyes.

And at that moment—

His darkness shattered into fragments and began to scatter across the world.