“Now what? Are you going in?”
“I'll cast another barrier for you.”
“That means we're going in.”
No need for further words, they understood each other perfectly. Kang Sihyun silently cast a second barrier around Igor and Changsik.
The two made space to enter by kicking down the broken window, smoothing out the sharp edges.
Igor entered first, followed by Changsik. As the two Awakened vanished inside the ice castle, Kang Sihyun and his group waited outside. Approaching the outer wall, Kang Sihyun peeked inside through the open window.
He had expected the top floor to be more extravagant but was surprised to find it quite plain inside the gate.
“Looks like we can go in?”
Changsik’s voice echoed from within.
“Anything strange?”
“There’s a statue.”
What?
A dungeon and a statue was not a combination unfamiliar to Kang Sihyun.
“Don’t go near it!”
“Stay away from it!”
Kang Sihyun and Euiheon shouted almost in unison.
Reminded of Egypt, Kang Sihyun gestured for the rest to follow and headed inside the dungeon first. Passing through the ample hole into the castle, he saw Changsik and Igor standing on a translucent ice floor.
The ice castle narrowed towards the top like a pyramid, yet, paradoxically, the highest floor seemed wider than any they had seen before. The word "bizarre" naturally came to mind.
“It’s bigger inside than I thought.”
Euiheon, following in, shared his impression. Kang Sihyun moved closer to Igor, turning his head to where they were looking.
“…”
It was immense.
That was the first impression the statue gave. Deep within the top floor, a giant ice statue, seemingly restrained by chains, loomed.
“A dragon?”
Misha commented. The statue, with its front paws planted firmly on the ground and its legs neatly folded beneath it, indeed resembled a dragon from a classic Western fantasy novel. Even bound by chains, a dignified aura emanated from it, carrying an indescribable prestige. Kang Sihyun squinted his eyes.
He was trying to determine if the statue was Nonus itself, just as with Decumanus.
That’s when it happened.
Ssshhhrrrkkk!
As Lucia entered last, chains of ice shot out from all directions, attacking Kang Sihyun and his group.
The chains, moving too swiftly to be countered, wrapped around Kang Sihyun's arm. The rest of the group was similarly restrained.
From the walls, the ceiling, the floor.
Chains sprang from various places, holding each member by one arm. Once each member was bound by a single chain, they retracted and disappeared back to where they came from.
“What is this…”
Euiheon muttered under his breath, his voice a mix of confusion and awe.
Regardless of rank, everyone’s arms were bound. Even Misha struggled, unable to break free from the icy chains.
Kang Sihyun tried to cut the chains with a stick he held. Whether he struck hard or sawed at it, the chain remained unscathed. Igor’s attempt to melt it with fire was equally futile.
“Damn it. Are we supposed to fight like this?”
Igor cursed irritably. As if in response to his exclamation, a chill air blasted from the top floor of the dungeon.
A cold mist rose from the ground.
Crackling. The already icy castle was covered with another layer of frost. Despite wearing shoes, their feet felt as though they were bare on ice, freezing cold. Just when they thought their senses were numbed by the cold.
“…!”
A fierce killing intent burst forth, filling the dungeon.
Crackle, crackle. The sound of the ice chains rattling was irritating. It was the trembling of their bodies that caused the chains to move. Kang Sihyun, his fingers frozen, couldn't even think to look away, fixating on the statue instead. The entity, emanating a murderous aura strong enough to cover the entirety of the 20th floor, vibrated slightly. And then.
Slowly.
Gradually, the ice statue opened its eyes.
Golden pupils.
Eyes slit vertically and horizontally in the shape of a cross, sinister in appearance. Those eyes, brimming with a ferocious will, were undoubtedly inhuman.
Ssshhhrrrkkk.
Unlike the paralyzed group, the statue shook its head, causing the chains that bound it to break and loosen. As all the chains fell to the ground, the freed statue turned its gaze to Kang Sihyun.
Among the many, its gaze fixed precisely on him, making Kang Sihyun flinch.
The giant dragon spoke.
-You were warned that cheating comes with a price.
“…”
Can it speak?
Although the language was that of the Irregulars, what Kang Sihyun heard was undeniably a message
conveyed through ‘words’.
Kang Sihyun was startled, his mouth agape. While he had encountered communicative Irregulars before, none had directly spoken to him like this. Orcs, known for their adaptability, managed to utter some Korean, but this level of articulate speech was rare.
Even Decumanus communicated through writing, not vocally conveying its intentions. The dragon's eyes flickered as it spread its wings with a whoosh.
“Ugh!”
A gust that seemed capable of sweeping them away had they let their guard down, blasted through. Hair and clothes fluttered uncontrollably. The group crossed their arms over their eyes. Kang Sihyun, though staggered, did not take his eyes off the ice statue.
“…Nonus.”
It was a tone of uncertainty, somewhere between a question and a conviction. As he spoke, the dragon, with a flap of its wings, stood up.
-Yes, I am the twelfth offspring.
The dragon’s voice vibrated through the castle. With each syllable Nonus articulated, the castle trembled, as if unable to withstand his power.
The initial impression of him being gentlemanly somewhat matched Nonus’s appearance. Despite being a dragon, he carried an air of dignity, making the blue dragon appear almost holy.
-You should have ascended ten more floors, yet you cheated twice.
The dragon spoke.
Merely mentioning what had occurred made it feel as though they had committed an unforgivable betrayal.
Kang Sihyun’s fingertips trembled. His knees shook. Feeling as though he should immediately kneel and beg for forgiveness, he sharply raised his eyes.
“Misha!”
It was clear that Nonus was attempting to invade their minds.
As Kang Sihyun shouted, Misha, previously frozen by the unexpected appearance of the speaking dragon, quickly regained her senses.
The boy's shout awakened not just Misha but everyone on the top floor.
Overwhelmed by an unreachable dignity, the near-S-Rank Awakeners who had frozen in thought upon encountering an incomprehensible entity, remembered why they had come to the dungeon, their purpose reigniting a fervor in their eyes. The dragon silently watched this, then moved its wings once.
Without saying a word, this action seemed to intrigue Kang Sihyun.
-Quick on the uptake.
“…”
-It’s clear now. It’s you.
“What is?”
-The Awakener of the high-grade core.
High-grade core.
Having heard of it through Haewoon, Kang Sihyun gripped the stick tighter. It was confirmed; Gula's offspring were indeed searching for him.
The reason seemed related to the owner of the stick he held. Pretending not to understand, Kang Sihyun feigned ignorance.
“High-grade core?”
-Playing dumb, are you?
Of course, it did nothing to deceive Nonus.
The giant dragon snorted as if amused by Kang Sihyun's act. Ice blossomed on the ground at his disdain.
-I’ll tell you something interesting since you’ve made it this far.
Thump!
The dragon took a step forward. Despite the menacing aura and the calm conversation they had been having, the dungeon's master moving caused everyone to tense.
Whoosh!
Fire blazed from Igor’s fingertips. Nonus, without changing his expression, watched and then exhaled lightly.
Crackle.
As the dragon’s breath touched the fire, the flames were covered in ice. Igor's flames continued to burn inside the ice, but the cold surrounding it rendered them ineffective.
Fire burning within ice.
A phenomenon beyond normal understanding hardened Igor’s expression. Nonus, paying him no mind, spoke.
-You humans oppose us using a special power. The power that resides in the source of life.
Nonus lifted his front paw, stopping its sharp claws just in front of Kang Sihyun's chest.
-Did you know?
He asked. Kang Sihyun glanced briefly at Nonus’s claw, seemingly not intending to attack yet, and inhaled deeply.
“What?”
-The source of the power you use is ours.
“…”
-The core etched into your hearts resembles our hearts. Isn’t that interesting?
The knife aiming for our necks was originally our power.
Nonus added, letting out a low laugh by himself. None among the group could laugh at Nonus’s words.
Except Kang Sihyun, the rest couldn’t understand the language of the Irregulars.
The cores are the hearts of the Irregulars?
‘If the core is the source of mana, could it be artificially created?’
A passage he had once read flashed through his mind.
The source of mana.
If Nonus’s words were true, the mana used by Awakeners originally belonged to the Irregulars.
Is that possible?
Struggling to accept this with his current knowledge, Kang Sihyun frowned. After a long laugh, the dragon spread its wings fully. The wings, previously half-folded to fit the confined space,
now unfurled gloriously with a step Nonus took, releasing their constraint.
The dragon’s wings filled half the vast space.
-Let’s end our conversation here.
The dragon, declaring the end of the dialogue, smirked ominously and opened its mouth.
Sharp teeth were revealed, and a white mist formed around Nonus’s lips. Noticing, Kang Sihyun was the first to sense the threat and shouted.
“Everyone, get out of the way!”
His cry echoed. Before the reverberation could fade, a chilling blast, seemingly freezing upon touch, shot out from the dragon’s mouth.
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