Chapter 45

Chapter 45

[Translator – Peptobismol]

Chapter 45

In the darkness of the desert, as Zeon laid eyes on the man, shivers ran down his spine.

The man seemed like a mirage in the desert, not quite of this world, despite standing right before him.

Zeon knew his instincts weren’t deceiving him. This was an unexplored territory untouched by human footsteps.

Perhaps the only humans who came here were Zeon and Deioden.

Even these two had struggled through battles to reach this place.

Dyoden, being an extraordinary being beyond human limits, emerged unscathed, but Zeon had faced numerous brushes with death, leaving indelible scars across his entire body.

Yet, the man before them showed no signs of wounds.

His unnaturally pale skin, visible between his clothes, with all his veins showing through, an eerie sight.

What struck Zeon the most was that the man traversed the desert night without any gear – no armor like Zeon, no sword like Dyoden.

Nevertheless, the fact that he could leisurely stroll through the desert night meant that he was a tremendously strong individual.

Such an individual appeared completely unannounced.

Zeon cautiously inquired.

“Who are you?”

“Just someone passing through the vicinity. I saw the light from afar and decided to check it out.”

“And your name?”

“Haeltoon.”

At that moment, Zeon felt the blood in his entire body freeze.

“Then, the Dra—gon?”

“I’m merely a passing guest for now. No need to be so cautious.”

The man who identified himself as Haeltoon said with a faint smile.

At that moment, Dyoden interjected.

“A lizard whelp without fear...”

“Going a bit too far there. Still, to compare a mere lizard to a dragon...”

“So, you’ve been hiding here after all.”

“Hiding? What am I supposed to be hiding from? I’ve merely been residing here for quite some time.”

Haeltoon replied nonchalantly, unperturbed by Dyoden’s intensity.

“What’s going on here then, lizard?”

“Though your address irks me a bit, being broad-minded, I’ll try to understand. Imagine someone unwanted showing up at your home. Would you stay quiet? I’m no different. Uninvited guests arrived at my place, so I came out of curiosity.”

“Uninvited guests? Us?”

Dyoden’s eyes gleamed intensely in the darkness.

Even in his frenzied gaze, Haeltoon remained unfazed.

“Isn’t it appropriate to call someone who commits such unheard-of actions an uninvited guest? Or does it carry a different meaning here on Earth?”

“You all are the uninvited guests. Lizard! Who was it that terraformed Earth and then tried to force migration?”

“We regret that a bit. But we had no choice either. Krasias, who attempted to terraform Earth, is a being above gods. At least in our world, they hold that level of status. Who could dare challenge what they did?”

“You’re a little lizard, but your tongue is quite big. You’re all the same damn lizards.”

“I’d appreciate being assessed on the same level as them here. But I could never compare myself to them. In our world, they’re on the level of a creator. They merely chose a similar facade to ours for convenience.”

“So, why are you here? To boast about how great Krasias is?”

“Your resentment and fighting spirit are truly remarkable. It makes me tremble.”

Haeltoon looked at Dyoden with amusement.

Contrary to his words, there was no tension or intimidation in his expression.

He continued.

“Think of it as a natural disaster. Like a storm or an earthquake. In that case, you might be able to live more at ease if you consider it that way.”

“So, are you suggesting I should just turn around and leave now?”

“Politely advising you to do so.”

“What ridiculous nonsense. It’s easy to talk about other people’s problems. If you were in my shoes, could you just forget and live?”

“Unfortunately, forgetfulness is not a blessing granted to me. However, letting it fade away might be possible.”

“You’re just blabbering with that filthy tongue of yours. You’re nothing but a lizard brat. Let’s see if you can still spout that idiotic nonsense after I rip out that tongue of yours.”

“Mmm! I’d rather not. While I can convey thoughts telepathically, communicating through voice is much simpler.”

Haeltoon casually approached Dyoden.

Zeon watched, holding his breath.

Haeltoon nonchalantly approached the Sand Angler carcass.

“Oh, a Sand Angler. I quite fancy those too. You could say it’s a delicacy.”

It was the perfect death brought about by Dyoden’s ability, the Authority of Death.

Taking back Kreion, Dyoden said.

“Trying to threaten me by sending a chimera.”

“This is a chimera?”

“Yes! The cowardly lizard whelp didn’t have the courage to show up, so he sent a chimera. Kuck! Ptuu!”

Dyoden spat on the chimera.

Zeon observed the scene in silence.

* * *

“Ugh!”

As Haeltoon opened his eyes, a strange noise echoed as his scales clashed.

Shrrr!

From head to tail, spanning a staggering one hundred and fifty meters, his entire body was covered in dazzling golden scales.

Two horns adorned his head, while a pair of wings neatly folded over his torso.

His four legs were sturdy enough to support a massive underground structure.

Rising to his immense height, Haeltoon blinked.

The link with the chimera severed, dealing a significant blow to his soul.

At that moment, a woman standing before Haeltoon cautiously spoke up.

“Are you alright?”

“The connection with the chimera has been completely severed. It’s true that he possesses the Authority of Death.”

Haeltoon shook his massive head and spoke.

“The Authority of Death?”

“Yes! It’s astonishing that a mere human possesses the ability that only Krasias possessed in Kurayan.”

Haeltoon looked at the petite woman.

While her upper body was human, her lower half resembled a spider’s thorax.

The magic of combining different life forms to create a new being—chimera magic.

One of his specialties was studying various life forms and creating chimeras.

Creating chimeras was originally forbidden in Kurayan. Even dragons, positioned at Kurayan’s apex, faced sanctions for delving into chimera magic.

Therefore, Haeltoon had never dared to contemplate creating chimeras in Kurayan. But Earth was different.

Unlike Kurayan, there were no restrictions here.

Dragons that had transitioned to Earth were busy establishing their own domains, showing little interest in the lives of other entities.

This afforded Haeltoon the opportunity to indulge in his avid interest in chimera magic.

The woman standing in front of Haeltoon was called Eblis, one of the chimeras created in such a manner.

She was a fusion of human and spider, possessing the wit of a human combined with the cunning of a spider.

Thus, she was entrusted with the important task of managing his lair.

Eblis glanced cautiously at Haeltoon while bowing her head.

Haeltoon’s lair was made entirely out of gold.

The walls, ceiling, and floor were all gold.

In the aftermath of the terraforming, most of the ground turned into sand, but the mineral veins deep underground remained intact.

As a gold dragon, Haeltoon created his lair in a gold vein.

He researched chimeras to his heart’s content within the golden lair.

To create a chimera he liked, Haeltoon brought women from each race to his lair, polymorphed, and mated with them.

He combined the offspring obtained this way with monsters to create chimeras.

Eblis, like the other guardians protecting the lair, was a chimera created through this process.

He loathed stepping out into the outside world, made of sand, in contrast to his golden lair. Therefore, instead of his true self, he sent out chimeras, leading to the current situation.

“Dyoden!”

There was a liveliness in Haeltoon’s golden eyes.

He was furious with Dyoden, who dared to kill his alter form.

The chimera created from his alter form was extremely special.

Partially serving as a vessel to contain a part of his soul, it allowed him to wield the abilities of a dragon. Thus, conventional means couldn’t kill the chimera.

The severed link meant the chimera’s perfect death.

Being able to bring a perfect death to that chimera meant that he possessed the capability to bring death to him as well.

He didn’t know how a mere human had acquired such an ability, but it was undoubtedly a significant threat.

Haeltoon instructed Eblis.

“Mobilize the guardians.”

[Translator – Peptobismol]