Chapter 403: The Lich's Diary (Part 4)
"G-Great Dragon, mighty dragon… we meant no offense to you!"
"Yes, yes! It was the lich—it was all his manipulation!"
The three beholders pleaded in succession, their tentacle-like eyestalks trembling.
Beholders looked down on all other beings, even their own kind. Each believed itself to be the pinnacle of its species, while others were nothing but shameful deviations.
But they valued their own lives immensely.
Faced with such an overwhelming power gap, the beholders knew that survival required humility and compromise.
The center beholder, covered in lumps, floated forward with a sycophantic grin on its grotesque face. "Mighty dragon, I am the lowly beholder Augu."
"Your presence is so majestic. A dragon as powerful as you must have an enormous hoard of treasures. I'm willing to serve you unconditionally, guarding your lair and killing anyone who dares covet your wealth."
"Oh?"
"Didn't you just say you were going to eat me?"
Cassius extended his arm, grabbing the beholder in his claw and gently toying with it like a ball.
The spherical body of the beholder trembled violently, but it dared not resist.
Its face was filled with fear as it wailed and pleaded, "I-I didn't know! It was the lich! It was all under his orders!"
Cassius rubbed his chin with his other claw and said calmly, "That does sound plausible."
"Yes, mighty dragon!"
"It's all the lich's fault! Spare me, and I'll help you take revenge on him!"
The beholder, dizzy from being spun around, clung desperately to this last shred of hope, speaking in an agitated tone.
"But…"
Cassius's tone suddenly shifted.
"You're too ugly."
The red dragon clenched its claw tightly, releasing an overwhelming force.
Flesh exploded, and the beholder's eye popped out.
The arrogant beholder was crushed into a sticky, filthy pile of flesh and gore.
"Disgusting creature."
Cassius shook off his claw in disdain. Flames ignited on his scales, incinerating the remaining bits of flesh and blood until they were completely clean.
"Augu's dead just like that!"
"I can't let this happen—I'll be next!"
One of the remaining beholders let out a shriek, releasing black smoke from its giant, bulging eye and spitting dark green mucus from its mouth as it flew into the smoke, attempting to flee under its cover.
"Heh."
"Do you think you can escape?"
An invisible wave spread out, dispersing the smoke instantly and revealing the fleeing beholder.
A scorching arrow of flame shot through the air.
"Aargh~~"
The beholder wailed as the fire pierced its body, followed by a sudden explosion.
The creature fell to the ground, its entire body reduced to charred ashes.
It had only taken a minor spell—one of Cassius's lesser tricks—to easily kill a beholder.
Cassius turned his head and locked his golden gaze on the last remaining beholder, smiling as he said, "Looks like you're the only one left."
The beholder trembled violently.
"Mighty dragon, I-I…"
"I know spells!"
"And… and I'm not ugly!"
Its voice quivered as it tried to prove its worth. It even cast a polymorph spell to transform itself into a young maiden—although it still had a single large eye.
Cassius examined the beholder carefully. Indeed, compared to the other two, its skin was smoother, and its eye wasn't as cloudy. Among beholders, it could be considered… "attractive."
It certainly knew when to adapt.
In the world of beholders, this one could be considered a talent.
"…"
Cassius remained silent for a moment before asking, "What's your name?"
"Oh, mighty dragon, my name is Kuz."
Despite taking the form of a young girl, its voice remained grating and harsh, like metal scraping against metal.
"Change back and follow me."
"Yes, master."
And so, all three beholders met their demise.
These aberrations, prepared by the lich to deal with human adventurers, were no match for the far stronger red dragon.
Who would've thought that the "intruder" would be a 40-meter-long red dragon?
Not even a lich could predict such an improbable event.
Kuz reverted to its beholder form, nervously floating behind the red dragon with a subservient demeanor, a stark contrast to its earlier arrogance.
It tried to curry favor, saying, "Master, th-that's the lich's phylactery…"
"I see it."
In the Soul-Cry Fortress, the lich stared at the magical image of the phylactery, his withered face filled with despair.
"Damn those beholders."
"And him—he's a dragon! How did a dragon get in here?!"
"How could this happen? Centuries of meticulous preparation for my immortality… ruined by a damn dragon!"
Suddenly, he recalled that unsettling sensation from earlier and felt a terrifying suspicion.
The infamous "Ember Emperor," who had unified the Anzeta Wasteland, was also a red dragon!
"I've hidden myself so well. How could he have noticed me? No, this must be a coincidence—it has to be!"
The lich pressed his decayed, fleshless head against the crystal skull, his ghostly flames flickering in and out.
"No… it's impossible."
"It can't be him."
Cracks began to form across the surface of the crystal skull.
"Crack… crack!"
The lich instinctively staggered back, gripping his staff tightly.
In the rapidly shattering image, the colossal red dragon lifted its head, its deep golden eyes filled with amusement.
"I see you."
Orest felt an immense pressure surge through time and space, forcing even a proud lich like him into submission.
The next moment, with a crisp "shatter," the intricate crystal skull broke into countless fragments.
"This can't be!"
"No, no, no…"
Orest stumbled backward, knocking over jars of entrails and flesh. His frail, decaying body collapsed onto the ground.
Blood and viscera spilled across the floor.
The lich struggled to stand, using his staff for support as he stumbled around, searching for spell components and preparing for battle.
Meanwhile, the bone pen continued scribbling furiously in the diary, this time leaving behind a single, hastily written sentence:
"He saw me!"