I was feeling dizzy.
My head was hurting badly.
Grhh...
I opened my eyes.
My whole body hurt.
Damn...
My upper body was covered with bandages.
Thankfully, I still had my uniform pants.
Now that I observed myself...
I guess I was building some muscles.
I could feel six abs.
What am I even thinking?
[Pratik]: This place...
The door opened.
I turned around to see Yuwah.
[Pratik]: What is happening? What am I doing here?
I remember clashing with the Dark Dragolings.
I should have been dead.
Did Yuwah save me?
[Yuwah]: You were lying in the Great Forest. There were no wounds on you initially, but as I moved closer, it felt as if several wounds suddenly appeared out of nowhere on your body and face.
He said while sitting on a chair in front of me.
[Yuwah]: I brought you here and bandaged you. Your facial wounds healed much faster.
I see.
So he wasn't the one who defeated the Dark Dragolings.
[Pratik]: What about the Dark Dragolings?
I asked calmly.
Though I was uncertain about the answer.
His eyes met mine.
They were serious.
[Yuwah]: All of them were reduced to dead meat.
He paused.
[Yuwah]: None survived.
My expression changed slightly.
[Yuwah]: A great part of the Great Forest was erased alongside them. It was as if some natural calamity had struck them.
He took a breath.
[Yuwah]: Even Commander Enimo didn't make it out alive.
A cold sweat ran down his face.
[Yuwah]: To be honest, he was almost on par with me in terms of power.
I understood.
In that case...
Who killed them?
No.
I should hold that question for now.
What matters more is what our next step will be.
[Pratik]: What are we gonna do?
Yuwah rubbed his hands over his face.
[Yuwah]: I'm not sure myself.
He sighed.
[Yuwah]: Things have really turned ugly. Thankfully, you teleported your friends into the towns. Many civilians were saved because of it.
Now that he mentioned it...
It was just my instinct that told me the tyrant would raid the nearby towns after the rebellion.
[Pratik]: Everyone was saved, right?
I asked in a low voice.
Yuwah glanced at me for a moment before closing his eyes again.
[Yuwah]: Twenty towns were attacked.
He paused.
[Yuwah]: Twelve were saved.
Another pause.
[Yuwah]: Eight were burnt to ashes.
He said it in a heavy voice.
I see.
It seems I was useless all along...
I should have teleported myself too.
Yuwah stared outside the window.
I looked outside as well.
The sky was turning black.
It was as if Hell itself was about to break open today.
The weather seemed evil.
It felt as if it would rain for days.
[Yuwah]: The rebels have united the slaves and spread the news about the temporary palace takeover.
He sighed.
[Yuwah]: The news has sent a ray of hope among the youngsters.
[Yuwah]: They are planning to raid the castle where Lohit will be resting today.
[Yuwah]: The raid will most probably be led by Row's younger brother, Senra.
[Yuwah]: The soldiers in the national army have been reduced greatly. They see this as a chance for a complete overthrow of the regime.
This seems bad.
Something feels off about it.
[Pratik]: What about Lohit? He might have predicted some part of it.
[Yuwah]: That's the real bad thing here.
He looked at me.
[Yuwah]: He has placed twenty Royal Guards around the castle's interior, while the normal soldiers will guard the exterior gates.
A pause.
[Yuwah]: The raid will face Sonavarnah.
What?!
That's absurd.
[Pratik]: What chance do the rebels have?
He looked straight at me.
[Yuwah]: None, If you don't intervene.
I sat on the edge of the bed.
This is really bad.
[Pratik]: What about my friends?
[Yuwah]: They will be the ones willing to fight Sonavarnah and the Royal Guards themselves.
He paused.
[Yuwah]: That's the core reason behind this immediate raid.
I see.
There might be a chance.
[Pratik]: Before we leave, do you think we can beat Sonavarnah and the Royal Guards?
[Yuwah]: Sonavarnah aside, the Royal Guards are quite powerful.
[Yuwah]: Grishwari was considered the weakest one, and yet she could defeat thousands of soldiers herself.
He looked at me.
[Yuwah]: I trust your powers. You might beat the Royal Guards without much difficulty.
He became tense.
[Yuwah]: Sonavarnah is a beast on a completely different level.
[Yuwah]: Beating him head-on seems impossible.
[Yuwah]: Moreover, we have Lohit too. He isn't physically powerful, but his Dark Dragoling biology still makes him a powerful opponent.
He looked worried.
[Yuwah]: I feel it's going to be hard for you to beat them.
He is right.
We can't just beat them straight up.
My Triggers are locked thanks to a certain lizard.
Without Plasma, there is no way I can survive the Dragon Breaths of those dragons head-on.
Grimori and Mala have grown a lot more powerful.
They may be able to take down Sonavarnah.
Kel and Lila can help clear the path by facing the Royal Guards.
However...
Lohit still remains a threat.
In that case...
I shall face him.
That's right.
I can't be this useless.
I stood up and walked towards my jacket.
The wind was blowing like insane outside.
I wore my jacket.
For some reason, something seemed to spark inside Yuwah's eyes.
[Pratik]: Let's leave.
I walked towards the door.
[Pratik]: The battle may have already started. We can't be late.
I left the room.
Indirectly, I was the reason behind these hopes.
I must live up to them.
This isn't heroism or something like that.
It's just who I am.
*
Castle Purnawa.
The rebels were moving towards the castle at an unbelievable pace.
The dark skies seemed discouraging.
However, the rebels barely cared about them.
For them, only one thing mattered.
The end of the Tyrant.
A large army was advancing towards the castle with countless cannons and weapons.
Then—
They heard a frightening roar.
The roar came from the skies.
BOOM!
Thunder struck down violently.
Yellow lightning.
Whatever it struck—
It was destroyed.
'What is that?'
One of the rebels pointed towards something flying in the sky.
For the first time, this generation was about to witness the wrath of a Dragon.
The Dragon Beast Form of Sonavarnah was approaching them.
His mouth was glowing.
He was charging his Dragon Breath.
3...
2...
1...
The sound coming from his mouth resembled a gigantic motor starting up.
Then—
In a sudden flash of lightning—
BOOOOOOM!
The Dragon Breath crashed into the battlefield.
Everything within a one-mile radius was vaporized.
The rebels who were farther away were still affected by the sheer impact.
Many were blown away.
Many were burned.
The rebels stared at the destruction in horror.
They were witnessing the true power of a Dark Dragoling.
Within the blink of an eye—
The enormous Dragon transformed into his humanoid form.
He landed directly in the middle of the rebel formation.
Sonavarnah looked around.
Silence.
Then—
He smiled.
The war had officially begun.
To be continued...