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Chapter 268: Kieeek!!

A cacophony of powerful roars echoed from all directions. Yeon-woo and Shar were huddled behind a small hill on the island, scanning their surroundings with caution.

“It looks like a gate. I thought it was just a thought, but this is really a gate.”

“That’s right. And they don’t seem easy to handle at all…”

Shar nodded in agreement with Yeon-woo’s mumbling as he leaned back against the sandy beach. Indeed, it was true.

I had thought we’d just pick up the artifacts like people harvesting crops. But what was this? It felt like we had walked into some kind of Phuket scene, and beneath the blue sea were creatures glaring at us as if they wanted to kill us!

Honestly, reflecting on it calmly, it was a wonder I hadn’t sensed it until now.

Gorum might have carelessly suggested it after the creatures he was protecting had died, but he hadn’t consulted the creatures living inside him before making the decision.

In human terms, it would be like taking the remains of your ancestors to use them as materials.

If Gorum just said something now, this mess would be resolved, but who knows how long it would take for him to wake up from the nap he started.

That being said, attacking them all as a response would be tricky since Gorum only said to take the leftovers of the dead creatures.

If Yeon-woo started grabbing other creatures here and Gorum got mad saying that wasn’t what he meant, it would lead to significant losses.

When talking to these kinds of nobles, it was always best to take their words literally.

“Shall we collaborate for a change, Shar?”

“Sounds good! What should we do?”

Yeon-woo’s suggestion received a calm nod from Shar. He observed the streams of water, flames, and lightning flying overhead without hesitation.

It was a remarkably masculine trait to be so undeterred. At that level, it would be hard to scratch Shar.

“I’ll support you from the back. Want to run wild?”

“Sure! It’s been a while since a brawl. Dad’s magic skills are so pathetic that I’ve just been supporting him from behind all the time.”

“Sorry, sorry. But at least you’re better now, right?”

“I can hold my own, I guess! Leave it to me!”

Before long, Shar, with gauntlets on, cheerfully clapped his fists together and sprang into action like a spring. Boldly standing in the center of the island, Shar swept his eyes around.

‘He really remembers what the Demon King and Master taught him well.’

Those two highly valued the use of their eyes.

Their philosophy was that if you fully understood the situation, you could compensate for weak physical abilities.

In that sense, Shar perfectly embodied their teachings.

The martial arts Shar was learning were nothing more than methods to swing his fists, known as the Golden Flower Technique and the Three Calamities Fist.

However, despite the shortcomings of those martial arts, Shar possessed outstanding eyesight that made it inconsequential.

As Shar’s gaze swept around like a radar, the creatures were not idle either.

Each of them began to unleash their special abilities. As the creature Megi shuddered, an earthquake occurred. The Water Crow spat water, and the clam released mist.

From the nameless creatures born here to those that flowed in from outside, everyone was working together to protect this paradise.

What about other creatures? What kind of monster causes an earthquake inside someone’s mouth?

“I feel like I’m becoming the bad guy…”

In reality, the one who was bad was Gorum for not handling situations properly. We weren’t planning to take anything without permission; we got the landowner’s permission after all.

Though not as visible as Shar, Yeon-woo also took in the scenery in detail.

He read how hundreds of creatures, big and small, attacked Shar in various ways.

Even if this place was a paradise for the creatures, the logic of power still held true.

Yeon-woo’s role was to help Shar weave through the creatures. That alone could secure their victory.

Yeon-woo’s Dragon Heart unleashed an endless flow of mana. The massive amount of magic energy contained in his heart and lower abdomen began to bubble up like flames. He heightened the control of the flow of mana through the darkness that surrounded them.

Yeon-woo’s unique technique, Tae-oh (太烏), spread not towards the ground but into the sky.

Originally, it was like a giant bird floating in the atmosphere, but now that it was created in midair, it felt as if an enormous crow was truly hovering in the sky.

Normally, it wouldn’t have been a problem to relax a bit more, but since he could wholly focus on magic this time, he meticulously crafted his spells.

Prioritizing attributes, he formed a spell to counter the creatures’ attacks.

This was a secret technique only Yeon-woo could use, possessing the Dragon’s power and the Spirit of Darkness, which could handle any attribute with ease.

‘It’s great for fighting multiple opponents.’

Though, structurally, it had a slight waste when used in a 1:1 scenario, that was a small flaw.

As Yeon-woo observed to see if his spells worked from the mindset of a novice programmer, he shifted his gaze to Shar.

Avoiding certain physical attacks he couldn’t retaliate against with Tae-oh, Shar skillfully dodged while knocking the heads of the creatures with his gauntlets.

Trailing behind Shar, a multitude of creatures floated, indicating the path he had taken.

They weren’t dead. They were merely knocked out, having been hit on the head.

‘This is kind of a scary scene.’

It felt like a scene where a head-smasher had appeared. Thinking that, Yeon-woo read Shar’s intentions through his movements.

Just like how one can improve by carefully watching others play games, the combat dynamic was the same.

If you understand how someone else fights and their intent, you can apply it to your own style.

In that sense, Shar’s fighting style seemed to be one that aimed to protect something.

Even in moments Yeon-woo would have dove in without a second thought, Shar moved a beat later, observing the opponent’s attacks.

He seemed to assume there was something he had to protect. Preferably, he liked to brace for attacks rather than dodge them.

Seeing that, Yeon-woo sheepishly scratched his head. That something to protect was most likely me or the other children.

‘I kind of get it now.’

Why neither Yeon-woo nor Shar had been able to attempt the technique called Yonghwa.

It was because the foundation of their thoughts was fundamentally similar yet different.

If Yeon-woo resolved to protect everything behind him, including his family, as a Hero, for Shar, others didn’t matter much.

He might protect them if circumstances allowed, but family was his top priority.

‘That’s not wrong, though.’

In fact, it could be said that Shar was much more human than Yeon-woo.

Humans are greedy creatures, but more than that, they cherish their own things.

I’m not sure if I should be happy about that.

Whether Yeon-woo changes his mindset, or Shar becomes more aware of his identity as a Dragon, if one of those doesn’t come first, they wouldn’t even be able to attempt Yonghwa.

I never expected that raising him so human-like would lead to him lacking in Dragon-like traits.

Thinking that, Yeon-woo continued to watch Shar’s fight. The battle itself was… so remarkable that there were no words left to say.

A little while later.

“What’s all this~?”

“There’s so much, Dad!!”

The creatures, who had been so bewildered by the thought of intruders that they couldn’t communicate at all, seemed to come to their senses after receiving a baby dragon punch from Shar, allowing for some semblance of conversation. Not me, but Shar.

An old anchovy, who had quietly listened to how Yeon-woo and Shar ended up here and what proposal they received, waved his fins and led them somewhere.

And the outcome was the sight right now.

Countless artifacts, both large and small, piled up. Magic stones and some non-decaying leftovers looked like heaps of treasure adorning the altar.

“[These are all offerings to Lord Gormeira. If Lord Gormeira has granted this to you, then it is now yours]…they said!”

“Could you pass along my gratitude?”

At Yeon-woo’s request, Shar opened his mouth wide and moved his body in a silly way.

In response, the old anchovy nodded as if imitating a human and swam back to the creatures’ side.

“Our Shar might just make a good translator!”

“Hehe!”

Shar beamed at Yeon-woo’s compliment. What a cute little guy. Thinking that, the two began to gather the heap of artifacts and materials.

Relin’s Warehouse truly felt like the best artifacts. That thought naturally crossed my mind.

*

“Here’s Shar’s, here’s Tae-oh’s, here’s Shar’s, here’s Dawn’s, here’s Nea’s….”

Afterwards, with Gormeira awake and having asked to go outside, Yeon-woo and Shar returned to their lodging to sort through the artifacts in Relin’s Warehouse.

The lack of higher-tier artifacts was disappointing, but just having what they found was quite remarkable.

These items were rare enough that you could call them treasures.

The number of mid-tier artifacts was enough to feel full, and most of the rest were low-tier.

Of course, even low-tier artifacts sold for an astonishing price at auctions, so it couldn’t truly be said they were disappointing.

While sorting through the artifacts and leftovers, Yeon-woo picked up a rock that felt solid.

What’s this? What kind of nonsense is this? As he looked into it with his Dragon Eye, the view reflected in Yeon-woo’s vision was an expanse of ocean. An utterly unexplainable sight.

“Shar, do you have any idea what this is? It doesn’t seem like ore or anything.”

“Let me see… Hmm….”

Gasp! Shar’s eyes sharpened. In this state, he could see through anything!

Yeon-woo, who mentally attached a narration likening him to a rabbit detective, awaited Shar’s answer.

“…Ah! I got it! This is a piece of Gorum Uncle’s carapace!”

“…Oh, hmm. Huh?”

Tilting his head, Yeon-woo reacted like that.

Thinking about it as a Dragon material seemed like a huge deal but also not.

The fact that it was in pieces meant it was broken, so was it just an extremely weak material?

Thinking so, Yeon-woo lightly struck the edge of his hand, reinforced with mana, against it. As a result, an intense recoil thrashed Yeon-woo’s arm back.

Flustered, Yeon-woo stopped his arm, feeling his hand slightly sting.

“…Is this possibly a physical reflection item…?”

An item with performance that would be called cheating even in games now appeared in reality?

(To be continued in the next episode)

 

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