Chapter 189

Chapter 189
## Chapter: 189
Chapter Title: Dragon God VS Dragon God

‘Once more! It’s been snatched away once more!’

Blast it!

Gasping for air, Darkstar’s expression was one of pure rage.

…The situation had taken a truly pathetic turn.

The Guardian of the Black Egg and Union had manifested out of thin air.

They had usurped the center stage that was rightfully his—the lead role—capturing the gaze of every onlooker.

‘What business do those two have appearing side by side?’

Yet, a sharper curiosity gnawed at his mind.

Based on the data gathered by the Hero Association, those two were entities that should never have found common ground.

Particularly the ‘Guardian of the Black Egg,’ who was credited with the monumental task of returning the residents of Jeju Island to the Korean mainland.

‘Baal achieved his final form as the personification of the Abyss in the shadows, consumed the nameless horror that emerged, and then perished abruptly. Following that, a dark ovum manifested within Baal’s remains, and the Guardian of the Black Egg ferried everyone back to their homes…’

This was a reality witnessed by thousands, leaving no room for skepticism.

Consequently, the survivors worshipped the ‘Black Egg’ as a deity.

They regarded its sentinel, the ‘Guardian,’ as a ‘Divine Herald’ or ‘Heavenly Representative,’ sketching his likeness and keeping it as a protective charm.

However, Darkstar and the Hero Association maintained a different perspective.

‘No matter the angle, that is clearly a Reaper from the Imperial Reaper Church.’

The ivory plumage was slightly deviant, but the silhouette was undeniably that of a Reaper.

Given the power to terminate warp gates by force, it was presumed the Reaper had triggered a warp within the Abyss to repatriate the people against their will.

‘…The capacity to govern warps on such a grand scale. It is on an entirely separate stratum compared to the common Reapers of the Church.’

The Reapers they recognized hunted and executed players.

They were shadow-stalkers who harvested the spirits of those branded as ‘transgressors’ by the Reaper Church.

But this specific entity didn’t just differ; it transcended.

Against other Reapers, it stood as an unreachable summit.

Was it possible, then, that this Reaper held no allegiance to the Reaper Church?

“The demonic host won’t be utilizing warps for some time. Knowing Isera’s temperament, she will personally lead the legion and descend upon this location.”

While his internal dialogue raced,

…Union’s voice resonated in the ears of every player present.

“Isera?”

“Did he specify Isera?”

“The actual Isera…!”

Debate had been rife regarding the identity of the enemy commander.

Theories had circulated, but now the truth was laid bare.

Darkstar knitted his brows and shouted.

“Union, the Golden Rule Mage! Why should we trust your word? You were the one who breached Earth alongside the demon kind, were you not?”

“I was coerced into cooperation because Isera held leverage over me. But as you can witness, I am a man just like yourselves, and I hold demons in contempt. Let us stand as one.”

Union launched into his bold performance.

At those words, several Korean players raised their voices.

“If the Guardian stands with us…!”

“Then he cannot possibly be a villain!”

Blind devotion to the Guardian of the Black Egg, a bottomless well of confidence!

The event had been so globally significant that no player, regardless of their origin, was ignorant of the ‘Guardian of the Black Egg.’

Thus, Darkstar felt compelled to inquire.

“Union, are you the divinity of the ‘Black Egg’?”

The slayer of the Four Evils, Baal.

If Union was the one who emerged from that ‘Black Egg,’ his strength would be inconceivable.

Gracia and a multitude of battalions had deployed and met with failure, yet he had triumphed in solitude.

If such a titan fought on their side… Darkstar loathed to confess it, but it would skyrocket the players’ fighting spirit.

After a brief pause, Union responded.

“…Indeed, I am the god of the ‘Black Egg.’”

The deity of the Black Egg!

Not a soul questioned it.

If he was the slayer of the Four Evils, Baal, then he was surely capable of handling Isera.

‘Ooh!’

‘Incredible!’

When Union first accessed his storage and sapped the strength of the demons, the players’ eyes gleamed with hope.

The promise of victory in this conflict seemed tangible.

He pulled a parade of magnificent relics from thin air, radiating an aura of absolute certainty.

“The day is ours!”

“the god of the Black Egg fights by our side!”

“Waaaaaaaah!!!”

A clash that demanded victory.

Monsters from another realm that only those garbed in the Golden Rule could even hope to harm!

A loss here would signal the end of everything.

Reassembling a force of this magnitude would be a near-impossible feat.

【‘Identify Flaw’ has failed!】

‘…What?’

…Yet, in sharp contrast to his outward calm, Union was deeply unsettled.

The Seeker Set’s special trait had failed to trigger.

And yet, there was no doubt Isera was a demon.

A corrupted Dragon God who had sworn fealty to the Demon King and descended into demonhood.

Despite this, a total failure!

“Incinerate.”

Roooaaar!

With a single command from Isera, the fires of the pit erupted over Union’s entire frame.

“Gah?!”

Union’s gaze snapped wide with alarm.

Isera commanded the very flames of hell at her whim.

He had held ‘Grace of Water’ in reserve as a shield, but the item refused to function.

“Dullard. Did you truly believe a trivial ‘Grace of Water’ could suppress my pyre?”

“That is impossible…!”

No. It defied logic.

Grace of Water was a relic of mythic proportions.

The literal manifestation of mercy designed to extinguish all burning.

But Union grasped only half the truth, remaining blind to the rest.

‘Could it be that every elemental property is rooted in specific flaws?’

This wasn’t merely the element of fire.

He needed to uncover the ‘weakness’ Isera had established to nullify even this sorcery.

Since he had never engaged her in combat, he lacked the means to comprehend it.

【‘Seeker’s Robe’ durability has reached zero.】

【‘Seeker’s Pants’ durability has reached zero.】

【‘Seeker’s Hood’ durability has reached zero.】

Even the Seeker Set, which acted as his bulwark against Isera’s heat, was turning to ash.

Union’s desperation peaked.

“Inventory, Unyielding Plate!”

“Inventory, Fortitude Elixir!”

“Inventory, Neural Earrings!”

Survival first.

Inflate his life force, bolster every defense, and dull the sensation of pain.

Then, endure for as long as possible to pinpoint Isera’s vulnerability.

‘In the best-case scenario, I have a thirty-minute window. Can I find it before time runs out?’

Had he possessed experience tonics, he might have persisted for six hours without issue.

But in his current diminished state, even pushing his limits, thirty minutes was the absolute ceiling.

Isera’s pyre inflicted unrelenting trauma.

Such was the destiny of any who dared to confront her directly.

Elixirs or restorative spells might buy a few extra seconds, but Isera was not one to stand by passively.

“Spirits of the blaze.”

Fwoosh! Fwoooosh!

Scores of fire elementals coalesced around Isera’s form.

Behemoths wreathed in roaring heat.

Every one of them was a high-ranking fire spirit.

Isera was the chosen favorite of the fire-kin.

Yet, that was not the most harrowing revelation.

“Spirit Sovereign Agnus.”

The Sovereign of Fire, Agnus!

The conjured spirits merged into a spinning gyre at a single point, and from the center stepped a man crowned in living fire.

Simultaneously, Union’s pulse quickened.

‘Sovereign Agnus! She shouldn’t have the authority to call him forth!’

To Union’s knowledge, Isera’s capacity peaked at several dozen high-tier spirits.

A Spirit Sovereign was a catastrophe on a different scale.

Furthermore, those arrogant lords of the elements never deigned to answer the call of a demon.

And yet, the Sovereign stood right before him.

The Fire Spirit Sovereign, Agnus.

One of the primal elemental monarchs who ruled like deities in the spirit domain!

-… .

He slowly shifted his gaze to fixate on Union.

In that heartbeat, a chill raced down Union’s spine.

‘I must retreat…!’

Isera alone was a nightmare, and now Spirit Sovereign Agnus had joined the fray!

There might never have been an opportunity to find a weakness from the very start.

Isera had evolved beyond her previous self.

Her dominion, her divine favors.

Craaaaaack!

As Spirit Sovereign Agnus leveled his right forefinger at Union, a spear of flame as massive as a sun took shape in a blink.

“Inventory, Infinite Bulwark.”

“Inventory, Boundless Tides.”

“Inventory, Glacial Scepter!”

Fearing for his life, Union threw everything he had into play.

His most precious artifacts.

Especially the Infinite Bulwark, which even 3-star Transcendents were unable to dent—a jewel among jewels.

By saturating it with the power of ‘Boundless Tides,’ not even the Fire Spirit Sovereign should be able to break it instantly…

KABOOOOM!

Crack! Craaaack!

…Madness.

The lance of fire Agnus unleashed crumpled the ‘Infinite Bulwark’ in a heartbeat.

It fractured, shattered, and was skewered through.

‘This is a lost cause.’

His limbs refused to obey.

The very desire to raise his scepter had vanished.

Only then did the truth dawn on Union.

The climax of this battle had been preordained.

He had become conceited, intoxicated by his own status.

He never suspected Isera could dictate orders to a Spirit Sovereign.

Had he known, he would never have stood his ground.

The Isera of his memory was merely ‘perpetually annoying,’ her strikes being nothing remarkable beyond their heat.

But she had beckoned the Spirit Sovereign to compensate for her lack of offensive power.

‘Unbeatable…!’

With both her shield and sword at their zenith, who could possibly bring down such a titan?

He couldn’t stop it.

Death was certain.

Union squeezed his eyes shut tight.

“Flames, cease.”

It happened then.

Rumble! Roooar!

The firmament turned to ink in a second, and through a storm of countless lightning strikes, a shadow appeared.

He neutralized Spirit Sovereign Agnus’s spear the very moment he set foot on the field.

-… ?

Spirit Sovereign Agnus tilted his head in confusion.

A solitary command had erased his strike.

No such power had been present until now.

Yet, here it was.

Catching sight of ‘him’ at last, Isera’s lips curved into a subtle grin.

“Dragon God Lucaria.”

The Dragon God of the World, Lucaria!

She hadn’t dared to hope he would show himself in the flesh.

As Isera looked on with a familiar gaze, the titanic, snow-white dragon Lucaria let out a heavy, sorrowful breath.

“…Isera.”

“I was unaware you were the Dragon God of this particular realm.”

“Alas. I looked the other way once before, but my patience has reached its limit.”

Rumble! Roooar!

Moments later, a deluge of lightning cascaded across the horizon.

“Gaaack!”

“Kaaaagh!”

“Kyahaaa!”

the electrical discharges turned thousands of demons to vapor instantly.

Isera’s gaze shone, entirely unruffled.

“Miron spoke similar words to me. Yet he perished, and his core was presented to the Demon King. Lucaria, what do you imagine your fate will be?”

“…Silly child.”

Lucaria made a sound of disapproval.

Isera. The Half-Dragon God and turncoat of the celestial spheres.

The Dragon Gods had once ignored her hubris.

But following this invasion of Earth, there would be no further leniency.

“Wish Sphere. Disclose that one’s ‘flaw’ to me.”

Instantly, a gargantuan Wish Sphere materialized before Lucaria.

The Dragon God’s Wish Sphere.

In its presence, Isera’s ‘flaw’ would be exposed with trivial ease.

Furthermore, Lucaria’s Wish Sphere was the highest tier among those possessed by the Dragon Gods.

Naturally, no mystery could remain hidden from him.

A moment later, as the light of the Wish Sphere faded, Lucaria gave a slow nod.

“You should have refrained from appearing here, Isera.”

In an instant, Lucaria’s gaze ignited.

KABOOOOM!

Arcs of lightning erupted from his eyes, slamming into Isera.

Lucaria had utilized his own vision as the medium for the strike.

Isera’s flaw was self-obliteration.

The act of wounding her own essence to strike her foes!

Against a peer Dragon God—himself, especially—Isera could never emerge victorious.

I slowly looked toward the fragments of the shattered egg of the heavens.