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Chapter 176

Hooook.

It was as if someone had dimmed the lights, and suddenly the area was engulfed in darkness.

However, Bailey was not flustered. He casually pulled the trigger of the gun he had aimed.

As the bullet traveled down the barrel, an attribute was cloaked upon it. Introducing the Demon Suppressing Bullet. A bullet that removes mana had never disappointed when facing an Awakened. Especially against a wizard.

‘How disappointing, Choi Yeon-woo?’

This was a clear blunder. The effect of the Demon Suppressing Bullet was intense. If it could reach the core of the spell, all the mana invested to create this phenomenon would backflow and swallow Yeon-woo whole.

He wouldn’t die, but it would certainly hurt like hell.

Only one round was left in the magazine. The bullet was calculated to just graze the center, that is, Yeon-woo, and once everything was over, it would be used to finish him off while he was down.

That said, he wasn’t completely at ease. A man with such skills wouldn’t recklessly waste mana.

It was better to stay vigilant while preparing for the possibility that things could unravel easily.

‘What are you going to do, Choi Yeon-woo?’

The marksman, holding his breath in anticipation while lurking in the shadows, soon found himself unable to keep his mouth shut.

*

In truth, there was nothing to gain from this act. After simulating every possible outcome in his head until the very end, Yeon-woo arrived at that conclusion.

Mana had to be poured out as much as possible, and all he had was less than a second of time.

However, if he kept getting whittled down by Bailey, he wouldn’t even be able to seize opportunities that were within reach. Bailey was an extraordinary marksman, to the point where it was hard to believe he was a first-year student.

‘Is a decade of experience worthless in front of pure talent?’

Man, how unfair is this? Thinking that, Yeon-woo smirked and raised his right foot high.

With a muffled bang, the mana-infused bullet sliced through the darkness. He could see light returning, following the back of the bullet.

Unattributed, pure golden mana burst forth from his right foot and piled up.

So far, everything Yeon-woo had used was somehow related to the dragon, but this time, it was pure dragon power itself.

The towering golden structure collapsed beneath Yeon-woo’s foot. The stacked mana pile crumpled, and under the pressure, mana started spilling out in all directions.

‘Regulation’. A power that could rip apart all mana elements in the vicinity, it was a ‘skill’ that only dragons could wield.

This was an ability so rare that, aside from a select few, no one in this world—no, not even Sister Claire—would have seen it before.

Of course, the issue lay in the fact that it was Yeon-woo’s mana that was being ripped apart.

Using Regulation in this situation, just like when Baek In-gyeol first displayed it, would cause a mana backlash that only Yeon-woo would suffer.

Still, the magazine would be emptied. It had to be. If the guy was an exceptional marksman and a great hunter, there was no way he could avoid being on guard against an ability he had never seen before.

The omnipotence he felt, as if he could sense and control everything within the domain surrounding Yeon-woo, began to tear away, while simultaneously, waves of pain surged through his body.

It felt like being on an operating table without anesthesia, having his nervous system carefully extracted one by one.

No matter how much patience Yeon-woo had, this was a pain that couldn’t be endured with a clear mind.

Blood trickled from his clenched lips. Losing consciousness was not an option, nor could he remain still. Beyond his blurry consciousness, he heard the sound of gunfire.

Bailey had no choice but to make a difficult decision. Regulation would rip away mana, but in the process, it triggered a mana storm that swept away the fifth bullet.

“Ugh, urgh!!”

Bitten down on his molars, Yeon-woo hunched forward. Human physiology simply dictates that if you lean forward, you instinctively rush forward.

Despite writhing in pain, Yeon-woo obediently followed the ruthless command from his brain to step forward.

Bailey was now just a few steps ahead, with only a single bullet fired reflexively between them.

Due to Regulation, the attribute given to that bullet had been stripped away; it was just a piece of metal, a remnant of the old age.

Of course, Yeon-woo, unable to use aura due to the mana backlash, was still more than capable of forcefully dispatching that weapon.

Bailey, too flustered, absently pulled the trigger once more. Naturally, with a tick, the cylinder revolved empty.

Surprised by his own actions, Bailey hurriedly pressed the barrel for a reload.

Yeon-woo had no time to waste watching. If he had to, he would have laughed at such a positive development, but all he wanted right now was to take Bailey down and faint.

Just moving his arms made his body scream. The one relief was that the Doppleganger weapon had not affected him even in his foggy mental state.

His will proved unbreakable, even with his hazy consciousness.

Blocking or deflecting was impossible in the current state. Making that judgment, Yeon-woo thrust his shoulder toward the incoming bullet.

Pischuuk, the bullet granted passage by a kind of entry permission pierced into his shoulder with an explosion of sound.

Whether this should be called a blessing or a misfortune, for Yeon-woo, in a half-concussed state, the pain from the bullet felt trivial.

A spinning shuriken rolled between the two. Time began moving like a high-speed camera. With every step Yeon-woo took, Bailey inserted a bullet into the cylinder.

Clicks and footsteps intertwined. Neither could be interrupted in their worlds. Each was purely focused on the other.

Their consciousnesses moved in the same direction. Yeon-woo was resolute, while Bailey felt euphoria from that fact.

‘This is it.’

The excitement he had longed for. The joy he had yearned for. The showdown he had desired───.

At this moment, they could be said to be on equal ground. It truly was a sight from an ancient age.

A swordsman charging in, drenched in blood, unable to use mana, and a gunman shaking slightly due to a mana backlash.

Bailey loaded bullets into the cylinder with trembling hands. With each step Yeon-woo took closer, he would curse himself for only being able to load one bullet.

However, he did not rage at Yeon-woo, who had granted him this experience.

Time flowed slowly. A step per second. A shot per second. Time progressed with each step. Coincidentally, there were only five steps left. When Bailey filled the cylinder, Yeon-woo was upon him.

Shall I load just a little and aim? He considered that thought, but unfortunately, the marksman Bailey pictured in his mind was not that kind.

The man with the cowboy hat living in his head stubbornly filled all six chambers, even as the sword loomed right in front of him.

Bailey scoffed. Time flowed without mercy. In five seconds, everything would come to a conclusion. Click, thud. Click, thud. Click, thud…. The sound repeated five times.

At that moment, it seemed he heard the sound of a coin dropping somewhere. They aimed their weapons at each other.

The wildly swinging sword rushed towards Bailey in a diagonal slash. The elbow holding the revolver straightened.

“…Ha, manly indeed.”

“Come on over, into the world of men.”

With a smile, Bailey muttered blankly. Yeon-woo returned the sentiment with a dazed grin.

The sound of metal piercing flesh, and the sound of gunpowder igniting echoed simultaneously across the vast plains.

*

“Gahhh!!”

With a scream, Yeon-woo jolted up, scanning his surroundings. The barren plains had vanished, replaced by a rather familiar scene.

A white drape and a clean ceiling. Instinctively, Yeon-woo realized.

“Oh, this is the infirmary.”

“You catch on pretty quickly.”

With a rustle, the curtain was drawn aside, revealing Na Yang-ho. Behind her was Bailey, blissfully asleep, oblivious to everything.

Thank goodness it wasn’t just Na Yang-ho and him. What a mess it would have been otherwise.

“Who won?”

“Is that the first thing you ask upon waking up? What a pain, really. You won. You went first. You got hit by Bailey’s bullet just before being pushed back to your own realm.”

“Yay~ Now I don’t have to fight even if Bailey asks! Yeah, you’re bad at this, right~”

“Well, I don’t care about that part…”

With her arms crossed, Na Yang-ho trailed off, motioning for Yeon-woo to look over there.

At that, Yeon-woo’s gaze slowly turned.

On the chair where Na Yang-ho had been handling paperwork sat a familiar golden silhouette.

“Ah, Shar! Dad won! Did well, right!?”

“…….”

Seeing Yeon-woo exclaim with excitement, Na Yang-ho shook her head. Shar, with a stony face, merely gazed at Yeon-woo like an unmoving statue. What’s up? Did I do something wrong?

Shar let out a deep sigh, observing Yeon-woo’s clueless expression.

“What did you do wrong, Dad?”

“Uh, honestly, I don’t know.”

“…Even if you’re Dad, your mental energy isn’t infinite. I don’t understand why you had to be so stubborn.”

“…Ah, you were worried, huh?”

Well, since he knew he wouldn’t die but just be forcibly returned, he acted impulsively. But conversely, that meant his body might not be injured, but damage to his soul or mana was a different story.

‘…If I say I don’t think I’ll get mana burnout, I’ll be scolded, huh?’

Yeon-woo could understand Shar’s feelings. After all, it was Shar who taught him how to use the ability of Regulation.

She probably thought he would only use it when facing a tough opponent, never expecting he’d employ it like a flashbang.

It took over 30 minutes to calm Shar down. The success came largely thanks to Tae-oh, who smartly brought back a bunch of snacks that Shar liked from a street vendor. Thanks, Tae-oh!

*

“…Finally, finally, finally.”

With a look of despondency, the woman muttered. Foreigners may be commonplace nowadays, but in this world, women had a unique captivating power.

With such looks, her attire was provocative too. Dressed in a sheer nightgown, barely hinting at what lay beneath, she wandered down a mountain path.

It was a good thing that this was a somewhat remote location.

“…But, where could he be? That scoundrel who stole my daughter…!!”

Time was plentiful. Motivation was overflowing. The woman had repeatedly conducted research in her nest.

There were countless tasks ahead. First, she had to tear a hole in dimensions, and secondly, to figure out just how much she needed to suppress the power of her soul to cross the dimensions.

‘All I managed was a half-success, but I got it done somehow.’

She had to sacrifice so much. Her previously abundant lifespan had dwindled, and though she could use her power in her nest, there was no guarantee she could do so in this world.

Nevertheless, Alkeinea, the last Gold Dragon, had set foot in this world solely out of fury toward the scoundrel who stole her precious egg.

If necessary, she was prepared to burn her entire soul to reclaim her child, embracing a maternal love that was warm yet fervent.

“…Wow! A beautiful lady! Who are you!? Where did you come from!?”

Min-ji, who had been hiding in the bushes and watching, suddenly burst out and exclaimed.

(To be continued)

 

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