Chapter 125: Chapter 124: Excavation part 2
Mithril, obsidian stone, orichalcum, there was a large amount of these three minerals, two metals and one stone ore. The team immediately began to mine them, Rein looked forward at the large hole ahead that seems to be connecting to somewhere else.
Jon watched him,
’Please don’t tell me it what I’m thinking’
Rein stepped closer and looked back,
"Guys give me a minute, I’ll be right back"
Immediately Azes jumped down from Braschiold’s head where he was lying on and walked to Rein’s side. Jon dropped his pickaxe and removed the gloves.
"What are you up to Rein? You know where that is, except you want every one of us to die, you shouldn’t even bother going there, or else there’s a reason and you need to tell us what that is"
Rein looked at Jon, he was finding it hard to hold a conversation like this at the same time having to hold in the pain and pretend there’s no pain. He needed to save himself first and then face all the consequences.
"I’m... Sorry"
𝒘𝑯𝒐𝑶𝒔𝑯
Rein dashed in like the wind.
"Such amazing speed, as he has even gotten better?" Lorrim was filled with awe and admiration for Rein’s magnificent show of agility.
"Dammit" Jon smashed his fist into the wall.
"What the hell is he up to! It’s even frustrating that he’s hard to read, he has completely changed!!"
"I admit"
Braschiold spoke.
Sigrid tightened her fist as she still felt guilty for trying to force questions out of him and thus even pushing him further away.
"What do we do?"
Arnette asked,
"Follow him"
Grim answered.
Everywhere was silent for some seconds. Then Quetz spoke out, breaking the definite decorum.
"Wow. What an absurd idea..."
All of them were still silent.
"... Wait... You guys are not..."
The look on their faces could tell Quetz ’these guys were all crazy, they’re going to confidently enter into a dragon’s lair because of him’
" aaahhh"
She roughened her hair in frustration. "I never knew coming here was going to be a very bad idea. You all can go ahead and die for all I care, I can’t"
Shé left the dungeon boss room and ventured outside. The others stared at each other and nodded. They entered the large hole leading to the dragon’s lair.
********
{𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙖 𝙙𝙧𝙖𝙜𝙤𝙣}
{𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙨𝙪𝙗𝙟𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙪𝙨 𝙙𝙚𝙗𝙪𝙛𝙛 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙚}
{𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙙 𝙬𝙚𝙖𝙠𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙗𝙚𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙪𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙞𝙣𝙛𝙡𝙪𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙜𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙚 𝙙𝙧𝙖𝙜𝙤𝙣 𝙕𝙖𝙡𝙙𝙧𝙚𝙨}
{𝙍𝙚𝙙 𝙘𝙧𝙮𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙡𝙨 𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙛𝙞𝙚𝙙}
What Rein had imagined would be a dragon’s lair is a well-furnished room with a large number of golds lying around but the reality that Rein was seeing right now was so different from what the folklore used to explain dragon lair as. It was still the rocky walls but there were large varieties of minerals that emitted a different kind of aura on their own, each one of them seems to be very unique as he used appraisal to check them all, most were fire resistance minerals, of course, Zaldres is a fire dragon so the red energy he emanates should be that of the fire nature hence if any minerals would evolve from digesting its energy it would evolve into a fire attribute-based kind of mineral.
Rein looked around, the dragon could not be seen in his line of sight, Rein was getting weaker and weaker.
’don’t drop your guard father’ Azes warned him through telepathy.
’He’s asleep, there beyond the darkness’
Rein held his chest tightly as it continued to give him a stinging pain and began to walk towards where the red crystal is with the guardian of the system.
He finally brought out his axe
{𝙍𝙚𝙙 𝙘𝙧𝙮𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙡𝙨 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙙𝙞𝙗𝙡𝙮 𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙜𝙮}
{𝙐𝙨𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙚 𝙨𝙪𝙗𝙟𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙣𝙖𝙡 𝙗𝙪𝙧𝙣 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙡 𝙐𝙨𝙚𝙧 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙨𝙪𝙘𝙘𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙛𝙪𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙧𝙚𝙙 𝙘𝙧𝙮𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙡}
{𝙐𝙨𝙚𝙧 𝙘𝙖𝙣𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙞𝙨𝙩}
{𝙐𝙨𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙚 𝙨𝙪𝙗𝙟𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙥𝙤𝙞𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙡 𝙐𝙨𝙚𝙧 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙨𝙪𝙘𝙘𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙛𝙪𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙥𝙪𝙧𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙘𝙧𝙮𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙡}
{𝙐𝙨𝙚𝙧 𝙘𝙖𝙣𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙞𝙨𝙩}
{𝙐𝙨𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙚 𝙨𝙪𝙗𝙟𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙚𝙭𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙡𝙮 𝙬𝙚𝙖𝙠𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙚}
{𝙐𝙨𝙚𝙧 𝙘𝙖𝙣𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙞𝙨𝙩}
"Nothing comes easy after all"
Rein lifted the axe with his might and smashed it on the cluster of red crystals.
𝐾𝑝𝐴𝑢𝑁!
{𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙚𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙙 2305 𝙗𝙪𝙧𝙣 𝙙𝙖𝙢𝙖𝙜𝙚}
"Aaaaarrrggggghhhhh!!!!!"
Rein cried out the moment he felt the scorching pain of his intestines being burnt coupled with the stinging pain coming from his heart, his complexion was now very white and his eyes were getting deeper and without life.
He got back up and picked up the axe.
𝐾𝑝𝑎𝑈𝑛
{𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙚𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙙 2780 𝙗𝙪𝙧𝙣 𝙙𝙖𝙢𝙖𝙜𝙚𝙨}
𝐾𝑝𝑎𝑈𝑛
{𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙚𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙙 3128 𝙗𝙪𝙧𝙣 𝙙𝙖𝙢𝙖𝙜𝙚𝙨}
He tightened his fist around the handle of the pickaxe as he endured the pain of the burning sensation, one crystal fell off.
{𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙜𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙧𝙚𝙙 𝙘𝙧𝙮𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙡}
Rein raised his axe again and continued while enduring. He gained one crystal per two strikes and he was finally done with one cluster of crystal. He moved on to the next and was already reaching the darkness. He began to mine again by the time he was done with the second he spatted blood, he had already begun to have excess internal bleeding.
’There’s gotta be another way around this, you will die at this rate. Father’
’It’s fine Azes, I don’t know why but I feel motivated to keep going at it’
{𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙥𝙪𝙧𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙘𝙧𝙮𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙡 𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙛𝙞𝙚𝙙}
{𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙗𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙘𝙧𝙮𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙡 𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙛𝙞𝙚𝙙}
Rein smiled.
"let’s save up the stress"
Rein then entered the darkness, even with peep eyesight which was supposed to allow him to see clearly from afar the darkness was still dark to him, he couldn’t see nor sense a thing. He closed his eyes and began to mine, he clenched his teeth together and kept mining over and over again, he expected that he was going to get weaker so he gave it he all from the beginning but he suddenly didn’t feel weaker, not until he opened his eyes to Ariel’s message.
{𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙜𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙥𝙪𝙧𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙘𝙧𝙮𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙡}
{𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙥𝙤𝙞𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙙}
{𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙡𝙤𝙨𝙚 300 𝙃𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙩𝙝 𝙥𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙨 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 30 𝙨𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙙𝙨}
{𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙜𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙧𝙙 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙥𝙪𝙧𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙘𝙧𝙮𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙡}
{𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙥𝙤𝙞𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙙}
{𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙡𝙤𝙨𝙚 600 𝙃𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙩𝙝 𝙥𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙨 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 15 𝙨𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙙𝙨}
If only he had the luxury of time to curse at Ariel right now but he could feel himself dying.
His skin was now white as his face had thinned so much his cheekbone was very visible, his lips had dried off and his eyes were barely open. He dragged the axe on the floor towards the black crystal.
’... Father...’
The black dragon didn’t know what to do, the moment he tries to morph into a human he could get discovered and waking the sleeping Zaldres and surely he is not even half as strong as Zaldres, he’s a newborn, after all, so all he could do was stay undercover and watch Rein.
Rein raised the axe and strikes the black crystal.
{𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙚𝙭𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙡𝙮 𝙬𝙚𝙖𝙠𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙙}
{𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙙 𝙘𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙡 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙜𝙚}
{𝙔𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙩𝙝 𝙥𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙛𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙣 𝙗𝙚𝙡𝙤𝙬 20%}
Rein suddenly couldn’t lift the axe anymore. It felt immovable. Rein had enormous strength, he could carry anything, and the weight of his punches was crazy, he could leave a hole in the wall even when he tried to hold himself back so much. But right now he couldn’t lift an axe, he gritted his teeth and groaned as he tried his best to lift the axe. He tried all over and over again but it was as if the axe was getting heavier the moment he let go and tries to lift it again.
{The black crystal is special}
Rein heard a thick voice that vibrated the whole area from inside the darkness.
{The dark crystal can be mined with two strikes but is impossible because the second strike the tool becomes the miner’s heaviest burden. More like a trial that can never be passed. Which is why that black crystal has been here for more than 700 years, the first and oldest mineral here and has never been mined}
Rein shivered and shrank as Zaldres revealed himself from the thick darkness. Rein fell on his butt looked high up to the dragon, even though he is now a new person he still fears the might of the great fire dragon, perhaps his human instincts were still hanging around but it was just that, Zaldres was a dragon that has lived a thousand years its presence is more than enough to inflict tremendous fear in anyone, he might not be an ancient dragon but he was strong, very strong and Rein could perceive the amount of strength because he had transcended even a Transcendent, Hlofgar couldn’t tell the capacity, but he felt the mighty presence but Rein could tell the capacity. He could tell that the fire dragon could destroy all the strong people he had met together, he could tell that even the system god would be annihilated.
{You have a lingering smell of humanity on you but you are no human. My eyes dare not to deceive me, but what are you? I have never seen your type}
Zaldres completely came out, and began to walk and suddenly compressed into a naked beautiful man with long red hair. He touched Rein and used his serpent-like tongue to lick his cheek.
{... You are a living corpse. I thought it would be nice to taste a new kind of meal but you are just a living corpse. What a pity}
{But I smell humans... What a coincidence, an appetizer should do... Let’s see}
Zaldres’ eyes glowed red,
{... Eight... }
The sly looking beauty licked his lips. Rein was surprised how he could even tell how many people were around without even seeing them and more importantly why were they heading this way.
Rein struggled to his feet, he looked at Azes.
’good it seems he has not noticed Azes is a dragon’
{Why are you standing up even though you are dying?}
"I will not let you... eat my friends"
{is that why you are getting up, exactly how do you plan to stop me}
Rein continued to stare not being able to answer the question.
Zaldres smiled,
{How nonsensical, void, I’ve seen humans do this over and over again then get killed over the desire to protect their loved ones, both they and their loved ones die, why waste two lives when you can save one, from the onset there’s nothing that can be done about me, I’m the peak, it is pure foolishness to challenge me}
’Damn it wasn’t a fluke that dragons were proud assholes’
Rein moves forward slowly.
"let’s make a bet"
{How bold of you, go on. Some fun after a long while}
"I will mine that black crystal"
{You can’t}
"You will let me, the crystal and my friend goes if I mine it"
{... Smart, fine, since I know it is impossible to mine}
Rein stepped forward slowly and touched the axe.
’Godeye’
’....’
’I know you can hear me. I saw how you used my body that time, you can use it to its very limit, can’t you... Please help me’
’I refuse! You are asking me to kill you’
’I won’t die’
’Yes you will’
’please...’
’...aishhhh, dammit not only have you gotten stronger, but you also seem to now been using your head’
Rein’s eye turned black.
Just then the others arrived, Zaldres immediately lit up the whole place by just flicking his fingers.
{Welcome humans, I am Zaldres and your friend here has made a bet so I won’t eat you, if he mines the black crystal, if he does not, you all get to be my meal... Not that eating humans is satisfying but it is fun}
Zaldres was not the only one that plated with human lives by eating them, there was two other, in fact very crazy than Zaldres.
They looked at Rein struggle with the axe.
Godeye at once with all his might lifted the axe while shouting.
"aaaaaaaaggghhhhhh!!!!!"
𝐾𝑝𝑎𝑈𝑛
{𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙜𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙗𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙘𝙧𝙮𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙡}
{𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙚𝙭𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙡𝙮 𝙬𝙚𝙖𝙠𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙙}
{𝙔𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙩𝙝 𝙥𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙛𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙣 𝙗𝙚𝙡𝙤𝙬 5%}
{𝙌𝙪𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙚𝙩𝙚𝙙}
{𝘼𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙡 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙗𝙚𝙜𝙞𝙣 𝙪𝙥𝙜𝙧𝙖𝙙𝙚}
Rein’s vision got blurry as he fell to the ground with the black crystal in his hand.
Zaldres at first looked angry but soon burst out a large laughter and disappeared.
