Chapter 37: Saving Grace

Chapter 37: Chapter 37: Saving Grace

Just as things were turning out to be extremely favorable for Krono, something very unexpected happened.

​Crack!

​A sickening sound of something breaking echoed throughout the tavern.

​Krono, who had been momentarily distracted, turned around.

​Instantly, he froze.

​He saw Dragnil’s lifeless eyes, his massive body slumped heavily against the wooden counter.

​His neck was gruesomely tilted to one side, as if something had snapped it like a dry twig.

​Krono’s crimson eyes widened. He had not expected Malakor to go after Dragnil before targeting him at all.

​Yes, Malakor. He did this.

​Malakor snickered upon seeing Krono’s shocked expression.

​"What? Are you wondering why I killed him instead of you?"

​He stepped closer, wearing the exact same haughty expression he had when he first entered the building.

​"This miserable, lowborn scum gave shelter to a human rat. Because of him, all my guards are dead. He deserved it. And do not think you can kill me just like you did to them."

​He pointed to the severed Dragonoot corpses with a face full of absolute contempt.

​"I am a Noble Dragon! And we do not accept defeat this easily. Let me show you the true power of a Noble Dragon!"

​Just after he finished speaking, his body began to violently transform.

​His head morphed into a monstrous, reptilian snout. His pale human skin practically melted away as thick, ruby-red scales violently pushed through his flesh.

​His elegant golden horns thickened and lengthened, curving sharply backward like a pair of deadly crowns. His jaw unhinged with a sickening crunch, pushing forward as multiple rows of serrated, dagger-like teeth erupted from his bleeding gums.

​"Roooooooooar!"

​Malakor’s draconian roar echoed, reaching far and wide throughout the Rodrag City.

But hjs physical body was still undergoing a horrifying expansion.

​His expensive leather armor shredded into tiny pieces as his chest barreled outward. His arms and legs stretched, tearing thick muscles and reforming them with terrifying density.

At last, two massive leathery wings burst wide from his shoulder blades, smashing directly into the wooden ceiling of the tavern.

​The building could not contain him anymore.

​The wooden support beams trembled and snapped like toothpicks. The roof caved in, raining debris everywhere as Malakor grew to a towering height of 10 meters.

In the process, he easily crushed the remaining tables and chairs beneath his massive clawed feet.

​He was a true Red Dragon. A noble fire dragon to be exact.

​That being said, he could no way be compared to Lord Ignis.

​Malakor looked down at the tiny human boy, his glowing yellow eyes burning with pure arrogance and active magma.

​"Witness the absolute pinnacle of evolution. I will melt your flesh from your bones, you miserable little rat!"

"Fire Dragon’s Roarrrrrrrrr!"

​He roared, and instantly, a scorching beam of fire energy shot toward Krono.

It was very terrifying. Even the air molecules burned under its scorching heat.

​At such a close distance, dodging was impossible. Even with his 200 Agility, Krono could not react in time.

​Noble Dragons are ranked just below the Royal Dragons. Their elemental powers are very strong.

So, underestimating Malakor was Krono’s first mistake.

The ruined tavern was completely engulfed by the blinding pillar of concentrated fire.

Buzzz!

The intense heat instantly vaporized the remaining wooden debris and melted the stone foundation into bubbling slag.

It went for nearly a minute.

​Malakor finally snapped his massive jaws shut, letting out a thick puff of black smoke.

"HA HA HA."

He let out a booming, arrogant laugh that shook the surrounding streets.

"That’s what you get for messing with noble dragon!"

He thought the foolish human child had been reduced to a pile of scattered ashes.

But suddenly—

​"Is that truly all the warmth a Noble Dragon can muster?"

​Malakor froze. The voice was ethereal, smooth and feminine. But it radiated an ancient, suffocating pressure that made his giant reptilian heart skip a beat.

​

When the smoke cleared, his massive eyeballs were about to pop out of their sockets.

Krono was standing in the exact same spot, completely unharmed. Not even a dust coild be seen on his small frame.

​However, his posture had completely changed.

He no longer stood like a cautious, calculating boy.

He stood with a relaxed, supreme arrogance that utterly overshadowed the dragon’s pride. It is as if the Dragon’s massive size meant nothing before

​Deep inside the Mind Sea, Adira had forcefully seized control of the vessel at the very last microsecond to save her host from his fatal miscalculation.

​"You’re still a child, old man. Let me show you how to properly use violence against a lizard," Adira spoke through Krono’s lips.

​She did not bother casting any high-tier magic.

She simply took a single step ahead.

As he did, the melted ground shattered violently beneath Krono’s tiny boots. And in less than a fraction of a second, the boy completely vanished from sight, reappearing directly above the ten-meter dragon’s maw.

​Wearing a vicious grin, Adira swung Krono’s small fist downward.

BOOM!

​The impact sounded exactly like a mountain collapsing.

The force of impact sent Malakor’s massive head straight into the dirt, creating a massive crater in the middle of the street.

Whoosh!

​Before the dizzy, agonized dragon could even comprehend the pain, Adira moved again.

She grabbed one of the thick golden horns that Malakor was so incredibly proud of.

"Let me see how tough are these, little lizard!"

With a casual, almost bored tug, she yanked the massive beast entirely off the ground, completely rejecting gravity.

​"Noble blood? Do not make me laugh," she mocked.

​Using Krono’s tiny body, the Godless Hero began to casually slap the giant dragon across the face.

PAAAH. PAAAH. PAAAH.

Each backhand generated a visible shockwave.

Malakor’s massive sharp teeth shattered, so as his scales, like plucked chicken.

"Grrrrr!"

​Malakor growled in agony and desperately tried to ignite another fire breath.

But Adira simply was prepared. She clamped Krono’s tiny hand around the dragon’s massive throat and squeezed.

The horrific pressure choked the flames right out of the beast, leaving him gasping for air.

​He was supposed to be a terrifying apex predator of the ruling class. But right now, at the hands of Adira, the 10-meter Noble Dragon was being effortlessly manhandled.

He looked exactly like a helpless chicken waiting for the butcher’s knife.

BANG!

​At the end, she drove a brutal kick into his ribs, caving in his armored chest with a horrific crunch.

Malakor’s massive eyes rolled back into his head, and he fainted.

All his arrogance and pride shattered into hand of a mere human child.

And this news spread throughout the city like a wildfire.