Chapter 145: White Dragon V
A huge white dragon soared across the sky.
Seeing this, Bahamut felt admiration, awe, and instinctive fear simultaneously.
‘So, this is it. The very creature only described in the novel. The feeling is completely different in real life,’ he thought.
Even from this distance, every time the dragon moved its enormous wings, waves of intense power could be felt. However, the fear that the White Dragon Princess felt was only just beginning.
Near the top of the inner sanctuary located within the mountain wing, she suddenly began to take a deep breath.
The moment Bahamut noticed this, he instinctively narrowed his eyes.
“Kuh…”
The next moment, Ophelia stepped in front of Bahamut, blocking his path, her eyes locked coldly on the White Dragon Princess.
And then…
“Kwaaaa!”An enormous amount of mana surged out alongside the breath the White Dragon Princess exhaled. It took the shape of a glowing white flame and, in an instant, turned the spire of the fortress into ashes.
Even though the structure was made of solid stone, the flames were so powerful that it was completely consumed, burning to nothingness.
Ophelia frowned as she observed the display of power.
‘I see… The fight with me that day was nothing more than a joke,’ she thought grimly.
Ophelia had once crossed swords with the White Dragon Princess in Benessa and Budipet. However, the strength the dragon princess was showing now was on a completely different level compared to their previous skirmishes. This wasn’t basic mana condensation or body strengthening. This was sheer monstrous strength, enough to demolish a building with a single blow.
Seeing this, Ophelia gripped her sword tighter without even realizing it.
‘Just as Master said… She’s truly formidable. Even though I’ve grown stronger since then, I’m not sure I can guarantee a victory.’
Ophelia’s eyes remained focused as she clearly imprinted her opponent’s strength in her mind once more.
Before her, the White Dragon Princess, who had obliterated the spire, began to breathe dragon fire throughout the entire inner sanctum.
***
Resistance had started turning into a sea of flames under the relentless attack of the White Dragon Princess. Although it was impossible to burn the entire city due to its massive size, it was almost certain that anyone left inside wouldn’t survive.
However, despite the dire situation, no one had fled the castle, causing confusion to grow in the mind of the White Dragon Princess.
‘Strange… If they were attacked like this, they should have either fled or retaliated. But there’s no reaction. Did they all decide to burn to death inside the castle? Or is there something else going on…?’
Considering the circumstances, if the emperor hadn’t completely abandoned the city, he would have fled to the fortress, the safest and most strategic location to command an army. Yet, amidst the flames and collapsing structures, neither the emperor nor any fleeing soldiers were visible.
‘Did they anticipate this? I used a method I’ve never employed before, so I thought it would be quite effective…’
Despite her ability to fly in dragon form, her usual strategy had been to move with her army and annihilate the enemies at the vanguard. Never before had she flown into the heart of enemy lines and burned the center of a city like this.
Still, it seemed her enemies had prepared for something like this to some extent.
At this, the White Dragon Princess, Elios, began to frown slightly, realizing her strategy had failed spectacularly.
‘Tch. Returning the cannon fire worked well enough. These people aren’t as foolish as I thought…’
At that moment, a loud voice echoed in her ears.
“Princess Elios!”
The White Dragon Princess halted the flames she had been spewing into the castle and turned her gaze toward the sound. There, standing with a sword before the burning castle, was the very person she had been looking for all along.
“Hoho… Who is this? You’ve finally appeared. I was wondering where you were hiding, so I struck openly. Seems I wasn’t wrong to do so.”
The White Dragon Princess spoke with a sharp, resonant voice, much harsher than her usual elegant tone.
Looking at her, the figure she addressed…
The body of Andersen, the strongest knight of the Holy Empire and the nemesis of the White Dragon Princess, began to radiate as much mana as her own.
“Prepare yourself. This time, I’ll finally take your head.”
“Excellent. My dear nemesis. Come and try, if you can. I’ll make sure this game ends today.”
As soon as those words left her mouth, the White Dragon Princess unleashed a blast of dragon breath toward Andersen. In response, Andersen swiftly dodged, charging directly at the towering dragon.
At first glance, it appeared reckless, attacking a giant monster nearly 50 meters tall. But Andersen’s assault wasn’t just a simple sword strike.
“Hoo…”
“Take this!”
In the next moment, massive swords made of mana appeared from all sides, materializing in the air. These gigantic swords, vastly different from the ones Ophelia had used, surrounded the White Dragon Princess.
Slash!
The mana swords struck the scales of the White Dragon Princess. Although her movements were slower in dragon form, she couldn’t evade the attacks. Instead, she braced herself and took the blows head-on.
“Haaa!”
“Hraahhh!”
“Tch…”
The White Dragon Princess clicked her tongue lightly. Although her scales were stronger than any armor, Andersen’s assault was no less formidable. Despite managing to deflect some strikes, several of her scales were shattered, and two swords pierced her hide. Blood began to trickle from one side of her body.
Elios looked at Andersen, who stood before her with a bloodied sword, and spoke in a dissatisfied tone.
“It’s quite fierce. Isn’t this too serious for a simple greeting between us?”
“Stop spouting nonsense and attack with all your might. Or are you planning to run away like this?”
“Hmph. Very well. If you insist, I have no choice but to take this seriously. Today, I’m determined to put an end to this wretched war.”
With those words, the massive dragon began to glow, shrinking rapidly as her form converged into a single point.
Standing in her place was the human form of Elios, garbed in her usual white robe, wielding two swords.
“Come on, then. This time, I’ll defeat you for sure.”
Elios spoke confidently, her blades gleaming. However, as she did, Andersen’s lips curled into a cold smile. In contrast, the smile that had once adorned Elios’s face disappeared.
“So, you were prepared for this. It seems you anticipated that I’d fly here like this?”
“Even we could predict that in a war of this magnitude, you would seek His Majesty’s life. And that you would attempt to strike directly at our resistance.”
As Andersen spoke, countless elite Holy Empire soldiers began to surround the plaza where Elios now stood. These were no ordinary soldiers, but handpicked elites.
Looking around at them, Elios let out a small sigh.
“Haa… this is troublesome. I didn’t expect it to get this complicated.”
“If you surrender now, I’ll accept it. Lay down your weapons.”
Andersen’s voice was cold and authoritative.
In response, Elios stared at him with annoyance, her voice dripping with frustration.
“This is truly bothersome. Catching the emperor will be much harder now.”
“There’s no time for you to think about that…!”
At that moment, a shift occurred. Andersen and the elite soldiers noticed a group of Imperial troops breaking through their encirclement.
Even though their numbers weren’t overwhelming, they were certainly a force to be reckoned with.
Seeing this, Andersen’s face contorted with shock.
“How… how did you bring these troops here?”
“How? I carried them on my back and flew, of course. Haa… You lot never move the way I expect. Originally, I planned to use them to capture the emperor.”
With a hint of complaint in her voice, Elios stood as the forces of the Dragona Empire confronted Andersen and the Holy Empire’s elite guards.
As the two sides glared at each other, the tension in the air thickened.
And then…
“Strike!”
“K!ll them all! We will break through and claim the emperor’s head!”
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