Third Light (13)
-Hahaha! Is that all you've got? Is that the extent of your power?
Roderick was filled with ecstasy.
His eyes were fixed on the ground of the battlefield that he had swept.
It was to cut off the breath of the wounded who had not yet died.
"Hee, heeek! Spare me! I have a family."
-I had one too.
Roderick's claws pierced through the soldier's stomach.
-But they betrayed me.
The wounded soldier died on the spot.
Roderick enjoyed the moans and pleas of the soldiers like music.
There was no human who could stand against him. He was confident and indulgent in that fact.
-Huh?
At that moment, he saw humans walking out from the fortress.
Roderick didn't recognize most of the faces, but he could identify two people.
-The Great Chieftain of the Barchan Alliance, Larksper, and the Regent of Hupper Kingdom, Adonis?
They were people he couldn't help but know.
-I always heard about you from my master. He said you were the disaster that would bring despair to everyone, and he kept an eye on you.
He sighed as if it were a shame, but he didn't feel any such emotion.
-Normally we wouldn't have met, but I didn't expect to face you like this.
As Roderick continued talking, Larksper and Adonis glanced at each other.
"I don't understand what he's saying. Do you know, Great Chieftain?"
"I don't."
Regardless of what Roderick knew, his mumbling sounded like nonsense.
"Anyway, he's our enemy. An enemy that we have to kill."
"That's right."
Larksper looked back.
Behind him were the orcs who had followed him for the battle with Baltan.
From those with minor injuries to the orcs who could no longer be sustained...
As long as they were not unconscious, all the orcs followed him.
"There will be no regrets."
Larksper swung his two axes in both hands.
Adonis and the knights who followed her also drew their swords.
"Follow Barchan!"
"The goddess Althea is watching over us!!"
With the orcs' shouts, they moved forward.
-Pitiful creatures! Do you think I will be played by mere wounded beings!
The orc warriors moved agilely to avoid the attack, but they couldn't avoid being crushed by the huge body.
'Stall time.'
That was the purpose of gathering them in the first place.
These brave warriors were prepared to die for the Great Chieftain, and they were faithful to their roles.
"For Barchanan!"
"May there be light for Barchan!"
The knights, encouraged by their bravery, followed the orcs.
"Ugh! For the Empire!"
"Glory to the Hupper Kingdom!"
"Yumiyaa! I love you!"
One by one, the shouts and battle cries faded away.
Although they brought more than 500 soldiers, they only managed to hold on for 20 minutes.
Only two were left.
Adonis and Larksper.
-Is that all you've got?
The two of them were also covered in injuries from the shock of the exploding rocks and the sharp magical energy tearing through the surroundings.
It wasn't that they survived, but Roderick deliberately left only the two of them alive.
-Were they just mere mortals after all, since they were the ones he was interested in?
Roderick looked down at them with disdain and lifted his foot.
-Rest in peace, in a world without pain.
He pressed down on them.
But they didn't go all the way down to the ground.
It felt as if he was caught on solid rocks.
Adonis and Larksper were holding up his foot.
-Useless resistance...!?
It was strange while he was talking.
No matter how much force he applied, they would not be crushed.
Adonis, the giant slayer, and Larksper, who had defeated a giant golem.
Together, they were bearing the weight of the over 100-meter-tall Roderick.
"Huaaaaaaa!!"
"Woaaaaaaa!!"
The barbaric warrior's scream and the knight's battle cry erupted, unleashing explosive power.
They pushed Roderick's front foot away, making him stagger.
-How...!
In the staggering moment, Larksper shouted.
"I'll jump!"
Adonis understood his words and lowered her body.
She then put her hands together to support Larksper's foot.
"Come on!"
"Woaaaaaaaa!!"
Larksper let out a cry and jumped.
With Adonis's strength and Larksper's jumping ability, he leaped over Roderick's swaying face in an instant.
Larksper aimed at Roderick's head with the axes he was holding.
"For Barchanan!"
Crack!
But it was Larksper's axe that broke.
He had struck countless times, but in the end, he could not even scratch Roderick's scales.
-These insect-like creatures!
Roderick swung his front foot.
Exhausted, Larksper and Adonis couldn't avoid the blow and took it with their bodies.
"Cough!"
"Kuak!"
Both of them were thrown far away and rolled on the ground without priority.
They had endured with their willpower, but they could no longer stand up again.
-Huu...
Roderick looked down at Larksper and Adonis as if he was going to kill them.
He thought he was dominating.
Though it was a result of being caught off guard, he was still not satisfied.
Even if he was caught off guard, he should still overpower humans.
He had become the dragon he had longed for, and it was unacceptable to think that he could be pushed back by humans.
'Indeed, you are beings that should not exist.'
Roderick's claws shone.
Just as he was about to tear Larksper and Adonis to pieces...
-!!
Roderick felt a strong presence.
A massive amount of mana was gathering.
As if possessed, Roderick stopped killing Larksper and Adonis and flew toward the source.
He flew to the top of the fortress.
He grabbed the outer wall with his front foot and leaned in.
The old man with white hair was the one gathering the mana.
Roderick knew the old man.
He was the second-to-last person he had to exact his revenge on.
Coincidentally, he had encountered him when his turn had come.
As if it were fate.
-So you're the Imperial Workshop Master. You're still alive?
"Do you remember me?"
-How could I forget you? Weren't you the one who banished me from the Empire, saying I was studying heretical magic!?
Thud!
The fortress shook from his stomping, but the Mage Master never wavered.
He calmly continued the conversation while gathering mana.
"Hmm... I think I know who you are."
-Do you remember me?
"I think I know who you are. But it's been a long time since I forgot your name."
-Why is that?
Roderick's voice was full of excitement.
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He took it as if he was being ignored.
-Didn't you banish me from the Empire? How can you forget that?
"I carve the wrongs of others into sand and my own wrongs into stone. If you repent and come back to me, I will not remember that time."
The old man with the long beard spoke.
"But in the end, you didn't admit your mistakes and swallowed the abyss."
-You're wrong. This research was a success. I finally found a way to go beyond human.
"Your youthful blood has not yet cooled down."
The Mage Master laughed with a snort.
"Look at yourself. You've become a huge disaster, consumed by ugly jealousy. Do you think anyone will love you for that?"
-After all, no one has ever accepted me. They mocked and despised me. That's why I struggled.
The Mage Master shook his head.
"You didn't struggle. You gave up on being human."
Roderick found the Mage Master's confident attitude repulsive.
While continuing the conversation, the Mage Master's body had gathered enough mana.
Soon, the Mage Master's magic would engulf him.
He left him alone for three reasons:
To see if the Mage Master knew him and if he regretted the moment he was driven out.
And to plunge him into despair when he thought he had grasped a ray of hope.
-But I think I should be grateful to you.
Roderick lifted his front foot.
-Thanks to you, I was able to advance one step further.
He slammed down on the sitting Mage Master's head.
But there was nothing touching Roderick's claws.
The Mage Master's figure appeared to be pierced by his claws but looked serene.
What he had crushed was an illusion.
-Tricks...!
He was so excited that he couldn't even realize that it was an illusion.
The illusion disappeared and the real body appeared.
As they say, it's darkest under the streetlight. The real Mage Master was right below Roderick's head, even closer than the illusion.
"Ballista!"
A shout came from below.
The ballistae that had been put inside the fortress were launched, binding Roderick's wings once again.
This time, it was firmly fixed without even a chance to exert strength.
-You, you damned old man!!!
Krowaaaaa!!
The dragon's roar was answered by the Mage Master.
"Let's end this battle."
The magic circle drawn on the ground reacted to the mana and flowed back through the Mage Master's body.
A beam of light burst from his gnarled staff and enveloped Roderick.
-Kuuk!! This is!!
Roderick knew what it was. It was the magic that had tormented him terribly when it flew from the fortress.
A magic that never stops until the target's mana is depleted.
It was a suicidal magic with a slim chance of survival.
The Mage Master already knew the risk.
He wasn't afraid of the moment of death.
Rather, the fact that he could do his best made him smile.
Roderick's front foot, fixed to the fortress, was pushed back.
However, Roderick desperately resisted the magic.
-This much...! I can't be stopped!
Even though they had drawn a magic circle to increase efficiency twice as much as a railgun, it was still impossible to completely stop Roderick.
'The Mage Master has a lot of magical power, but...'
'With this alone, it can't be stopped.'
It means that the Mage Master's sacrifice would all be in vain.
Mages are not afraid of death. They fear failure more than death.
And what's even scarier than failure is turning away from the truth they've realized.
Their instinct as mages awakened.
As if possessed, they rushed towards the Mage Master.
Mana rapidly drained from their bodies, wrapped in a massive storm.
Blood flowed from their eyes and ears as they died, but they endured it without escaping.
10 people, 20 people, 30 people.
The Mage Master's magic did not end.
Eventually, the magic penetrated the melted scales, burned the flesh, and headed towards the heart.
Krowaaaaa!!
A painful scream.
For a moment, all sounds stopped.
The Mage Master's mana was completely depleted, and the magic ended.
In Roderick's chest, the scales and flesh were burned, and the heart inside was fully exposed.
Thump Thump
His heart, which had stopped, beats roughly.
-Kuak!
Roderick, whose breath had stopped for a moment, regained consciousness.
-Damn it...! Damn old man!!!
He glared at the spot where the Mage Master had been, feeling like tearing him apart with his claws would make him feel better.
Roderick's pupils contracted.
What was captured in his eyes was the old man, dead in his original position, and behind him were dozens of mages who had died hugging his body like moths to a flame.
It looked like a statue.
It was the appearance of a mage and his followers who had made a noble sacrifice.
-So, it's a magic that stakes one's life?
Roderick laughed.
Even though it was such a destructive magic, it couldn't cut off his life, so it was no different from his victory.
That's what he thought.
But it was difficult to calm his anger.
The very humans he had despised, the inferior creatures, had made him, who had become a dragon, so bewildered by just struggling.
He couldn't accept that truth.
'Don't you know the reason?'
A familiar voice reached Roderick's ears.
It was one of the dragons he had killed.
Whenever there was a chance, they would always speak like this.
Roderick concentrated his mind to suppress the voice.
He burst into loud laughter and celebrated his victory.
-Did you think there would be something that could stop me, Roderick!? These pathetic mortals!!
Roderick opened his mouth wide.
Mana gathered in his mouth.
He intended to burn the Mage Master's body without leaving any trace.
That's when it happened.
The space in front of the Mage Master wavered.
It was a sign of teleportation magic.
It didn't matter. He could just burn it as it was.
He thought so and continued casting magic.
The wavering space flipped, and a man stood in front of Roderick.
-!!
The moment he saw him, he unconsciously cut off his magic.
Gray long hair with golden eyes.
His tall stature and dignified movements were evident.
The master of the Silence Tower, Reed Adeleheights Roton.
A man who climbed to the position of tower master with the body of a villan.
A key card that would sway the existence of the continent.
And...
Phoebe's savior.
The moment he saw him in person, Roderick's body stiffened.
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