Chapter 15. The Eastern Guardian Beast

 

Kalyfax stared blankly around him.

 

…What just happened?

 

He was certain he had died. He thought he had been devoured by that colossal entity, leaving no trace behind.

 

But what is this?

 

He found himself in a strange place.

 

An endlessly dark and damp space that felt unpleasant.

 

At that moment.

 

Something grabbed Kalyfax’s ankle.

 

[W-what is this!]

 

It was a human.

 

No, was it a human?

 

Their skin was decayed and rotting.

 

The old and sickly body was covered in wrinkles, blood, and pus, making it look like nothing but a corpse.

 

However, it moved.

 

Thud, thud.

 

Something kept grabbing him.

 

Only then did he realize that he wasn’t standing on the ground.

 

He was standing on corpses.

 

A mountain made of undead corpses.

 

Kalyfax, horrified, tried to cast Dark Magic.

 

No.

 

[…Why?]

 

He tried to cast it.

 

But no magic activated from his hand.

 

A suffocating silence.

 

Eventually, the corpse bit into Kalyfax’s ankle.

 

Such weak teeth, normally he wouldn’t feel anything from such weak creatures.

 

Crunch!

 

[Aaahh…!!]

 

It was different.

 

Completely different.

 

What he thought was a weak bite had torn apart the leg of someone who had lived as a tyrant for hundreds of years.

 

It hurt.

 

This was the first time he experienced such pain.

 

The creature climbed up his body without hesitation.

 

Ankle, thigh, waist, chest, head.

 

Eventually, Kalyfax’s entire body was being chewed and devoured by monsters in the form of corpses.

 

Yet.

 

Even so.

 

[Aaaa…! Just kill me already…!!]

 

He did not die.

 

His body continuously regenerated, making him feel endless pain.

 

[Aaah…….]

 

In that vortex of endless despair.

 

Kalyfax regretted being born.

 

* * *

 

“Build a statue!!”

 

“Hey, Jörmungandr doesn’t look that round!”

 

Kingdom of Trelinia.

 

A new energy filled the place.

 

Statues of a gigantic snake were erected all over the streets, and everyone who passed by offered prayers to them.

 

In the Kingdom of Trelinia.

 

There was no one who hadn’t seen his presence.

 

The citizens, having heard the full story, sincerely prayed and thanked Jörmungandr.

 

Now, Jörmungandr was the new religion of the Kingdom of Trelinia.

 

A church centered around him was established.

 

In the grand cathedral, records of Jörmungandr’s deeds were meticulously written down.

 

Every move he made caused the earth to tremble, the sky to split, storms to rage, and the world to follow his will—these mythical tales were inscribed in the cathedral.

 

The one leading this was, of course, Elyserede.

 

Having renounced her title as princess, she was now solely devoted to Jörmungandr and fervently established the church more than anyone else.

 

[Hmm…….]

 

Jörmungandr, watching all these scenes, calmly closed his eyes.

 

The reverence, worship, and respect sent to him.

 

All of it blended into a small force and was being absorbed by Jörmungandr.

 

He now understood.

 

That was one of the qualifications to become a god, divinity.

 

And upon realizing that divinity.

 

His perception transcended to another level.

 

He could see what was previously unseen.

 

Moreover, he could see what did not exist in this world.

 

To be more precise, he could delve deeper into this world.

 

[This is strange.]

 

He had thought it was a simple fantasy world.

 

A world in fantasy novels where heroes and demon kings oppose each other.

 

But as he looked at this world with his broadened perception, it seemed different.

 

A simple Western fantasy.

 

[East and West fantasy….]

 

Jörmungandr flew towards the place where he felt a powerful aura.

 

Endlessly powerful.

 

Towards the entity with a divine aura.

 

* * *

 

He existed one day.

 

It was a silly question to ask when and from what point he was born.

 

He existed in all moments and all worlds.

 

Thus, it was a mystery.

 

Why was he here?

 

This was a strange world.

 

A place where heroes and demon kings roamed.

 

Where dragons walked around with their shoulders back. They seemed like immature creatures that hadn’t fully grown.

 

He carefully reprimanded and sent them away when they dared to challenge him.

 

Though it brought hundreds of other dragons, he didn’t particularly mind.

 

He defeated them all at once and let them go to live quietly.

 

Even after that, whenever dragons disgraced their name, he personally instilled the proper mindset in them.

 

After that, the dragons became quiet.

 

Thus, he spent many years peacefully with his eyes closed, sleeping.

 

Though he occasionally remembered a small snake that was suddenly born, he didn’t pay much attention.

 

This world was so strange that such creatures being born was commonplace.

 

However.

 

[…….]

 

A huge aura approached.

 

It crossed the endless vast ocean towards the giant island at the horizon’s end.

 

At the end of the eastern horizon.

 

The dragon that lived at the horizon where the sun always rose.

 

Sasin (四神).

 

Azure Dragon (靑龍).

 

He opened his eyes and looked at the being floating in front of him.

 

Is it a dragon?

 

He thought so.

 

The long body with black scales that filled the sky was similar to a dragon like himself.

 

But.

 

‘It’s different.’

 

It was clearly different.

 

Unlike him, it didn’t have antlers on its head.

 

It also lacked the beard and lion’s mane that other dragons had. Most importantly, it didn’t have limbs and had a smooth body, indicating it was a snake rather than a dragon like himself.

 

So, is it a snake?

 

He didn’t know.

 

At first glance, it might be considered a large snake based on appearance.

 

However, the overwhelming aura surpassing its body indicated a clear difference from an ordinary snake.

 

‘Is it a dangerous entity?’

 

He couldn’t tell.

 

It hadn’t been long since he encountered it.

 

But at least, he didn’t sense any malice from it. On the contrary, a pure and noble aura befitting a Sasin emanated from it.

 

However.

 

[You hold your head too high.]

 

Boom!

 

Thunder roared.

 

As the Azure Dragon released his aura, dark clouds gathered and filled the sky, causing the calm waves to surge like a giant tidal wave.

 

He was displeased.

 

The way the snake looked down on him from the sky as if it were above him.

 

He was a dragon.

 

No one could look down on him.

 

Though he had been dragged to a strange world and remained uninvolved, he was not lenient enough to let anyone look down on him.

 

The Azure Dragon thought the snake would soon fall to the ground in fear.

 

Because it was a dragon.

 

At least its form was similar to his, so the essence should be similar.

 

If so.

 

No kin could defeat him.

 

Especially not a mere large snake without even holding a dragon pearl.

 

He intended to teach the snake its place.

 

To show the trespasser on his territory who stood above.

 

However.

 

‘……What is this?’

 

The Azure Dragon sensed something strange.

 

The aura he released was overwhelming.

 

Merely releasing his aura caused the sea to surge and the sky to create a massive airflow in anger.

 

Any ordinary creature would have lost its existence just by facing that aura.

 

But…….

 

The snake was fine.

 

Instead, its eyes calmly looked down at him, as if wondering what he was doing.

 

How dare it.

 

How dare a mere snake.

 

Look down on him with such eyes.

 

The Azure Dragon rose into the sky.

 

A mysterious power emerged from the dragon pearl in his mouth, encircling his body and turning it golden.

 

He intended to unleash his breath.

 

He thought a mere giant snake, though large in aura, would recognize its place with this attack.

 

But.

 

[Stop.]

 

[……!!]

 

The moment he released his aura.

 

The power surrounding the Azure Dragon’s body dispersed instantly.

 

And that wasn’t all.

 

Nature, which had been solely under the Azure Dragon’s control, was suddenly seized.

 

The raging sky calmed, and the surging sea became tranquil as if welcoming a new master.

 

It was as if a new master had arrived.

 

The Azure Dragon furrowed his brows.

 

But he couldn’t complain.

 

The aura the snake released.

 

It was clearly a divine aura like his own.

 

Though the amount of divine aura was very small and weak.

 

The aura compressed over a long time was beyond his imagination.

 

Just by existing, it felt like space was warping.

 

The Azure Dragon quietly closed his mouth.

 

Though he didn’t like complying with the snake’s words, he realized he would have to risk death if he fought it.

 

As he stared silently.

 

The massive snake looked at him curiously and spoke.

 

[Azure Dragon…….]

 

As soon as the snake opened its mouth.

 

[Were you dragged here too?]

 

[……!! How do you know that?]

 

The Azure Dragon’s eyes widened.