Chapter 54:
Chapter 53 — Blood Debt & Ancestral Hunger
S. T. A. W
Lisa let out a jagged breath, her eyes clearing of the fog of despair. 「Okay... if you believe he can win, then I’ll believe in him too.」「That’s more like it,」 Iris said, her voice like iron.Liani, however, was still spiraling. The logistics didn't add up. 「But he lost an arm! He’s physically spent! How is he supposed to balance, let alone fight a god?」「It’s just his left arm. He’ll be fine,」 Rina countered, her voice dropping into the cold, clinical tone of a master swordswoman.Liani looked at her like she was insane. 「JUST his left? Rina, that missing limb throws off his entire center of gravity! He’ll be clumsy, slow—」「True,」 Rina interrupted, her eyes fixed on the projection. 「But Jay is right-handed. And his target is currently three hundred meters of lizard meat. Trust me, he isn’t going to miss.」
On the other side, Lena was still fighting against Saalin’s grip. 「Let me go! I can help Papa!」 she screamed, tears hot and angry on her face.「Lena, there’s noth—」 Iris started to say, but the words died in her throat.
Iris turned, her eyes widening. Lena and Clara weren't just throwing a tantrum. They were vibrating. A strange, thick mana—something visceral and ancient that the others couldn't even perceive—began to bleed out of their pores.
【So this is what Jay meant,】 Iris thought, a grim smile forming. 【Their sensory magic was just a smokescreen for the latent nightmare hiding inside them.】She looked at the girls and sharpened her tone until it cut. 「Lena, Clara... stop it. You’ll just be dead weight to him. You’re too weak to even stand in his shadow.」
The girls froze. The shock on their faces curdled instantly into a white-hot, transformative rage. The mana around them didn't just thicken; it began to hum with a predatory frequency.
【There. That should be enough fuel for the fire. Whatever you're planning, Jay, it better work,】 Iris thought, turning back to the screen.Lisa leaned in, whispering. 「Wasn't that a bit mean?」「It was cruel,」 Iris sighed. 「But it’s going to work in our favor. Trust the process.」
◽The Command Center◽
Zakry didn't wait for a sign from God. He gave the order.
The secret weapon—a twenty-meter mythril bolt etched with enough explosive runes to level a district—was launched. It roared through the air toward the Azure Capital. It was a tactical sacrifice; Zakry was willing to turn a quarter of the city into a crater if it meant his brother survived the blast.
◽The Azure Capital◽
Draco shifted. The world groaned as he expanded into his true, three hundred-meter form. He was no longer a dragon; he was a landscape, a towering shadow that effectively erased the sun. The sheer mana release partially knitted his broken front leg back together, though it remained a gnarled, useless limb for actual combat.
「Tch. I can only walk on this leg now,」 Draco rumbled, his voice a tectonic shift. 「But congratulations, Jay Von Lancer. You forced me to show my true self.」Jay looked up at the mountain of scales and let out a long, weary sigh. 「Guess I won’t get to play the third phase of this boss fight properly.」「No,」 Draco said with the weight of a closed tomb. 「You won’t.」
Draco brought his right front paw down. It wasn't a strike; it was an extinction event. The earth shattered, stone turning to powder as he tried to smear Jay into the geological record. The entire kingdom watching the projection went silent, hearts stopping in unison.
But when the dust settled, Draco froze. He lifted his paw, looking at the empty, pulverized crater.
「JAY!」 Draco roared, then he let out a confused, booming laugh. 「JAY VON LANCER! WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU?」
◽The Old Ruins◽
「No way... how did he dodge that?」 Rina whispered, her hand trembling on her hilt.Lisa’s face lit up. 「I don't care how! He’s alive! He can still fight!」「Guys...」 Saalin’s voice was small, trembling. 「The girls. They’re gone.」Liani gasped. 「What? How? They were right here!」「I had them in my arms,」 Saalin said, looking at her empty hands in horror. 「Then... they just weren't.」
The projection panned to a pile of rubble on the outskirts of the crater. Jay was sitting there, his sight still gone, his body a map of agony. But he wasn't alone. Next to him stood Lena, her feline ears and tail drooped low. Beside her, Clara stood guard, her own canine ears flat against her head and a bushy tail waving with lethal intent.
⟦Hey Papa... you’re okay, right? You’re gonna win?⟧ Lena’s voice echoed in Jay’s mind, thick with worry.Jay reached out, his hand finding her head and patting it gently. ⟦Don’t worry, princess. Papa’s got this. Clara, come here for a second.⟧⟦Okay, Papa.⟧
A rift in dimensional storage opened. Two deep-red, pulsing fruits fell into the girls' hands.
⟦Papa? What are these?⟧ Lena asked.⟦Dragon Fruit,⟧ Jay said, his voice dropping into a dark, solemn tone. ⟦You two want to get strong enough to protect what's ours?⟧Clara didn't hesitate. ⟦Yes.⟧⟦Eat up, then.⟧
◽The Azure Capital◽
The girls bit into the fruit, and the world began to scream. Jay took to the sky, floating in front of Draco’s massive eye.
「So you show yourself!」 Draco gleefully roared. 「Prepared to die at last?」「Not even close,」 Jay scoffed.
At that moment, Zakry’s mythril bolt shrieked into the battlefield. Jay didn't dodge. He intercepted it. As it detonated, Jay didn't let the fire spread—he acted as a vacuum, absorbing every ounce of kinetic and magical energy. He converted the explosion into raw mana, using the surge to jump-start his healing.
Below him, Lena and Clara were encased in mana cocoons. They began to grow, their bodies warping into ancestral nightmares.
The cocoons shattered. Two two-hundred-meter beasts stood in the ruins.Lena was a gargantuan golden lion, draped in ornate red dragon-scale armor.Clara was a massive silver wolf, similarly armored, her fur crackling with static.
Jay stood atop the spent bolt, his body mended, his left arm now a shimmering, translucent limb of solid mana. Behind him, his daughters loomed like twin gods of vengeance.
Jay cracked his knuckles, a predatory grin splitting his face. 「Hey, Draco. Remember what I told you I’d do after this? I’ve got wives to get back to.」Draco laughed, unfazed. 「I see. You made me bleed throughout this entire fight just to harvest my DNA for these two 'guardians.' A clever parasite.」Jay chuckled. 「Making sure you didn't notice I was stealing your blood was the hardest part of the job.」「Well,」 Draco growled, 「you aren’t the only one with backup.」
Two massive magic circles erupted at Draco’s flanks. Two more red dragons, each two hundred meters long, clawed their way into reality. The 3v3 was set.
Jay didn't flinch. 「Girls, you got this?」Lena let out a roar that shook the very foundations of the kingdom. 「What does that tell you, Papa?」「Alright then,」 Jay laughed, the madness returning to his eyes. 「We’re eating dragon steak tonight! Just holler if you need a hand!」Clara’s silver fur erupted in violet lightning. 「The left one is mine.」「I’ll take the right, then,」 Lena added, her claws extending like obsidian scythes.
On the other side, Lena was still fighting against Saalin’s grip. 「Let me go! I can help Papa!」 she screamed, tears hot and angry on her face.「Lena, there’s noth—」 Iris started to say, but the words died in her throat.
Iris turned, her eyes widening. Lena and Clara weren't just throwing a tantrum. They were vibrating. A strange, thick mana—something visceral and ancient that the others couldn't even perceive—began to bleed out of their pores.
【So this is what Jay meant,】 Iris thought, a grim smile forming. 【Their sensory magic was just a smokescreen for the latent nightmare hiding inside them.】She looked at the girls and sharpened her tone until it cut. 「Lena, Clara... stop it. You’ll just be dead weight to him. You’re too weak to even stand in his shadow.」
The girls froze. The shock on their faces curdled instantly into a white-hot, transformative rage. The mana around them didn't just thicken; it began to hum with a predatory frequency.
【There. That should be enough fuel for the fire. Whatever you're planning, Jay, it better work,】 Iris thought, turning back to the screen.Lisa leaned in, whispering. 「Wasn't that a bit mean?」「It was cruel,」 Iris sighed. 「But it’s going to work in our favor. Trust the process.」
◽The Command Center◽
Zakry didn't wait for a sign from God. He gave the order.
The secret weapon—a twenty-meter mythril bolt etched with enough explosive runes to level a district—was launched. It roared through the air toward the Azure Capital. It was a tactical sacrifice; Zakry was willing to turn a quarter of the city into a crater if it meant his brother survived the blast.
◽The Azure Capital◽
Draco shifted. The world groaned as he expanded into his true, three hundred-meter form. He was no longer a dragon; he was a landscape, a towering shadow that effectively erased the sun. The sheer mana release partially knitted his broken front leg back together, though it remained a gnarled, useless limb for actual combat.
「Tch. I can only walk on this leg now,」 Draco rumbled, his voice a tectonic shift. 「But congratulations, Jay Von Lancer. You forced me to show my true self.」Jay looked up at the mountain of scales and let out a long, weary sigh. 「Guess I won’t get to play the third phase of this boss fight properly.」「No,」 Draco said with the weight of a closed tomb. 「You won’t.」
Draco brought his right front paw down. It wasn't a strike; it was an extinction event. The earth shattered, stone turning to powder as he tried to smear Jay into the geological record. The entire kingdom watching the projection went silent, hearts stopping in unison.
But when the dust settled, Draco froze. He lifted his paw, looking at the empty, pulverized crater.
「JAY!」 Draco roared, then he let out a confused, booming laugh. 「JAY VON LANCER! WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU?」
◽The Old Ruins◽
「No way... how did he dodge that?」 Rina whispered, her hand trembling on her hilt.Lisa’s face lit up. 「I don't care how! He’s alive! He can still fight!」「Guys...」 Saalin’s voice was small, trembling. 「The girls. They’re gone.」Liani gasped. 「What? How? They were right here!」「I had them in my arms,」 Saalin said, looking at her empty hands in horror. 「Then... they just weren't.」
The projection panned to a pile of rubble on the outskirts of the crater. Jay was sitting there, his sight still gone, his body a map of agony. But he wasn't alone. Next to him stood Lena, her feline ears and tail drooped low. Beside her, Clara stood guard, her own canine ears flat against her head and a bushy tail waving with lethal intent.
⟦Hey Papa... you’re okay, right? You’re gonna win?⟧ Lena’s voice echoed in Jay’s mind, thick with worry.Jay reached out, his hand finding her head and patting it gently. ⟦Don’t worry, princess. Papa’s got this. Clara, come here for a second.⟧⟦Okay, Papa.⟧
A rift in dimensional storage opened. Two deep-red, pulsing fruits fell into the girls' hands.
⟦Papa? What are these?⟧ Lena asked.⟦Dragon Fruit,⟧ Jay said, his voice dropping into a dark, solemn tone. ⟦You two want to get strong enough to protect what's ours?⟧Clara didn't hesitate. ⟦Yes.⟧⟦Eat up, then.⟧
◽The Azure Capital◽
The girls bit into the fruit, and the world began to scream. Jay took to the sky, floating in front of Draco’s massive eye.
「So you show yourself!」 Draco gleefully roared. 「Prepared to die at last?」「Not even close,」 Jay scoffed.
At that moment, Zakry’s mythril bolt shrieked into the battlefield. Jay didn't dodge. He intercepted it. As it detonated, Jay didn't let the fire spread—he acted as a vacuum, absorbing every ounce of kinetic and magical energy. He converted the explosion into raw mana, using the surge to jump-start his healing.
Below him, Lena and Clara were encased in mana cocoons. They began to grow, their bodies warping into ancestral nightmares.
The cocoons shattered. Two two-hundred-meter beasts stood in the ruins.Lena was a gargantuan golden lion, draped in ornate red dragon-scale armor.Clara was a massive silver wolf, similarly armored, her fur crackling with static.
Jay stood atop the spent bolt, his body mended, his left arm now a shimmering, translucent limb of solid mana. Behind him, his daughters loomed like twin gods of vengeance.
Jay cracked his knuckles, a predatory grin splitting his face. 「Hey, Draco. Remember what I told you I’d do after this? I’ve got wives to get back to.」Draco laughed, unfazed. 「I see. You made me bleed throughout this entire fight just to harvest my DNA for these two 'guardians.' A clever parasite.」Jay chuckled. 「Making sure you didn't notice I was stealing your blood was the hardest part of the job.」「Well,」 Draco growled, 「you aren’t the only one with backup.」
Two massive magic circles erupted at Draco’s flanks. Two more red dragons, each two hundred meters long, clawed their way into reality. The 3v3 was set.
Jay didn't flinch. 「Girls, you got this?」Lena let out a roar that shook the very foundations of the kingdom. 「What does that tell you, Papa?」「Alright then,」 Jay laughed, the madness returning to his eyes. 「We’re eating dragon steak tonight! Just holler if you need a hand!」Clara’s silver fur erupted in violet lightning. 「The left one is mine.」「I’ll take the right, then,」 Lena added, her claws extending like obsidian scythes.
Please sign in to leave a comment.