156 human and beastmen followers lost

Total follower count updated. Total followers of [Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor]: 14161

Shit!

Boom, boom, kaboom. The air was filled with the sounds of wood planks being blasted away by mana cannons, the screams of the sailors and warriors, and the creaking of the ship as it sank into the sea with all the corpses on board. The port was even more chaotic.

Neill and I informed Mother, Larent, and Alistar of our plan and they agreed it would be the best way forward. The port couldn’t be lost, as it was the last bastion before the enemy reached Karhalantheel island. The siege would be lost, not only ‘cause of the lack of food, but also we would be in danger of having an SS rank leviathan rampage.

So, here we were, having flown over here with Mother accompanying us. That was when we saw a ship being bombarded by mana cannons. I wasn’t a ship expert, so I didn;t know their names, but the ships Elyonda had were far smaller and shorter than the grimgarian’s. They looked a bit patched-up and poorly maintained, as if they didn’t have a proper shipwright, but it didn’t seem to matter if you had mages to cast defensive spells and cannons to attack.

“Regroup first, you can blast things afterwards.” I nodded at Neill’s suggestion, and we flew over to what looked like a small makeshift war camp in the middle of the port.

“Princess—” The moment we landed, a group of soldiers, priests, and even some adventurers came running, but were immediately stopped by Neill with an annoyed face.

“Don’t make me repeat, call me by my name. I’m here as an adventurer, okay? Okay?” The people around us nodded vigorously, but before they could notice Mother and me, Neill changed the topic. “Anyways, injured? I saw a ship just sink.”

“O-Oh, that— Yeah, we’re having some problems,” a merc answered. “Those five B ranks are fucking the whole place up. This damn city’s ships are still using mounted crossbows! Not a single cannon or mana turret! Even the Empire's scout boat has a cannon on each side!”

Unfortunately, this clear criticism against Elyonda was loud enough for the soldiers to hear. “Hey, shut your mouth, drifter! Consider yourself lucky we’re allowing you on the ships to fight in the first place! It’s only because of Lord Jethro's grace that we’re allowing you to fight on them!”

“Shut it! We took on the job to protect the city. Ghorush already told us everything! You tin cans ain’t got the damn soldiers to afford to shoo us away, and you’re letting us die out there? Met some terrible employers in my time, but you stink the most with how desperate you are!”

“You’ll die anyways once you get out of the city! You fight or die, that’s the deal, mate!”

“Shut it, conscript! Damn city has to force you rookies into fighting. Don’t think you're any different!”

The hostility between the soldiers and adventurers was a normal thing for any city, due to the fact both were military forces. It wasn't like a city could do anything about it since adventurers brought in money due to their visit and the Quests they fulfilled within a city. Some adventurers were city inhabitants, but the majority came from other cities or even countries. Rapport was hard in that case, since you couldn’t bond through patriotism.

“Hey, hey, please! We need to calm down here. We’re all fighting for our lives here, we need to settle down, or you want to die to a goblin or kobold? How embarrassing is that?” Thankfully, those Yeosian adventurers were coming in clutch by speaking to both sides. “God Yeostar is watching, probably. We can’t let the city fall, right? Don’t forget the manabloods offered us proper rewards. Look, we got two, no, three dragons watching over us. You’ll help us, right, Princess Hestia!”

“H-Huh?!” The man suddenly dashed forward and grabbed my hand. “Ooh, I-I saw your fight and also your singing, Your Grace! Mhmm! I knew you’d come back! Ghorush said you were gone, but I knew the Goddess’s blessed wouldn’t leave us in our time of need!”

Ghorush? Wait, did he mention that?

“Hestia? Wait, Crimson-Scaled?!”

“O-Oh, wait, that’s her! Crimson Horns! Yeah, I saw her in the arena. Two of the four semifinalists are here!”

T-Two nicknames?! That damn arena commentator!

“Oi, settle down!” As the horde of adventurers began to swarm around me, Neill pushed them away with her scales. “You can cheer her on after this damn siege is over. Where is Ghorush? Jethro or Kushlek’zar? We need to talk with them now.”

“I-Is it time for the counterattack!” One of the soldiers blurted out.

Neill raised an eyebrow but decided to nod in the end. This seemingly raised the soldiers’ and adventurers’ morale as they cheered, shouting out how they were ready to take revenge on the grimgarians for their fallen comrades. Immediately, the soldiers offered to show the way, but I told Mother and Neill to go, as my place was somewhere else.

“I’m a healer, so my place is with the injured. Fill me in later, alright?” I told Neill and she agreed. She already knew what I was planning to do later, so my input to the strategy was already there. [“Oh, and, Ghorush? How did he know I was gone?”]

Noticing my telepathic message, Neill changed to it, too. [“Uhm? Dunno, maybe Jethro? For some reason, the both of them have become pretty close over these past two days. Dunno why he said that you were gone to some random mercs, though.”]

To be honest, from the times I met him, he really did seem like a loud mouth. Bit belligerent, too. Musclehead. If Jethro were stressed out, he might have revealed something and if Ghorush were drunk, it could all happen…

Whatever. Not my problem.

“In the midst of the desert ♫

A bright ray of light shines ♫

Pure and brave, that she was, as she walked ♫”

[Shield of [The Light]] [Music Resonation] inflicted on [Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor]

21 human and beastman have become your followers

Total follower count updated. Total followers of [Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor]: 14182

My job here was to heal people. As I just learned from the outburst from those adventurers and even the eyes of some of the soldiers, a couple of the people here were my fans. With hope-filled eyes, they cheered when they thought it was time for the counterattack. I wasn’t a hero, but an idol had to do some fan service, right?

As in, healing and saving their lives.

“W-Woah, the bleeding stopped! M-My stomach—”

“Ahahaha, thank you! Praise the Goddess and you, blessed! My arm is back on, hahaha!”

“Honey, you’re safe! Thank the Goddess, thank the Light!”

It felt good… but it’s also another warning how this wouldn’t be the last if I couldn’t end this siege soon. My core was back to 100%, so now it was time to fight. I was still feeling a bit peckish, but it couldn’t be helped considering I haven’t eaten anything for two days in that dimension breach, and only a bit of rations since we got out. I should eat on the way.

Hmm?

While snacking on some sandwiches from my storage, I looked around the port. It sure was as lively as always, just for the wrong reasons. Soldiers ran around with porters transporting supplies like rations, giant crossbows, and weapons, either towards the port or into the city. The adventurers were heavily split between those enjoying themselves despite all the chaos while others were trying to keep themselves cool and collected.

Honestly reminded me of the Griffonpeak battle, with that giant A rank looming over the walls. It did make me wonder if my bad encounter luck was starting to seep out, spreading to other people. I came into this Divine Quest believing I just had to punch some demonkins and mercs, not deal with a whole army.

Haaa, this— Woah!

“Scatterbrained when a mana cannonball could fly over. Gutsy… but expected for a true dragonkin.”

I nearly bumped into somebody while thinking about the situation on hand, only to suddenly hear their voice and snap my head around. Not only did he tower over me but his frame was bulky from his trained muscles and thick, marine blue armor. Just looking at his scaled, inhuman face, I wouldn’t blame anybody for fearing this person.

“Chahayat!” Fortunately, I knew this caring person already, so I grinned widely. “Good to see you’re still kicking! You managed to repair your armor and weapons in time, I see!”

He grunted with a nod. “You didn’t destroy the catalyst inside of the tank. Everything else was replaceable.”

He raised his axe and harpoon, two things I had broken in our arena match. I had been planning on destroying his catalyst but now I was happy I hadn’t, ‘cause the plan I had in mind needed people like him in action.

“You’re fighting?”

“Elyonda is my base,” he replied with as few words as possible. “Good to see you back. Heard rumors. Been told to hold back until you returned, but the adventurers didn’t believe you would.”

“Mhmm, sorry about that, but it’s time to turn this siege around. I need your help, so would it be okay to lend me it?”

“Of course, Kargryx princess. Your sister has already inquired me about it. The depths demand these intruders’ blood.” He offered me a fist bump out of nowhere. With a smile, I reciprocated it. “The tribe I mentioned is hiding in the arena. Let us clean it up for them.”

Chahayat still had something to prepare before he could engage. Separating from him, I steeled my resolve one more time, remembering why I was here. I wasn’t here to kill for fun, revenge, or bloodlust, I was here for a reason. I had to end this siege, and if I could get some experience on the way, then even better.

Regardless, as I said, I had to end this siege. That was the real objective.

I met up with Neill and Mother after I calmed myself down, where they told me they had explained everything to Jethro. Master and the other saurians were currently fighting on the frontlines against the grimgarian’s navy. Using his unique skill, he was doing his best to defend against the constant bombardment from hitting the ships and port, but he needed an opening to attack with his party.

This was where I came in.

“Don’t worry about the walls. Even if the grimgarians do something, we gotta trust in that old man Larent. Sword saint candidate, right? Means a lot, considering the [Sword Saint] title is a pretty powerful buff, I heard,” Neill explained. “Go. All. Out. We’ll get Tehmrayn and Kushlek’zar to deal with the aftermath.”

“Are you sure about Tehmrayn? He won’t leave the island, and I think that’s for the best. We can’t underestimate the enemies since we don’t know where the demonkins are.”

The dude wrath demonkin was probably still alive, although I wasn’t sure about the girl. Mother mentioned not having put much weight into her slap, but the girl should have had [Dread Burn] applied to her. Unless she died from her wounds before the status abnormality wore off, we still had a big problem on our hands.

Neill couldn’t say anything about that, as nobody had seen the demonkins since then. “They probably also have those mercs around. You know, the reason why that male demonkin escaped was ‘cause one of the mercs showed some pretty dangerous skills. Heard he’s the skull mask you met during the tournament.”

Skull mask? God Yeostar, can you confirm that?

… Those bastards, huh? Of course. Then, Eithalr might be here… No, focus! Come on, focus. If he appears, then I’ll get my revenge, otherwise, I need to focus on breaking this siege.

“However, considering what you are planning, we need their help. If the grimgarians break through the naval defenses, that naga will have to deal with all the ships himself. Jethro went over to persuade him. I had Ghorush fortify the harbor, in the meantime,” Neill tried to reassure me. “There is a landing party with pretty much a B rank and his C rank goons at the docks, so we need you to wipe out the naval forces. Once they are down, we can clean things up here.”

“And, if that giant leviathan were to break out, I’ll just stop him,” Mother added, looking a little peeved. “Even now, he’s taunting me. What a shameless ancient. He really wants to die by my hand, hehehe…”

“…”

“…”

Yeah, if the worst were to happen, we could rely on this freebie from Mother. She was really eager to fight that thing for her own benefit, to the point she was spamming [Haste] over and over again to slowly level up her new [Space-Time Magic] skill after becoming a void-touched. It was still level one, strangely, but I could attribute that to how hard it was to level up in the first place.

Regardless… It was time.

“Alright, see you later.”

I flew up onto the roof of a nearby building, allowing myself to see the action happening on the seas. Five ships attacked about nine smaller vessels on our side. The sky was orange, it was almost time for everything to stop, time for people to take a break. However, before it stopped, the battle was still rampant and chaotic.

I looked down, watching multiple soldiers and adventurers looking up at me. Most didn’t, as they rushed around the streets in a hurry. Those armored like knights were running along them, shouting out commands of the plans Neill made with Jethro. They were informed the counterattack was about to happen, but while some were motivated, others only seemed to be more demoralized.

… Alright.

<[Music Resonation] inflicted on [Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor]>

“Feel the echoes of our voice ♫

Quivering the core of your very soul ♫

Rally up your strength, you soldiers ♫

Be brave, find hope in it ♫

Let strife not frightened you away ♫

From the peace of the brilliant light ♫

And let the Star shine bright ♫

Inside your hearts! ♫”

To bring about the power of their souls, to grant these people hope. It was an idol’s job to raise their morale!

“Will you roar out to the world ♫

And stand tall next to our flag ♫

To see the very tale ♫

Of what the gods have in plan ♫

So don’t cower away ♫

In your fears of the departed and be free! ♫”

Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

[Stage Fever (Moderate)] inflicted on [Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor]

More eyes. More ears. I wanted the whole crowd to see me before I departed.

“Feel the echoes of our voice ♫

Quivering the core of your very soul ♫

Rally up your strength, you soldiers ♫

Be brave, find hope in it ♫

Let strife not frightened you away ♫

From the peace of the brilliant light ♫

And let the Star shine bright ♫

Inside your hearts! ♫”

[Stage Fever (Major)] inflicted on [Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor]

It was just a matter of time until those who were my fans joined up, having heard me sing this song multiple times during my musical festival. Their chorus amplified the message of the song, pushing others up from their seats. Soldiers and Yeosians adventurers saluted, while the others clapped along.

“Will you join in our chorus ♫

And make your life clear to hear ♫

The same with the epics of the Knight ♫

That we feel safe under his watch ♫

So live up to your own songs ♫

And raise up your sword to the stars! ♫

Feel the echoes of our voice ♫

Quivering the core of your very soul ♫

Rally up your strength, you soldiers ♫

Be brave, find hope in it ♫

Let strife not frightened you away ♫

From the peace of the brilliant light ♫

And let the Star shine bright ♫

Inside your hearts! ♫”

““Woooooooo!””

““For Yeostar! For the God of Knights! Our swords are yours, blessed!””

““For Yeos! For Prince Markval! For the brilliance of the Goddess!””

The knights were naturally drawn to the values and virtues this song was promoting, to the point the few knights and warrior priests in this camp drew their weapons and raised them into the skies. Seeing them all motivated and saluting, the soldiers and adventurers were rallying as well, although there were still some party poopers around.

With my duty here done, it was time to reveal myself to the enemy — that the dragon idol was here to fight for Elyonda!

Humanize!

“Kraaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!” I roared! At the same time, I continued playing the song through my [Aerokinesis].

“Feel the echoes of our voice ♫

Quivering the core of your very soul ♫

Rally up your strength, you soldiers ♫

Be brave, find hope in it ♫

Let strife not frightened you away ♫

From the peace of the brilliant light ♫

And let the Star shine bright ♫

Inside your hearts! ♫”

Any surprise the soldiers felt vanished as the song continued and I flew up to the sky. At the same time, I saw Neill take her place while the knights and other leaders reorganized the platoons for the upcoming battle.

[“Everybody, fight with me! For the Goddess! For God Yeostar! For your lives and families!”]

521 human and beastman have become your followers

Total follower count updated. Total followers of [Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor]: 14703

[Various Spell Buffs] inflicted on [Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor]

I blasted myself up with all my buffs up, overwatching the naval battle underneath me. I focused my eyes, noticing only four of the five B ranks commanding the ships. Three were high orcs and one was a troll. Well equipped, competent, and exuding tension as they ordered the grimgarians on the ships without hesitation, using the momentum of the battle to motivate everybody.

However, what was more terrifying about this force was the fact I could see merfiends and also some giant snake-like monsters fighting alongside them. After appraising them, I learned they were sea serpents, the lesser dragonkin version of the leviathans, the water equivalent of the wyverns. Not only did they manage to tame these things to fight with them, each of the five ships seemed to have a personal mana shield and manatech weaponry, as the soldier from before mentioned.

Tasianna and the twins should be safe. They would have disappeared as my followers if they had died. If they hadn’t returned yet nor were they prisoners of these grimgarians, then they should have managed to rescue the Caedhulens. Good.

On the other hand, our side was not doing as well. Master and the saurians were doing their best on the leading ship, the only real warship Elyonda had in this fight, but they were completely focused on defending everybody from the shot and sea serpents. This left the remaining eight smaller vessels to fend for themselves, not including the invasion forces already at the docks, engaging the soldiers and adventurers. The last B rank, a high ogre, was being stopped there by Ghorush.

Luckily, it seemed the knights commanding these groups were all for show. The ships moved fast, supporting Master’s ship despite their far inferior weaponry and ships. All their shots were blocked by the grimgarian’s mana shields, but they didn’t give up. The docks also didn’t look too bad, despite the invasion forces.

Yeos’s pride are their knights, after all. Even in the arena, they didn’t disappoint too much.

Okay, let’s do this… but—

“KRAAAAAAH!” I roared with [Draconic Roar] at the waters underneath me, blasting up fountain-worth of water into the air, stunning each side’s leaders. The fighting stopped for a moment.

[“This is Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor of the Dragon Empire Kargryx! I am the only idol of Aurena, a blessed of the Light Pantheon! Children of God Marsven and Goddess Edna, Descendants of Goddess Kronnaz! Invaders of Yeosian soil and waters, this is my first and only warning to you! Retreat, and never come back with swords and blood on hand!”]

I gave them an ultimatum, before turning my eyes at the sea serpents and exuding my [Draconic Aura]. Even from up here, those dragonkins noticed it immediately and froze up.

[“Begone.”]

“““Krrrruuieq!!!”””

Noticing I was a dragon, they didn’t even try to act tough and escaped, leaving their kobold tamers stranded in the waters. Sadly, the merfiends weren’t as naturally intimidated by dragons, so they just stood still in fear.

With my demands issued, I urged the grimgarians to answer. [“Now, what is your answer, children of the Goddess of Vengeance? Make it quick!”]

Diplomacy over violence, even if the battle had already begun. I understood I was acting naively here, but the plan was to break the siege, not win it. This way, I would preserve the most lives. I wasn’t a reaper in personality, and if I could solve this peacefully, I would like to pursue it.

However…

‘They’re stalling. The ship in the back is preparing a narrow, long-barreled cannon. Fire?’ Manager Mind informed me, confirming my suspicion.

I tried and offered.

Kill them all. Purple Flash! Cyclone Madness!

Paying for triple the normal amount of mana for a single spell, [Purple Flash] allowed me to instantly materialize a giant tornado right in the middle of the ships, disorientating the enemy in the process. If they had their mana barriers protecting them, then why attack to break it if I could just crowd control them?

Now… It's time for a song.

[“In my purgatory, I make the devil cry ♫

In Hellfire ♫

All you hear are his screams, begging to be released ♫

It’s Music ♫”]

Pumped up the volume to the extreme, [Dragon Fire] could be heard by everybody in the vicinity, even piercing through the sound of the natural disaster happening below. I wasn’t a reaper, but songs weren’t only there to soothe a person’s soul… they could also be used to herald doom upon the world. At least, when it came from demons or angels.

Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. Light to darkness, ice to flames.

Level eight [Sacred Magic] spell:

Purple Flash.

Urgh!

[Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor]’s solar core status: [57%]

[Purple Flash] into [Heaven’s Sword] drained up 35% of my current mana pool just like that, while [Cyclone Madness] only took up 5%. The conversion rate of solar power into mana wasn’t one-to-one, sadly. As expected from a level eight advanced magic spell, it better pay me back with the corresponding power!

Above the clouds, a giant white magic circle around the size of [Omnictus] materialized, conjuring from it a yellow translucent arm of a slim woman. As it held its hand up, light gathered around it until it reached the length of a skyscraper. To all the people below, this thing was probably gigantic. However, to me, it was the proper punishment for trying to wage a war under my supervision.

If the grimgarians wanted war, then I shall deliver it to them! If a war could be turned around with so-called “strategic combatants,” then I shall be the one they needed! A mage to turn around this whole siege!

Heaven’s SWORD!

The female arm of light held the blade in a reverse grip before it swung it down, piercing and dividing the clouds before it destroyed the [Cyclone Madness] below. The pressure of this gigantic mass of mana was too strong for anything else… but that wasn’t all I had.

Remix. Remixing a song was my answer to how to update my songs.

[“I descend on Earth with Wings of Death! ♫

A Storm of Fury ♫

Creating Ash and Dust ♫

I am the Incarnation of the Sun ♫

I shine so brightly, I bring your death ♫

My lineage belongs to the God of Dragons! ♫”]

Different ways to vocalize the lyrics, more emphasized in one word, less in others. Even the way I played the instruments could be attributed to a different interpretation. Like “modernizing” an old song.

For example, the previous [Dragon Fire] was focused on its guitar and drums, putting more focus on its symphonic metal rock identity, to make me appear as the devastating and unstoppable boss monster; however, what would happen if I were to replace everything with violins, trumpets, and pianos?

Instead of making me seem like an important but mid-range boss, what if I elevated it into the grandness of orchestra music? Instead of focusing only on myself, what if I gave this song an almost worldly feeling, as if the whole world was looking at this battle? A music fit for the heavens, fit for the end boss!

[“Despair, color the sky crimson! ♫

Earth scorched by rain of undying flames ♫

Hope born from misery! ♫

Quash it all, you are facing me! ♫”]

Your brilliance is radiating on the world! Remixing of song is finished. [Dragon Fire] has been updated to fit its new themes and images. You have created a new function for your idol system, unlocking the remix function

As the sword of heaven was about to descend, a ball of fire surrounded me and, hopefully, also everybody else in the vicinity. What Master said was correct, I had accidentally given [My Darkest Thoughts] and [The Heir of Light] power from [The Light]. As such, I should probably use my position as a usurper to good use.

And for my first test, I shall use Shiterno’s “gift.”

“Kiiiiiiiraaaaaaaaaaaaaah!”

Scorch the skies!

Mana was drained for me to be gathered up in the air, transforming themselves into the form of an infernal dragon! Although, shorter than the [Heaven’s Sword], it wasn’t by a mile. This golem-like depiction of a giant dragon flew down onto the world, aiming for the destruction of my enemies… like a meteor.

I shot out my scales, having them cover up the flame dragon as much as I could without overusing my scales. Its form made clear, this beast could be seen as another monster by everybody else.

My plan to create a meteor never died! Although just a bluff against the demonkins in Estralia, after how Mother showed me how she combined her scales with her spells, I just had to do the same. So, what would happen if you duct tape some scales with the same properties as gunpowder on a meteor?

Overkill.

Eliminate all of them! Heaven’s Sword and Dragon Fire!

First, the sword. The sea was cleaved as the blade’s impact caused everything around it to be launched upwards, which included the ships and their crew. From here, I could see the vessels breaking apart and hundreds or maybe a thousand grimgarians falling in a world where they couldn’t tell up from down. A tsunami higher than the port hid everything from their eyes.

Then to end it all, the fire dragon roared again. I had to stand in place and sing this song myself without [Aerokinesis]’s help outside of the instruments. However, the result spoke for itself. The moment this thing collided with the enemies, a massive nuclear kaboom erupted in this short vicinity.

Dragon Fire

A song created by the Idol [Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor]. Through the image of becoming the peak of challenge and opposition, becoming a power to burn down even the heavens if needed, this song will herald ultimate destruction in the form of a dragon. Through the power of song and fire, a giant golem of fire in the form of a dragon shall descend onto the world, burning anything like a God of Fire as long as mana is provided. Can only be activated while the idol is singing the song in one place. All allies affected by [Music Resonation] will receive these effects: A barrier of fire providing perfect immunity against all fire, magma, and heat-based attacks coming from the idol. All enemies affected by [Music Resonation] will receive these effects: Receive 10% more damage from all fire and dragon attacks and abilities. All entities affected by [Music Resonation] will receive these effects: All water spells and abilities will lose 50% of their effectiveness. All ice spells and abilities will lose 50% of their effectiveness

I couldn’t form an arena anymore, but that part was now taken over by my Territory [Magmakammer] anyways. After all, every fire-based boss should be able to shower down a meteor rain, right? Why trap enemies, when I can just vaporize all of them?

Even better, only my enemies would be affected by this flame! Since Shiterno’s blessing [Divine Inferno] gave me immunity to my own fire spells, so I shall share its effect with everybody with my song! Just so I could give the most brilliant show ever!

[Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor]’s solar core status: [0%]

Urgh!

In the face of the world around them grimgarian ships turning completely red and filled with steam, I clutched my chest as I felt the rebound of using up the remainder of my solar energy just to fuel this, and still I used up 40% more of my mana! This nuclear option alone drained me to the point I had to rest up.

However, oh, the rewards…

Experience has reached multiple breaking points. [Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor] has risen from [Level 19] to [Level 23]

Attributes have increased due to level up

Acquired 2250 skill points

I lost strength in my wings for a moment, stopping the song as I calmed down my body from using such a large amount of mana in the span of what felt like a couple of minutes or so. What was it, again? 75% of my mana from a [Purple Flash]ed [Heaven’s Sword] and [Dragon Fire]? Holy smokes. My solar energy was trying to recover as quickly as possible, but this just knocked me out of the battle in one go.

Argh, thank goodness for the level up!

The power of leveling up. If I hadn’t gotten a single level, I would have complained like a kid. I still felt tired, but at least my Mana was back to full. Easy gamble.

Once I got my bearings, I looked down. I made sure to not let it affect the port or the other ships, but the water around the grimgarian ships was just gone after the steam dissipated. The sea around it quickly rushed in to fill it up, but at the same time, tsunamis had risen and were endangering the harbor, the ships, and the island. This was the aftermath I was talking about.

As such—

6 kirin-dragon and saurian have become your followers

Total follower count updated. Total followers of [Young Sunfang Dragon, Hestia Atsuko Kargryxmor]: 14709

… What? Kirin-dragon and saurian? But, aren’t the only they—

However, before I could finish forming that thought, I saw the tsunamis suddenly being pushed back. Two giant dinosaurs suddenly appeared around the ships and harbor, protecting them, while the waves directed at the other island just stopped and slowly shrank.

I knew the dinosaurs were created by Master’s unique skill, but what was surprising to me was how I saw a single person looming over at the beach of the island. Looking closer, I actually saw that naga champion, Tehmrayn over there! With a movement of his trident, the tsunami directed at the island slowly became smaller and smaller, returning into the sea to fill up the area I blew up.

Jeez, that’s som— Urk!

Kring!

That noise!

‘Uuuuh, yo, Original Mind, we got a problem here. Looks like our core just got a small crack.’

… Are you kidding me?

Hadn’t I just regrown this stupid thing about two weeks ago? Why did it get a bloody crack again? Not only that, but it wasn’t ‘cause of overloading myself with heat from [Solar Beam] or [Symphonie des Feuergottes], but from just using up… two pretty large spells… Now that I thought about it, didn’t I just empty it out in a few minutes? I guess, I placed a large amount of stress on it anyways, so the methods didn’t really matter.

Well, I wasn’t feeling lightheaded, so arcane corruption probably was still low. Nevertheless, even if I knew I could fully recover my mana through a level up, maybe I underestimated how much using up 75% of my mana at once would put a considerable strain on my body. As I said before, what I did was just overkill. For the future, I should try to minimize the mana cost and also maybe cast this as a dragonewt, so I could use my mana cost-reducing catalyst.

Okay, this is done. Let’s get some rest befo—

Nooooooo!

Arghk, come on, I ju—

“Uuuuuurghk!”

That voice just came from the island! Was the universe trying to overwork me here, why did this have to happen?! Tehmrayn, being on the island himself, probably heard that scream and rushed towards it, but I was a mile or whatever away! Did I have to go rush off— Oh, what was I complaining about!? Of course, I had to!

Leaving the rest behind, I blasted my way over to the island. Not knowing exactly what would happen, I remained in my dragon form and delved deeper into the island as Yeostar instructed me. However, at the same time, my eyes wandered around as I not only noticed dead warrior priests but also what looked like earth statues — broken earth statues.

Never mind, gotta hurry! Something happened here. How did these priests die?!

They were all dead. Either crushed by these weird animalistic earth statues or decapitated by one clean slash. What the hell happened here while I was dropping that nuke on those grimgarians?!

The deeper I went, the more unnerving it got. Destroyed defenses, fields filled with dead priests and shattered earth constructs. How did this happen? Why was there a battlefield here of all places?! The fight should have been at the seas, and if that failed—

No way, did a small elite troupe get past the defenses? During the time Tehmrayn was away from the center to prevent my attack?

How did they predict I would do that?! Impossible, no way something like that could be anticipated. It could only be… leaked.

“Tsk… how?”

“How? Why, with support, of course, dear Champion. This is our specialty.”

I passed through the barrier of the island shrine, where Karhalantheel’s seal was located. There, I saw Tehmrayn facing off against not only those monster-like earth statues but also a group of skull mask assailants. But, more shocking, were the two people looming behind Jethro’s fallen body.

One was a skull mask with a pretty conspicuously long coat holding onto a dagger. Knives were floating around him, as if he was a psychic, and from how many horns and decorations his mask had, I presumed he was the leader and that seventh boss of Yanderu Eluseuss. While I was sure to think of him as my primary target, what caught my attention more was the person next to him.

B-But, how? You were just at the harbor?! How did you make it here before me?!

[“Ghorush?!”]

“Ah! Dear girl! What a fine showing of supreme arcane magicks! As one mage to another, I salute and bow my head to you, Your Grace. Something a half-fraud mage like me can never achieve with this mana-stunted body.”

Instead of his poorly-maintained armor and two-handed axe, the leonid I saw in front of me was wearing a perfectly-fitting suit with a top hat. He bowed with it, showing off his well-groomed mane and hair, before standing upright and holding his rapier up in a noble posture.

“I dare say, it was just as our employer mentioned, you certainly are dangerous. Sadly for you, however, your arrival was a bit too late.”

He snapped his fingers and an explosion happened at the back of the shrine. In the next moment, the ground beneath me shook.

Hostile Territory detected! [The Krakenlord’s Graveyard] has been activated!