Chapter 74 – The Awakened

When Se-min unleashed his killing intent, the entire Red Banner Coalition flinched.

Even if they had joined under Badurbarok, they were forces without real combat experience. As the corpses of their decapitated companions fell, their bodies froze.

Without missing that gap, Se-min leaped toward Kiplo.

However, the guards blocked him.

They were strong soldiers who had been trained reasonably well.

They blocked Se-min’s attack and even counterattacked, brandishing their black aura. Se-min bent his upper body backward to dodge the blade, braced his hands on the ground, and kicked the guard’s chin with the tip of his foot like capoeira.

He lost his balance and sank down just like that.

His head would be ringing, and he wouldn’t be able to move for a while.

Se-min drove Lupus down toward his head. But a suddenly intruded blade blocked the path of his sword. It was Kiplo.

In that brief pause, another goblin held the guard in his arms and escaped Se-min’s radius.

“Kiplo!”

Se-min turned his body toward Kiplo. But Kiplo did not face him and turned his back to flee just like that.

Kiplo was wise enough not to face Se-min directly.

After the Red Banner Coalition scattered in all directions, Se-min felt a radiance shining down from above his head.

His shadow hid beneath his feet. The energy of great nature began to be sucked toward the sky.

Se-min looked up.

It was the dragon.

Inside its wide-open mouth, sparks were flying.

“Damn it.”

The dragon’s hellfire enveloped Se-min.

Se-min deployed his aura to defend. The breath was hot and violent. The surface of the defensive barrier glowed red, and the surrounding ground melted away.

Staring at the profile of the continuously pouring flames, Se-min clutched Lupus tightly.

In the midst of a life-threatening battle, he was instead thinking of the principles of Tai Chi and the way of the four virtues of the Book of Changes.

The moon wanes when it is full.

What reaches the extreme will break.

The breath was powerful. Therefore, once this attack ended, a corresponding backlash would be given to the dragon.

Se-min waited for that.

The barrier cracked, and a gap was made. Flames squeezed out of the hole and flickered like tongues. The heat licked Se-min’s cheek. His hair was singeing.

Se-min kept waiting.

His skin began to suffer burns. He raised his aura to protect his body. His entire body was surrounded by heat. If he went on like this, he might burn completely.

He kept waiting.

And at some point.

The flames stopped.

Se-min kept staring at the breath. As the flames disappeared, the dragon’s open mouth was revealed. Gray smoke was flowing out from its throat.

The breath was sufficiently strong.

Because of that, once the breath ended, the dragon became defenseless.

Se-min kicked off the ground and flew up. A bewildered light appeared in the dragon’s eyes. It flapped its wings, trying to escape, but Lupus bit into the enemy without missing.

[Kieeeeeeeeee!]

The dragon’s neck burst open. Toxic fluid splashed. Se-min dodged it and swung Lupus toward the dragon’s head again.

The dragon’s head split open.

The giant body crashed down.

Even though half of its head was split open, it writhed on the ground without dying.

From the cross-section of its head, parasite-like tentacles crawled out and began to repair the wound. It was a hideous sight.

Suppressing his urge to vomit, Se-min loaded aura into Lupus again.

He intended to kill it completely.

At that moment, something flew toward him. Se-min dodged the spot. Dozens of arrows struck the ground where he had been standing.

“Attack the Emperor!”

It was the Red Banner Coalition.

Kiplo had an expression that had lost all composure. The goblins loaded arrows onto their bows again. Black aura fluctuated from the arrowheads.

Se-min provoked Kiplo.

“Are you not showing off your composure like earlier? A foolish ruler or whatever, why don’t you talk more?”

But Kiplo ignored Se-min. He turned to the Red Banner Coalition and shouted at the top of his lungs.

“Reinforcements are coming! We win if we drag out time! Arise, dragon!”

Se-min narrowed his brow. Reinforcements meant Badurbarok’s army, and that meant demonic beasts.

Se-min resolved to sweep away the Red Banner Coalition before they arrived.

However, his body did not move forward.

Looking down at his feet, a tentacle protruding from the dragon’s wound was wrapping around his ankle. He swung Lupus, but it was tough and did not cut. Several strands of tentacles approached him subsequently.

In the meantime, arrows flew again. Se-min twisted his body to dodge, but one shot grazed his flank.

Black aura began to invade his interior.

Se-min activated the Tai Chi Wisdom. The harmonious energy drove out the unclean power. Meanwhile, tentacles bound both of his feet.

“Damn it!”

Se-min spat out a curse and raised his aura.

His consciousness crossed reality and reached a distant time and space.

The continuously flowing principles of the universe guided him.

The Cosmic Style.

That powerful force was discharged through Lupus.

A fan-shaped sword energy swept the dragon and struck the ground of Pandemonium. The dragon’s body was shattered, and the entirety of the underground vibrated. Debris fell down in heaps.

The dragon’s body was shattered to pieces.

Kiplo had a dumbfounded expression.

“This is unbelievable…”

He backed away, putting the goblins forward.

“We must call that person. We need him. Ordinary fellows won’t do. Everyone, block that guy. I’ll call him.”

He rambled, then turned and began to run.

His subordinates looked back and forth between the fleeing Kiplo and Se-min, hesitating at a loss for what to do. Se-min stepped forward to execute them.

“S-spare us!”

“Emperor! We only…!”

“We failed to recognize you!”

They immediately bowed their heads and began to beg.

At the sudden turn of attitude, Se-min almost forgot his killing intent for a moment.

The goblins banged their heads on the floor until they bled, pleading desperately.

“Spare us!”

“We will never cooperate with Badurbarok again!”

“Please save our race!”

“We plead to Your Majesty!”

Their will to live could be felt. Se-min let out a sigh. After thinking for a moment, he decided to ignore them and pursue Kiplo.

“Do not forget those words.”

“Yes!”

The moment Se-min passed them.

Blood splattered.

Se-min turned around. The goblins prostrated at his feet were all pierced by tentacles.

Tentacles kept springing out from the shattered body of the dead dragon. They connected and joined with each other, sewing themselves up into a bizarre form.

The tentacles even dragged the goblin corpses and harbored them inside. As if waiting for the dragon to be shattered, it cast off the form of the dragon and transformed into a new existence.

It was now a complete demonic beast.

“Why do bad feelings never miss?”

Se-min muttered.

While facing numerous demonic beasts, Se-min felt something like an artistic style.

If the appearance and shapes of the demonic beasts were artificial, the preference of the entity that shaped them must have been reflected.

Perhaps it was Badurbarok’s trace.

In that sense, the newly born dragon was in a shape that perfectly fit Badurbarok’s taste.

“Hideous.”

It was extremely terrible.

And based on his experience, the more disgusting the demonic beasts looked, the stronger they were.

Fluid dripped from its eyeballs, and tentacles were divided into hundreds and thousands of strands, moving busily as if each had its own will. Se-min felt like just running away.

The tentacles surged toward Se-min.

He dodged while swinging Lupus. The tentacles occupied the area around Se-min, sealing his movements.

Se-min cut the tentacles with Lupus, but new tentacles sprang out from the severed sections.

It was a beast that continuously regenerated.

He had to end it in one blow.

Se-min raised his aura to the extreme. Unable to withstand the output, Lupus shook as if in convulsion. This time, he truly intended to tear it to shreds without a trace.

Suddenly, something flickered above his head.

While tightly clutching the vibrating Lupus, Se-min glanced at it.

It was a familiar shape.

A demonic beast. Although he didn’t remember its name, it was a flying demonic beast. It was an uncommon species with excellent lethality.

Seeing that meant one thing.

“Damn it.”

It meant the entrance to Pandemonium had opened.

Se-min grit his teeth and glared at the dragon. It was spreading its tentacles wide, shining its eyeballs toward Se-min.

Se-min loaded the power of the Cosmic Style on top of the Tai Chi Wisdom, splitting the entire space.

***

“Calondo! The Black Claw Tribe is not visible! Can you check!”

“Going now!”

“Iron Cavalry! Help us!”

“Understood!”

“Blue Eye Clan! Hurry!”

Calpacino busily directed the goblins.

He was sending the goblins to the deepest part of Pandemonium. This was to minimize damage as much as possible while the Emperor fought the dragon.

“Wouldn’t it be better to send them outside instead? Call Kiplo and…”

One of his subordinates asked.

Calpacino shook his head.

“No. That is dangerous.”

“Dangerous?”

“The opponent we have to fight today might not just be a single dragon. Everyone, prepare yourselves.”

“What…”

Calpacino prided himself on having an eye for judging people. After having a conversation, the other party’s true nature would be revealed.

Therefore, he did not trust Kiplo.

Kiplo acted as if he wanted to become the lord for the future of the goblins, but Calpacino believed his motive was something other than love for the race. It was closer to pride.

He looked like the type who insisted he was right because he believed it, rather than believing it because it was right.

So despite this confusion, since Kiplo and the Red Banner Coalition were not visible, Calpacino felt an intuition.

“He might use this situation to reveal his true colors.”

And his worry hit the mark.

Shouts began to be heard from far away.

“Demonic beasts have appeared!”

At that single word, order collapsed. The goblins began to run, pushing and trampling each other.

“Boss!”

A goblin from the Sawtooth Angels ran in a hurry to catch his breath.

“D-demonic beasts have appeared. A horde of demonic beasts is coming.”

“The entrance must have opened.”

“What do we do?”

Calpacino stared into the distance. As the dragon awakened, the light that illuminated Pandemonium disappeared. What lit up the underground was only the torches set up by the goblins.

Beyond that swaying fire, the shadows of the demonic beasts flickered.

“The Emperor said earlier.”

“What…”

“Show them that we are not just thugs, but real gangsters.”

“…”

“Are you afraid of demonic beasts?”

Calpacino looked at the goblin standing beside him. He was the guy who stepped forward first to swing his fists when there was a fight with other goblins.

“No.”

He answered with a voice that grit his teeth.

Although he said no, his fists were trembling.

Calpacino was also afraid.

He had never fought demonic beasts. He was born underground and lived underground. Badurbarok and his forces, who shattered the goblin civilization, were fear itself to the goblins.

But Calpacino was also a natural leader.

So at this moment, he knew well what he had to do.

“Hand it over.”

“Boss!”

Calpacino snatched the sword.

He was by no means a goblin who was good at fighting. But he was still a goblin. Before being exiled to Pandemonium, all goblins were warriors.

“I’ll lead the way. So if anyone dies, I’ll die first.”

Calpacino looked at his subordinates. The trembling in their eyes was fading. Calpacino continued.

“Cowards don’t have to come.”

After finishing those words, Calpacino ran toward the demonic beasts.

At first, he was alone.

Soon, footsteps began to follow him. At first, it was a few, and later, it was dozens. Soon, countless goblins ran behind him, letting out shouts.

Their voices echoed loudly through Pandemonium.

As Calpacino increased his speed, he thought.

Once this battle was over, he wanted to see what Kaorak called the sun.

***

Korox was watching all this confusion.

“Have I lived too long?”

He did not know such a day would come.

Did he ever imagine he would see the sight of goblins running away, showing their backs, and humans stepping forward instead to face the enemy?

“Or was coming here a mistake?”

The goblins defeated by Badurbarok retreated to Pandemonium.

Many opposed that decision.

Korox was on the side that agreed.

There was a sliver of hope that they might awaken the strength to oppose Badurbarok someday.

But that hope instead returned as despair.

That dim light illuminating Pandemonium from the sky was contaminated by Badurbarok.

“It was a futile thought.”

Korox recalled the human Emperor who visited him not long ago.

At this time when a new goblin lord appeared, he thought the appearance of the human Emperor might be evidence that the gears of fate had begun to turn again.

The human Emperor fighting the demonic beast-like dragon was indeed different from the Emperor of the past he knew.

He was a warrior.

But the goblins were also different from the past. They had become cowards in the darkness of Pandemonium. This scenery where the human Emperor fought and the goblins instead fled represented the situation.

Perhaps everything went wrong from the moment they tried to rely on another entity.

Korox lamented toward the great goblins of the past.

“The dragon we waited for might not have existed. No, that filthy thing might be the reality of the legend.”

Pandemonium was the sacred ground of the goblins.

But not many goblins knew why this dark and damp underground was called a sacred ground. It was a story transmitted only to a few.

Why was there such a space underground?

Did the structure where the giant cavern branched out to form numerous rooms and everyone shared the ceiling really form naturally?

“Or everyone died, after all.”

According to legend, Pandemonium was a giant lair.

After the dragons were hunted, they fled to escape humans. They were friendly with the ancient goblin warriors, and asked them to guard so that enemies could not invade while they hibernated.

The goblins accepted that.

Thus, this underground became the sacred ground of the goblins.

After being defeated by Badurbarok, the great goblins retreated to Pandemonium.

Hoping they could awaken the ancient, powerful dragons.

But there was nothing in the underground.

Some said it was nothing but a futile legend, and others believed that a dragon was still sleeping somewhere here.

Time passed.

The goblins who knew the legend died. Now only Korox remained.

Korox watched the goblins, harboring the secret inside.

Groups formed, factions divided, and each created their own lifestyle. The Dragon Tribal arose to find traces of the legend and worship the Dragon God, and those who could not handle the warrior’s blood became gangsters.

The goblins each adapted to life in the darkness.

And this was the result.

The dragon was already contaminated.

Perhaps the goblins had been managed by Badurbarok since they came to Pandemonium.

“Let’s go!”

“Fight!”

Suddenly, shouts arose.

Korox’s eyes turned.

Goblins were running toward the demonic beasts. Although they did not reach the majesty shown by the great warriors of the past, courage was harbored in their charge.

A familiar face stood at the front.

“Calpacino…”

He was the fellow who ruled among the gangsters of Pandemonium with his unique charisma.

If it were not for this dark era, he would have achieved something.

“Everyone, evacuate! We will block them! Everyone, run!”

Turning his head, Kaorak was evacuating the citizens.

He was a fellow who caused trouble under Calpacino and bullied other goblins, but upon returning with the Emperor, he showed a different appearance.

Korox shook his head.

Coming here was a mistake.

If they had continued to live on the surface, they might have been different from now.

Calpacino wouldn’t have become a mere gangster, and Kaorak would have become a spirited warrior. Kiplo might also not have betrayed the goblins.

They shouldn’t have come to Pandemonium.

“I must take responsibility.”

Korox held his sword.

He was old, and it had been a long time since he used a weapon, but a warrior is a warrior until death. Although the surrounding goblins were flustered, Korox ignored them and stepped forward.

Aura surged from his body.

He began to run toward the front line of the Sawtooth Gangsters—no, now the Sawtooth Angels.

“Get out of the way!”

Korox shouted.

A goblin was startled and dodged to the side.

Korox broke through the gap, advanced, and swung his axe. Aura spread in a fan shape, severing the demonic beasts. A fountain of blood arose. Korox shouted.

“Fight! Act like goblins!”

The eyes of Calpacino and the Sawtooth Angels changed. Their hands became ferocious and more intense. They swung their weapons like crazy toward the demonic beasts.

The smell of blood was awakening the goblin’s instinct.

Korox shouted once again.

“Let’s kill all these guys and leave Pandemonium!”

Suddenly, his eyes met Calpacino’s. Korox gestured with his chin toward the demonic beasts. Calpacino nodded with serious eyes, then lunged at the demonic beast in front of him and slaughtered it. Blood splattered.

It was goblin-like.

If they won today’s battle, Korox had something he wanted to show these young goblins.

The endlessly wide horizon and the blue sky.

And the brilliant light illuminating all creation.

The sun.

He would show them that.

***

Se-min used the strength of the Cosmic Style to split the dragon. The dragon became fragments. However, it began to regenerate again.

Se-min cut and cut again so that it could not regenerate. Becoming a blurry afterimage, he trampled and tore apart the writhing fragments.

But the pieces of the demonic beast did not stop regenerating.

If Se-min tried to catch his breath, they stretched out thin tentacles to tangle with each other and formed a mass again.

“Bi-ryu!”

Se-min shouted.

Then, Bi-ryu appeared from somewhere.

“Were you really here?”

“I came because you called me.”

“Burn this.”

Bi-ryu immediately spewed flames toward the remnants of the dragon. The regenerating pieces seemed to be singed black, then stopped moving just like that. He was like a human flamethrower. Se-min clapped.

“Excellent.”

Bi-ryu stopped the fire.

“Huh?”

At that, the blackened pieces moved again and began to gather with each other. Se-min rushed out in a hurry, and Bi-ryu also fired flames.

Their attacks overlapped, and Se-min’s body caught fire.

“Hot! Hot! Hey!”

“If you suddenly rush out…”

“Never mind, can’t you make the fire stronger?”

“With my ability, that temperature is the highest. It seems we cannot kill it completely.”

“Tsk…”

Se-min sighed, looking at the pieces of the dragon.

Although he brought it to a state of combat inability, it did not die. It was a truly annoying enemy.

“Keep baking it with fire to stop the regeneration. I’ll help elsewhere.”

“Understood.”

“It’ll be fine, right?”

“Yes.”

If things went wrong, he could be done in by the regenerated dragon, but Bi-ryu answered casually.

Se-min patted Bi-ryu’s shoulder.

“If it’s dangerous, come to me. Be careful.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Good job!”

Se-min recalled his memory and advanced toward the entrance of Pandemonium. It was near the settlement of the Red Banner Coalition.

Se-min soon ran into the march of demonic beasts advancing inside Pandemonium.

The number was large.

Se-min let out a hollow laugh. To bring such a large army inside Pandemonium in an instant, Kiplo must have done his work properly.

If he had utilized that ability for the goblins, he would have been a great talent.

He immediately swung Lupus to bisect the army of demonic beasts.

The demonic beasts screamed in surprise.

At the center, Se-min drew a circle with Lupus again, firing aura at random. The demonic beasts were split into pieces. Before being surrounded, Se-min left the area again and shot sword energy toward the rear.

The demonic beasts collapsed.

Like conducting guerrilla warfare, he accumulated damage while dodging the enemy’s attacks. Now, the march of the demonic beasts stopped. The demonic beasts turned back to face Se-min.

He could only pray that the goblins would block the forces that had already entered.

Se-min smiled, staring at the numerous eyes of the demonic beasts glowing in the darkness.

“He should appear around this time…”

Right after he finished speaking, there was a figure rushing toward him.

Se-min thrust Lupus toward the direction of the collision. The opponent turned direction.

The two brushed past, and a long cut appeared on Se-min’s shoulder.

“Reasonably good.”

Se-min turned his body to check the enemy.

Short height compared to humans, brown skin. However, burning eyes and aura wavering all over his body.

It was a goblin.

“Are you by any chance Kaorak’s friend?”

“Shut up.”

“Are you closer to Kiplo?”

Kaorak was not the only one who surrendered to Badurbarok. Numerous goblins had already surrendered to Badurbarok and became his servants.

Therefore, Se-min expected that a goblin would be directing the demonic beasts.

An existence that knew Pandemonium well and had a link with Kiplo.

“What. Did you guys come in a group?”

But it was not one. More goblins appeared and surrounded Se-min. All had terrifying momentums.

Se-min pointed at one of them and spoke.

“Seeing that your teeth are sawtooth, you must be from the Sawtooth Tribe.”

Glancing at the horde of demonic beasts, Se-min continued.

“I am close friends with the Sawtooth guys, can’t you let me pass?”

“Shut up.”

They lunged.

Se-min blocked each attack and scanned the rear with his eyes again. The demonic beasts were continuously marching toward the cavern of Pandemonium.

It was a force that Kaorak and Calpacino could not block.

“Damn it.”

Moreover, if they went that way, Bi-ryu and the dragon would appear.

At this rate, Bi-ryu was in danger. If Bi-ryu became endangered, the regeneration of the dragon could not be stopped.

He had to kill these goblins quickly, but it didn’t seem easy.

Se-min increased the output of his aura.

“You bastards…”

Anger surged.

The five goblins facing him were definitely strong.

“Are you guys really that good at fighting?”

Se-min approached the goblin standing on the right and swung Lupus. The goblin blocked with his axe. Utilizing the impact force, Se-min drove down the bounced sword again. A crack appeared in the axe. Se-min kicked the goblin.

“Then you should fight Badurbarok with that fighting skill! Why! Why do you bully your own kind!”

“Shut up!”

“I won’t shut up, so you shut up!”

Se-min turned direction and threw Lupus at the opposite goblin. The goblin was startled and blocked it, but the blade bounced off and stabbed into his thigh.

“Argh!”

Se-min dodged the sword of the goblin lunging at him and punched his face. And he stretched his hand toward Lupus.

Lupus returned to Se-min’s hand. He caught it and immediately cut the goblin.

One arm of the goblin was severed from the shoulder.

“Argh!”

In an instant, two became unable to fight.

Right when he was about to kill the collapsed goblin completely.

Se-min felt a cold sensation and stepped back.

Flames poured onto the spot where he had been standing.

“Damn it.”

Before he knew it, the dragon was glaring at Se-min from the sky.

Se-min was worried about Bi-ryu, but there was no room to check. Three goblins and the dragon charged at Se-min simultaneously. Enemies were on all sides.

There was no space to dodge.

He had to collide head-on.

However, it was at that moment.

The ground of the area collapsed. Se-min fell down below the floor. The goblins charging at him collided with each other, rolled over, and began to fall together.

Se-min tried to stay in the air using the Cloud Ladder Step before falling further.

But it didn’t work as he wished.

What on earth was happening?

He kept nose-diving.

Eventually, Se-min realized there was something down below.

Suddenly the ground collapsed, and demonic beasts began to fall down below.

Korox and the other goblin gangsters witnessed the scene and retreated the front line. The crack was expanding.

Fortunately, the collapse stopped before reaching them.

The demonic beasts looking back began to let out giant roars as their army disappeared below the ground.

And they lunged at the goblins. It was a convulsive attack.

“Everyone, calm down! The enemies’ morale is broken now!”

Although they were demonic beasts whose feelings and emotions were hard to read by appearance, Korox, who had fought them daily in his youth, could tell.

Demonic beasts also had things like emotions, and some even possessed high intelligence.

On the battlefield, their movements were tactical.

Therefore, it was natural for their morale to break in an unfavorable situation.

“Everyone, advance.”

As Calpacino spoke, the Sawtooth Angels began to advance. Other gangsters who came out with them also advanced shoulder-to-shoulder.

The demonic beasts were pushed back.

Goblins who were not used to fighting demonic beasts at first were gradually awakening their instincts.

Korox watched the scene and lamented once again.

If they had been born under the sun, they would have grown up as goblin warriors.

They had spent a long time in vain in the underground.

“Someone is over there.”

A goblin pointed forward. Korox stepped on the head of a demonic beast, leaped up, and checked the front.

A goblin was walking, staggering to avoid the collapsed ground.

“Kartoros?”

It was Kartoros of the Dragon Tribal.

Korox immediately leaped over the demonic beasts and saved Kartoros.

He spoke in a faint voice, held in Korox’s arms.

“Elder…”

“Kartoros. Are you okay?”

“Was I… wrong? Was there no Dragon God in Pandemonium?”

Korox looked at him.

In his hand, the Dragon Heart that had lost its light was held.

Where did he find it?

Korox stroked his head.

He was the fellow who had found records of dragons from somewhere and created the Dragon Tribal, believing in the Dragon God.

Since Korox knew the truth of Pandemonium, he didn’t regard it as completely absurd. Sometimes, he even hoped Kartoros would truly succeed and awaken that Dragon God.

If it were the past, he would have been a fellow who might have become a great shaman.

“Dragon…”

Korox said, stabbing the approaching demonic beast with his sword.

“I don’t know either.”

He could only say those words.

Demonic beasts lunged from all sides. Korox backed away and slid past the enemy’s attacks. Goblins pressed the demonic beasts even more fiercely to save Korox and Kartoros.

The number of demonic beasts gradually decreased.

“Kill them all! Goblins do not leave invaders alive! They invaded our land!”

As Korox shouted, the goblins were filled with rage and delivered the final blow to the demonic beasts.

Soon, the demonic beasts were all subdued.

Goblins even delivered finishing blows to the demonic beasts writhing on the floor.

Korox handed Kartoros over to a young goblin.

“We must leave Pandemonium.”

As the situation settled, Calpacino spoke.

The goblins all looked at him.

The Blue Droplet Gangsters, the Iron Cavalry, the Blue Eye Clan, the Black Claw Tribe, and so on. Goblins of numerous lineages became one and waited for his words.

They had fought the demonic beasts under Calpacino’s direction, and were now waiting for Calpacino’s words.

“Pandemonium has begun to collapse. The cracks might expand. This place is not safe.”

“Are we going outside?”

A goblin asked. He had a fearful look.

The young goblins had lived underground all their lives. To them, the surface was no different from a hell where demonic beasts swarmed.

Calpacino nodded.

“Yes. We go.”

There was no explanation. He declared, and the goblins nodded.

Watching that scene, Korox felt sorry to the young goblins once again for their past decision.

In the past, these guys would have been warriors, and Calpacino would have been the commander leading them.

Brilliant talents were growing old in the underground.

“Let’s go outside.”

Korox said. Everyone turned to him. Korox said once again.

“We go up, and in the wide world, we reclaim the home of the goblins. We goblins have lived in the Cloud Mountains. That is our land. I want to show you the beautiful scenery of that place.”

The goblins nodded.

Even Korox, the most authoritative elder in Pandemonium, declared the escape from Pandemonium.

“Gather the residents. Be careful not to leave anyone behind. The exit will be open.”

Calpacino quickly directed what each goblin had to do according to their affiliation.

It was the moment the goblins were about to engrave their respective missions and scatter.

The ground shook.

Everyone lowered their postures and lay down.

As the entirety of Pandemonium vibrated, stone debris began to fall from the ceiling. Occasionally, a large rock fragment fell, making a loud noise. Goblins covered their heads.

A faint wailing was heard.

It gradually drew closer.

It resounded through the cliff created as the underground collapsed, and soon rose as a roar.

[Kroooooooooooo!]

The goblins were shocked.

“My goodness.”

The light source of Pandemonium that illuminated them.

The dragon contaminated by Badurbarok.

Its physical form rose before them. With a hideous appearance of tentacles and protrusions, fluid flowed down from its eyes, nose, and mouth. An odor wafted every time it flapped its wings.

[Dirty and vulgar goblins.]

The dragon looked down at the goblins, rolling its multiple eyes, and then opened its mouth.

Fire ignited inside its snout.

It was a breath.

Korox raised his aura. The other goblins did the same.

Although they hadn’t received systematic training, goblins were natural-born warriors. They instinctively felt they had to raise their aura to prepare.

But could they survive?

Korox was negative.

He was old, and the young goblins were immature.

The entity capable of opposing that in Pandemonium right now was, at most.

The Emperor.

Only him.

Korox recalled the human Emperor. A human who was cheeky, arrogant, and harbored deep resentment in his heart, yet had a nature that could never become evil.

Korox muttered inwardly.

If he truly intended to kill Badurbarok.

“Please help us now.”

Flames poured. Korox realized he could not block it. The dragon’s breath was powerful.

His vision was completely white-hot with flames.

And beyond that, Korox saw something.

Korox ended up laughing.

A giant wing was surging.

***

Se-min fell endlessly under the darkness, then stopped.

He was floating in the air.

But the demonic beasts were different. They fell straight down and crashed somewhere on the floor.

The sound of bodies bursting and shattering kept echoing in the darkness. The demonic beasts died without even letting out a final scream.

“Hello?”

Se-min shouted.

His voice echoed.

“Is anyone here?”

Se-min was feeling a presence in this darkness. But it was not clear. It was a vague sensation, as if living yet not living.

“Hey?”

At that moment, a venomous voice echoed.

“Emperor! Die!”

It was that goblin. It seemed someone had survived the fall.

The sound of footsteps running toward Se-min could be heard.

But because it was dark, he seemed to trip and fall several times on the uneven ground.

Se-min said with sympathy.

“Hey, just stay there.”

“Shut up!”

“You keep telling me to shut up. You shut up.”

Se-min opened his senses and stretched his aura. The dark space was wide. The Tai Chi Wisdom set up its antennae to scan the surroundings.

At some point.

The goblin disappeared.

“Hey?”

No reply came. Instead, the sound of something biting and chewing echoed. The sound of bones crushing was made.

“Hello?”

Se-min aimed Lupus toward the direction of the sound.

Something was there.

The presence gradually began to come alive.

It was a giant creature.

[It was a long sleep.]

The voice resounded. Se-min realized it was not a human voice. But it was a resonance he knew.

[It is a strange thing.]

Two eyes rose in the darkness.

[Why on earth is the human Emperor in front of me now?]

Killing intent was laden in that voice.

Se-min felt as if he knew who this entity was. So at this moment, he didn’t want to be the Emperor.

Se-min spoke in a hurry.

“Hey, wait a minute. You.”

[…]

“I am, well, on that side. The moderate faction. No, the friendly faction. I am different from the Emperor you knew.”

[…]

“I want to be friends with dragons! An alliance!”

Dragon.

That entity was sleeping under the ground of Pandemonium.

An pressure incomparable to the dragon contaminated by Badurbarok weighed down on Se-min.

After a long silence, the dragon spoke again.

[By the way.]

“Yes. By the way?”

[Why is…]

Anger was laden in his voice.

[Why is the energy of the world so turbid?]

Se-min realized the meaning and shut his mouth.

If he told him that the world was destroyed while he slept, and that the surface was now occupied by a monster named Badurbarok, would this dragon be in a good mood?

He might get angry and spew a breath.

[Explain. Emperor. It makes no sense for the human Emperor to stand alone before me.]

“It’s a long story…”

[Keep it short.]

The dragon growled. Because of that coercive attitude, Se-min thought about stabbing him, but decided to endure it since the situation was what it was.

He was definitely not intimidated.

He was just enduring because he might win if they fought with all their might.

“A villain named Badurbarok conquered the world. The five races, including humans, were kicked out and are barely scraping by. I plan to gather them and launch the final war. In the process of that adventure, you and I encountered each other! The Emperor and the dragon met, it’s a celebration, a celebration.”

[You summarize better than I thought.]

The dragon nodded.

[Then, what is that above?]

“What is above?”

[It is certainly a dragon, but…]

The dragon’s voice turned rough. It was the most angry look he had shown.

[Hideous and dirty.]

Se-min realized what he was referring to.

It must mean the dragon contaminated by Badurbarok.

“Badurbarok contaminated the dragon.”

[Contaminated?]

“He modified the great and beautiful dragon with his technology, turning it into a hideous monster that only obeys his orders.”

[Is that true?]

“That guy doesn’t know how strong and great a race dragons are. He just thinks they are a race he can capture, brainwash, modify, and humiliate at his whim…”

A powerful force erupted from his body. The area vibrated.

Se-min flailed around, feeling like the world would collapse.

[How dare he!]

“Hey, calm down!”

[I don’t know how this world changed…]

Se-min felt the wind.

The dragon was flapping its wings.

[I must kill that thing that lost the pride of dragons first.]

“I’ll go with you!”

[Get on.]

Power stretched from the dragon’s body and pulled Se-min. Se-min was pulled in the air and ended up sitting on the dragon’s back.

A cool wind was felt every time the wings fluttered.

The dragon began to soar.

[Emperor. What is your name?]

“Lee Se-min. It has the meaning of saving the world and comforting the people.”

[It is a good name.]

“What is your name?”

[My name is Izergazin.]

Se-min soared toward Pandemonium with the dragon.

[It means the Dragon Lord.]

The contaminated dragon was thrown and hit the wall by Izergazin.

As if its breath backflowed, it suffered, emitting smoke from its mouth.

Se-min scanned the goblins from on top of Izergazin’s back. In the place where the breath swept past, a giant semi-spherical protective barrier rose, and the old elder goblin Korox stood in front of it.

He had endured the breath at the very front.

Goblins supported him.

“Is that grandfather okay?”

He didn’t seem to have died. Se-min admired his grit, then held Izergazin’s scales and looked ahead again.

The contaminated dragon was looking at Izergazin with a fearful face. Izergazin glared at him, flapping his wings.

[How did this happen?]

Izergazin asked. The contaminated dragon raised its tentacles and shook them here and there, then clutched its head and suffered.

[How did this happen, Gartaros?]

Izergazin knew the name of that dragon.

Gartaros, the dragon contaminated by Badurbarok, could not open its mouth in front of the pressure of the Dragon Lord, and shook its tentacles violently.

Izergazin’s momentum became heavy.

[Who made you…]

He dragged out his words. It was a voice laden with anger. Se-min thought a giant roar would follow, shaking Pandemonium.

However, Izergazin instead continued with an even lower voice.

[…like this?]

Se-min could feel a quiet anger from him. It was a solemn anger that sank inside because it was too giant to express by shouting.

Gartaros opened its multiple eyes wide.

One was crying, and one was distorted. Others shook here and there or shed fluid, bloodshot.

It was a bizarre sight where each moved at its own whim. As if representing his confused mind, tentacles surged.

[I, I…]

Gartaros stammered.

[I…!]

Gartaros released his power. Dozens of tentacles were shot toward Izergazin.

Izergazin did not move.

Gartaros’s tentacles pierced Izergazin’s body. Blood flowed down. Even so, Izergazin did not move or attack.

He instead approached close to Gartaros.

[Gartaros.]

Compared to Izergazin’s giant body, that contaminated dragon looked so small and weak.

[Do you remember what your name means?]

Gartaros extracted more tentacles and stabbed Izergazin. Tentacles dug in between the scales.

Gartaros desperately tried to harm Izergazin, and Izergazin was accepting that attack as it was.

Izergazin said.

[Remember that.]

[I…]

[Even if they humiliated your body.]

Izergazin released his power. At that, the tentacles stabbed into his body were pushed out by the pressure. The wounds healed in an instant.

[They cannot invade your soul.]

Gartaros withdrew the tentacles. His eyes shook unstably, and he began to mutter unknown sounds.

[The name given by the predecessor, I am Gartaros. Gartaros… I… they… me…]

Gartaros bowed his head.

A faint light began to be emitted from Izergazin’s body. Se-min, sitting on his back, felt his mind calm down as he bathed in that light.

Gartaros raised his eyes. His asymmetrical, vicious face distorted, and multiple irises opened wide toward Izergazin.

[I am Gartaros.]

The light emitted from Gartaros’s body flickered.

[The Keeper of Light.]

Izergazin approached Gartaros. The tentacles on his body convulsed and stabbed Izergazin, but they did not dare harm the Dragon Lord.

Izergazin instead spread his wings and embraced Gartaros.

[Your long and lonely vigil is over.]

Gartaros’s resistance quieted down. He kept his head bowed and remained silent for a while. Occasionally, tentacles shook, but before long, they crawled back under the skin.

Gartaros raised his head.

[Dragon Lord.]

His voice had changed. The rough and vicious tone became solemn.

[Please receive my memories.]

At the same time, a brilliant light was emitted from Gartaros’s body. Through that light, fragments of memory were transmitted.

Se-min, sitting on Izergazin’s back, could glimpse that sliver.

What Gartaros experienced and saw passed as images in Se-min’s head.

It was a long time.

Ordinary humans would not have been able to endure it, but Se-min transcended the limit of time by passing the trials of the Imperial Throne.

He was able to accept the long memory harbored by the dragon.

***

The dragons were defeated by humans and chose a long hibernation. They prepared a place in the secret underground.

For a long time, someone who would protect them was needed.

Gartaros volunteered for the mission of the lonely keeper for the future of all dragons.

He endured a long time, lighting up the darkness alone.

He killed demonic beasts and adventurers who occasionally found the place.

He stayed up countless times alone.

It was a long time, enough to erase the concept of loneliness.

Although he felt the war being waged on the surface, it did not matter to him. He was the guard protecting the dragons’ sanctuary, and his mission was to guard the underground until the dragons awakened.

Then one day, bizarre things invaded Pandemonium.

It was Badurbarok’s army.

They found out Pandemonium through a goblin who betrayed the race, and tried to rule the dragons in the legend.

Gartaros was captured by them.

He did not open his mouth to the end.

Badurbarok’s subordinates failed to find the dragons sleeping in the deep, deep part of Pandemonium.

They concluded that the dragons had already gone extinct and that Gartaros was the only surviving dragon.

Thus, a scheme utilizing Gartaros was devised.

‘We will rule the goblins using this guy.’

He was modified and relegated to a biological machine emitting contaminated light.

Bathing in that light made them helpless and weak. It was a scheme to weaken the entire race by evacuating the goblins to Pandemonium.

Gartaros was bound to the ceiling of Pandemonium, looking down at Pandemonium as a dim light.

Gartaros’s mind was worn down.

The goblins also lost their past courage.

They were sinking together.

And again, long years passed.

One day, the human Emperor visited Pandemonium.

***

Although they were only faint images, Se-min could feel Gartaros’s emotions as if he had experienced those years directly.

He felt pity for this dragon whom he had thought was only hideous.

A long loneliness.

Despair when undergoing biological modification.

All those mixed up, making Se-min’s head heavy.

That was the same for Izergazin. He shut his mouth for a while. And at the end of the silence, he said:

[Do you truly want that?]

As a fellow dragon, he seemed to have witnessed something Se-min did not see. Gartaros nodded in his embrace.

Izergazin said.

[Gartaros. Keeper of Light and Guardian of Pandemonium. And…]

His voice sank.

[My brother’s son.]

Se-min looked at the back of Izergazin’s head. His brother’s son, so it meant nephew.

An energy that calmed the mind flowed out from Izergazin’s body once again. That power was concentrated on Gartaros held in Izergazin’s embrace.

[I grant you peace.]

Gartaros’s life force stopped.

It was a peaceful death.

Se-min patted Izergazin’s scales.

There was nothing to say. He fell into hibernation after losing the war, and upon opening his eyes, the world was ruled by a guy named Badurbarok, and his nephew was modified into a monster.

His mind must also be in confusion.

Izergazin folded his wings.

At that, Gartaros’s body turned into glowing powder and scattered.

His life ended, but the remnants became light and illuminated Pandemonium.

It gathered in one place, rose along the air, and touched the ceiling of Pandemonium. And it began to knock on the thick wall separating the surface and the underground. Gradually, the light became dim.

Izergazin understood the meaning.

[Emperor.]

“Yes.”

[Did you say you will kill Badurbarok?]

“Of course.”

[It is a difficult task.]

“I know.”

[Do you have the confidence to endure the numerous pains and despairs that will lie on that path?]

What else did he see in Gartaros’s memories? He seemed to want to obtain certainty through Se-min’s reply.

On Earth, this kind of thing was called asking a question when the answer is already decided.

Se-min recalled Imuncaser.

They were both Dragon Lords, but why was this side’s scale so small? Since that look felt like an insult to Imuncaser, Se-min answered bluntly.

“If you are intimidated, go back to your hole and sleep.”

At his reply, Izergazin fell silent.

He soon began to laugh.

After shaking his body lightly, he burst into a large laugh. The dragon’s laughter resounded loudly through Pandemonium.

[I have never seen an Emperor like you.]

Izergazin raised his head.

The sparkling remnants of Gartaros were becoming dimmer and dimmer.

There was no time to hesitate.

Izergazin opened his mouth.

The energy of great nature was sucked into his interior. It was a suction power of a different dimension compared to what Gartaros had shown.

Se-min felt a giant heat boiling up inside Izergazin on whom he was riding.

Eventually, a breath was spewed out from Izergazin’s mouth.

It was too strong and clear to be called flames.

A pillar of light shot up toward the ceiling of Pandemonium.

There was no earthquake or collapse.

All materials that lay in the path of his breath were erased. A giant hole leading to the surface was created.

And above it.

The sun had risen.

Gartaros’s remnants melted away in the bright sunlight.

Se-min raised his hand to cover his eyes. It was dazzling because it was sunlight he hadn’t seen in a very long time.

The darkness of Pandemonium was departing.

“Will those guys be okay?”

[Goblins are not that weak.]

Although it seemed the light would be too strong for those who had never seen the sun in their lives, the goblins did not yield and kept looking up at the sky.

The goblins raised their weapons and began to let out cheers.

Izergazin soared.

Se-min left Pandemonium, crossed the long tunnel he had created, and shot up to the surface.

Up, he rose further up.

Izergazin stopped in the middle of the sky and looked at the earth. The horizon was enclosing them in a circle.

Beyond it, there would be the four ancient races, and Badurbarok’s army would also be lurking.

They would have to cross and cross that distant horizon to reach Badurbarok.

Izergazin opened his mouth and roared.

It was a sound loud enough to shake the heavens.

Thus, he announced the return of the dragon to the world.

“You have a good voice.”

Se-min covered his ears.

He patted Izergazin’s scales and said.

“So Izergazin. You are joining the Lee Se-min Coalition to kill Badurbarok, right?”

[No.]

“Why? Don’t you like the name? Should I make it the Izergazin Coalition?”

[It is not that.]

“What is not?”

[It is not you.]

“You?”

Suddenly, the screams of the goblins were heard from Pandemonium. Se-min looked down. An anomaly was occurring.

[It is correct to say you guys.]

From the tunnel of Pandemonium Izergazin had created, a dragon soared up.

“Uh?”

Subsequently, another dragon shot up.

Gradually, the number of dragons increased. Numerous dragons left Pandemonium and soared toward the sky.

Pandemonium.

The dragons sleeping beneath it had awakened now.