Chapter 64: A Meeting with Another Successor

Until now, while raising the Dragon Lair, I had never heard the word Sacred Relic before.

“What is a Sacred Relic?”

“You know about the Bestiary System, right?”

“Yes.”

Raising the Dragon Lair was basically about collecting idle rewards and using those rewards to level up the Guardians.

Level up the Guardians.

Equip them.

Increase their ranks.

Using the Guardians raised this way, you cleared story modes to increase idle rewards, and repeated strengthening the Guardians with the increased rewards.

But there was a limit to growth like this.

That’s why contents like the Golden Magic Tower and the Bestiary came out.

They were means to grow outside of idle rewards, you could say.

The Golden Magic Tower increased overall stats through research-type activities.

The Bestiary raised overall stats through collection.

“In the game you played, every time you collected various items, the Guardians’ abilities probably increased overall.”

“That’s right.”

“A Sacred Relic is an item that brings stat boosts beyond what you’ve experienced. Moreover, it’s something you need when ascending to the Gold Dragon rank.”

Hearing Gold Dragon rank reminded me of when I had Baltimos as a Guardian.

Three Dragon Hearts and Enlightenment.

These two combined to raise the rank to Mature Hatchling.

“Is Gold Dragon the rank after Mature Hatchling?”

“Yes. You become incomparably stronger than now.”

“How do you become a Gold Dragon?”

“If you collect five Dragon Hearts and ten Sacred Relics, you can ascend to Gold Dragon.”

“Then are Sacred Relics only obtainable through dispatch missions?”

“Not necessarily. They could be in your world or where the Dragon Lair is.”

Baltimos snapped his fingers and floated a map into the air.

A three-dimensional image, looking like a galaxy, unfolded before my eyes.

“Well, I’ll only take questions up to here and proceed with the mission. If we delay any longer, the Sacred Relics could be taken away.”

“Do I have to go there myself?”

“Yes, you have to go directly for the Sacred Relic mission. It’s that important.”

Baltimos drew mana upward.

Wooooooong!

One planet in the three-dimensional image suddenly enlarged. There was an area labeled Rodwayne Gorge.

He grabbed it and threw it to the floor, creating a portal.

“In Rodwayne Gorge, there are one Intermediate Apostle and five Lower Apostles of the Frost Dragon God. Eliminate them and retrieve the Sacred Relics.”

“Any precautions?”

“Just remember you have only one life. The details will become clear once you enter.”

So failure means death.

But still, I have no choice but to go.

To survive the enemies ahead, I have to grow much stronger than now.

“And if you can, bring back any Successor who failed the mission.”

“Will there be any advantage for me?”

“Hahaha, that’s the spirit of Gold’s Successor.”

Baltimos smiled wryly at me.

“You won’t regret it.”

“Understood.”

I replied and stepped toward the portal. The moment I extended my foot, I felt something pulling me down to the ground.

My vision changed instantly.

From a blue sky, my body plunged straight toward the earth.

Whoooosh!

My clothes fluttered in the strong wind.

‘Rodwayne Gorge.’

Between dry cliffs, there was a gorge with grass growing.

It looked like the territory of a tribe.

Though the distance was a bit far, I estimated at least thousands gathered in one place.

[Dispatch Mission: Sacred Relic]

– An Apostle of the Frost Dragon God ruling the Blue Cat family is attempting to activate the Sacred Relic.

– Stop the Apostles of the Frost Dragon God and retrieve the Sacred Relics.

First, I used Fly Magic to move near the cliffs. At an appropriate distance, I enhanced my vision.

Like wearing magnifying glasses, I could see distant objects clearly.

‘Is that another Successor?’

There was a blond man hanging on an X-shaped cross. His clothes were all tattered.

His exposed bare skin was covered in wounds and bloodstains.

[Using Golden Dragon’s Eye.]

[Candidate for Dragon Lord’s Successor.]

As when I saw the Apostles of the Dragon God, detailed info didn’t appear.

‘This is enough.’

The information itself isn’t that important.

I only need to distinguish if they’re friend or foe.

Now all that’s left is to find and deal with the Frost Dragon God’s Apostles and recover the Sacred Relics.

I carefully observed the group near the other Successor.

They were Blue Cats.

True to their name, they were feline humanoids with blue skin.

They looked fierce rather than cute.

Like they had horns all over.

Their eyes were slit and angled sharply.

A mix between a cat and a tiger, perhaps.

Overall, they were rated B-grade, but perhaps influenced by the Apostles of the Frost Dragon God, they bore the Blessing of the Frost Dragon God.

‘Thousands of A-grade monsters.’

There might be A-grade or higher monsters I hadn’t spotted yet.

Even considering that, they were no match for the power I possessed.

If I summoned all my Guardians and fought alongside them, sweeping them away instantly was possible.

But there was one sticking point.

‘What caused the one who came before to fail?’

Though they might not have had the same skills or Guardians as me, Baltimos must have judged it doable to send them.

After a moment of thought, I tried sending a telepathic message just in case.

[Can you hear me?]

[…Who is this?]

[Another Successor Candidate.]

[So Baltimos sent you. He told me to retrieve the Sacred Relics I failed to get?!]

[That’s right. So tell me why you failed. We need a plan to act.]

[I didn’t know about the Intermediate Apostle’s presence. When I arrived here, only the Lower Apostles were around. I fell into a trap they set.]

[Any other variables?]

[None. The rest are just minions. If we can deal with the Intermediate Apostle, retrieving the Sacred Relics won’t be too hard.]

[Where is the Intermediate Apostle now?]

[I don’t know either. But if possible, can you hurry up and save me? These bastards seem to be trying to kill me now.]

I glanced up at the other Successor.

A group of large Blue Cats was surrounding him.

[Hey… hey hey hey! I’m dying! I’m telling you, I’m dying!]

I teleported across space to the place where the other Successor was.

Standing before the cross, I looked at the enemies around.

The moment I revealed myself, the Blue Cats’ fur bristled, and their tails shot straight up like sticks.

They showed their wariness.

Clack!

The closest ones charged at me. I used the mana in the Dragon Heart to cause an explosion.

“Fire Burst.”

Kraaaang!

The explosion engulfed the Blue Cats nearby. The charred Blue Cats collapsed to the ground.

Then those around spread their hands.

Shraaak!

Special claws covered with mana sprouted.

It was a structure similar to Sword Aura, a technique of infusing mana into swords.

This time, they didn’t charge all at once but challenged me one by one.

Bang!

Kraaaang!

I defeated them by adjusting my power appropriately.

But many enemies remained, and if I fought them all like this, my mana would eventually be depleted.

I had to wipe them out quickly.

I needed to use the Guardians.

“Summon.”

With a brilliant light, the Guardians I had appointed appeared.

There were so many now that I couldn’t call them all by name.

I omitted greetings, anticipating the large number.

I issued orders to the Guardians waiting silently for my commands.

“Wipe them out.”

The Guardians nodded and scattered in all directions.

[Using Dragon’s Blessing.]

An Orc roared and chopped a Blue Cat charging at him with an axe.

Muscles swung the heavy axe lightly like a hammer.

Though small in stature, he gave off the aura of a giant.

Swish!

Swish!

The Orc charged into the enemy’s center, clearing a path, while Goblins moved behind, spreading Poison.

Among the purple mist, Blue Cats flailed helplessly.

The Blue Cats, with no immunity, collapsed one by one.

[I am the Poison Immunity Goblin!]

The Goblin gleefully spread poison needles everywhere, giggling.

Several Blue Cats watching this gasped sharply.

They inhaled the poison mist spread by the Goblin.

The poison mist disappeared in an instant.

Blue Cats who had inhaled it sacrificed themselves to protect their comrades.

The surviving Blue Cats’ gazes turned even more savage.

Blue Cats charged the Goblin, swinging their claws.

[…Aha! You thought I’d scream?]

The Goblin spread poison mist again, blocking their approach.

Several Blue Cats far away raised bows.

Fshing!

Fshing!

Arrows flew swiftly, piercing the necks of the Blue Cats holding the bows.

High Elf Irellin.

She quickly took arrows from her quiver and drew her bowstring.

Her hand movements were so fast they were almost invisible.

“Th-thank you!”

“Spray poison again. I’ll help.”

The Goblin sprayed a much larger amount of poison than before.

At the same time, spirits summoned by Irellin charged forward.

They raised strong winds, spreading the poison mist everywhere.

Meanwhile, Irellin focused on suppressing enemies performing ranged attacks.

The Guardians’ coordination improved.

‘Not bad.’

There was another coordinated attack.

“Hold on tight!”

The Wyvern King rose into the sky with Praira on his back.

He circled the enemies.

Praira threw herbs she held one by one.

The tiny herb seeds rapidly grew larger.

The Sunflower of Blazing Sun shot flames toward the enemies.

Fireballs spreading in all directions burned the Blue Cats nearby.

Fwoosh!

Fwoosh!

The Blue Cats were helplessly wiped out.

Just when it seemed the battle was settling, Lower Apostles hiding revealed themselves.

They looked identical to Blue Cats.

But above their heads hung round ice halos.

Like halos above angels’ heads.

“So there was another Successor.”

“Isn’t that good? We don’t have to find a sacrifice now.”

“Two Dragon Hearts are enough.”

The Lower Apostles moved toward the Guardians.

The previously slaughtering Orc, Goblin, and Irellin now fought fiercely against the Lower Apostles.

Two remaining Apostles faced Ropenheim.

“I’m busy, so I’ll finish this quickly.”

Ropenheim moved.

With a heavy step, his blade drew a clean line. At the same time, lines were engraved on the Lower Apostle’s body.

Stab.

Slash!

With a deep sword wound, blood gushed out.

Ropenheim’s sword did not stop there. He swung at another Apostle.

“That won’t work. Haaaaaah!”

The Lower Apostle’s body was covered in ice. A thick chill spread in all directions.

I had felt a similar sensation before.

When I fought an Apostle of the Thunder Dragon God on the 21st floor, his avatar had given off this feeling.

A Blue Cat rippling with pure white frost all over its body.

[Using Golden Dragon’s Eye.]

[Avatar State of the Frost Dragon God.]

The Apostle of the Frost Dragon God in Avatar State counterattacked Ropenheim.

‘I don’t have any instant kill magic.’

There was no way to kill that Apostle right now.

Even if I started research today, it would take several hours at least.

I turned my head slightly and looked at the other Successor.

“Can you kill the Avatar State of the Frost Dragon God?”

Then the other Successor, whose head had been hanging low, raised it and curled his lips into a smile.

A bitter smile dripping with deep resentment.

“Just release me. I’ll wipe them all out.”