Chapter 203 - 202 : A dangerous game
Arthur held Astarte’s gaze for a moment atop the World Tree before dipping his head slightly in a half-bow.
"My work is not done yet, my lady," Arthur said. "If you will give me a moment, I will return to your side. Don’t worry."
Astarte’s eyes narrowed faintly, as though she were trying to restrain herself.
For several silent seconds, neither of them spoke again. The ancient branches of the World Tree swayed gently overhead, their countless leaves shimmering with a soft emerald radiance that illuminated the battlefield below. The wind carried the lingering scent of blood, burnt mana, and shattered earth. Even after such a fierce battle, the World Tree itself remained majestic and unmoved, as though it had witnessed countless conflicts far greater than this one.
A second later, she gave a small nod.
Arthur stepped off the branch.
He descended from the World Tree and landed lightly on the ground below before walking toward Barbatos.
Every footstep echoed across the broken battlefield. Fragments of shattered stone crunched beneath his boots while loose currents of mana drifted aimlessly through the air, unable to settle after the overwhelming clash that had taken place. The silence felt strangely heavy now that the battle had finally come to an end.
The dragon lay in a ruinous heap.
Bloodied and bruised, his colossal body had already shrunk back into his humanoid dragon-kin form—the same grey-haired figure Arthur had first met. One wing was gone entirely, the stump ragged and still oozing blood. Scales were cracked along his arms and chest, his clothes were torn, and every breath came out in rough, labored gasps.
Barbatos heard the sound of approaching footsteps.
He forced his head up.
He saw Arthur walking toward him.
With a faint shudder, Barbatos’s body shrank completely, settling fully into his dragon-kin form. He was no longer a towering dragon—just a tall, gravely wounded man with draconic features, struggling to remain upright.
"It’s your victory, boy," Barbatos said, his voice rough. "I have no strength left to fight."
He coughed, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.
His once-proud golden eyes had lost much of their brilliance. They were now clouded by exhaustion, pain, and a bitterness that refused to disappear even in the face of certain death. Every movement appeared to cost him tremendous effort.
"Just remember," Barbatos continued, "this will not end here. My clan will not rest until they hunt you down and tear you apart... flesh and all."
Arthur met his eyes.
"Wow," Arthur said. "So much venom, even while you’re dying."
He shrugged.
"And just so you know... how exactly is any of this my fault? I simply defended myself. You were the one who tried to kill me—calling me an insect and everything."
Barbatos’s chest heaved violently.
"Shut up... you insect..." Barbatos snarled. "Do you think you have the right to com—"
Arthur’s lips twitched.
He raised his Desert Eagle.
Bang.
The bullet tore straight through Barbatos’s leg.
Barbatos screamed as his knee gave out beneath him, collapsing onto the blood-soaked ground.
The sharp report echoed throughout the ruined laboratory before fading into silence. Dust drifted lazily from the fractured ceiling while scattered pebbles rolled across the cracked ground. Nothing remained of the overwhelming dragon who had once filled the battlefield with terror.
"Sorry," Arthur said calmly. "You didn’t finish your sentence, so I helped you out a little. You’re fine with that, right?"
Fear finally crept into Barbatos’s eyes.
Humiliation followed close behind.
He gritted his teeth.
"Listen carefully, human... or whatever the hell you are," Barbatos growled. "The egg you’ve stolen from me... will become your own downfall."
He panted heavily.
"The moment you touched it... the Light Faction became capable of tracking it."
His lips curled into a bloody smile.
"Now both the Light and Dark Factions are after you."
"You’re dead."
"Dead."
Arthur sighed.
"Seriously... it’s always one thing after another."
A familiar notification appeared.
[ Can’t you just give the egg back? ]
Arthur thought for a moment.
’I could... but I don’t want to,’ Arthur thought. ’There has to be another way.’
The system remained silent for a second.
[ Have you ever considered that the reason for all your troubles is your beautiful yet unbelievably greedy personality, Host? (╥﹏╥) ]
Arthur completely ignored the complaint.
He looked back at Barbatos.
"Alright," Arthur said. "Anything else you want to tell me? Any final information?"
Barbatos’s breathing became increasingly ragged.
"Nothing else... comes to mind. Not that I will tell you if it did."
"But I hope you die a miserab—"
Bang.
The bullet pierced straight through his forehead.
Barbatos’s words ended forever.
His body slumped lifelessly onto the ground.
Silence settled once more.
Only the faint dripping of blood and the distant rustling of leaves beneath the World Tree remained. The mighty Dragon of Destruction had fallen, leaving behind nothing but a motionless corpse and a battlefield scarred by the remnants of his overwhelming power.
Arthur let out a slow breath.
"A good dragon is a dead dragon," Arthur muttered.
"That much has been confirmed."
Blood continued flowing from the corpse, staining the earth beneath it.
Arthur licked his lips slightly.
"Use Blood Absorption."
"And extract his bloodline."
[ Blood Absorption has been activated. ]
A second later, a single drop of shimmering black-gold blood rose from Barbatos’s chest.
Then another.
And another.
Soon, streams of ancient dragon blood floated into the air, radiating an overwhelming aura powerful enough to make the surrounding mana tremble and recoil.
The blood spiraled toward Arthur like serpents woven from light and shadow.
The instant the first stream entered his body—
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[ ORIGIN KING BLOODLINE HAS BEEN ACTIVATED ]
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[ Origin King Bloodline Activated... ]
[ Target Identified: Barbatos — Dragon of Destruction ]
[ Extracting Bloodline Essence... ]
[ Extraction Successful. ]
[ Assessing Bloodline Purity... ]
[ Bloodline Purity: 40% ]
[ Analysis Complete. ]
[ Origin King’s Authority Invoked. ]
[ Searching for the Highest Evolutionary Path... ]
[ Evolution Path Confirmed. ]
[ Reconstructing Bloodline... ]
[ Removing Inherited Flaws... ]
[ Refining Draconic Essence... ]
[ Evolution Complete. ]
[ A New Bloodline Has Been Forged. ]
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[ DRAGON OF ETERNITY BLOODLINE ]
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Description:
A supreme draconic bloodline forged by the Origin King from the essence of the Dragon of Destruction.
Rather than inheriting the original lineage, the Origin King has elevated it onto the path of the Dragon of Eternity—a bloodline capable of limitless evolution.
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[ Bloodline Abilities ]
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• Dragon Scales — S-Rank
Manifest black-gold dragon scales that greatly increase physical defense while providing powerful resistance against magical attacks.
Arthur’s gaze lingered on the next ability as he silently read its description.
• Dragon King’s Domain — SS-Rank
The innate authority of the Dragon of Eternity.
Upon activation, the user establishes the Dragon King’s Domain, an area infused with overwhelming draconic authority.
While inside the domain, the user’s body is continuously strengthened, greatly increasing physical durability and reducing incoming damage from all sources.
All beings possessing draconic bloodlines are subjected to the Dragon King’s authority.
Dragons weaker than the user will instinctively submit, suffering a significant reduction in combat ability.
Stronger dragons will resist the authority, but their strength will still be partially suppressed.
The power of this domain increases proportionally with the purity of the Dragon of Eternity Bloodline.
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[ Bloodline Successfully Integrated. ]
[ Evolution Path Established. ]
[ The Dragon of Eternity Bloodline Possesses Limitless Growth Potential. ]
[ Assimilating the bloodlines of other dragons will continuously increase its purity. ]
[ Every increase in bloodline purity will awaken new abilities and unlock greater authorities. ]
[ Current Objective: Absorb Powerful Dragon Bloodlines. ]
[ Ultimate Evolution: Dragon of Eternity ]
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A powerful pulse spread outward from Arthur’s body before gradually calming. The surrounding mana slowly settled once more, no longer trembling beneath the authority of the newly forged bloodline. Even the air itself seemed heavier, carrying a faint pressure that hadn’t existed only moments before.
Arthur released a slow breath.
"For only having forty percent purity..."
"That guy sure was arrogant."
He looked down at his hand, slowly flexing his fingers as faint draconic power coursed beneath his skin.
"A domain that works especially well against dragons..."
"That’ll definitely come in handy."
"Dragons are bound to come after me now."
His gaze shifted toward Barbatos’s corpse.
Then toward Astarte, who stood nearby, silently watching everything with great interest.
"For the next reward..."
Arthur slowly raised his hand.
"Arise."
Darkness immediately surged from Barbatos’s corpse.
A vast shadow peeled away from the dead dragon-kin, taking on Barbatos’s humanoid form.
Its crimson eyes slowly opened.
The shadow stepped forward.
Then bowed deeply before Arthur.
Arthur’s breathing had become extremely heavy.
"Return."
"I’ll summon you when I need you."
The shadow nodded once before dissolving into black mist and sinking into Arthur’s own shadow.
Several notifications appeared.
[ Shadow Extraction Successful. ]
[ Shadow Added to the Shadow Army. ]
[ Shadow Name: Barbatos ]
[ Shadow Capacity : 8/10 ]
Another notification appeared.
[ Remaining Mana: 0 ]
Arthur’s mana had been completely exhausted.
And it was not increasing which surprised him even more.
Perhaps maintaining the newly extracted shadow, forging an entirely new bloodline, and repeatedly pushing his mana beyond its natural limits had finally exacted their price. Every muscle in his body ached, and even standing upright required tremendous effort.
His body was pushed to its limit.
His lungs burned.
His vision blurred, darkness spreading across the edges like spilled ink.
The world tilted.
His legs finally gave way.
His body began to fall.
Before he could hit the ground—
Someone caught him.
Astarte.
She had moved faster than even his perception could follow.
One arm supported his back.
The other rested beneath his knees.
She lifted him effortlessly, as though he weighed nothing.
A loose strand of black hair had fallen across his face.
She gently brushed it aside, revealing his exhausted expression.
For a brief moment, she simply observed him in silence. The battlefield, the corpse of the dragon, and even the lingering mana fluctuations seemed insignificant compared to the strange human resting quietly within her embrace.
"What a peculiar creature."
Her quiet voice broke the silence.
She looked down at him, studying every feature as though trying to understand how someone like him could possibly exist.
"It’s difficult to believe that you killed a dragon entirely on your own."
Her black eyes looked at him emotionlessly.
Though that dangerous glint never disappeared.
"But you’re also playing an extremely dangerous game, boy."
"Don’t think I haven’t noticed what you’re trying to do."
A faint smile appeared upon her lips.
Unlike any smile she had shown before.
"If that day truly comes...you will never be able to escape from me."
The smile deepened.
Predatory.
Amused.
Possessive.
"But for now..."
She looked at the dead dragon.
The shattered laboratory.
And finally the crimson-eyed boy resting in her arms.
"You deserve your rewards."
She pulled him a little closer.
"For entertaining me so thoroughly."