1) Dragon’s Crisis

Weed came closer to the Embinyu Church on the back of the dragon.

He was riding the strongest monster, the dragon! The sight of a huge black bear with a half-moon pattern on its chest riding the dragon was an amazing spectacle.

Of course, this combination was a catastrophe for the Embinyu Church.

“Check the status of the enemy!”

“This is excellent.”

Weed was happy after checking the status of the black dragon.

The dragon had less than half its health left due to the collapse of the Sky Tower on it. The fact that the dragon survived that encounter with half its life left made it clear how amazing the dragon’s health was.

“The ones disobeying Embinyu are coming back down!”

“I will say this to all of you. That black bear is the culprit behind all these events. He destroyed our cherished Sky Tower and seized the servant Embinyu has given us!”

“Kill. Forgiveness is not necessary. Pull out his soul and torture it for 30,000 years.”

The vast area was infested with monsters, priests, knights, fanatics and inquisitors. They all hurled fierce criticism towards Weed. Their hostility shot to the top!

But from Weed’s viewpoint, it was just like a cuter kindergarten student grumbling about being deprived of their candy! Weed spoke in a villain like voice.

“Hey, friend.”

-How dare you climb on my back! This dirty and uncivilized species, get off straight away!

“I am your friend. Have you already forgotten who saved you?”

-Ah, that’s right.

The dragon Ausollet had gone insane from the Embinyu Church’s brainwas.h.i.+ng.

“A man must be have a sense of honour. No, dra…. Anyway, you should give as much as you receive. Or else you can’t live in the world.”

Weed absolutely couldn’t say the word dragon. If the dragon came to its sense then Weed would be killed along with the Embinyu Church.

-I have received your help so I will pay you back. What do you want?

“I’m not greedy. I saved you because you are a good friend, not because I want something. By the way, do you remember being in pain due to those people on the ground?”

-Of course. They all deserve to die. I will strike and slowly melt their bodies.

“That is something I want as well. Get rid of those people for me.”

-I agree.

The dragon suddenly changed the direction it was flying in.

Typically the wings of a bird would be affected by wind but a dragon’s movements transcended common sense. Mana could control gravity, allowing it to accelerate quickly. Its acceleration overcame the limits of the laws of physics.

Rather than heading towards the ground at a reasonable speed, the dragon plummeted down at a 90 degree angle.

“Kuwooooh!”

It felt like his body was riding a roller coaster. Weed’s black fur was filled with tension.

“T-this is too fast!”

The dragon banked with its wings as the ground came closer.

Kwarururung!

There was a tremendous noise as buildings crashed down! The gust created from the dragon’s flight shook the buildings. The monsters and fanatics close to the area didn’t survive.

-Primitive species, this is your destiny.

The dragon slowed its speed as it pa.s.sed and struck the archers on the buildings. Naturally the buildings were shattered by a tremendous force. The black dragon’s claws caused the buildings to shatter into thousands of fragments while its tail whipped the knights on the ground.

“You’re doing well. But you can only kill a few of them like this. Smash the buildings!”

-I think so as well.

At first glance, the battle style seemed the same but now it wasn’t constrained to the ground. It could fly at amazing speeds and destroy the buildings.

“The temple is under threat from our sacrifice. All followers, unleash the power of your faith in Embinyu!”

“Shoot. Fire the arrows until it hits!”

The Embinyu Church tried range magic attacks and arrows to little effect.

The dragon dived with great speed towards the building before moving explosively again. Weed could clearly feel the power while riding the dragon.

The dragon’s range of attack was the entire area!

‘Modern warfare is an air battle…jet fighters must feel like they can destroy the world.’

He s.h.i.+vered at the terrifying physical abilities Ausollet must have when it was sane. It was a dragon. The spells and arrows helplessly bounced off Ausollet’s s.h.i.+elds.

“You’re doing well! Well….those fellows are moving. Break the adjacent buildings to make it a dead end for them!”

-Are you asking?

“Of course. I just thought my idea would be useful.”

-I think so as well!

The collapse of the Sky Tower and subsequent battles caused a considerable number of injuries to the dragon but its natural healing abilities meant it was recovering.

In comparison, Weed’s health hadn’t even halfway recovered despite using the earth G.o.ddess Mi-ne’s blessing.

Right now, he had the best ride on the dragon’s back but it was impossible to predict what would happen in the future.

Naturally he prepared some plans. But a normal plan wouldn’t work while he was riding the dragon!

Just like a proverb!

A person can do work but they had to entrust the rest to the sky.When he was a child, he couldn’t understand Sino-Korean no matter how much he learnt in school. But as he got older, he started to understand the meanings through direct experience.

‘If an accident occurs later then I can only blame it on my bad luck.’

Weed interpreted it in his own way! It was like a tiger riding the back of a dragon so it would be difficult to make countermeasures.

The dragon Ausollet used the momentum to continuously inflict attacks on the fanatics and priests. The sight of it was good but it somehow made him feel restless!

But the Embinyu Church wasn’t helpless. There were plenty of flying rocs summoned.

Kiiiik!

The roc had a fierce looking face, a large beak and loved to eat humans. They usually ate dead bodies but could kill humans by swallowing them whole. Their presence was the most terrifying thing to the workers of the Sky Tower! If they rested for even a little while then the rocs would peck their eyes or tongue.

Kuwek!

Kuwaaaak!

Tens of thousands of rocs covered the sky but didn’t dare approach the dragon. The monsters with keen senses didn’t attack the dragon and fled. The Embinyu Church had raised them as pets to kill ordinary humans so they were no help now.

But Weed and the dragon flying at a high speed kept on cras.h.i.+ng into the rocs and their vision became obstructed. It became harder to find the Embinyu priests.

-How annoying. These uncivilized beings….

“Don’t be so patient! If you endure it then your nature will become worst. I won’t be able to endure it if you become worse.”

-What do you mean?

“It is a compliment!”

An operation to destroy the entire area!

Behind the buildings, there were layers of divine protection spells. It was a refuge from the attacks of the dragon as Heuller and 40 senior priests chanted a holy spell.

“Embinyu’s tolerance of merciless destruction, I give these useless vitalities in order to provoke the powers of darkness in your avatar….”

While the ceremony was proceeding, hundreds of priests were using similar spells. As the buildings collapsed, the powers of darkness slowly formed something as large as the dragon.

‘That is really dangerous.’

Until now, Weed hadn’t seen any truly awful divine magic from the Embinyu Church. In particular, he hadn’t been able to see the extend of Heuller’s capabilities.

The contents of the quest stated that he had been alive for a long time. It was understandable that he would have incredible magic and divine power.

The ability to brainwash the dragon didn’t deserve to be called the worst magic. That’s why Weed hadn’t expected this magic from the priests when he was riding the dragon!

“I should start playing. If the world was going to perish tomorrow then I would warm the room with wood from an apple tree. Sculpture Transformation release!”

Weed turned Sculpture Transformation off. And he returned to his original human form as a Sun Warrior and Human Saving the World.

“Friend, don’t be surprised about my body.”

-I don’t care. Just don’t be annoying during the battle.

Ausollet didn’t care if his size became smaller. It was currently in an insane state and didn’t care if Weed was transformed or not!

Weed took out one of the best weapons he obtained in the warring period. Then he became worried that the dragon would l.u.s.t after it.

“Isn’t this not desirable?”

-I want it.

“What should I do? I can’t give it to you, my friend.”

He had to be careful about refusing the dragon because their relations.h.i.+p might deteriorate.

-It is too bad since I wanted it to clean between my teeth.

“…….”

Even a legendary bow was just a flosser for the dragon.

Just like a rich person hiding money before they perish, it was a bourgeois dragon!

Weed aimed an ice arrow at the ground. He had almost reached the master proficiency so each target turned into a zone of ice.

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Yoo Byung-jin slowly drank his cocoa. It was in order to maintain a calm spirit. Just looking at the monitor would cause his heart to beat faster.

Weed smas.h.i.+ng the Embinyu Church while on the back of a black dragon.

“….Great.”

A fabulous sight was being shown. It was an amazing spectacle but anyone who knew the situation would be dumbfounded.

A dragon was the ultimate threat that could lead a world to ruin. A quest to destroy the Embinyu Church hiding in the darkness! They would burn and destroy all species, including humans. A dragon had ma.s.sive capabilities and also gave off an intimidating appearance. Yet Weed came up with the idea to use this legendary dragon!

The speed of its flying was dazzling and he couldn’t take his eyes off the monitor. The coordinators of the stations broadcasting Weed’s adventures were also frozen with their mouths open.

“Yes…so Weed got on the dragon.”

“Riding a dragon. And flying.”

“The viewers might think it is a lie but we are really seeing it. It is hard to believe that this is the actual situation.”

Usually the television broadcast would cut out all the boring parts of the material. Weed’s adventures were never screened and they didn’t even dare a.n.a.lyse the monsters. After a while, the commentators regained their spirit and injected more power into their voices.

“I can’t really explain the situation right now. A little while ago, there was a crisis as the dragon woke up and now Weed is using the dragon to fight against the Embinyu Church.”

“Will it turn out well once the ally becomes an enemy?”

“If the dragon regains its senses then the situation will completely change.”

“Oh Joo-wan ssi, won’t that take quite a long time?”

“Can we really say that it won’t take a few minutes? It is difficult to say without knowing the dragon’s mental state. All I can say with certainty is that if the dragon becomes self-aware, the peace of the continent will irreversibly change.”

“Ah, even the Embinyu Church won’t survive if the dragon wakes up.”

The Royal Road broadcasts had sensational popularity. When lunch time arrived, the workers would talk about the Versailles Continent, Morata or Aren Castle.

The Versailles Continent contained famous resorts, beautiful castles, cities etc. so it was popular during holiday season. It was hard to find someone in the real world with no interest in Royal Road.

In some cases, even the general public who didn’t know about it would occasionally see Royal Road broadcasts. Stunning scenery or monsters would emerge on the television screen.

Once a son, daughter-in-law, grandson or granddaughter fell into Royal Road then the rest of the family would be dragged in. Even the mother or grandmother were deprived of their channels for at least two hours!

“Sang-gook, who are the good guys?”

“Grandmother, that guy swearing over there.”

Still, the main audience were people who actually played Royal Road. Weed’s adventure was a special quest that would affect all the users so they cheered him on.

At first, only a minority of people knew Weed from Continent of Magic. But now everyone knew about the sculptor Weed who came from Serabourg Castle.

Weed’s growth caused users in the north to become fervent believers. Whether they viewed him as a friend or someone who all adventures would envy, he was a hero that shook the continent! Weed’s popularity was as hot as a furnace that melts steel.

Above that, there was the scene of him riding a dragon on television. It was impossible for those watching the television to not become immersed.

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All employees at Unicorn Corporation’s headquarters stopped working to watch the television.

“How wonderful and mysterious. The world we dreamt of is being expressed in this way.”

“Hrmm, Weed the G.o.d of War is really not an ordinary person. The quests are open but I expected it to take 4 years after Royal Road opened for users to face a dragon.”

The employees of Unicorn Corporation continued admiring him. Weed’s presence was making their world outstanding so they were filled with pride The company that oversaw Royal Road realized their pride through this adventure.

“He has a complete monopoly of the Hall of Fame for 3 months. There is also the possibility of more users joining Royal Road….”

“Let’s develop a new marketing strategy.”

“There are people who will want to recklessly hunt a dragon so posting details about a dragon’s abilities on the website should be a fun element.”

The public relations department needed to watch Weed’s adventures to prepare for any important events. Weed’s popularity was soaring into the sky so the employees of the PR department had to watch all the trivial things occurring on the continent. E.g. the novice clothing that Wed wore, the colour would run out of stock in the grocery store.

Unicorn Corporation’s strategy department had to a.n.a.lyse situations.

“The forces of the Haven Empire and the Arpen Kingdom….”

“The movement of the army?”

“There hasn’t been any significant rebellion or resistance in the Haven Empire’s army.”

“The loyalty of the local residents in the occupied territories?”

“The military force is powerful so it would be difficult for the populace to revolt. The basic necessities are being supplied but the Central Continent is busy constructing fortresses and city walls as well as training bases. A good portion of the loyalty has increased due to this.”

Currently the forces on the Versailles Continent was quite simple. 70% of the Central Continent was eaten by the Haven Empire. Population, technology and development as well. Only the remote regions of the continent weren’t overtaken.

Ever since Royal Road started, forces had been working to unify the continent. Of course, legends and events were occurring all over the place so there was no telling who would take control of the continent.

But the Hermes Guild had a long term plan and was quickly calming the anarchy in the centre of the continent. The conquest of the entire continent was right in front of the Haven Empire. The control of the Haven Empire was quickly growing. The lives of the residents living on the Versailles Continent and the millions of users would change.

Unicorn Corporation’s strategy department wouldn’t intervene no matter what happened on the continent. The power structure of the continent or the history would be decided by the users themselves.

The sun and moon rose on the Versailles Continent while people would continue living their lives. The strategy department just prepared for the future of Royal Road.

Director Son Il-gang and the members of the executives board of Unicorn Corporation were interested in reports about who would be the first emperor to unify the continent.

[When considering all the current variables, it is likely that Bardray will become the emperor to unify the continent. …Omission…a substantial amount of time leading up to the military…based on the commercial influence, it is expected to take place in less than 3 months.]

Director Son Il-gang received the report that hundreds of a.n.a.lytical staff had prepared.

“Hmm, I don’t like this.”

There were many members in the strategic department. They were exceptional employees with outstanding minds that a.n.a.lysed the Versailles Continent.

People were either greedy for power or ambition or hoped to fulfil their dreams in another world.

But when watching from the strategic department, it was difficult to foresee the future of the Versailles Continent.

People were selfish or laughed with care. Merchants that acc.u.mulated a lot of wealth lived near the Imperial Palace and laughed more frequently.

Justice didn’t always win and greed firmly tied people together. The hearts of the people flowed towards the G.o.ds.

“Somehow they will find a way. People will live their lives the way they want.”

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Weed shot arrows towards the ground whenever the dragon flew past.

The arrow pierced through the armour of 5 knights, killing them as well as freezing the priests. It was a considerable achievement but it was incomparable to the dragon.

-Grrrrrrr!

“Is it hard?”

-My legs and tail are sore but I can still endure.

“They can’t be allowed to win. You have great power but you can’t be careless!”

-I know. My head hurts. I have to completely handle them.

Originally the dragon couldn’t use its body effectively. It slept for a long time and didn’t do much activities even when awake. But the dragon had destructive and explosive physical skills.

However, the dark power flowing from the Embinyu Church was becoming increasingly strong. The dragon crushed buildings with priests hiding in them and Weed fired arrows at the priest but the dark power barely slowed as the dark shadow formed a huge face, arm and legs.

Heuller and the senior priests had completed the divine magic!

“The holy symbol of Embinyu! His power will descend from heaven in order to control the arrogant and impudent.”

“Ohhhh!”

Weed shot a few arrows at the dark power but it couldn’t break through the priests’ protection magic.

“Smash that body!”

-It is an enormous amount of dirty power. Even I can’t do anything.

Even the dragon was reluctant to approach the dark power.

Instead Heuller and thousands of the surviving senior priests mobilized their divine magic. The combined power of darkness formed a huge avatar of Embinyu that started to move. It had 8 arms like the stone statue of Embinyu and each one was carrying a weapon.

The huge dark power gathered was enough to even overwhelm the dragon. The avatar of Embinyu shook the heavens and earth as it said.

-You are my new servant. Do you want to resist the fate already determined for you?

-I will not obey your commands.

-You will. In the great name of G.o.d, I will tear the wings you are so proud of and trample on your limbs.

-How funny. You will be destroyed by me.

The dragon arguing with the incarnation of Embinyu! The dark form approached as the dragon flew higher into the sky.

“At this rate it won’t be able to chase us. Isn’t that right?”

But Weed was startled by a frightening sight as he glanced behind him. The 8 arms holding a bow, spear, sword, axe, chain and whips were coming closer as the body soared into the sky.

“Don’t run away. Go back!”

-Run away! I’m not running away.

“It is complicated. Our operation will be no substance if you withdraw. How about we try a pre-emptive strike first?”

-I will do so.

The dragon turned towards the Embinyu Avatar. It gathered its speed and physical power to try and destroy the crystallized power of darkness!

The Embinyu Avatar moved its arms and shot the bow, pierced the dragon with the spear and struck with the sword and axe. It was a joint attack at tremendous speed. The dragon was chained up and 7 lightning bolts struck in the blink of an eye!

And it pa.s.sed through the 5 upper layers of the dragon’s s.h.i.+eld.

The dragon staggered and swerved past the crystallized darkness as it lost its balance. Weed’s health was reduced by 27,000. The target had been the dragon Ausollet but Weed had been hit as well.

The dragon was already badly injured so Weed was worried about it.

“Are you okay? Can you continue to fight?”

-A strange hot aura has pierced my body. Dirty magic. It is unacceptable.

The dragon staggered but turned back around to snap at the Embinyu Avatar. But the Embinyu Avatar threw its spear and accurately pierced the dragon.

-Kyaaaak!

A spear was stuck in the dragon’s abdomen. It flew at a shallower depth but the impact on the dragon’s total health was small. The reason was Ausollet’s high resilience and also his layers of s.h.i.+elds.

Kwaaaang!

But then the spear from Embinyu broke into pieces, giving the dragon a secondary shock.

“Ugh!” Don’t fall to the ground. It will be more advantageous for him.”

The dragon wobbled but stayed in the air. The Embinyu Avatar didn’t stop and continued chasing them. The dragon crossed the avatar dozens of times but it was the only one to receive damage every time.

-Painful. It hurts. That magic is really strong. It is too shameful to be attacked like this.

Weed also had no current method for dealing with the Embinyu Avatar. The only thing he could do was shoot arrows but they were easily blocked by the s.h.i.+elds.

Every time the dragon’s claws or tail hit the avatar, it would just scatter like fog only to reform together with no damage to the health.

‘Even a dragon is having difficulty fighting such amazing magic. The last magic of the Embinyu Church. But there must be a weakness.’

If Weed fought alone against the magic then the situation would be even gloomier. Even after receiving the blessings of the G.o.ds, his physical skills were no match for the dragon or the Embinyu Avatar.

-I am angry. This is unacceptable.

“Then do you want to get rid of the humans on the ground?”

-I can’t avoid it just because of my pride.

“Of course, but it would be more advantageous to descend to the ground. That magic is chasing us but then its allies will be at risk. That thing will keep pursuing us!”

-Then let’s go down.

A cloud of poison started emerging from Ausollet’s mouth as it talked.

Ausollet’s att.i.tude changed after that discussion. Some time had pa.s.sed since its brainwas.h.i.+ng and the pain had awakened some of its spirit. Once its arrogant personality was revived, it no longer acted kindly towards Weed.

-Do something. Your arrows should hit the bigger fish properly. Or it might be better if you drink the poison and die.

“Don’t talk like that. I am the one that saved you.”

-Is that so? I can also escape by myself. It is ludicrous to suggest that I’m obliged to you.

The enrage dragon headed towards the Embinyu Church while Weed fire his arrows.

The rotating arrows pierced through the vulnerable part of the priests’ s.h.i.+eld and changed them into ice. The priests of the Embinyu Church became their main target!

The dragon’s magic resistance and physical resistance was a good s.h.i.+eld for Weed. Numerous attacks flew towards Ausollet but most of them were blocked by the s.h.i.+eld. Even the ones that hit the body only caused it to shake.

“Don’t worry about those fellows over there, just kill the scattered priests!”

-I will note your useless opinion.

The movements of the dragon was enough to be reminiscent of the best fighter planes. Fast, smooth and terribly aggressive.

The Embinyu Avatar continued chasing the dragon as it cracked the buildings and trampled on the priests.

There was a spectacular display of magic and arrows as the dragon flew close to the ground.

Most of the attacks were blocked but the red light from the brainwas.h.i.+ng spell pa.s.sed through the s.h.i.+eld and caused the dragon pain. The red whip was an attack to the soul so the dragon couldn’t avoid it and it was extremely painful.

“Take care of the priests. Tracking Arrows!”

The arrows of Weed riding the dragon pierced through the smoke and hit the priests. The dragon might be treating him harshly but the abilities of Weed who became the Great Emperor of the desert couldn’t be disregarded.

The arrows that accurately hit the priests caused them to instantly lose their lives. It was difficult to fire arrows on a fast moving dragon but he aimed at an area densely populated with priests.

Ddiring!

He simply shot among the fanatics and priests. Despite killing some of the priests scattered all over the place, the Embinyu Avatar didn’t show any signs of weakening.

The dragon suffered a rapid succession of large and small wounds every time it encountered the Embinyu Avatar.

And 5 minutes pa.s.sed while he fought alongside the dragon.

Ddiring!

A quest with a S-cla.s.s difficulty appeared!

It was a chance to obtain the profession Dragon Knight. A chance to obtain glory had appeared in front of Weed when everything had been dark.

‘This is just mean. It was like entering a fire with explosives stuck to my body only to have samgyeopsal (grilled pork belly meat) appear in front of me. Then sesame oil is poured on my body.’

Being given a chance to become a dragon knight was something to be proud of. Weed was also greedy. It was just a coincidence that his chances overlapped like this.

During this quest, the dragon Ausollet somehow became indebted to him. But he couldn’t comfortable enjoy the dragon as he could be caught between its teeth at any time.

There would also be problems in the future if the quest succeeded. If he brought the Chaos Dragon Ausollet back to his original time then he would receive a daily barrage of criticism.

“I will reject the quest.”

“Absolutely.”

It was inconvenient that his fame had fallen but Weed just drank seaweed soup.

The Embinyu Avatar didn’t stop chasing after the dragon but he also created a wave of mana that spread out over 100 metres.

There was a sound as it even hit the Barren Howling Ruins.

“What is this….”

“I am afraid. A fearful power can be felt.”

The creatures said as they lifted their heads.

There was thunder and lightning as the sky shook like an earthquake was occurring there. The power of darkness that formed the Embinyu Avatar and the dragon was fighting. The monsters couldn’t help feeling the impact.

And their lives had no choice but to be distorted the top level predator that was the dragon! Just like a herbivore feared a carnivore, they had to accept being dominated by the dragons.

An unknown barrier hid the Embinyu Church from the rest of the world. It was the reason why the creatures that made contact with the barrier distorted into monsters.

The flesh mutating wasn’t an accident.

Jjojojok!

The unknown barrier started to crack thanks to the surge of mana. The barrier broke down at an accelerated pace and turned completely into dust. The concentrated energy was released and the animals soon became monsters.

They turned and looked in one direction.

“Ohhhh!”

“There…I need to go.”

The monsters wandering around the Barren Howling Ruins started moving with purpose. It was the large scale migration of unique monsters. They hesitated at the rotten river before crossing over to the opposite side.

Originally the poisoned river would melt flesh but that was neutralized by the dragon Ausollet. The dragon absorbed mana from nature so it obtained a vast amount of energy from the poison.

As a result, the rotten river was now just an ordinary, dirty river.

“G…o.”

“I need to go there….”

An infinite number of monsters splashed through the river.

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