Chapter 117: The Golden Black Dragon

If Monica had been in her physical body, her face would have turned pale, while her eyes and jaw would have opened as wide as possible.

The strange man had walked directly toward the golden-black dragon and screamed at it, and if that alone wasn’t enough, he had also called it a "smartass lizard." From everything Monica knew about dragons, he had practically begged for death.

Fortunately, however, even that deafening shout wasn’t enough to wake the dragon from its slumber.

The man seemed to realize the same thing, and Monica could only hope that he would take the opportunity to leave.

Instead, he crossed his arms and tapped one foot against the ground before muttering, "Tch. Why are you always sleeping?"

’If you know it is sleeping, then get the hell out of here!’ Monica yelled inwardly, although she was merely a visitor in this strange place, so naturally, her words meant nothing.

The strange man soon appeared to have another idea, and he suddenly laughed.

"Haha!" he spread his arms wide before curling his fingers as though he were grasping a sword in each hand.

Monica stared at him in confusion.

’What is he doing now?’ she mumbled.

For a moment, the sight was almost comical.

Then, however, the atmosphere changed.

Two swords suddenly appeared in the man’s hands, and Monica’s thoughts immediately stopped.

Both weapons resembled katana, but their appearances were completely different.

One was entirely white, almost as though it had been carved from flawless jade, while golden light shimmered across its surface with an almost divine quality.

The other was completely black, as though it had been carved from darkness itself, and faint black smoke continuously rolled across its blade, giving it an unmistakably sinister appearance.

Before Monica could even process the weapons, crimson aura erupted from the swordsman.

The entire sky seemed to turn red as an overwhelming wave of aura spread outward, and countless rays of crimson energy slammed into the ground around him, carving deep craters into the earth.

The clouds trembled beneath the pressure, while the ground cracked and shook from the sheer force of his presence.

Monica’s blue orb trembled violently.

This power was far beyond anything she had ever encountered.

Yet the strange man didn’t hesitate.

The crimson aura rapidly converged toward his two swords, wrapping around their blades until they seemed to have become extensions of the overwhelming force surrounding him.

Then he bent his knees and launched himself forward.

The ground beneath his feet exploded as his body shot toward the sleeping dragon, both swords raised above his head.

"WAKE UP!" he roared.

The two blades descended toward the dragon with enough force to split the enormous tree behind it, and Monica could barely comprehend what she was witnessing.

However, before the attack could reach its target, the dragon’s enormous eyelids slowly opened.

Two eyes, deep and ancient, emerged from beneath them.

"Silence, human," the dragon muttered.

The man’s attack stopped instantly.

The swords disappeared, and the crimson aura vanished as though it had never existed.

The strange man landed several meters away and looked at the dragon.

"Human? My name is—" he said, raising one hand as though he intended to introduce himself.

Before he could finish, however, everything froze.

The man’s body stopped moving, the clouds became motionless, and even Monica’s thoughts seemed to slow as the dragon suddenly raised its long neck.

Its enormous head turned toward the distance.

Toward Monica.

The dragon was looking directly at the orb of pure blue light.

Monica’s entire consciousness trembled.

The dragon then lifted one of its enormous front limbs, its claws moving with terrifying calmness as it stared at her.

"This is not the place for you to be at, little one," the dragon said.

Monica didn’t even have time to react.

One of its claws pierced directly through the blue orb.

The orb shattered instantly, exploding into countless blue particles that scattered through the strange world.

The particles then shot backward, passing through the enormous reptilian eye, crossing the endless sea of violent purple and red energy, and finally escaping the strange world altogether.

"Haah!"

Monica suddenly breathed loudly as she returned to reality.

She huffed several times while trying to calm herself before muttering, "What was that?"

Her gaze immediately moved toward Elias.

He was still sleeping beside her.

Monica’s eyes narrowed as she looked toward the sunlight streaming through the window, and after comparing it with what she remembered seeing before she had been pulled inside Elias, she realized that the sunlight had barely moved.

Only a moment had passed. Perhaps even less.

She frowned and turned her attention back toward Elias.

"What are you?" she whispered.

Monica lay her head back and stared at him for several seconds, her thoughts filled with questions she couldn’t answer, before finally closing her eyes.

She immediately examined herself.

Her consciousness passed through her physical structure, then her molecular structure, and finally reached her spiritual self in an instant.

Her expression darkened.

Dark, shadowy webs stretched throughout the white space around her, spreading in every direction like a forbidden web.

Monica stared at them for a moment before waving her hand, causing the webs to move aside.

She then stepped forward.

As she walked deeper into her spiritual self, a familiar tower-like structure appeared in the distance, and she entered it without hesitation.

Her gaze immediately landed on countless shelves filled with books.

These were the books she had read throughout her years at the Mage Tower.

There were far too many for her to remember every single one perfectly, so she had created this place to preserve them.

She called it her Mental Library.

Such a thing was impossible for everyone except for Monica of course.

And there was a reason she had come here now.

When the dragon’s claw had pierced through her consciousness, Monica had felt something enter her mind.

If that strange thing had gone anywhere within her consciousness, then this was the place where it should have appeared.

She slowly looked around the library, carefully examining every shelf and every corner.

Then her gaze suddenly stopped.

Something was floating at the center of the library.

Something she had never seen before.

Monica stared at it for several seconds before slowly approaching, her expression becoming increasingly confused.

"What is this...?" she mumbled.