“Ah—”

A small egg.

The instant they saw that egg, the residents of the Seventh Evil who had come to Cotton Candy Castle almost bowed their heads without realizing it.

“......!”

The spies from the other Eight Evils who had infiltrated in disguise as Seventh Evil residents were startled by their own reaction.

They were not ordinary residents or low-ranking mobs, but elites skilled enough to be sent to a place like this—yet merely looking at it made them feel pressure and nearly bow their heads.

“......”

“......”

Their faces hardened.

The new boss about to be born in the Seventh Evil.

Everything about it was extraordinary even before birth.

Even more so than the other bosses of the Eight Evils.

What did that mean?

“Ahhh—”

“Oh......!”

And the mobs holding mid-level positions in the Seventh Evil let out gasps and groans as they fully accepted the pressure wrapping around them.

Cotton Candy Castle.

The mid-level and higher mobs who had been building up frustration because they could not enter it—

Thud!

Thuuud!

—dropped to their knees before the small egg and bowed their heads.

“At last—the true lord who will lead us—!”

Because they were strong within the Seventh Evil, they could feel it all the more clearly.

A hundred and twenty thousand living beings.

A being that emitted pressure evenly over every single one of them.

And yet that pressure did not suffocate them.

It simply spread in every direction on the wind.

An egg.

Merely by existing inside that egg, it gave off the presence of a ruler.

“Ah—”

“Ugh......!”

And the ordinary residents and mobs watching this scene, overwhelmed by the pressure and not knowing what to do, followed the other bosses with cries spilling out.

They dropped to their knees before the egg, or bowed their heads, or looked up at it with their hands clasped together.

And they were shocked. 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

Because performing those actions felt so natural, as if their bodies had always known how.

The Seventh Evil had had two final bosses until now, but this was the first time anything like this had happened.

“!”

“!!”

At that moment, the next sight made them suck in their breath.

Caw— caw—

The vast plain centered around Cotton Candy Castle.

And the forest surrounding it.

From that forest, black crows shot upward all at once.

They cried out several times in unison, then landed on tree branches and on the ground.

Spreading their wings, they took a posture like humans bowing.

Clatter. Clatter.

The skeletons that had been moving across the continent to reach this place finally arrived at the plain.

And then they—

Thud!

—as if hearing a command, all dropped to one knee at the same time.

Whether they were in monster form or human form, every skeleton knelt on one knee and looked at the egg in a posture like knights.

“...What a magnificent sight......”

The envoys from the various empires and kingdoms, who had secretly hidden themselves in the forest and were watching the scene on the plain from afar, pretended not to notice one another, yet could not suppress the chills running over their skin.

“...Truly,”

The Eight Evils.

A new boss appearing among them.

Thinking that, and because the signs had been anything but ordinary, they had been hurriedly dispatched here.

Since this meant infiltrating one of the Eight Evils, their abilities were naturally among the highest in their respective nations.

And now, those very people were feeling it.

One of the Magic Tower Masters who had come here at the Emperor’s request murmured in a low voice.

“...Truly, the birth of a tremendous evil—”

Sinister.

An egg beneath dark red clouds, radiating the aura of a ruler.

What would be born from that egg?

Anyone could tell that the egg was in the shape of a dragon egg.

Since the former final boss of the Seventh Evil had been a dragon, it was easy to assume this boss would be one too.

But did dragons usually get born like this?

“...A Demon King......”

One envoy unconsciously muttered the forbidden word that had been spreading everywhere like a rumor.

The people of the other nations pretended not to hear him, but that word lodged in their minds.

Ill omen.

The very end of it was blooming around that egg.

Was this the birth of an enemy that would threaten this world?

If so—

the moment it was born—

‘Shouldn’t we destroy it?’

Even if they themselves did not possess the power to do so.

Before it could grow any further—

Gulp.

Someone swallowed hard.

Every envoy was thinking something similar.

And it was not just them.

The spies from the other Eight Evils were thinking the same thing.

“Hk!”

“Ah—!”

But before they could continue that train of thought, the situation changed too quickly.

Everything came rushing in all at once.

Fweeeeeee—

Suddenly, the wind blew fiercely.

Rustle.

Strong enough to shake leaves from the trees of the forest onto the ground.

Strong enough to make the branches sway with ease.

A truly enormous wind.

Drip. Drip.

And then raindrops began to fall.

The one or two drops soon turned into a pouring downpour.

Shhhhaaaaaaaaa—!

Raging wind and sheets of rain thick enough to block the view.

“Urgh!”

“Ugh!”

Those caught in it let out groans and could barely keep their senses.

“......!”

“!”

But the many beings—the hundred and twenty thousand living creatures—could only stare at it blankly without saying a word.

The broad plain beneath the dark red sky.

Everywhere except that place was being lashed by violent wind and rain.

Only this place remained calm.

“......”

“......”

No one dared to open their mouth.

Only then did they realize that the pressure covering them was not mixed with fear and despair.

It was simply a power that projected only its existence toward them.

As though a king of a nation were watching over the people of his kingdom.

A touch overflowing with dignity, yet carrying the certainty that it would never, ever harm them.

“Ah—”

Someone let out a gasp.

Amid all that ill omen, only this place.

Only the place where the residents of the Seventh Evil stood was safe.

“They’re spies!”

“There were infiltrators among us!”

The mobs holding boss-class positions instantly understood what was happening in the forest.

And so they had no choice but to feel even more awe toward the unborn egg.

Because the previous boss, Dragon Neo, had never once protected them.

No—the Eight Evils hardly had bosses like that at all.

Most simply ruled those beneath them through greater strength and greater evil.

Only the Sixth Evil and the Third Evil had at least some attachment to their own people.

Thuuud!

At that moment, the ground shook violently.

Clatter!

At the same time, the skeletons flattened themselves completely against the ground.

Flap!

The crows all flew up into the sky at once, swallowing even their cries.

And from the border between the plain and the forest, they formed a great circle.

Skeletons on the ground.

Crows in the sky.

The moment everyone realized they had all formed a circle, a boundary line, a protective wall—

“......”

Cale was staring at only one thing.

[Recovery Rate 99.9999%]

And the companions on the top floor were staring at him as well.

The Heavenly Demon in particular looked at Cale with strange eyes, seeing that he remained perfectly fine even after covering the vast plain with nothing but his aura.

Swoosh.

Cale raised his hand.

[Recovery Rate 100%]

And the moment that hand came down,

Cale moved toward the window.

Craaack—

Cracks began to spread across the egg.

Eruhaben Miru was being born.

“Let’s go.”

Fweeeee—

Wind swirled around Cale’s feet.

“It’s starting!”

Raon cast invisibility magic on both Cale and himself.

One human and one dragon kicked off from the window and flew upward.

Then they approached the egg.

The others would not be able to see them.

But that did not matter.

Craaack—

—Human, Eruhaben Miru is being born!

Someone had to be by Eruhaben Miru’s side.

No matter how great the birth, there had to be someone beside it to hold the being that had just entered the world.

“Begin.”

Cale spoke in a low voice.

Raon lifted his head.

Dark red clouds.

Then lowered it.

A small egg.

The strangely colored egg, mixed with black, gold, and violet, would appear mysterious to those who could see those colors.

Craaack—

The cracks deepened further and further.

“Hehe!”

Watching all of this while invisible, Raon flapped his wings and stretched his chubby forepaws wide to either side.

Wooooong—

Black mana gathered around the dark red clouds.

Because of the clouds, the others would not be able to distinguish that mana.

Raon was excited.

Breaking things was fun.

Looting places was fun.

But today, no one was in danger.

No one had to become endangered.

He did not have to think about protecting anyone.

There was only one thing Raon had to do today.

‘Congratulate him!’

Eruhaben Miru.

All he had to do was celebrate the new birth of the dragon half-blood.

Feeling the mana gathering, Raon muttered without realizing it.

“...Mom......”

And then he startled himself.

Sheritt.

Her, and Eruhaben Miru.

Two dragons who approached his heart in a way that was family, but a little different, like Cale, On, Hong, and Choi Han.

Tap tap.

Invisible Cale patted him on the head.

Right. Now everything was okay!

“Hehe!”

Raon felt good.

His wings flapped even harder, and as if answering that—

Clap!

Raon’s two forepaws came together.

And in that instant—

Woooooo—woooooo—

the sky began to cry out.

This was how invisible Raon celebrated Eruhaben Miru.

By showing Eruhaben Miru’s power.

Rumble—

Lightning slowly began to reveal itself beneath the dark red sky.

And the Heavenly Demon moved his hand toward the sky.

The dark red heavens began to split apart.

As though lightning itself were tearing open the dark red clouds.

The moment the egg cracked.

The moment a new life was about to be born.

The ill omen was torn away, and lightning—light—revealed itself.

“It has begun.”

And on a nearby mountain,

the ancient dragon Eruhaben, who had been watching all of this, quietly moved his hand.

Ssssss—

Platinum mana swirled around him.

The ancient dragon’s gaze was fixed on the small egg.

He remembered that light from the past, the one that had moved to protect everyone.

A light in the form of a great dragon.

“Yes.”

The dark red clouds split open, and through them appeared streams of platinum current.

“You are light.”

Dragon half-blood.

No, Eruhaben Miru.

That little punk was light.

[Title: Half-Human, Half-Dragon of Light and Time]

Did not even this game acknowledge him that way?

“Then his birth ought to suit that.”

While wind and rain raged in every direction,

the dark red clouds split open,

and platinum lightning crashed toward the earth.

“!”

“......!”

The residents of the Seventh Evil shrank back, too startled even to scream.

But before the lightning could reach the ground, before it could touch them, it slowly died away.

Ssssss—

Instead, it turned into platinum dust.

As though the lightning itself had shattered into particles of light.

“......”

“......”

Tap. Drip.

That dust of light fell to the ground, to the residents of the Seventh Evil.

Monster, adult, child, old, young—everyone watched as the light and that dust of light poured down on them through the torn dark red clouds.

No one could close their eyes.

Because the greatest concentration of those particles spread across the sky like an aurora.

And at the center of it all was the egg.

Craaack—

At last, the egg had cracked enough for all to see.

“Ah—”

Sacred.

The ill omen vanished.

And a scene of overwhelming beauty shook their hearts.

As if a hero were being born.

Whether it was the Seventh Evil, the other Eight Evils, or foreign nations, none could think of anything else in this feast of light.

Rather, the higher one’s position, the more they trembled at the sight.

They realized it.

This was not merely some ordinary evil.

What sort of evil could possibly radiate such beautiful light?

They realized it.

‘A tremendous evil.’

A vast existence was being born now, one that might shake the hearts of both evil and good alike.

Craaack—

At last, the egg shattered completely.

—Human, it’s being born!

The moment Raon shouted that—

—Ah!

‘Mm!’

Both Cale and Raon were startled.

Flaaash!

Brilliant light burst out from the egg.

—It really is light.

Just as the Ancient Tree had said, it was not light made by Raon and Eruhaben.

Real light was pouring out from the egg itself.

It was so dazzling that Cale shut his eyes without meaning to.

But even then, he faintly saw something at the center of the light.

Even as he closed his eyes, he reached out his hand without realizing it.

Soft.

Something touched his hand.

He immediately realized it was another forepaw, because it was a little softer than Raon had been when he was little.

He lightly clasped that forepaw and pulled.

Then something fell into his arms.

Invisible Cale.

He knew exactly what he had to do before this cluster of light ended.

He gently stroked the smooth little back, then lifted the tiny existence that fit within both his hands high above his head.

And then the light faded.

—Human, it’s Eruhaben Miru!

Invisible Cale and Raon could see the small dragon at the center of the aurora made of brilliant platinum dust.

Eruhaben Miru, half-human and half-dragon, though at the moment in the form of a baby dragon.

The dragon, small enough to fit in both of Cale’s hands and therefore safely supported, slowly opened its eyes.

As if it knew who was supporting it, the dragon lowered its head.

“......”

“......”

Cale and Eruhaben Miru looked at each other.

And then Cale flinched in surprise.

Because he had seen eyes the exact same dark brown as his own.

A black body like Raon’s.

But the gold patterns embroidered over that body called to mind the Milky Way.

And two small violet horns rising from its head.

The half-human, half-dragon of light and time.

Eruhaben Miru.

Its round eyes, like Raon’s, curved toward Cale in a crescent smile.

—Thank you.

The voice came to him directly through magic.

It was a very young voice, but it had to be Eruhaben Miru’s.

—I like the name.

Only belatedly did Eruhaben Miru convey thanks to Cale.

At that moment, a quest window appeared before Cale’s eyes.

[Quest complete!]

He had completed yet another Sub Quest.

[A remarkable legend has been created!]

Yeah. It sure is remarkable.

[Birth Ceremony Progress 302%]

I wonder what reward grade this one will get.

At 300%, ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) it gave SSS+++.

This one went a little beyond that.

What’s it going to give me?

As Cale stood there blankly thinking that—

[*The legend “The Birth of the Sacred Evil, the Mad Dragon” is being recorded in the world of New World!]

Huh?

Cale froze.

What dragon?

Mad Dragon?

Does that mean a dragon of light?

But Mad Dragon... this sounds kind of suspicious.

It’s not that mad, right?

Yeah, no way Eruhaben Miru is like that.

Cale raised his head.

A dragon small enough to fit in both hands.

Eruhaben Miru was quite—uh, well—

—Human, Eruhaben Miru is so cute! Just like the youngest should be!

Uh... he’s over nine hundred years old, but yeah, he’s cute.

Even Cale had to admit the appearance was genuinely cute.

Though Eruhaben Miru himself did not seem to have realized that yet.

“Waaaaaaah——!”

“Waaaah—!”

At that moment, cheers crashed against his ears.

Cale lowered his head.

Just as Sheritt had wished,

the countless masses—so many living beings that all one hundred and twenty thousand of them could not even be taken in at a glance—were cheering for Eruhaben Miru’s birth.

Countless gazes filled with wonder and reverence, or joy, looking up at Eruhaben Miru.

—Hehe! We did it!

Raon was delighted, and—

‘Well, this is nice.’

Cale felt pretty good too.

Neither of them noticed that Eruhaben Miru’s expression had become strangely enlightened.

And at that same time—

“Hehe—”

Clopeh Sekka confirmed that all the footage had been stored in the recording orbs and immediately moved on to the second phase.

“Spread this throughout the world.”

New World, the Third District.

Spread it everywhere.

Because he was busy watching the cheers, Cale failed to notice the changes happening to the quest window.

[Birth Ceremony Progress 307%]

[Birth Ceremony Progress 308%]

[Birth Ceremony Progress 309%]

The progress kept rising.

Cale still had not yet fully grasped the full depth of Clopeh Sekka’s sincerity.