Chapter 1944
‘Am I the only one who has only one life....?’
Kyle used the Lightning G.o.d Transformation according to his survival instincts, only to be thrown into chaos. Lord lost Kyle’s shadow, on which he’d been relying on, and jumped toward the golden dragon instead of running away. Looking back at the judgment he’d displayed throughout the battle, this was a foolish action that didn’t match his very high level of intelligence.
In that moment, the golden dragon’s plan changed entirely. For some reason, he abandoned his pa.s.sive att.i.tude and released killing intent. Everyone else must’ve felt it, though not a single person retreated. All the empire’s warriors attacked the golden dragon along with Lord.
Kyle felt doubtful for a moment. He wondered if they had multiple lives.
‘In this world... Am I the only one who is human?’
Thanks to the Lightning G.o.d Transformation, a crisis was narrowly avoided. If it hadn’t been for this transformation, his mind would’ve been affected even more as blood gushed from his seven orifices. But now, Kyle turned his body into a lightning weapon. He no longer had to watch out for his body, so he quickly regained his composure.
‘...That’s impossible.’
Kyle accepted the truth. What everyone was displaying–it was courage. Their expressions were too clear for their actions to be a.s.sociated with a reckless rampage. They appeared focused, striving to gain insight for their situation.
They were fighting to win, not to die.
‘Dammit.’
Kyle didn’t care if everyone else was going to die or not. HIs dream was to live a long and healthy life. He had no interest in living alongside others. His instincts were instructing him that now was the perfect opportunity to run away, since there were scapegoats who were buying time for him.
But as usual, Kyle couldn’t escape.
‘Dammit!’
He was a coward. Though, if he turned out to be the only survivor of this battle, he believed Grid and Braham would beat him to death.
‘I don’t know about anything else, but the crown prince must be saved.’
That was how he decided he would live...
The greatest strength of Lightning G.o.d Transformation was its speed. Kyle was able to fight enemies much stronger than himself, such as great demons and even dragons, because no matter how transcendent they were, they couldn’t fully respond to his movements, which ignored physical force and demonstrated extreme speed.
But, most importantly, time had proven to be his greatest ally.
Thanks to Grid’s hard work, Kyle had acc.u.mulated many achievements, had received the support of artifacts and had steadily trained on his own over time. This allowed his Lightning G.o.d Transformation to be honed to the best possible state.
Like the Blue Dragon of the East, he reached the limit of his lightning energy for a moment.
Rain began pouring down.
It must have been the work of that monstrous magician called Euphemina, that much was obvious. As Braham’s disciple, she was wicked. By doing this, she was subtly putting pressure on him to fight properly.
The sphere of influence of Kyle’s lightning became extremely wide.
The golden dragon’s body was soaked in blood spilled by people’s attacks, mixing with the rainwater. It was instantly engulfed in lightning. The tightly interlocked golden scales were forced apart, revealing tiny gaps. Chris’ sword was finally able to plunge deeply in Kubartos’ eyes, and Lord’s sword dance split apart Kubartos’ front leg.
Nevertheless, Kubartos didn’t utter a single groan. He threw Lord into a mountain peak and...
‘I did as much as I could.’
Kyle felt plenty of relief. He’d fought hard in front of numerous witnesses. There was no need to worry about the consequences anymore. His lightning energy was almost depleted due to the exertion.
Exhaustion was evident in his features as his Lightning G.o.d Transformation was released and his body restored.
“......”
Kyle was about to quietly take his leave, but his gaze stopped on the golden dragon’s paw.
Lord was trying to crawl his way out. He pulled the claws apart, which were tightly gripping him and trying to tear him to bits, using chemical reagents and magic. He was supported by a s.h.i.+eld infused with the blessing of light. He managed to knock the claws back like he was using a battering ram. Finally, he sliced them with his sword, and escaped into a nearby shadow with Kasim’s support.
‘Is he more talented than his father...?
Even so, talent was meaningless when confronted with Grid’s sword, which prevailed over everything.
Kyle clearly took notice of Lord’s perseverance. It was obvious that Lord wanted to live. His willpower was so clearly defined that Kyle couldn’t stand it.
“You want to live on just like me... yet you put yourself in danger by fighting...?”
It could’ve been sympathy.
“You are a lot younger than me...”
It could’ve been respect. In fact, it didn’t really matter where these emotions were originating from.
The crown prince is just like me.
This was the only thing that mattered to Kyle. Lord was living proof of it.
Obsession with life was human nature, and it was never distasteful.
Contrary to the claims of his parents, who demonized and resented their child for releasing electricity, Lord was telling him that he was human.
“Hup...!”
Kyle felt possessed. He involuntarily let out his remaining lightning energy. Even though he was exhausted, he approached Lord faster than anyone else.
Due to the shadows created by his body, Lord was able to deploy the technique of shadow s.h.i.+fting.
“Sir Kyle...”
The young crown prince smiled even though his body was in tatters. It was as if he was used to these kinds of injuries, as if he’d endured them before.
“Thank you for coming back...”
Finally, Kyle shouted at Lord, who was bowing at him. “Why?”
“......?”
Lord’s already large, dark green eyes widened.
Kyle’s face was twisted in exasperation. “You’ve only lived for 20 years, so why are you already...! Why do you fight so desperately as if anything other than your life matters more? What’s the point of fighting if you’re going to risk your life? His Majesty’s wives have conceived children who are more talented than you! Don’t you already know this? No matter how hard you try today, His Majesty ten years from now will appoint a new child better than you as the crown prince!”
Kyle recalled a memory he’d believed forgotten. The joy his father displayed when he had his second son. Unlike Kyle, who emitted electricity from his body, the second child was normal. Unlike Kyle, who retreated in a corner and was miserable for not being loved, his father hugged his second son, even shedding tears and thanking G.o.d.
One’s own flesh and blood surprisingly didn’t mean that much.
Family was replaceable at any given time. The most important thing in this world was his own well-being...
“Your Highness is still young, but your skills are astounding to the point where you can take the lead against a dragon. With your resilience and talent, you will succeed in anything you want to achieve. Don’t try to beg for your father’s love. Your Highness should value yourself the most...!”
“This is the real you.” Regardless of whether he knew Kyle’s inner thoughts or not, the crown prince kept smiling as he spoke. “It is much better to hear your cries now than when you would whisper timidly to avoid being noticed. This way, your words reach the heart, not just the ears. So naturally, I understand your message and trust you.”
Suddenly, Kyle realized that everyone’s eyes were on him.
The eyes of the golden dragon, who were known as ‘Kuba something’, or something like that, also turned his way.
A chill went down Kyle’s spine and he shut his mouth. He regretted opening his mouth to spout nonsense, feeling shame, and then fear. He felt a tremendous shame for opening up in front of others about his true feelings that even he had been ignoring. He would have preferred death over doing what he just did.
Kyle’s body floated in the air, weak electric currents surrounding him, and slowly moved toward the golden dragon.
Hundreds of people panicked.
“Calm down, Kyle. You have to live!”
“Come back down here! We will protect you!”
“Recover first with His Highness!”
The knights from Saharan who sometimes appeared in his dreams. The Overgeared members he was quite familiar with because he had fought together with them so many times. The members of the Tower of Wisdom he had been jealous of ever since he learnt about their history.
They were all yelling at Kyle.
Don’t give up.
Please keep on living.
They turned a blind eye to him when he wanted to live, but they changed their att.i.tude when he was ready to die. He felt angry, thinking these guys were bullying him on purpose. Realization suddenly hit him.
They were responding to his ‘sincerity.’
“Huhu...”
Regret overwhelmed him. If he had really confided his backstory and heart to someone, perhaps he could’ve cleared away the darkness in his soul a bit faster. Would he have become stronger had he fully accepted the lightning energy in his body instead of denying it?
He felt sorry for himself, but it was already too late.
Kubartos’s jaw was opening, a golden sphere flickering inside.
Just then—
[Don’t come.]
Lord’s voice echoed in his mind. To be more precise, it was engraved in the s.p.a.ce.
[Your son dares to a.s.sert that no one here needs your worries.]
“What...?”
Everyone on the battlefield was stunned.
This was a realm where intent was engraved onto the s.p.a.ce and a person’s will was unfolded.
A state that was symbolic of an Absolute was being manifested through Lord.
[Is it being delivered inside?]
Kubartos’ eyes widened. He was so surprised that he forgot to shoot the Breath.
He saw through the fact that Lord’s will was being conveyed not only outside Trauka’s lair, but also inside.
Even though the inside and outside of the lair were completely separate dimensions, Lord’s thoughts were being accurately conveyed to a ‘specific target.’ Not even an Absolute could do this.
And even so, Lord wasn’t an Absolute.
[Place your trust into your son, comrades and subordinates. Rather than seeing us as someone to be protected, trust us and entrust it to us. I dare say this is respect for those who have worked hard to stand on the same battlefield as you.]
“This...”
Damian’s mouth opened as he maintained his Transcend state while continuing to fire sword energy at Kubartos’ wings. He knew what this phenomenon was.
“The G.o.ddess’ divine message...!!”
It was a method of conveying messages to a desired target while ignoring external factors like s.p.a.ce, object or situation, different from an Absolute, who extended their will to those around them. It was of a much higher caliber. One representative example was Grid’s epics.
The members of the three main churches referred to this as a ‘divine message.’ Damian should’ve made the connection the second he noticed the child using Rebecca’s divine magic.
This child was under the G.o.ddess’ protection. How did the G.o.ddess, who became an enemy of all of humanity, feel when she taught the child? How did the child feel about being taught by the G.o.ddess who was his enemy?
One thing was certain. They had no intention of planting seeds of doubt. Damian remembered the warmth of the G.o.ddess. He’d also witnessed Lord’s love for his parents and the Overgeared members. It was unlikely that their affiliation would include betrayal.
[He stopped running at the sound of this voice and nodded silently.]
Grid’s epic answered him.
The epic, which had been silent after the news of him being surrounded by a number of dragons, couldn’t break the father’s will to respond to his son and leaked out.
‘Fortunately, he is safe.’
A bright smile spread across the relieved Lord’s face.
His father had faith in his son. The bonds and connections that came from that... This was a valuable experience for a child, one that couldn’t be exchanged for anything.
A sense of fulfillment swept over Lord, one that was different from when he’d witnessed his father’s life and skills on his own.
[...I can see why the old dragons insisted that you shouldn’t be hurt.]
Kubartos was stunned for a moment before returning to his senses.
[If you die, either Rebecca or Grid will go crazy. I don’t want to kill you either. But I am going to make you my own.]
Kubartos dissipated the magic power he gathered to fire the Breath and flapped his wings with all his might. He closed the distance between him and Lord and Kyle in the blink of an eye.
Just then, dozens of Dragon Harpoons pierced Kubartos. The air mines previously installed by Lord worked exquisitely thanks to someone’s magic.
“I won’t give my disciple to anyone.”
It was Braham.
The G.o.d of magic saw through his young disciple’s plan the moment he arrived on the battlefield. The gravity spells had been attached to dozens of Dragon Harpoons, set up in antic.i.p.ation for Braham’s intervention.
Quite a neat arrangement.
Braham easily exercised his influence. He replaced his student’s magic with his own and aimed for the golden dragon’s blind spots.
Just like this, Kubartos was stuck in the air, unable to capture Lord and Kyle.
“Storm Sword.”
Sword Saint Kraugel also created a storm of sword energy. The fire dragon’s flames erupted, blackening the scales of the golden dragon.
Lord reacted. Kyle’s lightning, as well as Faker and Kasim’s shadow techniques, were empowering his sword. Other warriors followed behind him.
Before he knew it, apostles like Zik and Mir had joined the ranks.
“Linked Kill Flower Pinnacle.”
Every magician unleashed their strongest magic, guided by the G.o.d of magic.
“Punishment.”
Kubartos’ large body was trembling, barely able to shake off the harpoons. Blood spilled from all over as his scales were torn off and his flesh and muscles were destroyed.
Hundreds or thousands of skills and magic fused together thanks to Lord’s sword dance, with its power to connect people, wounded the dragon severely.
[...Kuaaaaaack!]
The screams of the top dragon, who dreamed of becoming the strongest, echoed all over the battlefield.
[The horn of the most faithful dragon was cut off...]
The system witnessed an incredible miracle and was paralyzed with shock for a moment.
Grid’s epic was no longer concealed and was updated in real time.