The World After the Bad Ending-Chapter 105
[Translator - Night]
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Chapter 105: The Ancient Dragon and the Goddess
The Wings of the Goddess.
The awakening power of the main heroine, Luna Isabel.
A power as crucial as the Flames of Resolve driving the Flame Butterfly forward.
It was also the reason I absolutely had to save Isabel.
‘The Wings of the Goddess possess two characteristics.’
First, it greatly enhances the user’s abilities while granting the power of flight.
Second, when in the same party, it significantly boosts the abilities of all party members.
A self-buff as well as a party-wide enhancement skill.
That was the Wings of the Goddess.
The moment the Wings of the Goddess are donned, the party’s overall combat power soars.
Of course, this also marks the beginning of the dungeon’s transformation, drastically raising the difficulty level.
But with the Wings of the Goddess, even such difficulties could be overcome.
I had waited and waited for this moment.
However, the problem now was that I had to face Isabel, who had awakened her Wings of the Goddess.
Swoosh—
Isabel’s feet slowly lifted off the ground.
At the same time, her wings folded briefly.
‘If I lose sight of her, it’s over.’
The moment that thought crossed my mind, Isabel disappeared.
KA-BOOM!
The frost imbued in my hand scattered, and the clanging sound of metal resounded loudly.
There she was, holding her sword in an offensive stance.
As soon as Isabel made eye contact with me, she vanished again.
Her speed was absurd.
Using the Wings of the Goddess for ultra-high-speed movement.
From the moment she donned the wings, gravity no longer held sway over her.
She could move at high speed, wherever she desired.
That was the flight ability granted by the Wings of the Goddess.
But it’s still manageable.
Crack!
My heightened hearing caught the sound of ice in the air breaking.
The residual essence of the Ancient Dragon in my right eye instantly focused on the source of the sound.
At the same time, my hand struck toward that direction.
CLANG!
Once again, Isabel’s sword clashed with my hand.
No matter how fast she moved, Isabel herself did not vanish.
The area around me was enveloped by the frost of the Ice Dragon’s magic, freezing even the moisture in the air.
Whenever Isabel moved, her presence inevitably left a trace.
The space I occupied was the domain of the Ice Dragon.
I wouldn’t lose track of her no matter how fast Isabel was.
From our earlier exchanges, Isabel must have realized this too.
Sneak attacks were impossible.
Rumble!
At that moment, my right eye started to act on its own.
The frost surged violently.
‘Damn it, you piece of—’
I summoned heat through my skin.
The result of research and trials with Sharin: the magic engraving of the Fire Dragon carved into my skin.
As the Fire Dragon’s magic activated, the residual essence of the Ancient Dragon growled in irritation but obeyed.
After the boycott incident, I worked with Sharin to find the Fire Dragon’s magic to resolve the issue of the Ancient Dragon’s residue.
Through countless trials, I finally uncovered and adapted the Fire Dragon’s magic, creating a magic engraving.
Though its power was weaker than the original Fire Dragon’s magic, it didn’t progress into dragonization.
The moment I succeeded, I secluded myself in a personal training chamber.
There, I used the Fire Dragon’s magic engraving to negotiate with the Ancient Dragon’s essence.
Would it aid me, or would it burn out with the combined power of the Fire Dragon’s magic and the Flame’s remnants?
Relentlessly, I dragged it into a cycle of negotiations.
In the end, unable to resist my threats, the Ancient Dragon’s essence accepted the deal.
It agreed to remain in my right eye and assist me.
For its own survival, it was the only choice.
‘Behave yourself. Finish this, and I might even reward you.’
I steadied my breathing, calming the restless Ancient Dragon’s essence eager to unleash its power after so long.
“You’re not fully in control of that yet, are you?”
Isabel slowly descended from the air and spoke.
She’s sharp as ever.
“So what? It’s working just fine against you.”
“Yeah, seems like it.”
Isabel stopped her high-speed movement.
Instead, she extended her wings behind her and gripped her sword tightly.
That was the worst move she could’ve made against me.
“So you’re going for a head-on breakthrough.”
Isabel’s wings began to glow with a brilliant white radiance.
It was proof she had channeled the speed of her high-speed movement entirely into power.
I hurriedly summoned more frost.
In an instant, walls of ice rose up one after another in front of me.
Crash! Crash! Crash! Crash!
The walls of ice shattered one after another.
Isabel had launched herself forward, activating her high-speed breakthrough.
Amidst the fragments of shattering ice walls, I could see Isabel with her sword extended forward.
The raging frost clung to her body.
Flap!
But the Wings of the Goddess repelled even the Ice Dragon’s frost completely.
What a ridiculous power.
Isabel’s sword was mere inches from me.
Thanks to the successive ice walls slowing her down, I narrowly evaded it.
Flap!
The moment I lowered my stance, Isabel’s wings flared open once more.
She created an air current in the opposite direction of her momentum, halting mid-air.
From there, she swung her sword down at me.
With the freedom of her aerial mobility, her movements were entirely under her control.
My hand shot upward.
CLANG!
When Isabel’s sword clashed with my hand, she extended her wings upward.
The force of the air currents generated behind her multiplied the strength of her strike.
The impact forced my arm to recoil.
As I staggered, my other hand struck toward Isabel.
Clang!
This time, Isabel’s wings blocked my attack.
They spread wide, striking me and sending me tumbling.
I rolled across the ground but quickly raised a slanted ice wall to absorb the impact, preparing for her next attack.
Thud!
Colliding with the ice wall gave me enough momentum to regain my footing, just in time to block Isabel’s sword once again.
Her attacks came relentlessly.
My hands desperately chased her sword to block it.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
[Translator - Night]
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Rather than slowing down, Isabel’s speed continued to increase.
Even in the midst of this battle, she was growing stronger.
Growth Amidst Hardship and Adversity.
Indeed, the main heroine truly shines.
Unfortunately, I am not the protagonist of such a tale.
There is no fantastical narrative of growth through battles awaiting me.
All I can do is utilize every card I’ve prepared to the best of my ability.
Through the wings, I caught a glimpse of Isabel’s eyes.
She was gasping for breath.
It’s only natural.
The Goddess’s Wings, while formidable, are not all-powerful.
The potential and versatility of the Goddess’s Wings are boundless.
However, they rapidly deplete stamina.
And Isabel hasn’t fully mastered them yet.
Isabel is making do with her innate instincts.
But it’s far from a perfected combat style.
In contrast, I’m her complete opposite.
Stamina is strength.
When it comes to stamina, I have the upper hand over Isabel.
The relentless effort I’ve put into building my stamina is an impenetrable fortress.
My entire foundation stems from it.
Isabel is well aware of this.
That’s why she will surely make her move before her stamina runs out.
Crunch—
As expected, Isabel’s wings compressed and shrank.
Simultaneously, her body was enveloped in an incandescent glow.
The light began to radiate with ferocity.
Seeing this, I let out a sigh.
‘She’s made it this far, hasn’t she?’
I realized just how serious Isabel had been about her training.
The incandescent light converged into a single sword.
Her blade transformed into something completely different from before.
The Goddess’s inscription engraved itself onto the edge of her sword.
The light behind Isabel swirled inward, forming a halo above her.
The air around her reversed its flow, converging upon her.
A massive surge of energy roared, baring its fangs to the world.
The spectators could do nothing but hold their breath or lose themselves in awe.
The immense power granted by the Goddess’s Wings sent chills down their spines.
It was only natural.
The Goddess’s Wings.
And the goddess who bestowed them.
The strongest deity acknowledged by all.
The Goddess of War.
The developers of Flame Butterfly explicitly designed her to evoke Athena.
Now that the game has become reality,
The Goddess of War has become the undisputed strongest deity.
Isabel raised her sword high above her head.
Her honey-blonde hair, radiant like the sun, fluttered in the air.
Her amber eyes gleamed with gold.
She looked so divine that one could believe the Goddess of War had descended.
A storm of wind pressure raged.
Just standing before her was a challenge.
If Isabel swung her sword down, it would all be over.
So I had to reveal my trump card as well.
A bone-chilling cold surged forth.
The gazes fixed on Isabel slowly began to shift toward me.
Above my tilted head, the horns of the Ice Dragon emerged.
Behind my waist, an icy tail had formed and stood upright.
Ice scales grew along my arms, transforming into a living armor.
Even my face drifted further from human likeness.
“A… a Dragonkin!”
One of the mages shouted in astonishment.
The unique characteristic of Ancient Dragon magic: Dragonification.
They had realized that I had become a Dragonkin.
Yet no mage dared to stop me.
My gaze briefly fell upon the gathering of mages.
Among them stood a man with flowing blue hair.
The Blue Tower Master, Empiradion Sazaris.
The father of Sharin, he was holding back the mages.
Beside him, Whitewood was standing with her eyes glinting and a smile on her face.
Both of them knew I could control the remnants of the Ancient Dragon.
From my parted lips, a frosty breath escaped.
Ancient Dragon magic truly reveals its essence only when wielded by a Dragonkin.
Crack! Crack!
Starting from my hands to my elbows,
A massive gauntlet of ice formed.
The Gauntlet of the Ice Dragon.
My heterochromatic eyes locked onto Isabel.
She, too, stared back at me through the divine light.
Since Isabel was giving it her all, I decided to do the same.
Boom—
But I wasn’t planning to end it here.
“Come forth.”
Lightning Caller.
―――――――――――!
From the dark storm clouds that had silently gathered above,
A streak of blue lightning descended.
In the chaos of the sudden lightning strike, the spectators panicked.
Within the radiant blue light, Isabel and I moved simultaneously.
The magic inscriptions etched onto my body inside the ice gauntlet began to glow.
Magic Inscription: Lightning Catcher.
The roaring thunderbolt coursed through my steel body, reaching me in an instant.
Electric currents spread through the Ice Dragon’s Gauntlet.
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A storm of immense power erupted from my hands.
The remnants of the Ancient Dragon devoured the lightning, transforming further.
The remnants of the Ancient Dragon are a curse.
Even if marked by the Ice Dragon, its form is not fixed.
It can always change its shape depending on the power granted to it.
Four Ancient Dragons exist:
The Fire Dragon, Ice Dragon, and Earth Dragon.
And finally, the ruler of the skies, who commands lightning—
The Sky Dragon.
The most feared of the Ancient Dragons, the Sky Dragon.
But the Sky Dragon exists only as a record in history.
Its very existence is shrouded in doubt.
I know the truth.
The Sky Dragon is not an Ancient Dragon.
It is the legacy left by a mad, transcendent sage.
Zerion.
He is the one who became immortalized as the Sky Dragon in history.
The frost enveloping my body turned into lightning.
The Ice Dragon’s Gauntlet morphed into one of thunder.
At this moment,
The Sky Dragon, long vanished from the world, reappeared.
Sky Dragonification.
This is the pinnacle of my power.
Isabel, witnessing this, let out a breathy laugh.
The goddess faced the Sky Dragon, unfurling her wings.
“You truly are…”
With that laugh, Isabel gripped her sword tightly.
As I leaped forward, Isabel swung her sword downward.
Victory.
The declaration of the goddess’s triumph collided with the Sky Dragon’s fist,
Shrouding the area in radiant light.
The international singles tournament, Round of 64.
A showdown so extraordinary it eclipsed even the finals.
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