Chapter 77: The Five Monarchs Who Rule the Sky

Sixth Forest.

In the Sky Nest where the Wyverns reside, there are many flying monsters like Wyverns.

But in the territory of the Five Monarchs, who rule the sky, there are more monsters that walk the land.

The Cave of Cognitive Core, where I obtained the core, was also closer to where the Five Monarchs were.

‘How strange.’

Since there were no other flyers, the Wyvern King could fly even faster.

Racing across the sky, we quickly reached the lair of the Five Monarchs.

The Wyvern King halted in mid-air and asked me.

[Shall we fly farther?]

“No. Let’s get off here.”

I landed on the ground with the Wyvern King.

After climbing down from its back, I gazed in the direction indicated by the Eye of Bluecat.

It was a distance I could cover with a single teleport.

At this distance, the Five Monarchs should have sensed our presence and flown over. Yet it was eerily silent.

I used detection magic to scan the surroundings.

‘Two.’

Except for two presences in the lair, I felt nothing else.

That meant the other three were outside.

But there was no way those three could have failed to notice us approaching.

“There’s something going on.”

[What is it?】

“We’ll have to check for ourselves.”

I walked slowly, surveying the area around me.

Then, things began to catch my eye.

A bloodstained tree.

Feathers scattered everywhere.

There were signs that some of the Five Monarchs had been injured.

‘Did a battle break out here?’

The closer I got to the lair, the stronger the traces became. The wounds were so deep that pools of blood had formed on the ground.

‘Is it there?’

A massive cave loomed before me.

I sensed the presence inside.

The moment I took a step forward—

Ssssss!

A chilling energy washed over me, and I instantly activated the Absolute Barrier.

A Feather Barrage shot toward me from the front.

Like a volley of Magic Weapons, the mana-filled feathers struck the Absolute Barrier.

With that, the attacker revealed itself from within the cave.

An eagle with eyes stained red with blood.

Its body was so enormous, it needed a vast cave to conceal itself.

[Wyvern? How dare you… Do you know where you’ve crawled into!]

It was the creature I had seen once before.

[Activating Golden Dragon Eye.]

[Tyrant Eagle of the Sky (SS)]
-One of the Five Monarchs who rules the sky.
-Burning with vengeance.
-Total stats: SS
-Potential: SSS
-Possessed Item: Wind Eagle’s Core (S)
-Possessed Skills: High-speed Flight (SS), Sharp Talon (S), Wind Cutter (S), Magic Immunity (SS).

As expected.

It was the one I had met after retrieving the core from the Cave of Cognitive Core.

[So conquering the Fifth Forest wasn’t enough, now you’ve allied with the Seventh Forest. Khehehehe.]

I listened closely to the frenzied eagle’s torrent of information.

‘So the Wyverns broke off relations, and now the Wyverns are allied with the Fifth Forest?’

I wanted to hear more details.

But judging by the rage in those eyes, normal conversation seemed impossible.

“Wyvern, fall back.”

[Yes, sir!]

When the Wyvern withdrew, the eagle unleashed a fierce aura.

[I’ll kill you both.]

I used teleport to approach the bloodthirsty eagle.

Clenching my fist, I filled it with mana.

“This is going to hurt.”

My mana transformed into flames, and my fist blazed furiously. From red to yellow, and yellow to blue.

I compressed my strength and raised the heat.

I poured in every bit of mana I had.

In less than a second, the spell was complete. I chanted as I thrust out my fist.

“Burning Impact.”

Kwaaaang!

Blue flames exploded out.

The fire engulfed the eagle.

The flames spread in all directions, melting everything nearby.

Trees burned and dissolved in the inferno.

Even I struggled to withstand the heat. I used ice magic to counter the sweltering blaze.

Catching my breath, I looked straight ahead.

The eagle, its feathers all burned away, stared at me in a daze before slowly toppling sideways.

Boom!

I drew closer and gazed into the eagle’s half-closed eyes.

“Kneel.”

[Would you like to appoint the Tyrant Eagle of the Sky as your Guardian?]

Oh.

[Appointing the Tyrant Eagle of the Sky as Guardian.]

I took out two Potions from the Dragon’s Lair—one I poured over its charred body, the other I placed in its beak.

They were Top Grade Potions made by Anne, Queen of Witches.

The effects were outstanding, and change came at once. The scorched black feathers fell away, and new ones grew rapidly in their place.

At the same time, the eagle’s previously glazed eyes regained their focus.

[…What are you? This sensation… What have I done?]

“Think of it as a little restraint so we can talk. Once we’re done, if you wish, I’ll release you. So don’t worry.”

[…Allying with the Wyverns, are you. What do you want to hear from me, anyway?]

“For the record, I’m not allied with the Wyverns.”

[Then who’s that?]

“That’s not the Wyvern you know—it’s a Wyvern from another dimension. That’s all you need to know.”

The eagle frowned.

Not that I expected it to understand, so I pressed on.

“Explain what you meant by the Wyverns joining forces with the Fifth Forest.”

[It’s just as I said. Last night, the Wyverns allied with the Lord of the Fifth Forest and attacked us.]

“Why?”

[To seize the cores we possess.]

Five S-Grade Cores.

It certainly made sense that they would be tempting.

But it still didn’t add up.

Even if the Five Monarchs weren’t much help when the Wyverns attacked other forests, they should still be considered guardians of the Sixth Forest.

It was odd that the Wyverns would try to kill them just for their cores.

“You and the Wyverns didn’t get along well, did you?”

[Of course not. To the ones who wanted war, we who opposed it must have been an eyesore.]

“Couldn’t they just ignore you and wage war anyway?”

[There’s the Law of the Strong in the forest.]

“The Law of the Strong?”

[There’s a set number of strong beings allowed in the forest, so no more can appear. To create a new strong one, you have to kill an existing one.]

To get rid of the eyesore and raise new strong ones to their liking.

In other words, they killed for the cores as well.

“How many have fallen?”

[Three. Only me and the Hawk survived. But even the Hawk probably doesn’t have long left.]

“Is it inside?”

[…Yes.]

I walked into the cave.

The smell of blood was thick.

Not far inside, a massive bird with snowy white feathers was sprawled on the ground.

[Activating Golden Dragon Eye.]

[Sky Lord Hawk (SS)]
-One of the Five Monarchs who rules the sky.
-Dying.
-Total stats: SS
-Potential: SSS
-Possessed Item: Wind Eagle’s Core (S)
-Possessed Skills: Supersonic Flight (S), Sharp Talon (S)… Gale Sprint (SS), Magic Immunity (S)

Even from its breathing, it was clear it was dying.

It truly had little time left.

“Do you want to save it?”

[Can you save it?]

“If you and the Hawk help me, I’ll save it.”

[What do you need us to do?]

“Help me take control of the Sixth Forest. Give me the information and strength you have.”

[…Right. Asking if it’s possible is pointless. If I don’t accept, I won’t even have a chance at revenge.]

The eagle’s eyes flashed as it bowed its head to me.

[I’ll do as you ask. So save the Hawk.]

I turned to the Hawk and appointed it as a Guardian.

[Appointing Sky Lord Hawk as Guardian.]

[Using Dragon’s Blessing.]

[All of Sky Lord Hawk’s abilities temporarily increase.]

The stat boost included self-recovery.

On top of that, I fed the Hawk a Top Grade Potion, even more potent than the one the eagle had.

The combined effect revived the Hawk, whose breath had nearly stopped.

[…Is this heaven?]

[You really are alive.]

[You’re not dead—]

[Right. I’m not dead. You’re alive.]

The Hawk pushed itself up and looked at me.

[Was it you who saved me?]

“That’s right.”

[Thank you for saving me first, but… may I ask who you are?]

At that, the Wyvern behind me gave a loud, deliberate cough and stepped forward.

[If I may introduce this person: he is the Lord of the Seventh Forest, our master, Heavenly Dragon Emperor.]

[The Lord of the Forest… So your goal is the Sixth Forest?]

Its voice trembled slightly.

There was a hint of anger, like the eagle before.

“That’s right.”

[I will do everything I can to help.]

The Lord of the Sixth Forest.

Sky Lord Skain.

For him, the greatest headache was the Five Monarchs.

Though he was the Lord, there were still beings with the title “Monarch” acting in the forest. As descendants of former Lords, they had many followers.

So he couldn’t touch them recklessly.

‘But that ends now!’

Just as Skain was agonizing over the Five Monarchs, the Fifth Forest offered an alliance.

Their demand was simple.

If they dealt with the Five Monarchs, they wanted two of the cores in return.

For Skain, it was a bargain.

The Wyvern clan could never take down the Five Monarchs on their own, and now they could have three of the cores.

‘With those cores, I can nurture new power.’

He calculated quickly and acted.

The minions sent by the Lord of the Fifth Forest took down three of the Five Monarchs and claimed two cores.

They presented the third core to Skain.

‘The other two won’t last long either.’

He had heard they’d escaped with fatal wounds.

It wouldn’t take long for the Fifth Forest’s people to kill them and bring back the cores.

Skain curled his lips in a wicked smile.

In his gaze rested a gigantic Dragon Egg.

Thump.

Thump.

With each heartbeat, shadows danced inside the translucent shell.

A being created by merging the core and the egg.

The Wyvern born from this would have incredible talent and mana.

“Aaaaah—”

And that wasn’t the end.

If he could acquire the cores from the other two Monarchs, he could create two more Wyverns.

With that, he would become the first Lord to fully dominate the Sixth Forest.

A feat no one who had ruled the Sixth Forest before had achieved.

‘With this power, I’ll unify the Seventh Forest too.’

The First Forest would not move, and with the Fifth Forest allied, there was no one to invade.

Geographically, the Sixth Forest was now very secure.

With this security, he could swallow the Seventh Forest in a single leap, rapidly growing his power.

Thump.

Thump.

When this egg hatches—

He will become Lord of not just one, but two forests.

“I’ll wipe out the wolf cubs to the last.”