Volume 4 Chapter 76 â A Replica That Shouldnât Exist (1)
âThese crazy fuckers⦠I didnât think they would come out aggressively this fast.â
They were now certain that the Zipfels kidnapped Lathry, but seeing their bravado for the misdeed baffled Jin.
Additionally, their brash attitude towards eliminating Quikantel without hesitation made it clear that the Zipfelsâ central forces definitely had a hand on any business related to Lathry or Enya.
âThey just demanded for Quikantel to hand over Enya. They are definitely hunting down contractors outside of the Zipfel Clan and are either using or eliminating them.â
The fight was about to begin, so Jin and Murakan remained hidden.
âWe strike when Ms. Quikantel gets into a dangerous position or when there is an opportunity for ambush.â
Andrei and Vyuretta still did not notice Jin and Murakanâs presence, so observing the fight for now was a better idea.
[Iâll be honest, I havenât really liked you ever since we met, Quikantel.]
Vyuretta shouted, spreading a massive pair of wings.
Mana flowed through the powerful winds, and the static tornados began to close in on the silver dragon.
Whoooooooooshâ¦!
The tornados moved like huge snakes. As trees got torn away from the ground, Quikantel scoffed.
[Iâm sure you arenât planning to do anything with wind like childâs play.]
It was at least an 8-star spellânot something one would call âchildâs playâ.
However, it was not enough to pierce her exoskeleton. She didnât even dodge the attack and took the winds at full force. Not that she was underestimating the attack, but she genuinely believed that she had no need to.
Loud screeches echoed throughout the island as the cyclones made contact with her silver armor.
But that was all.
The cyclones died down, failing to affect even a single scale.
The surroundings were devastated, as if caused by a bombing. And yet, Quikantel stood in the same spotâin the same position.
Vyuretta was a little surprised, eyes slightly widening.
âWhoaâ¦! Incredible!â
Andrei expressed his admiration with a shaky voice.
Quikantel didnât like his expressive attitude. Not one bit.
The 9-star grand magician, âWind Kingâ Andrei Zipfel.
As the second-in-command, everyone knew how strong he was, but not many knew of his ârealâ power. Simply due to the fact that everyone who fought him had died. People only could infer his combat power.
And as for Quikantel, she didnât know much about Andrei either.
[I guess Wind King isnât just a title. You filthy human. Show me your strength. After I begin my attack, you wonât have any opportunity to show off.]
âI can finally use my full power. In that case, I will enjoy it, Silver Dragon of Time.â
Andreiâs staff began to glow.
Mana Expansionâa spell signifying the start of an attack.
âItâs been a long time since I saw a 9-star Mana Expansion up close.â
In an instant, about 500 meters around them, the blue mana dyed their surroundings. It was not a common sight.
And because he was the contractor of the God of Wind, Andreiâs magic was the pure essence of wind. Every movement of air around the island could potentially become Andreiâs weapon.
Wind was invisible. Although the artificial compression and movement of wind was visible as it ripped through space, windâat its purestâhad no form.
Thus, Andreiâs wind could become an invisible sword or a formless spear and pierce the enemy.
The space around the grand magician began to morph with the flow of wind. No one knew what would come out of the bending space.
âIf I had one thing to sayâ¦â
Andrei smirked and extended his finger towards Quikantel.
âI am especially strong against dragons. So please be careful.â
Hissss~
From Andreiâs finger, wind in the form of a spike flew out.
Quikantel sensed the danger and spread her wings. She planned on flying upwards, dodging the attack and shooting her breath to counter him.
But there was a reason Andrei mentioned his strength against dragons.
âMy flight⦠has been disabled?â
No matter how much she flapped her gigantic wings, no wind occurred. In fact, her wings felt heavier, as if she were swimming in water.
A technique that only Melzeyerâs contractor could useâWindless Domain.
Inside the Mana Expansion, there was nothing that could fly without Andreiâs permission. And losing the ability to fly was a great loss to a dragonâs combat power.
Crackle!
Andreiâs wind spikes hit Quikantelâs chest. Some scales broke off and fell to the ground. Simultaneously, Vyuretta flew to the sky.
[These bastardsâ¦!]
[You are definitely strong, but you were too careless.]
Vyurettaâs breath flew at many angles. Quikantel conjured a force field with her mana, but Andrei cast another spell.
This time, it wasnât an inherited spell from Melzeyer. Instead, it was the Zipfelsâ lightning-attributed spell, Lightning Storm. Blue chains crackled and gathered in Andreiâs palm as his feet started lifting off the ground.
Just because he was Melzeyerâs contractor didnât mean that he was limited to wind-attributed spells. Even Jin used spells of multiple attributes freely while using spiritual energy.
âThis can be lethal. That cursed humanâ¦!â
Unable to attack, Quikantel felt as if she was being pushed into a corner.
âDo we go now?â
Jin exchanged looks with Murakan, and the black dragon shook his head.
âQuikantel was indeed acting cocky, but those guys are also underestimating her. Letâs watch for a little longer. If we go now, then her pride is gonna get hurt.â
As Murakan finished speaking, Andrei also finished casting his spell.
Violent chains of electricity charged towards Quikantel. Hundreds of sparks and crackles of electricityâenough to blind a manâmixed with Quikantelâs breath.
Although they were pretty far away, Jin felt shocks throughout his body despite protecting himself with spiritual energy.
Power definitely worthy of being the Zipfel Clanâs second-in-command.
However, despite its uncontested strength, the spell didnât hit its target and was rendered useless.
Quikantel activated her temporal powers and froze Andreiâs spell.
As the grand magician ruled the wind as Melzeyerâs contractor, Quikantel ruled time as one of Oltaâs dragons.
[That was a pretty neat trick.]
More and more crackling bolts of lightning froze in front of Quikantel.
Before them was an even match between two god-given powers.
Andrei lowered his staff and lowered to the ground. Strangely, avarice flickered in his eyes.
âA very coveted power⦠Hehehe. Seeing it with my own eyes, I can feel the blood vessels twitching inside my aged body.â
Quikantel remained silent and stepped away from the frozen bolts of lightning.
[I guess itâs my turn now.]
It may still be a situation where her ability to fly was incapacitated, but Quikantel was confident that she could still rule the skies.
[If you wonât let me fly, then I will not let you move a single finger!]
Screeeeeeeeeeech!
A sharp sound echoed, and waves of energy emerged from Quikantelâs forehead.
Ripples could be seen throughout space, as if a rock was thrown into water, and everything that the ripples touched lost its time.
Inside the frozen time, one would basically become a statue.
âThat is the reason why you permanently become a mere plant if you donât get along with the dragons of time, kid. Get caught by it, and itâs over.â
âThatâs unspeakably overpowered!â
âWell, not really. Just donât make contact with it. Then it becomes easy. The spell itself is hard to sustain too.â
As it was Vyurettaâs and Andreiâs first time fighting a dragon of time, they dodged the pulses by instinct. But they forgot one crucial fact.
If any part of the body gets caughtâwhether it was the tip of the toe or a strand of hairâthen the entire body will freeze.
Andrei easily dodged with his small and nimble body, but that was not the case for Vyuretta.
Thoooom!
Quikantel blasted off the ground with her feet and charged at the wind dragon who was frozen still.
âVyuretta!â
When she got close enough, she released the time prison and ripped Vyurettaâs throat apart with her jaws. Screeching, Vyuretta fell with Quikantel.
Boom!
From Vyurettaâs long neck spilled thick rivers of blood. With his neck in her jaws, Quikantel stood like a beast that caught its prey.
Every time the wind dragon moved, green scales, blood, and flesh splattered everywhere.
Andrei was furious, but he couldnât do anything. Any move he made could kill Vyuretta. In fact, if he tried to approach them, then Quikantel could recast her ultimate spell.
[Keuuuook!]
[Tastes like garbage. You said Iâm cocky? Say that shit again!]
Chomp!
Quikantel bit off a chunk of Vyurettaâs flesh and taunted her enemies. From Vyurettaâs wound, the white of bone was visible, and the wounded dragon floundered to escape.
Reactivating her ability, Quikantel froze Vyuretta once more.
The silver dragon made an unbearable sight as she repeated the same process. Her brutal attacks instinctively made the spectators squint their eyes.
âWow, Iâm getting goosebumps. I also suffered from that attack before.â
âFrom Ms. Quikantel?â
âYeah, we fought a lot while we were in a relationship.â
Two more times and Vyuretta would be decapitated. The wind dragonâs consciousness was already gone. And even when his time wasnât frozen, his massive body only flinched a little.
âS-Stop, Silver Dragon!â
[Shut the fuck up and watch, Zipfel magician. Youâre next in line. And youâre at a loss for words? Maybe youâre scared of your impending doom.]
Despite her threatening words, Quikantel was also very exhausted at that point.
If she could infinitely use her temporal abilities, then the worldâs strongest being would not be Cyron Runcandel.
âI was able to claim victory due to Vyurettaâs carelessness. Iâll kill this bastard. As for the magician, Iâll get help from Jin and Murakanâ¦!â
Because she abused her ability, Quikantelâs mana had depleted.
Huff, puffâ¦
Breathing heavily, Quikantel was about to cut off Vyurettaâs airway.
Yet, with a firm resolve, Andrei walked towards the two dragons.
âYou have gone too far.â
[Look whoâs talking.]
âThat is only for the stronger one to say, Silver Dragon. You were born as a Silver Dragon of Time, declaring yourself and your god as strong. All this time, you probably thought of yourselves as rulers of the worldâ¦â
ââ¦But thatâs a delusion. Everything will fall under the Zipfelsâ flagâall humans and gods.â
Andrei lowered his staff and pulled out something from his robe.
In his hand was an orb emitting an ominous black glow. The moment Murakan saw this, he exclaimed.
âThe Orb of Originâ¦! No way!â
He transformed into his true form, and his torso broke through the spiritual energy, revealing a massive shadow unto the ground.
[Escape, Quikantel!]
âââââ
âââ
âââââ