Chapter 41: Dragon Devourer

Chapter 41: Chapter 41: Dragon Devourer

​"Do you think I am a fool?" Krono sneered, his voice dropping to a freezing whisper that paralyzed the air itself.

​"You came here in search of me. You wanted to capture me. You fully intended to drag me back to your precious Baron in iron chains and peel my skin off in the city square for the entertainment of your nobles."

​The guard lieutenant swallowed hard, taking another shaky step backward. Their pathetic facade of politeness completely crumbled.

Realizing that begging would not save them from the monster standing in front of them, the lieutenant tightly gripped his rune enchanted broadsword.

They acted in desperation.

​"Attack him! He is just one human brat! If we do not kill him here, the Baron will execute our entire families! Strike him down right now!"

​Driven by the paralyzing fear of their ruler, the remaining elite Dragonoot guards charged forward.

"Yes, sire!"

They raised their heavy spears and swords, channeling their fiery mana into a desperate, coordinated strike aimed directly at Krono’s chest.

​Krono just opened his small hands.

​"[Absolute Absorption]." he whispered.

​Upon saying that, a massive violent shockwave of pitch-black mist erupted from Krono’s body.

Buzz!

The dark fog moved with a predatory hunger, instantly crashing into the charging guards like a tidal wave of shadows.

The result?

​Their weapons never even reached him. The exact moment the black mist touched their elite armor, the steel began to rust and dissolve into gray ash.

​Then, the mist touched their living flesh.

​"Ahhhhhhh!"

​They all let out blood-curdling screams.

They quickly dropped their weapons, desperately clawing at their own faces and chests as the mist began to digest them alive.

"Rrrrrrrrrr!"

The agonising pain could only be imagined.

The devouring force melted away their impenetrable dragon scales, like wax under boiling water. Muscles, veins, and bones were rapidly broken down into raw streams of pure energy.

​Krono stood perfectly still in the center of the dark storm, drawing the living essence directly into his own body.

​But as the fresh, living mana flooded his veins, a sudden agony pierced his chest.

​Krono released a weary sigh.

​Devouring dead corpses was easy as the spiritual essence of a corpse had already departed, leaving behind only raw energy. But devouring living, breathing, terrified beings raw was an entirely different nightmare.

​As their physical bodies dissolved, their panicked, screaming souls violently crashed into Krono’s mind. He could actually feel their raw, suffocating terror. He could feel the excruciating, burning pain of their flesh melting away.

The fragmented memories of their lives, their families, and their dying regrets echoed through his consciousness like jagged pieces of glass.

​It felt as if a thousand burning needles were being hammered directly into his very soul. It nearly threatened to tear his fragile sanity completely apart.

As a defensive act, his soul erupted with dark fire, completely erasing their remnants of existence.

​His nose bled from the pressure, but he held strong with a fearless grin.

​"So this is... the price huh."

​The line of dragons and merchants could only watch with horror.

​Krono did not even glance in their direction. He simply wiped the dark blood from his nose, adjusted his black scarf, and vanished quietly into the shadows of the alleyway, heading quietly toward his next target.

​For several long, agonizing minutes, the Northern City Gates were completely dead. Not even the massive carrier beasts dared to breathe too loudly. The spot where five elite guards had stood just moments ago was entirely empty.

There were no bodies. There were no shattered weapons. There was not even a single drop of blood left on the cobblestones.

​Finally, a young cargo handler collapsed onto his knees, gasping for air as if he had been suffocating underwater.

​"Oh mother Tiamat! Did you all see that? Tell me I am just having a nightmare. Please tell me I did not just see that."

​"Keep your voice down, you bloody fool! Do you want that monster to hear you? Do you want him to come back for us?"

​"But did you not see what he did to them? He ate them. He did not just kill them. He ate them alive! I heard their bones snapping inside that black fog! I heard them screaming as their scales melted!"

​Among them, the wealthy green-scaled merchant, who had been brutally beaten by the guard lieutenant just moments prior, slowly picked himself up from the mud.

He then stared blankly at the empty street, completely ignoring his own bleeding lip and ruined silks.

​"That was no human boy. Humans wield swords. Humans cast fire and light. They do not consume living flesh with shadows."

​"Then what was it, sir?" the young handler asked, tears streaming down his scaly face. "What kind of demon is hunting the noble guards?"

​The wealthy merchant looked left and right slowly. His eyes remained locked onto the exact spot where the dark mist had swallowed the soldiers.

​"I do not know. But the Arklong Barony has provoked something deeply unnatural. Something that does not care about our thick scales or our noble bloodlines. He looked at those elite guards the exact same way a starving wolf looks at a piece of meat."

​"Did you see his eyes? Those glowing red eyes... They were looking right through us. We are nothing but food to him."

​"He is a devourer, no a Dragon Devourer. And if the Baron does not stop him soon, he is going to eat this entire city alive."

"The Dragon Devourer! How terrifying!"

​"Did you hear? He devours living dragonoids whole!"

​"The Dragon Devourer is hunting in the streets!"

​Like a poisonous wildfire, the dread title spread rapidly through the mouths of hundreds of merchants, city guards, and common citizens alike. Every individual who whispered the name felt a cold spike of genuine terror in their heart.

​Within an hour, the panic reached every corner of Rodrag City. Taverns went silent, merchant caravans locked their iron gates, and shadow patrols refused to walk the alleyways alone.

​Eventually, the frantic whispers scaled the massive stone walls of the upper district and crashed directly into the grand hall of the City Lord’s mansion.

"City lord, we have a bad news!"