Chapter 1774

Chapter 1774

Evil Dragon Bunhelier had caused a great impact on people around the world. He stormed the National Competition’s server and reduced Grid and Kraugel, who were competing for the position of strongest at the time, into dust. A monster with an absolute defense that neutralized all attacks like armor and who showed off his formidable stats—the dragons described by Satisfy were invincible. They were seen as Absolutes that couldn’t be challenged by a player even if they tried for the rest of their lives.

In fact, it was indeed like this. Over the past few years, players delved deeper into Satisfy’s worldview and re-evaluated dragons time and time again. It was because all of history described the dragons as invincible beings.

At one point, the S.A Group had said about the dragons, “They weren’t made to be killed.”

This was why people were so excited about Hayate. A Dragon Slayer—a person who trampled on the principles and laws that governed the natural world and cut off the head of a dragon.

He, whom everyone admired, was dying with his body burned. He was losing his breath as if slowly being swallowed by Trauka’s huge shadow.

Among those who arrived late at the scene and grabbed their weapons, not a single person could see any possibilities. They understood that there was no hope from the beginning, but they still reflexively grabbed their weapons to help Grid. It was because they owed too much to Grid.

Annihilation—it happened at a time when this word was stuck in the minds of all players, including the Overgeared members…

Dragons were described in some ancient books as ‘the Absolute who has existed since the beginning of chaos,’ and Fire Dragon Trauka, the most famous of the dragons, lowered his head close to the ground.

“Hiik!”

People imagined themselves being reduced to ashes in the pillar of fire that was about to emerge. In an instant, they lost all their willpower and floundered in a panic. Even after hearing Trauka’s voice spreading instead of a pillar of fire, they couldn’t understand the situation for a moment.

[…I apologize. Only One God Grid. I didn’t invade your territory without permission out of any malice. As I said earlier, I was just trying to get a gift.]

“……?”

The frightened people gradually came to their senses. They had stunned faces as they looked between Trauka and Grid.

Grid surprisingly wasn’t small as he stood in front of the giant dragon that was like a mountain range. It was because the deep divinity wrapped around his body filled everyone’s vision. It was a starkly different presence from when he stood in front of Bunhelier many years ago.

People realized it once again. The fact that they had been watching Grid’s growth.

Vague emotions came over them and touched their hearts. It was a feeling that was hard to describe.

“Is it because of me…?” Someone broke the silence. People shifted their gazes in the direction where the voice came from and were stunned. It was Braham. The God of Magic and Wisdom, who was regarded as the strongest power of the empire apart from Grid, spoke to himself like it was hard to understand.

Quick-witted people started to recall a story related to him. It was a very famous and legendary story about how he survived even after committing a crime against Fire Dragon Trauka.

“Don’t tell me…?”

“As expected of Braham!”

Those who came up with a certain hypothesis admired it. Their expressions looked refreshed. Why did Trauka suddenly stop the fight and apologize to Grid? They were able to understand this uneasy situation. It was thanks to Braham. Even the invincible Trauka must’ve decided that it was too much to deal with both Grid and Braham at the same time.

It was natural. Wasn’t this the duo who defeated Martial God Zeratul and the gods who served him?

“……”

Under the attention of the people who misunderstood and looked relaxed, Grid was feeling uncomfortable when he suddenly realized something. It was the fact that he couldn’t forgive Trauka. He felt that his discomfort was probably due to his anger toward Trauka.

It was natural. Trauka had killed Ifrit.

Fire Dragon Ifrit—she was one of the strongest connections in Grid’s entire life. Grid had never had a proper conversation with her, but he would never forget the moment he spent with her. How could he forget the experience of working together to defeat the gods of the Hwan Kingdom?

Grid had a brief but certain connection with Ifrit. They were strongly attracted to each other through her horn. Finally, he was able to make the unprecedented achievement of riding on the neck of a dragon and became a Dragon Knight. Thanks to this, he fought Baal and won, eventually becoming an Absolute.

She was an existence he was very grateful for. He couldn’t help harboring resentment toward Trauka, who had tormented her throughout her life and eventually forced her to choose death. Even today—

Trauka had killed Xenon. Xenon regularly came to help, saying he would pay the price for harming humans. Then Trauka ate him right in front of Grid. Not only did he arbitrarily misunderstand it as a gift, but Xenon even felt guilty about it, saying he should’ve been prepared.

“……”

Grid wanted to ask.

What are you apologizing for now?

Even though Trauka was clearly aware of Grid’s relationship with Ifrit, he didn’t say anything about her. Instead, he made excuses until the end about mistaking Xenon for a gift. Was this really an apology? However, he couldn’t express these words.

The current Grid was in a very composed state. From the time he came to Trauka until now, he had never been agitated. He made judgments and acted as rationally as possible. He didn’t know what type of disaster would occur if he became agitated.

Trauka was more powerful than Grid imagined. In fact, he couldn’t guarantee victory even when he was doing a pincer attack with Marie Rose in a never seen before manner, or even with the presence of the tower members, including Hayate. Putting aside his feelings toward Trauka, he didn’t want to become enemies. He knew that many things would become twisted the moment he antagonized Trauka. Therefore—

“…Thank you,” Grid replied politely. It was a wise judgment. If Grid offended Trauka out of personal feelings, then the battle might’ve resumed. At the very least, the institution that was called the Tower of Wisdom was likely to have lost its function today. The tower members would’ve been all but wiped out.

Just as Grid still had moves remaining, so did Trauka.

“Dear husband.”

The people watching in a daze the great appearance of Grid receiving the apology of a dragon became agitated again. They were fascinated by the most beautiful woman in the world approaching Grid.

Vampire Duke Marie Rose—she was considered the most beautiful woman on Earth and Satisfy simply through her appearance alone. Just her appearing had a big impact.

“It really is Marie Rose…”

Just as people arrived at the scene, they saw that Grid was digging into Trauka’s heart with someone else, not alone.

The thick divinity, pouring blood, and Trauka’s giant body made it hard to tell exactly who it was, but as many people speculated, it was indeed Marie Rose. In other words, the probability of the rumor that Grid had welcomed her as his new aide and concubine being true had increased dramatically.

“You don’t seem satisfied.”

It was painful to be jealous and resent someone they loved and respected.

As the people were lamenting, Marie Rose whispered to Grid, “Be honest with yourself. I will also prioritize the wishes of my dear husband over the dragon. My dear husband deserves it.”

Marie Rose understood the situation properly. It was clear that Trauka, whose current location was completely exposed, was worried about being challenged by top dragons or old dragons. It was Trauka, more than anyone else, who wanted this fight to end quickly. This was why Grid’s position was advantageous.

“He apologized. That is enough.” Grid shook his head. He was the one who bore the fate of countless people. He didn’t want to fight emotionally against Trauka. “I just hope it won’t happen again in the future.”

They didn’t know the details, but fortunately, it ended on a warm note.

It happened as the Overgeared Guild members were feeling relieved…

Trauka pulled off one of his arms himself.

Thump!

A large arm that hundreds of people couldn’t lift even if they cooperated fell in front of Grid. The earth shook.

[My words have supreme value.]

Trauka immediately regenerated his lost arm and spoke toward the dumbfounded Grid.

[Therefore, I can’t tell a lie. This arm is the price for misunderstanding Gray Dragon Xenon as a gift and invading your land. I declare that the harm to Xenon is the result of the long physiology of our species, and the matter with Ifrit is the result of the long relationship between me and my child. It is separate from you, and I have no intention of asking for your understanding.]

“……”

[Only One God Grid. By being honest with you, I am asking for your sincere forgiveness. I hope our relationship will be restored.]

Dragons fulfilled the covenant to strengthen their Dragon Words. Their words were heavy. Perhaps the only dragon who could tell lies or speak empty words was Bunhelier.

Grid silently looked at Trauka’s eyes, which seemed to contain the universe, and soon nodded. “To be honest, I don’t like it, but I fully understand your position. So I will accept your apology.”

This time, it wasn’t fake. In front of everyone watching, Trauka bowed his head and offered an arm as an apology. Grid understood that this was the best Trauka could do.

He could feel Hayate, who had just recovered, getting up from where he was sitting. Trauka stared at him with a disapproving expression and turned around.

[Dragon Slayer Hayate. In the future, I will arm myself with armor made of my scales and firmly preserve my life. I hope we don’t meet again.]

Trauka was an old dragon. He took pride in being the strongest in the world. This meant he didn’t care how the world evaluated him. Therefore, he spoke honestly without being conscious of everyone’s eyes.

A storm raged. It was a storm created by the wind in the aftermath of the giant dragon spreading his wings. Players flew in all directions and some of them turned to ash. It was like a man stepping on an ant while walking down the street and killing it.

“I’ll let you go. With this, my past debt is paid off,” Braham spoke to Trauka, who had flown up without hesitation.

[……?]

Trauka stopped flying and turned his attention to Braham. It was a reaction like he thought it was ridiculous. He seemed to doubt his ears.

“Please ignore him,” Grid said urgently.

[……]

Finally, Fire Dragon Trauka left. The world’s largest creature instantly became a dot and disappeared.

A world message rose with the rising dawn.

[Overgeared God Grid is writing the 25th epic.]

[The beginning of the narrative starts on the wreckage of the fallen moon.]

“Marie Rose, this woman…”

Grid’s battle was very short. The situation ended less than a few minutes after he arrived at the scene. However, Grid felt a great deal of fatigue. It was the aftermath of dividing a moment into countless segments. He almost felt nauseous due to the large mental consumption.

However, he spoke without showing any signs of it. He grabbed Braham’s wrist, who was glaring at Marie Rose as if he was going to eat her. “Don’t treat her badly.”

“What…?” A rare look of surprise spread over Braham’s face. He looked more shocked than when he was disqualified as a blood kin by his mother.

Grid didn’t care. He declared while supporting Marie Rose, whose eyelashes became thicker due to her heavy eyelids, “I am going to marry Marie Rose. Not respecting her is like not respecting me.”

“…By all means! By all means, you can’t fall for the worldly beauty of that wicked woman!”

Braham was indignant. He gritted his teeth and even released killing intent. It was killing intent that wandered without being directed at Grid. The players, who had just managed to regain their breaths, suffered from abnormal conditions again.

“If you just want beauty, then I’ll satisfy you! I will study the magic to change gender starting from today…” Braham’s loud voice gradually subsided. Like the God of Wisdom, he quickly regained his sense of reason. “Come to your senses, Grid. That is the monster who killed our mother. She forgot our mother’s sacrifice and turned a blind eye to her duties. She is worse than a beast. A lowly thing you should never get involved with…”

“Please refrain from speaking like that.”

Grid’s expression was extremely serious as he interrupted Braham.

“Beriache’s death has nothing to do with Marie Rose, right? She was simply born. Beriache’s death was Beriache’s own choice. How long are you going to blame Marie Rose? In addition, duty? If it is the duty of the child to fulfill the will of the parent, is the child born only for the sake of their parents? Doesn’t the child have their own life?”

Grid’s voice grew louder. It was because he remembered Marie Rose’s sad expression. He wanted Braham to let go of his prejudices. He hoped Braham would escape the curse of his mother’s name.

“Ick…! Eek…!”

However, it wasn’t easy. Braham had dreamed of getting revenge for his mother from the moment he was born and had resented Marie Rose since she was born. He couldn’t keep his composure when it came to his family. At the very least, he needed time. Eventually, Braham also left. He used Teleport and disappeared in front of everyone’s eyes.

The epic continued to emerge. It was an epic about the great old dragon, who had existed since the chaos before the beginning, apologizing to Grid and offering an arm. Naturally, Marie Rose’s performance was also depicted.

Grid believed that Braham would ponder on the content of this epic and understand how Grid felt.