“Three Evils.”
Amidst the crackling roar of a large campfire, the lips of a woman seated close to the flames flickered.
Perhaps because this land was once the territory of the Pervere Kingdom, the air was cold.
Even beyond the reach of the campfire’s shadow, Death swirled.
A phenomenon often called either the Veil of Mercy or simply Death itself.
Touch it and die—simple as that.
It made no distinction between living beings and non-living things; in the death scattered by the Veil of Mercy, not even light could survive.
So the towering campfire should have been dark, perhaps even extinguished—but it burned brightly.
In front of it sat a green-skinned woman who was roasting meat on a spear tip, showing that the fire was in good condition.
“Or what some call the inevitability of the universe… were originally ordinary monsters.”
Whether monsters and ordinariness could coexist was unclear, but no one questioned her statement.
There were nearly twenty people present, yet an absolute silence reigned, not even the sound of breathing breaking it.
Though, in truth, some among them didn’t need to breathe.
“I don’t know all the details, but those monsters were each the strongest in their respective worlds. Strong enough to destroy and consume entire worlds to grow larger. My mother was like that, too, as was the Poison-Spitting Dragon and the Earth-Shattering Giant.”
The matter-of-fact revelation drew no resistance or resentment, at least not visibly.
Rather, they tried to understand her explanation while observing the divine power she wielded, pushing back against the very essence of cosmic death.
White flames, likely influenced by her mother, continued to burn as the green-skinned woman removed the roasted meat from the spear with a sharp dagger and took a bite.
“Whether it was due to something that stuck during their travels across universes or if they were always such creatures, the three monsters, including my mother, obtained powers related to destruction.”
“Destruction?”
An elderly green-skinned man asked, carrying an enormous hammer on his shoulder.
“It’s similar to what happened to the empire’s scouts,” Ereta replied, brushing her white hair aside.
Under countless gazes seeking further clarification, Ereta instinctively placed her hand over her lower abdomen as she pushed her hair behind her ear.
“My mother’s flames specialized in burning the world and bringing it back to life. Governing both destruction and rebirth, she would be reborn using the ashes of the world she had incinerated. Thus, she could burn things that are usually unburnable.”
Her tone suggested firsthand experience.
She must have either heard it directly from her mother or experienced it through her own divine power.
Aslan recalled sensing the presence of the Poison-Spitting Dragon when he returned from a recent boat ride.
“The Earth-Shattering Giant came from a unique world—a massive floating landmass traveling through the cosmos. The giant destroyed these worlds completely as it advanced.”
“Just sounds like regular stuff.”
Ereta lightly responded to the mocking young green-skinned man.
“When I say ‘completely,’ I mean utterly annihilated. Worlds trampled by him disintegrated into particles smaller than dust, leaving no trace behind.”
With the sarcastic commentor silenced, Ereta looked around at everyone as if emphasizing the importance of what she was about to say.
“The Poison-Spitting Dragon’s poison can dissolve even conceptual things. It’s a power usable only by the dragon itself, dissolving and consuming the universe, time, and space.”
Indeed, the most crucial information.
This was a description of the entity they were about to fight, and it wasn’t optimistic.
“Conditions?”
“None. If it touches you, that’s it. Whether you’re a living being, possess intelligence, or have history, you’ll dissolve. Likely, it will start by erasing its own self-awareness.”
“Then wouldn’t entering be futile? A bit… isn’t it?”
“As long as it’s not the end of the universe, time and space shouldn’t dissolve yet. Though prolonged exposure might lead to that.”
“That’s not what I meant…”
Continuous questioning and answering between the watchers and Ereta.
Some felt despair, others ignited competitive spirits, and still others sought solutions.
Aslan observed the scene silently.
“How do you interpret the spreading of the poison?”
“Hmm, I can’t give a definitive answer, but if the Poison-Spitting Dragon wishes it, it’s certainly possible.”
“Is there any chance for interference from other deities?”
“That…,”
When Ereta hesitated, Aslan coughed slightly while sitting against a tree trunk.
Several gazes turned toward him.
“In my opinion, no. The Evil Deities don’t care about the existence or nonexistence of the world. Instead, they might think it’s beneficial if the Poison-Spitting Dragon dissolves the world until its boundaries collapse.”
Of course, only some Evil Deities, like the Devourer, who possessed rationality, thought this way.
Most Evil Deities likely didn’t even care about the situation, or if they did, they probably couldn’t comprehend it.
Moreover, if the Dark Ram was involved, the Evil Deities might not interfere with the Poison-Spitting Dragon at all.
Didn’t Sorrow and Death claim that even the Evil Deities avoided the Dark Ram?
Despite excluding all these explanations, the watchers raised no objections or differing opinions.
This was because Aslan had the broadest knowledge of deities among them.
“So, how do you suggest we proceed?”
A rare human female watcher asked in a stiff tone. Aslan glanced briefly at Ereta.
It wasn’t merely to pass the buck.
Because this time, Aslan truly had no solution.
He lacked information too.
Aslan himself had just learned that the Poison-Spitting Dragon could dissolve time and space.
Thus, it was unlikely that a plan would come to mind immediately.
If anything, the strategy would lie with Ereta.
Though she met his gaze and blushed slightly before smiling.
Behind her, Angie glared at Ereta with narrowed eyes.
Ignoring Angie either consciously or unconsciously, Ereta spoke calmly.
“I can neutralize the Poison-Spitting Dragon’s poison with my divine power. Not entirely, but I should be able to handle the spread of the toxic mist, allowing us to approach safely.”
“What about attacking? Is it a dragon that ‘spits’ poison?”
“I’m not entirely sure. This is my first direct encounter with a deity.”
“Still, we can’t just sit here doing nothing… Should we gather around you and attack all at once?”
“It seems like our best option.”
Ereta’s proposed strategy was simple.
In reality, there was hardly a plan.
While Ereta neutralized the poison, the rest of the Traveling Party and Watchers would attack the dragon.
Given the many powerful attackers present, this seemingly straightforward strategy might actually be the most effective.
However, considering that no one knew the dragon’s weaknesses and that even a deity had fallen to it, the plan didn’t seem very promising.
Yet, they had no better alternative.
After pondering the strategy with various expressions, the Watchers opened their mouths to refine the plan.
The suggestions varied, and different members of the party responded accordingly.
“What about this? Restrict the entry path and divide into groups to attack simultaneously. That way, even if one group suffers irrecoverable damage, the attacks can continue…”
“No, we’ll get picked off one by one. We don’t know enough about the Poison-Spitting Dragon to split up.”
Tiamat interrupted the cautious speaker.
“Then what about going all at once? What if we face a powerful attack?”
“I can block it once with my shadows. But not multiple times.”
Lewena responded to the nervous Watcher’s suggestion.
“Perhaps we should draw attention away and preemptively neutralize the powerful attack?”
“Hmm, I’m not particularly skilled in strategy, but sacrificing now might leave us underpowered at a critical moment. Besides, it doesn’t feel right.”
“Phey also agrees. Moreover, we don’t know how many times that ‘powerful attack’ can be used.”
Richard and Phey provided their responses, consolidating opinions.
Aslan watched silently.
Some Watchers remained quiet, while Lumel seemed tense, fidgeting with his spear.
Angie seemed to have nothing left to say and mostly listened, though no one appeared to be ignoring the discussion.
They couldn’t afford to.
Their destination harbored a deity.
Attempting to slay a deity naturally bred unease.
This unease led to hesitation, hesitation to indecision, and indecision to careful deliberation.
That none of the Watchers succumbed to fear despite their caution spoke to their mastery, having reached near-perfect levels of combat skill.
These seasoned warriors and those who had slain countless priests and monsters discussed ceaselessly.
Perhaps the dragon’s weakness was unknown, or maybe it had none, given its alien nature.
Maybe the poison wouldn’t affect them unless touched, or maybe it could harm the dragon itself.
All these speculations flowed around the campfire, desperate attempts to improve their chances.
Only time would tell if these efforts bore fruit.
Aslan thought this as he turned his head.
While the Traveling Party and Watchers strategized, the sun gradually rose.
Through the frozen landscape, past unreachable spaces, and amid the death melted by Ereta’s divinity,
the fragmented golden light trickled down like sunlight filtering through curtains onto the campfire.
Seeing the traces of the sun, both the party and the Watchers fell silent.
Time had come.
The moment had arrived.
Such vague thoughts passed through the minds of those who gazed upon the light.
Without a word, they packed their belongings, gripped and adjusted their weapons, and stamped out the smoking campfire.
Behind them stretched the approaching toxic mist, rejecting all life—a poison that could kill the world itself.
The Traveling Party and twelve Watchers, prepared, advanced toward the source of the toxin.
Divided by divine power and fire, the death and poison parted.
Crossing through the divided death and poison, they approached the city that had become a deity’s nest.
Once a hub of magical achievements and astonishing wealth, the city was now reduced to ruins so complete it was embarrassing to call them such.
The once sky-piercing and arrogant mage towers had collapsed, melting into mush.
Outer walls were gone without a trace, and the buildings where countless humans once lived lay crushed like straw beneath a nest.
The city had lost all form.
This devastation clearly demonstrated the futility of searching for survivors.
It seemed no life could endure such violence.
What was once the heart of the Polaina Principality, the city of Resta, had become a breeding ground for death.
But the perpetrator of this death was nowhere to be seen.
Only the remnants of the catastrophic destruction remained.
Approaching the city amidst a strong sense of incongruity, the party noticed blackish deep-green crystals covering the city.
Visible even from afar, these crystals gleamed as if proudly declaring themselves as the source of the poison.
They felt like darkness that refused to yield even to sunlight.
As the party reached the city’s edge, gazing at the dark-tinged emerald crystals,
“Wait! Look here! There’s a sewer passage!”
The nervous Watcher discovered a sewer entrance.
The iron mesh had been torn apart from within, bulging outward.
The interior was pitch-black, almost invisible.
Bathed in sunlight above, the sewer was cloaked in thick darkness.
“Perhaps survivors have taken refuge inside!”
The nervous Watcher, whose character seemed contrary to his fear, shouted.
Pointing her spear into the sewer, she was ready to enter, noticing something just in time.
It wasn’t the darkness or shadows lurking inside the sewer.
What they thought was pervasive darkness began to stir and revealed something.
It was an eye.
A reptilian eye with a vertically slit pupil.
A gold iris glowing so intensely it seemed to burn, casting light over the abyss.
Each one was as large as a full moon.
Suddenly, four of them appeared, cutting through the darkness.
As the four eyes illuminated the party, the darkness spread, and night descended.
ROAR!
When the party looked up, all they saw was impenetrable darkness.
A darkness far greater than any arrogant and colossal mage tower.
Unfurled membranous wings and shimmering emerald scales.
Beneath the wings, sunlight didn’t reach the ground.
