Second Life of a Dragon Raising Hunter

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Chapter 436

While fighting Shuyo, Yeon-woo was listening intently to the information flowing into his ears.

[Unit 1 is gathering at the lake!]

[The Order of Sloth is rushing to the lake. Engagement with Unit 1 is occurring.]

Regardless of the situation, this was war. Yeon-woo had to take to the front lines, so he left the overall command to someone else, but gathering intelligence was essential to take any action.

He focused on the information being relayed by Riley while simultaneously facing Shuyo. Yeon-woo had considered various means of attack, but it seemed like Shuyo was completely unaffected by anything thrown at him.

Sigh, I don’t see him at all.

From Yeon-woo’s perspective, the relationship between the Order of Sloth and the Demon King felt more like that of a predator and prey rather than a mutually beneficial contract.

Although it appeared they were maintaining a contract where one sacrifices themselves to gain power, it seemed more like a demon that had been devoured had merely split off a fragment of itself from the Demon King.

Thinking along those lines, Yeon-woo found it easy to guess the identity of the Demon King.

A Slime. A type of monster that couldn’t be called strong in this world. It belonged to the lowest tier of weak monsters.

That’s why Yeon-woo deduced there must be a core that the Slime is centered around.

Perhaps he could manage this alone without Baek In-hwa’s help… but…

He simply couldn’t see anything at all. Even with his eyes wide open, he couldn’t find it, leading him to wonder if a Demon King-level Slime could even digest its own core.

Maybe its entire body is the core.

Without realizing it, Yeon-woo broke out in a cold sweat.

That would mean it was almost akin to being immortal. Sure, there are indeed Demon Kings presumed to be immortal, but…

Setting aside thoughts about the Demon King of Fire, right now, it was crucial to deal with Shuyo.

Ultimately, dealing with Shuyo was essential; only then could he make it through the tough battles against the two subsequent Demon Kings.

Meanwhile, Baek In-hwa, who should be handling Shuyo, was still in meditation, but Yeon-woo felt lucky that the enemies’ gazes were not directed at her.

…Wait a second. Is this a flag?

As Shuyo charged towards him, melting the ground like a wave, Yeon-woo glanced back at Baek In-hwa.

*

[Ha ha, what a surprise.]

The Earth Serpent burst into hearty laughter. It hadn’t expected things to unfold this way, but well, this could be enjoyable in its own right.

Something was lurking in the shadows. Like a snake hiding in the bushes, flicking its tongue, it was watching her.

It was deciding whether to take Baek In-hwa’s life, like a tailor arbitrarily cutting and sewing the weight of existence.

From the Earth Serpent’s perspective, Baek In-hwa was an invaluable asset not to be taken lightly. She was the one who could help eliminate Shuyo, who was even giving that pointy child trouble.

No matter how minimal the concept of life was for a nature god, there’s still discomfort in the notion of existence being obliterated.

Furthermore, instinctively, it knew that Shuyo, the Demon King before it, was a far more threatening entity.

Thus, the Earth Serpent steeled itself to exert some power.

Originally, it had planned to collaborate only after dealing with Shuyo, but at this rate, it would get eaten by Shuyo if things continued.

[Get lost.]

[How rude, isn’t it a bit too much for a fellow serpent?]

Swish, the shadow flicked its tongue. The Earth Serpent felt the most intense rage towards those words and actions.

[Serpent? Does a creature walking on two legs dare to say that? You truly must want to die.]

Serpents have their pride. And as the apex of all earth-dwelling creatures, the Earth Serpent felt it more deeply.

Though it was now a god manifested in nature, had it not been so, they would have likely become the serpent god by the consensus of all beings dwelling on earth.

As it expressed its rage at the humiliation of those words, boom, the air fell silent. Every inch of space except the spot where Baek In-hwa sat seemed to bristle with thorns.

[It could be fun to continue fighting, but… hmm.]

Even so, Moryo made a snort as if it were no big deal. But soon, its presence faded into shadows.

[This time, I will grant you some consideration, chief.]

Moryo said playfully, vanishing in an instant like a candle flickering in the wind.

The Earth Serpent, wrapped around Baek In-hwa, scanned the surroundings with sharp eyes. It was certain they remained within the Earth Hammer Gorge.

“…Earth Serpent?”

[You’ve awakened.]

Baek In-hwa, looking at the Earth Serpent’s magical form twined around her like a long scarf, spoke in a voice laced with bewilderment.

If one looked closely, it seemed as though it was about to eat her. With that thought, the Earth Serpent slid down from Baek In-hwa’s body to the ground.

Baek In-hwa, observing the Earth Serpent, spoke with a hint of caution in her tone.

“…Weren’t you cold?”

[Hmm? Not really a problem.]

“Is that so?”

With a slightly relieved expression, Baek In-hwa murmured that as she stood tall again. Then she casually glanced at the Earth Serpent.

“If you’re coming with me, do you want to ride?”

[…You’ve suddenly become friendly?]

Well, whether it rode or not, the entire gorge was essentially the Earth Serpent itself, so it merely existed anywhere.

However, being offered such a suggestion was also a virtue of a god.

The Earth Serpent climbed onto Baek In-hwa’s body, wrapping around her lightly, as she smiled contentedly and began to race down the gorge.

In truth, although she immensely liked reptiles, due to the chilling effect, she had been stifling that affection, making this contact a small yet joyous occasion.

No one could blame her for satisfying her own feelings during a war, right?

*

The liquids surging towards Yeon-woo instantly froze and shattered. His hands, prepared to catch it, were left floating in the air, but he didn’t care about that embarrassment.

“Finally…!!”

After fighting Shuyo for over twenty minutes while waiting for Baek In-hwa’s arrival.

He had been continuously trying to hold Shuyo back with magic and sword energy, dodging his attacks as much as possible, and finally, Baek In-hwa had arrived.

“I’m here to help.”

The sight of Baek In-hwa he turned to was rather shocking. She looked like a flamboyant wealthy person draped in a serpent.

The serpent that hadn’t been there just a moment ago clearly came from her. Detecting magical entities was an easy task for Yeon-woo.

Shuyo’s face turned pale as it hurriedly separated its freezing body. In reality, it was originally blue, so that was just a spin of phrase.

[Dammit, dammit…!! They’re all just getting in the way…!!]

Shuyo gnawed on its finger. A behavior so human-like, despite it not being human. The sight made Yeon-woo involuntarily feel disgusted.

At that moment, a cold aura began swirling around Baek In-hwa.

Shuyo glanced around, hurriedly attempting to retreat. But the Slime’s most significant weakness was still evident.

One could tell just by observing the sluggishness of the demons of Sloth, but Slimes are incredibly slow.

All Shuyo could do was run, resembling a human, but it likely had never needed to move faster than that.

Honestly, how often would a Slime, coming to devour something, find itself needing to approach first?

Moreover, Shuyo could easily cause a flood and dilute itself, making things even trickier.

Baek In-hwa approached Shuyo. Upon witnessing this, Shuyo recoiled and desperately shouted.

[Don’t come closer, I’m warning you…!!]

Shuyo swung its hands, splattering acidic liquid everywhere. The ground melted, and surrounding trees and rocks began to flow away.

However, this resistance was effortlessly frozen and fell to the ground before Baek In-hwa.

One of the Demon Kings, especially the one who caused the most significant casualties among the nine Demon Kings manifested in this world, was being subdued far too easily.

Perhaps it was due to the clear superiority in their elemental types, as even Shuyo’s abilities, which melted concepts, were useless against her, as she froze them solid.

At that moment, Yeon-woo heard a very faint noise in his ear. Crack, crackle… like something breaking.

Noticing that sound, Yeon-woo turned his head. Gradually, he sensed the flow of water increasing, trickling out from between rocks and gravel.

“…Oh no.”

Shuyo smiled slyly. It seemed that the Shuyo he was facing wasn’t its complete form.

It appeared to be prepared to utilize that massive current while leaving a part of itself in the puddle to maintain control.

The ice walls shattered, and mounds of rocks began to shift. The water that had been trickling out like a garden hose suddenly rose to his ankles.

The Earth Serpent had diverted the water level to other places, but the amount of water remaining was still sufficient to wash away an entire city or gorge.

“Hey, Baek In-hwa, for now…!!”

“I’m fine.”

As Yeon-woo tried to lift Baek In-hwa to fly away, she stopped him. Then, she lightly waved her hand.

The cold aura began to spread like wildfire. Following her movements, the coldness landed atop the crumbling rock piles, quickly adhering to them.

Crack, crack, crack….

The mound of rocks became entirely frozen, not allowing a single droplet of moisture to remain. Both Yeon-woo and Shuyo stared blankly at the scene.

“Don’t put up useless resistance.”

[…W-wait a moment. I have a good proposal. Just give me a chance to speak!]

“Are you trying to stall for time? That won’t work.”

Baek In-hwa responded firmly as she stepped forward. Shuyo was crawling on the ground, its face completely fearful.

Is this really a Demon King…? It looked so pathetic that such a thought crossed his mind. It looked utterly humiliating with its forehead pressed against the ground, rubbing its palm on the dirt.

[I’ll side with you in this fight…!! I’ll abandon my claim to being a Demon King, and you can keep me locked away in an experimental vessel for life. Just please spare my life…!!]

Begging for the Demon King’s life? That was quite precious. Not something one could encounter frequently.

Although it had devoured many humans to the point of unconsciously mimicking their form, Yeon-woo began to count the benefits he could gain if he turned Shuyo into an ally.

…There were indeed some. However, trusting someone who looked like they would betray you without a doubt was a foolish act.

As Yeon-woo shook his head, Baek In-hwa sped up her previously halted steps.

[I-I’d be willing to make a contract!! If you just spare me, I’ll do anything…!! I swear I wouldn’t betray or consume humans…!!]

It looked exceedingly desperate. Hmm, a contract.

Is it impossible for a Demon King to break a contract?

[Hmm, actually, the stronger the being, the more likely it seems they can’t break their agreements. Just like we Dragons and Leviathan are incredibly strict about contracts, right?]

Killing Shuyo would be extremely easy. However, just because Shuyo was easily killed, wouldn’t mean the souls of those it had slain would be at rest.

Of course, keeping Shuyo around wouldn’t resolve the souls of those it had taken, either.

But if he could control Shuyo like a puppet, it wouldn’t be impossible to prevent natural disasters.

If Shuyo could revive as many people as Shuyo had killed, then perhaps it was a proposal worth considering.

As Yeon-woo pondered while stroking his chin, he turned his gaze from the shimmering eyes of Shuyo back to Baek In-hwa.

“Alright, you can have it. Kill it if you want, save it if you want to use it.”

“…Me?”

[Hiiik….]

Shuyo realized it had been given its life-or-death authority over the worst possible enemy and hugged its body tightly.

If Baek In-hwa accepted, it would merely be a matter of arranging the contract from their side.

(To Be Continued in the Next Episode)