"The Medusa Queen returned to the Magic Continent? Is that really possible?"Kurose Akira asked Lucía.
For gods, existence itself was bound by the laws of the world. Returning from the divine realm to the Magic Continent was no simple matter. Even half-god–level arbiters of divine judgment could only descend for a brief time before being forcibly recalled once their allotted duration expired.
For a true god to return to the Magic Continent, the price would likely be enormous—perhaps even requiring the abandonment of their divinity itself.
Lucía was skeptical as well. She shook her head lightly."It's only a rumor. There's no way to verify its authenticity."
Mare Rhine crossed her arms over her chest and spoke with absolute confidence."That's impossible. Once you enter the divine realm, you can't come back. Besides, life in the divine realm grants immortality. Who would willingly give that up to return to the Magic Continent?"
"Immortality…"Akira fell silent for a moment, then asked,"Does everyone in the divine realm gain immortality?"
"Of course not," Mare Rhine replied. "Only beings who truly reach the level of a god obtain immortality. That said, if you were favored by a god and became their divine envoy—or their consort—then perhaps they could bestow immortality upon you."
Akira nodded thoughtfully, gaining a deeper understanding of the mysteries surrounding the divine realm.
"All of that is still far too distant for us," Lucía said quietly. "Even reaching the level of a demigod is already difficult enough. To go further—to condense a divine spark and ascend to godhood—each step is vastly harder than becoming a demigod in the first place."
As she spoke, a trace of worry flickered through her beautiful eyes. Even for her—the Pope of the Holy Church of Light—condensing a divine spark was something unimaginably far away.
Akira nodded in agreement, then shifted the topic."Let's head deeper into the swamp and meet this snake-man hiding there."
With that, he turned to Vernis and gave an order."Vernis, lead the way."
Vernis blinked in surprise."Me too?"
"Who else?" Akira replied calmly.
"I…"Vernis was clearly reluctant—but she had no choice.
With Vernis's help, Mare Rhine no longer needed to transform into a dragon for Akira to ride.
They mounted Vernis's back and swiftly flew toward the deepest part of the swamp.
Only moments later, they arrived at their destination. And just as Vernis prepared to descend, Akira saw a battle unfolding in the distance—already nearing its end.
"How is this possible?! There's actually such a powerful monster living in this swamp!"
"This is way beyond what a D+-rank guild can handle! Run!"
"The villagers lied to us! This monster is at least level sixty—probably too much even for a C-rank guild!"
"Run! Run for your lives!"
"..."
A group of panicked players and adventurers were fleeing in desperation. Behind them, a massive male snake-man wielded a curved blade, relentlessly pursuing them.
"You insignificant ants dare disturb my slumber?" the snake-man sneered mockingly."You're courting death! Since you've come, don't even think about leaving—perfect timing. I'm hungry!"
As his words fell, he swung his curved blade violently.
In the blink of an eye, one adventurer was split cleanly in half, blood spraying everywhere.
At the same time, Akira noticed corpses floating in the swamp. One of them looked strangely familiar.
Upon closer inspection, it was one of Xia Yu's male companions.
However… Xia Yu himself was nowhere to be seen.
In that brief moment of thought, Akira's gaze locked firmly onto the male snake-man. Information immediately appeared before his eyes:
[??? (Epic)]Level: 60 (0 / 42,000)Race: Snake-manStrength: 1600 / Agility: 1105 / Magic: 866 / Constitution: 1255Growth: 10 (Gains +10 to all attributes per level)Skills: (Expand)Trait: [Death Coil] (Defeating this unit grants this additional trait!)
"An additional trait?"Seeing the words [Death Coil], a glint of excitement flashed through Akira's eyes.
"A dragon?!"
The moment Akira and the others appeared riding a dragon, all eyes were drawn to them.
The players were utterly stunned.How could a quest of this level involve a dragon?!
Not only were the players shocked—the snake-man was struck with deep terror as well.
"This is bad—run!"
He immediately turned around, trying to flee!
"Vernis! Stop him—don't let him escape!"Akira shouted an order the instant he saw this.
Though Vernis was unwilling deep down, the binding force of the soul contract left her no choice but to obey.
And so, she vented all her pent-up resentment on the snake-man.
"Die! Blackflame Dragon Emperor Wave! RAAAH—!"
Vernis opened her massive jaws and unleashed a pitch-black beam of destruction.
"AAAH—!"
The snake-man didn't even have time to react before being swallowed whole by the dark beam.
After all, an eighty-level dragon facing a sixty-level snake-man was absolute domination—there was no room for resistance.
As the beam faded, the snake-man had already been reduced to ash, dissipating into the air.
[Target defeated. EXP +30,000!][Additional Trait Acquired — Death Coil!]
"…Dead?"Akira frowned slightly.
Hadn't he told Vernis to stop the snake-man?
How did he get vaporized by dragon breath in a single breath?
Well… whatever.
Though really—do dragons all love such over-the-top skill names?
Blackflame Dragon Emperor Wave…Isn't that just ordinary dragon breath? Why give it such a painfully chuuni name?
As Akira was musing internally, his gaze shifted to Mare Rhine. His unusual look made her frown slightly.
"What?" she asked.
"Nothing."
Akira withdrew his gaze and focused instead on the newly acquired additional trait: [Death Coil].
He began considering which guild member should receive it.
Ivsha?A succubus with Death Coil?
Or… Loserine?
Akira rubbed his chin, thinking Loserine might be a good fit—after all, she was often accompanied by a water spirit fairy with a serpentine form.
But for now, he knew nothing about the actual effects of [Death Coil].
If it was merely physical constriction, that would be far too ordinary.
"Quest complete. Let's go."
Akira was just about to leap onto Vernis's back and leave the swamp—
When suddenly, a colossal black dragon appeared on the horizon, its body stretching over three hundred meters.
"VERNIS! GET BACK HERE AT ONCE!"
A thunderous roar shook the entire swamp.
"Oh no! My brother's here!"The moment Vernis saw the dragon, she urgently urged Akira,"Hurry! Get on! We need to leave—now!"
"Your brother?"Akira was full of questions, but he immediately jumped onto Vernis's back as they fled the swamp.
The massive black dragon froze the instant it caught sight of Akira.
Its pursuit halted mid-motion.
It muttered in disbelief,"There's… a man on my little sister's back? My little sister finally found herself a man?!"
But soon, concern crept onto its face.
"Little sister~ why did you choose a human? Can a human really satisfy you? He's so small! He's not even as big as one of your scales!"
…
Want to unlock up to 60+ early-access chapters and exclusive novels ? Join my Patreon today and dive deeper into the adventure!
patreon.com/denji21