Chapter 286

The Vampyr Forest, west of Lunatic, had become a ruin with nothing to recognize it by after the war. The sound of quiet slithering echoed.

“Hmm... There’s no way he can still be alive,” someone mumbled once he arrived at a giant pit where Pseraslav’s Solar had collided with Haema Sanguis.

The man looking down at the pit was Abraxas, a man with a black rooster’s head, a horn resembling that of a rooster’s comb, and two snakes for legs. He had been waiting for all the attention to shift away from the forest after the arbitration because of orders from Iblis, the Evil God, the leader of Daemonium.

“I had thought Necrophilia would take part, but it appears they were a bunch of cowards. What did I expect from a bunch of half-breeds?” Abraxas said, smiling mockingly as he entered the pit, his snake legs slithering down. “Half-breeds who serve Doom, Curiositas’s laboratory experiment, should be revering the pure-blooded demons of Daemonium.”

The relationship between Daemonium and Necrophilia was traditionally horrible. Daemonium was a faction of demons who had existed since their time in Tenebrae, the demons’ home dimension, and took pride in their long-standing history.

On the other hand, Necrophilia was a new faction that had been born in the Mirror World, and their leader, Doom, was once an undead. Doom had become a demon by offering Curiositas the undead race stone and created his own faction by gathering undead and other demons who were blazing with ambition.

Hence, Necrophilia was merely a group of half-breed demons to members of Daemonium.

“Hehe, Master Iblis stands above you all. The lowly ones can play their tricks while I, the Eternal Gentleman, will take the fruit,” Abraxas remarked as he reached the bottom of the pit and looked around, searching for what he had been ordered to find.

Just then, a hand made of blood silently sprouted from the ground, pierced Abraxas’s chest, and grasped his heart.

“W-what the—?!” Abraxas shouted, shocked by the absolute fatality he could feel from the red hand. “N-no! GURGHHH!”

The red hand absorbed all of Abraxas’s blood in a flash with immense absorptive force, and Abraxas’s dry corpse turned to dust. A consul of the Sēmen—a superior race—had died just like that.

The red hand that had devoured Abraxas became more vivid. It grabbed the ground and pulled the rest of its body up. A torso and legs came up to the surface, and lastly, the head.

“Huuu. I almost died because of my foolish descendant.”

The entity that was made up only of blood was the Primordial Vampire, Lord Mulleus Rubens Sanguineus. After foreseeing Haema’s defeat, he had concentrated all his powers and consciousness into one drop of blood and managed to escape just in time. However, he had lost his body, which he had believed was the strongest, because of it.

“I need blood and a powerful body,” Mulleus remarked as he shifted his gaze eastward, where he could feel countless signs of life. “First, I’ll—Hm?”

He suddenly stopped in his tracks with a hardened expression—no, he couldn’t move. The entire world was dyed with a green light, and time itself had stopped.

[Activating Star Power: Grace Period.]

I can’t move! Mulleus thought, shocked by the pressure that prevented him from even moving a finger.

He then heard footsteps approaching from behind him.

“You have no idea how long I have been waiting for you, Mulleus,” someone said.

The individual soon arrived before Mulleus and smiled as he stared at him. He was a handsome young man with heterochromatic eyes of green and black, and deathly pale skin.

“I incited Haema Sanguis to make him look for you. After a long wait, he finally succeeded in pulling you, an existence of another dimension, out into the Mirror World. He was quite diligent.” The man grinned refreshingly. “This experiment was a huge success.”

The Demon God, expressing madness, ecstasy, and satisfaction all at the same time, extended his hand toward Mulleus and said, “I propose a deal. If you sate my curiosity, I am willing to provide everything you need.”

***

Countless humans followed the tram crawling along the ground as they chanted Cheon Seong-Hwi’s name and Underground.

“Whistle, you’re quite the star,” Gilder Roy remarked as he stared at the fanatical people from across the tram’s window.

“You’re amazing, Second Knight!” Echo shouted, staring at Seong-Hwi with her sparkling golden eyes.

“We’ll arrive at the ESB soon,” Seong-Hwi remarked.

“The Empire State Building, huh? It feels like it’s been a million years.”

“Where have you been all this time?”

Gilder scratched his head and replied, “We were practically drifters. The dragons took over Mushua once the angels left.”

“The angels left Mushua?”

“Yeah, they just up and left one day. Because of that, the power balance in Mushua toppled.” Gilder shrugged and continued, “The oppression against the Vindicta Resistance was becoming more and more severe until Clan Dragon’s Teeth joined Nivalis to attack the Capital. It worked out even better for us since Spartoi, the west commander, died there.”

“Oh, him? My little siblings killed him,” Seong-Hwi remarked.

“What?!” Gilder asked, his eyes widened.

Spartoi was of lowly origins, but he was still as strong as a superior dragon.

Are Seo-Yeon and Charles still at Fox Village? It’s been a while since I’ve seen their faces, Seong-Hwi wondered as he recalled what they had said to him.

“We’ll come back even stronger, Seong-Hwi oppa. When that day comes, we should be able to lessen the weight on your shoulders, even a little.”

“Garuda! You are the rival of the Dark Flame—I mean, the Kiss Dragon! Just you wait! I shall grow powerful enough to devour—”

“Charles, don’t you have something to tell Seong-Hwi oppa?”

“O-oh... umm... Thank you for... the Dragon Heart, hyung. It helped me save Nine Tails—I mean, Seo-Yeon noona.”

Seong-Hwi smiled softly. Seeing that, Echo and Gilder shouted in shock.

“Wow! The Second Knight is smiling!”

“Hah, I didn’t know you could make that kind of face.”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Seong-Hwi replied, quickly erasing his smile. “More importantly, what are you guys going to do now? Do you have a plan?”

“A plan, huh? First, we need to hold Echo’s coronation, and after that...” Gilder trailed off as his brown eyes shone sharply. “We’ll kill dragons, as we always have.”

“Ahaha! I like this young man!”

Seong-Hwi ignored Siegfried's shouts inside his head and asked, “I assume your ultimate goal is to take back the fairies’ race stone, right?”

“Of course!”

“And it’s in the possession of Dragon King Regnator, I assume.”

Gilder lowered his clenched fist at Seong-Hwi’s remark.

“Well, well... Your vigor has gone down quite a lot since the first time we met. Did you realize how far away your objective was after clashing against reality?”

Seong-Hwi had hit the mark. Gilder’s will to fight dragons to free the fairies had been blazing back in the dungeon, Forgotten Fairy’s Hideout, but the flame had significantly weakened since then.

“My vigor has gone down? I can’t deny that. But!” Gilder stared at Echo, sitting on his shoulder, and brought his fist back up.

“Hmm?”

“We have a pivotal figure now! Once the skeptical fairies who have been despairing at reality learn of Echo’s existence, they will come flying! We won’t give up!”

The fairies who had been checking out the Capital’s scenery from the tram’s windows flew toward Gilder and stood behind him.

“He’s right! He’s right!”

“We won’t give up!”

“Baldy is strong! You don’t need hair to be strong!”

Seong-Hwi smiled in satisfaction. “In that case, why don’t you join Underground?”

“What?!” Gilder shouted in shock.

“We are a confederation of people who aim for the top from the bottom. The Vindicta Resistance is more than qualified to join us.”

Seong-Hwi turned around to look at Bafor and Irura, who had been chatting with each other. They turned to Seong-Hwi and nodded.

“You’re insane. Don’t you know who we’re up against? It’s Echion!” Gilder shouted.

“Have you forgotten who attacked the Capital? Nivalis was under Echion’s banner!” Rage and madness blazed from Seong-Hwi’s bloodshot eyes. “They are our enemies, whether we want them to be or not, and the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Besides, didn’t I tell you before? I have a bone to pick with the dragons, too.”

Gilder fell silent, in deep thought. Nothing Seong-Hwi said was wrong. Underground was already in a hostile relationship with Echion, and Underground was powerful.

This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! he shouted inwardly, feeling like he had seen light at the end of the tunnel.

“What do you think, Echo?” Gilder asked.

Echo replied without hesitation, “I trust the Second Knight! The Second Knight will help me, and I will also help the Second Knight!”

The fairies praised Echo.

“My, our queen is so smart!”

“Trust is the most difficult, yet the most powerful strength!”

“Hehe! Echo is smart!” Echo shouted as she placed one hand on her waist and the other to hold her chin up high.

“Will you guys... be okay?” Seong-Hwi asked.

Gilder sighed. “Huuu, what can I do? I just have to keep my head on straight.”

“Then will you enter Underground?”

“I should be the one asking you. Are you sure you want to accept us?”

“We’ll need to discuss it, but I’m sure everyone will agree. We need as many trustworthy forces as we can get. Together will be formed soon.”

They naturally couldn’t include any fairy territories in Together because they were all under Echion’s possession.

“Also, even if you become members, it won’t be made public,” Seong-Hwi said.

“I understand. It might provoke Echion, after all,” Gilder replied.

“I’ll try asking Master Elementum. She should be willing to let the fairies stay in the Spirit Land. There’s more than enough space there.”

Seong-Hwi recalled what Sallion, the fire spirit monarch, had said to him.

“We will do whatever the Underground Confederation asks. However, let me ask one favor.”

“What is it?”

“Elementum... will be lonely. Try to fill the void of their loneliness.”

Sallion. I have kept our promise... more or less, Seong-Hwi thought.

“One last thing. Take this,” he said as he grabbed a gold coin from his pocket and flicked it at Gilder.

“What is this?” Gilder asked, catching the coin with a dragon engraving on it.

“That’s Quetzalcoatl’s gold coin.”

“Quetzalcoatl... Are you talking about one of the twelve consuls?”

“Yeah. If you take that gold coin to Quetzalcoatl, he will accept any reasonable request. Even if it may be... a meeting with Una.”

Gilder’s mouth opened wide. Una, the Fifth Fiend, was the leader of Redeo, a massive superpower opposing Echion.

“Quetzalcoatl is a consul from Redeo... I see. It also applies here. The enemy of my enemy is my friend!” Gilder shouted as he clenched the gold coin tightly, realizing what he needed to do.

He then stared into Seong-Hwi’s eyes, which were staring into a much further future than his were.

He’s become a completely different person compared to when I saw him at the dungeon and Ferrum’s back alleys!

The man before him was now number one in the human ranking, Cheon Seong-Hwi. He wondered whether the position had changed him or if he had the qualities from the beginning.

Regardless, Seong-Hwi was a true, dependable leader who presented them with a vision. His heart, beating rapidly from the presence of hope, proved that. It felt as if his objective, which had been so far away, was now just a few steps away.

“We’ll be in your care, my friend,” Gilder said.

“I could say the same to you,” Seong-Hwi said.

The two men shook hands and smiled widely.

***

The observatory on the eighty-sixth floor of the Empire State Building was filled with a deathly silence.

This is driving me insane! thought Chiron, the centaur with red hair and eyes, as he looked around and gulped.

He was the leader of Arimaspi, the centaur society, and a World Ranker. He looked beside him and saw a grey orc with a giant puncture scar on his left chest.

Please say something, Taidzu! he shouted inwardly, staring at Taidzu resentfully.

He had never expected things to transpire this way back when Taidzu had visited him after becoming Fortitudo’s new Abkai. The centaurs and orcs had been allies for a long time. At the time, Chiron had considered Taidzu as simply the new orc leader replacing Bodonchar. However, he was hit with a completely unexpected conversation—an invitation to join Underground.

“You must choose, Chiron. Fortitudo has decided to join Underground.”

Chiron naturally refused. After all, Underground had entered a hostile relationship with Echion after Nivalis’s invasion of the Capital. No one would want to antagonize Echion when Dragon King Regnator was still going strong.

“I am heading to the Capital in half a month, so you have until then to think carefully.”

He had scoffed at Taidzu’s ultimatum. Until that point, he had no intention of having Arimaspi become part of Underground. However, news about Barbaria and Underground joining forces to attack Consanguineus spread throughout the Mirror World. He then later got word that Barbaria and Underground emerged victorious, and that the Ninth Fiend, Haema Sanguis, had died.

Was Underground powerful enough to join forces with Barbaria and kill the Ninth Fiend? This might be it! Chiron thought, having no choice but to get off his ass and visit Taidzu.

“For how long must we remain in the southern plains?! Let us march northward together, Chiron! If we join Underground, we can become one of the mainstream races, too!”

Chiron, charmed by Taidzu’s words, went to the Capital with him and was very satisfied with the grand welcome and reception—until the monster before them arrived.

“Oh? When did humanity become so mighty? Ahaha! What a great fortune for the Mirror World! They should be a great help in the war against the Chaos!” a man said as he looked out the window.

He was sitting with his legs crossed, and although he was only a few centimeters off the floor, his head was still on the verge of hitting the ceiling.

Why is someone like Grandis, the Guardian Titan, in the Capital?! Chiron shouted inwardly, sweating buckets as he looked back and forth between Taidzu and the expressionless woman with her back against the wall in a corner of the room.

She was Elementum, the spirit with long, wavy hair, wearing an archaic dress, heels, and a beautiful tiara. Her eyes were glimmering as they constantly changed color.

No one here is normal! How could they call Grandis here?! If he wanted to, he could—

Just then, several footsteps sounded, interrupting Chiron’s thoughts. Three individuals gallantly walked into the room. On the left was a dwarf with a steel hammer at his waist. On the right was an elf with golden hair and eyes. In the middle was a human with black hair and eyes.

“Thank you for waiting,” said the human in the middle to Grandis.

“Not at all. I was so preoccupied with seeing how much the humans have grown that I didn’t even notice the time flying,” Grandis said, still looking out the window.

“Our wounds have made us stronger.”

“I suppose you mean to say we are responsible for those wounds.”

What in the world?! Chiron thought in shock, staring at the human having a normal conversation with Grandis.

Taidzu placed his hand on Chiron’s shoulder and said, “That man is Cheon Seong-Hwi. If you truly wish to enter Underground, you will have to persuade him.”

“Cheon Seong-Hwi,” Chiron mumbled.

“Have you come to a decision?” Seong-Hwi asked.

“Yes, once I arrived,” Grandis answered.

“So... will you allow us to use Pangaea?”

Seong-Hwi gulped. The establishment of Together, the joint city, crucial for Underground, depended on the answer to this one question.

Grandis turned around to look at Seong-Hwi and replied, “Here is the decision I have come to: a conditional approval.”