Chapter 74: Storm Bringer’s Wrath

“Don’t stray too far, and stay in sight. We don’t know what kind of monsters might appear here.”

At Selion’s command, a few people glanced up at the sky.

Perhaps they were reminded of the sky whale they had briefly seen when they first arrived here.

Selion’s team split into pairs and began to disperse.

Their task was to harvest newly discovered crystal stones of different colors from the surrounding area.

I was paired with Noel for the task.

“Let’s head out too.”

“Oh, right.”

Since Selion had explicitly instructed not to go far, there was no need to venture deep into the area.

Glancing around, everyone was gathering crystal samples nearby.

Noel and I chose a suitable spot and began our work.

The crystal stones were incredibly sturdy, but tapping at the base made them fall off easily.

“Hey, Seris.”

“Yes?”

Noel suddenly stopped working and turned to look at me, her mouth slightly open as if she was hesitating over something.

“Did you… by any chance, wear perfume?”

“What?”

It was an unexpected question. Perfume? I didn’t own anything like that.

I had thought she might ask about my altered body or the fight with King, but apparently, that wasn’t what was on her mind.

“Do I smell strange or something?”

“Well, yeah. It’s kind of like… a burning smell?”

“Burning smell?”

“Don’t get me wrong! It’s not like I was deliberately sniffing you or anything…”

“I get it. Passing by someone and catching their scent is natural.”

“Ah, right…”

“But still, a burning smell? Does that mean I smell like something’s burning?”

“No, not exactly… Hmm. It’s hard to describe.”

I tilted my head, puzzled by Noel’s words, and sniffed the air like she did.

However, I couldn’t detect the so-called burning smell she mentioned.

“Hmm… How do I explain this? Around here, there’s a mix of heavy soil and shiny metal smells.”

As Noel wandered near the crystal stones, muttering, she let out a small sigh, seemingly frustrated with her own inability to articulate it.

Then, suddenly, Noel turned around.

Her reaction was sharp, like someone who had just noticed something.

“Noel?”

“It’s the scent of pure white metal…”

“What?”

Noel didn’t answer my question.

She kept sniffing the air and gazing intently into the distance.

At the same moment, the Nightmare I was riding on also lifted its head to look in the same direction.

And then it appeared—a white, glimmering figure, gradually coming into view from far away. It was flying through the air.

As time passed, the white figure grew larger, and it became close enough for its shape to be recognized.

“A dragon…?”

I muttered blankly, staring at the approaching entity.

Its body was covered in white crystalline stones, yet its form was unmistakably that of a dragon.

Of course, it was much smaller than the true dragon I had encountered before or the image of Kalvain from mana’s memory.

“That’s it! That thing has the scent of pure white metal!”

Whoooosh!

The flight speed of the crystalline dragon was overwhelming.

It flapped its massive wings and flew right over our heads.

The gust of wind it created was so strong that I nearly fell off the Nightmare’s back.

Trailing behind the crystalline dragon was a flurry of white mana dispersing in its wake.

It was then that I understood Noel’s words.

Due to the mana concentration on Monster Island, she had somehow gained the ability to detect mana through her sense of smell.

“That direction…”

I frowned as I watched the crystalline dragon flying away.

It was heading directly toward the base camp without hesitation.

“No way…”

The gazes of all the scattered adventurers converged in one direction.

The crystalline dragon wasn’t trying to conceal its presence.

It began exuding a massive aura, as if declaring its dominance.

[Kwaaaaaah!!!]

The previously silent creature opened its mouth wide and let out a deafening roar.

The piercing sound hit like a physical blow, nearly causing my legs to buckle.

The fear induced by the monster’s roar was palpable.

“Retreat!”

Selion’s urgent shout rang out.

No one questioned where to retreat to; all the adventurers scattered in different directions bolted toward the base camp.

Thud!

But the crystalline dragon was faster. It landed in the base camp before we could get there.

Its size was far greater than expected.

As it moved its massive legs and tail, the structures meant to contain monsters were crushed, and all the research materials were scattered across the ground.

“Argh!”

“Ughhh!”

The scholars conducting research at the base camp were the first casualties.

Before the blood pooling on the ground could even cool, the adventurers arrived.

[Kwaaaaaah!]

The crystalline dragon roared fiercely at the adventurers surrounding it.

At the same time, the crystals covering its body began to shift with a cracking sound.

“Attack! Protect the research materials! Drive it out!”

Without needing further instructions, the adventurers rushed toward the dragon.

At that moment, an instinctive sense of dread overwhelmed me, like a sharp blade pressing against my throat.

Without hesitation, I grabbed the Nightmare’s reins and leaped with it behind a massive pile of crystal stones.

Crash!

The next moment, a brilliant light erupted, and shards of white crystal shot out in all directions.

Peeking out cautiously from behind the crystal pile, I surveyed the aftermath.

Many adventurers who had charged at the crystalline dragon now lay motionless, pierced by its crystal shards.

Meanwhile, the crystalline armor covering the dragon’s body had significantly diminished.

It seemed that the creature had used the crystal shards covering its body as weapons.

“Ugh, urgh…”

“Uh… guh… sa…”

Those with their arms and legs pierced were somewhat fortunate.

However, those whose stomachs or chests were impaled were spewing dark red blood and entrails as they perished.

At that moment, the Crystal Dragon roared ferociously once again.

[Craaaawww!]

The surrounding mana surged wildly, converging toward the Crystal Dragon.

The gathered mana began condensing on its body, causing crystals to grow with a cracking noise.

“Damn it!”

At that moment, Selion charged forward.

As her upper body moved, a streak of blue light stretched out behind her.

Clang!

[Craaaargh!]

The Crystal Dragon screamed and staggered backward as it took Selion’s strike head-on.

The crystal covering part of its face shattered and fell.

Selion’s assault marked the start of the humans’ counterattack.

Balder and the other team leaders led the charge, relentlessly pressuring the Crystal Dragon, while the rest of the team followed up with an onslaught of attacks.

After hesitating for a brief moment, I strapped the sword in my hand back onto my back and unsheathed the Storm Bringer hanging at Nightmare’s side.

Its weight was hefty in my hands, but even without reinforcing my body with mana, I managed to swing the Storm Bringer with ease.

“Let’s go!”

As I tugged on Nightmare’s reins, the beast, sensing my intent, surged forward.

Its speed was incredible, and on the flat, unobstructed ground, it reached its maximum velocity almost instantly.

Thud-thud-thud!

With the sound of heavy hooves echoing, the distance between us and the Crystal Dragon closed rapidly.

As we neared the beast, I swung the sword with all my strength.

The mana coursing from my heart instantly enhanced the power in my waist and hands.

Crunch!

The blade of the Storm Bringer struck the Crystal Dragon’s head and sliced through.

[Craaawwwr!]

The moment the attack landed, I immediately yanked on Nightmare’s reins.

The Crystal Dragon’s body, writhing in pain, started to glow once again.

Flash!

As the beast’s radiance intensified, my shadow—and Nightmare’s—stretched long across the ground.

Biting my lip, I leapt off Nightmare’s back.

No matter how fast Nightmare was, it wouldn’t be able to evade an attack launched this close.

And my judgment was spot-on.

Blinding flash!

As a massive flash of light erupted, dozens of crystal shards shot toward Nightmare and me.

As my heightened senses detected attacks from all directions, my muscles contracted and relaxed explosively, granting me incredible speed.

The mana coursing through my body erupted outward, creating a strong gust of wind that enabled swift changes in posture.

From the left to the right.

As I swung the Storm Bringer wide, all the incoming crystal shards in front of me shattered.

But I didn’t stop moving—there were still plenty of shards targeting both me and Nightmare.

The mana-infused swing of the Storm Bringer abruptly shifted directions, creating an intense pressure wave.

The blade now aimed at the upper left.

Crash!

Again, the scene repeated.

The wide sweep of the sword shattered incoming shards, and I swiftly moved to intercept more.

As the shattered fragments of white crystal scattered like snow, one particularly thin shard came speeding toward me.

Moving too fast to dodge, it grazed my cheek before flying past and embedding itself into Nightmare’s hind leg.

Thud!

Whinny!

“Ha…”

As the downpour of crystal shards finally ceased, I turned around.

Despite having a crystal as large as my forearm lodged in its hind leg, Nightmare remained steadfast.

Red blood trickled down its trembling hind leg.

Though Nightmare let out heavy breaths as if to signal its readiness to fight, it was clear to me that it had reached its limit.

We exchanged silent glances several times.

Finally, Nightmare snorted and limped off the battlefield.

I took a deep breath and glared at the Crystal Dragon.

The creature, now warily scanning its surroundings, was gathering mana to regenerate its crystals.

I couldn’t let that happen. If its crystals grew back, it would rain them down upon us again.

The moment I reached that conclusion, my body moved.

As my legs kicked off the ground, the scenery stretched and blurred, the space between us shrinking in an instant.

My mind turned blank with a brilliant intensity.

My superhuman senses, combined with my knowledge, proposed a new method of attack.

The image of the attack solidified in my mind. I exhaled softly, extending my hand.

It wasn’t the Storm Bringer’s blade I offered, but my small, bare hand.

Yet, in this moment, it was the most effective weapon I had.

As my slowly approaching hand touched the Crystal Dragon’s body, the massive mana rotating within my heart surged down my arm and into the beast.

Mana with opposing properties naturally repels each other.

This was why I had formed a mana circle instead of absorbing nature’s mana directly.

The Crystal Dragon’s expression contorted as it sensed the anomaly within its body.

But it was too late.

The moment the two opposing mana types mixed, a violent repulsion erupted.

It caused a massive explosion.

Boom!

The massive body of the Crystal Dragon was hurled backward.

Within the starry inner world, a faint star emerged.

The star formed the blurry silhouette of a man, and through his lips, the name of the technique flowed.

[Wave Strike]

As the Crystal Dragon’s body, now airborne, crashed back to the ground, the vague image of the man vanished along with the starlight.


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