755. Apocalypse Dragon (side: Nina)
Nina, a beast girl, was watching outside through a hole in the castle wall with her demonic servant, Tama Usagi.
The battle between the Demon King Baal and the dragon was reaching its climax.
The demon king Baal transformed from a spider into a cat.
The Demon King Baal flies around at high speed, disappearing and reappearing.
And the movements of the dragon confronting it head-on were no longer something that could be properly tracked with the naked eye.
"Amazing... I don't know what's going on anymore..."
Nina said this as she embraced the jade rabbit.
The dragon hunter Volk has separated from Nina and the others and is busy hunting down Baal's minions.
They should be operating mainly in Alban Royal Castle where people gather, but they're not with Nina and the others right now.
The jade rabbit's long ears stroked Nina's trembling cheek.
"Nya...! Tama-chan, what are you doing..."
"Nina... that dragon... of the desert..."
"Huh?"
Nina hesitated as to what the Jade Rabbit's telepathic message was trying to convey, but she immediately understood its meaning and covered her mouth.
"Is that true, Tama-chan?"
『There’s no mistake… I can pick up the thought waves… through [telepathy].』
Nina also vaguely felt a sense of nostalgia for the dragon rampaging in the sky.
However, he never imagined that it was the same dragon that had saved him in the desert land of Harenae.
However, the strange feeling he had when he saw the dragon confirmed what Gyoku Usagi had said.
But when I thought about it, it did match up.
An evil dragon who for some reason sided with humans and defeated the hero who was causing trouble in the desert.
And now, an evil dragon has appeared from the Kingdom of Alban to slay the ancient demon king who is rampaging and trying to destroy the world.
"Really, Mr. Dragon..."
Nina took a deep breath and turned her gaze back to the fierce battle between the dragon and the Demon King Baal.
Amid the fierce battle, the earth shakes and a sandstorm rises.
Although it was difficult to follow the movements of either of them with the naked eye, Nina held their hands and watched over the outcome of the deadly battle.
"Dragon-san... please do your best meow..."
Eventually the dragon is knocked to the ground.
The Demon King Baal spun around in the air and landed gracefully on the spot.
The difference in superiority was obvious.
As the dragon desperately tried to get up, the Demon King Baal did not deliver the final blow, but simply looked down on it with a mocking laugh.
"Phew...!"
The jade rabbit slips out of Nina's arms and heads out of the castle.
"Tama-chan...!"
Nina stood up and ran after Tamausagi.
"White magic...El."
"M-Reckless... I understand your feelings, but..."
It seemed like the jade rabbit was planning to chase the dragon and use magic to recover some of its strength.
It's too dangerous.
There are still many spiders belonging to Baal squirming along the way.
In the first place, there's no way that huge dragon could properly utilize the white magic of a single jade rabbit to its full potential.
"Even Dragon-san wouldn't want Tama-chan to do something so dangerous..."
"demo……!"
That was when it happened.
A strange tune echoed throughout the royal capital of Alban.
Like a bell, like a trumpet.
It was a strange tone that sounded familiar, yet was completely different from anything I had heard before.
Along with the sound, a black light leaked out from the dragon's body.
The light mixed with the air dissolves, creating small swirls.
"Could that light be...?"
That was when Nina muttered.
The dragon got up and, with even more agility than before, knocked Baal down, then launched him into the air and hit him with a magic bullet.
This was clearly different from his previous appearance of near death.
Although he could only follow in hops and hops, the situation was clearly leaning in favor of the dragon.
"Amazing, Mr. Dragon, you've made a comeback...!"
『No… maybe.』
Tamausagi let it slip.
"Eh..."
『That was really unpleasant… I thought that was wrong…』
"So, you're not a dragon?"
Nina asked fearfully.
Gyokuto seemed hesitant, but nodded weakly.
Immediately afterwards, a huge piece of rubble thrown by the dragon came flying towards the royal capital of Alban at high speed.
"Hinyaah...!"
The moment Nina let out a scream, the rubble stopped in mid-air.
I slowly opened my eyes and saw something like a lump of light attached to this side of the rubble.
"What's that...?"
"This is my [Phantom Sand Curtain]. In order to limit the damage... I scattered invisible magic particles around the area, which create a resistance the stronger the impact."
Before I knew it, a woman was standing on the edge of the hole in the wall.
He had long black hair and narrow eyes.
They are wearing something unfamiliar, resembling ethnic clothing.
『Nina… this thing is a monster!』
The jade rabbit leapt out in front of Nina and readied its ears.
"Beastmen... just low-level monsters. Don't worry, I mean you no harm. It'll be safer if you stay inside."
"Uh, what about you...?"
"I was on that dragon's side... but things have changed a bit."
The woman turned to look at the dragon and snorted.
"I thought he was the one with the ability to defeat a god, but he used unnecessary skills."
"What is this...?"
Jade Rabbit asks.
"Do you know this sound? It is the sound that the Holy God Church fears... the sound that signals the end of the world. It seems that as long as they can defeat that monster cat, they don't care what happens to this world. If this world is destroyed, there will be no time for gods."
The woman answers.
Nina had also heard about it while living in the Alban Kingdom.
However, this should simply be one interpretation of a passage of scripture.
At least, it was hard to believe that it was about to happen right in front of my eyes.
"He will continue to rampage, losing his mind, until his strength runs out. The only saving grace is that he is on the verge of death. However, many of the passages in the scriptures are reinterpretations of Laplace's prophecy, which foresaw the past and future... if that's the case, then the end of the world may be inevitable and cannot be resisted."
The woman sighed tiredly.
"Are you planning to kill the dragon?"
"I wish I could. Look."
The woman gestures outside.
Nina followed the finger and found the battle between the dragon and the Demon King Baal had just concluded.
In front of the giant cat, covered in bodily fluids and lying on the ground, the dragon stood there exuding evil aura.
As usual, the sound of a strange instrument echoed throughout the area.
"Ooooooooooooooooooooooo!"
Then the terrifying roar of a dragon echoed.
The earth trembles.
"The world... I want to destroy it..."
Gyoku Usagi let out a weak gasp.
It seemed that he was serious, as Nina had realized after hearing the terrifying roar earlier.
"Hey Umukahime... what's that? What's going on with Ilcia?"
Suddenly, an angry voice rang out.
When Nina looked over, she saw the silver-haired swordsman Volk standing there.
With an irritated look on his face, he glares at the black-haired woman...Umukahime.
Next to it was a monster with the lower body of a spider and the upper body of a human.
"Dragon hunters, huh? It seems you've reunited with Atlanat, who had split off from you. Illusia defeated the strongest monster...Baal. However, it seems we must pay the price for it."
"What did you say...?"
"It's a rampaging skill. If this continues, he will destroy this world just as Laplace predicted. You and I... we have no choice but to kill the dying man here in Atranat."
"Do you think I'll swallow it, Umukahime?"
Volk pointed his sword at Umukahime.
"If that's the case, then the whole world will commit suicide together. God and Laplace are different things... I wonder how much of this he foresaw. If that's the case, then even if he wasn't destroyed... this outcome might be a good way to get revenge. Should we say that Meer-sama's goal has been achieved in a sense?"
Umukahime shrugged her shoulders.
"you……!"
"Behold, Dragon Hunter."
Umukahime turns her gaze back to the dragon.
Nina and Volk were drawn to it and shifted their gaze.
"Ooooooooooh!"
The dragon roared as it clutched its head.
However, his whole body was trembling violently and he looked as if he might start going berserk at any moment.
"Those who lose their ego will go on a rampage immediately. Did you see how he fought? If he had even 1% of his strength left, he would have the power to take on everything in this world. When his ego completely melts away, it will be the end of the world. We have no choice but to kill him while we can still hold him down."
"After coming all this way, how can you accept such a stupid story...?"
Volk replied with a murderous look.
"Think carefully, dragon hunter. If he is defeated, although it would be undesirable for me... for the inhabitants of this world, it will be the safest way to end the war over the current generation's sacred skill. Challenging a god is a foolish act where anything could happen in the end. The new vessel of god will come to an end, and god's pieces will be reset. You will also be able to survive for a countless number of years, even if under his rule. It may not be such a bad deal after all."
Volk thrust his sword into the floor, sat down and closed his eyes.
"What are you thinking?"
"Illusia is my most trusted friend. Rather than kill her, I would rather sink with the world."
"You fool. That person said that he does not want it. Understand that even I am swallowing my passion and preaching the optimal solution."
A tense atmosphere spreads between the two.
Nina could barely understand what they were saying.
I was just picking things up and barely able to grasp the general situation.
And it seemed that the dragon was really the one he knew, and the reason Gyoku Usagi was worried was because it had gone out of control due to some factor, causing it to become mentally disturbed.
"Um, well... I have a suggestion..."
"Little beast girl, don't you understand that now is not the time for you to butt in?"
"Dragon-san... he might be someone I know. Umm, so... right now, Dragon-san, you're able to suppress your rampage on your own, right? So if we call out to him, maybe he'll somehow return to his senses...?"
"That's silly wishful thinking. The world is at stake."
After Umukahime replied, she suddenly put her hand to her chin.
"However...Laplace sometimes throws out errors. Meer-sama also mentioned this. If we consider that these errors are caused by strong human emotions, then perhaps..."
"Is there a possibility?!"
"Hmm... well, this is a bad fight to begin with. No, but..."
Volk rose to his feet and readied his sword.
"Very well, then I'll lend you a hand! Beast woman... I, Atranat, Umukahime and I will hold you back while we carry you to Illusia! If you know me, then I'll ask you to lend me a hand!"
"M-me too?! N-no, I'll do it!"
"Well said! What's your name?"
"It's Nina!"
"Phew!"
Following Nina, Jade Rabbit raised both of his ears as if to say, "I'll follow you."
"Okay, Nina and Pef! We don't have much time, let's go!"
Volk rushes out of the royal castle.
"No, well, the child's name is not Pehu..."
At that moment, Nina and the jade rabbit's bodies were lifted up and placed onto the back of the spider monster... Atranat.
Atranat used a thread to lift the two of them up.
"There's no time. Let's go."
Atranat spoke to the two in broken Japanese.
"Y-yes meow!"
Let’s go Tftc