Chapter 266: Antagonist of Earth (11)

Words : 1141 Updated : Oct 7th, 2025

Chapter 266: Antagonist of Earth (11) Timing my return almost perfectly, I was transported back to the Thirty-Fourth Floor just a couple of minutes before the Objective was supposed to be cleared. However, after arriving back in the world of extreme heat and scorched land, I found it to be strangely altered slightly compared to when I had left. Most notably, rather than pure crimson skies above, the atmosphere was veiled with a thick layer of impenetrable black smog, resulting in the only visible light coming from the frequent fires spread about the region as well as the rivers of molten lava, the numbers of which seemed to have only multiplied now that the erupting volcano has calmed down some. There was in fact some ash falling from the sky, a light rain I would not worry too much for thanks to the natural filtering of the Villain’s Vizard, but it certainly wasn’t something that made me want to stay here for too long, just in case. Moreover, I noticed there were far less of the material creatures like those that were fleeing previously, and in their stead, elemental beings of animated fire and scoria could be spotted wandering around, some of their ‘bodies’ appearing to reach up to over a dozen feet tall. ‘Huh... Is this like ‘phase two’...?’ While I was busy taking in all of the regional changes to the environment, a notification popped up. [Objective Cleared] [New Objective: Survive the encounter] ‘What?’ Taken aback by the eerie ambiguity of the following Objective, I felt myself physically flinch. Quickly turning my head to try and find the other Challenger from before, I was initially disoriented by the presence of magic energy coming from every direction, but I soon managed to spot her, stepping out from the cover of a black spire’s natural cave in the not-too-far distance. Ensuring once again that Sneak was still active, I moved behind a nearby rock and observed as she stepped elegantly down a staircase of pink petals fabricating itself for her in real time. As she got closer to my position, I realised she was also holding a white cloth over her mouth, perhaps to ward against the possibility of inhaling any unwanted ash. Surprisingly, she didn’t seem to be nearly as exhausted as I expected. Maybe, once settling in that cave up there and recognising herself as safe, she also decided to have a nap before the Objective timer was up, just like me. ‘It’s the little things like that which determine who’s the best of the best and who’s lagging behind. If you can’t take advantage of free opportunities thrown your way, you’d never catch up to those on the frontline... Although, I wonder if her ability also protects her while she’s sleeping, or if that was a calculated risk she decided to take.’ Either way, it was probably a good thing that she was all recovered. That meant I could still rely on her to take care of this ‘encounter’ that was said to occur... even if it evoked a sense of unease just thinking about it. Now that I thought about it, it didn’t say anything like ‘slay’ or ‘eliminate’, so did that mean it was something peaceful coming to meet us? ...Although, if it were peaceful, was it really necessary to use the word ‘survive’? I’m not sure if I wanted an answer to that question, but before I even had the chance to consider it any further than that, I sensed something huge. “...!” Snapping my head towards the volcano that had erupted earlier, the very one I had climbed most of the way up and then down, a tremendous amount of magic energy, previously dormant, suddenly woke up. The substantial crater from which endless clouds of black ash and smog arose―something was climbing out from within, and as I flickered my gaze between that spot and the other Frontliner, likewise bearing a startled expression on her face, I made the swift decision to move back, putting her between myself and whatever it was that was beginning to climb up from the depths of the core of the world. Like that, with her standing atop the basalt plateau and me, hiding behind a boulder at the plateau’s rim a certain distance behind her, as stealthy as I could possibly be, watching with eagle eyes. I didn’t have to hold my breath for long. ‘My god... That’s crazy, what the hell...?’ Subconsciously gulping, I observed the source of the incredible magic energy reach the mouth of the volcano, its presence physically disturbing the still-leaking ash clouds, distorting them around its evidently massive body. And then, beginning by stretching its long, scaled arm through the curtain of ash, it emerged. ‘Ah, shit...’ Of course, it was a dragon. The moment those smouldering red scales peeked through the veil, I immediately felt the blood drain from my face. Not even because it grew cold―but because the magic energy strengthening disappeared. At the same time, all previously present thoughts emptied themselves from my mind, leaving behind nothing but a single remnant of an old memory, a fragment of a moment where true, primitive fear had gripped my heart for the first time. Ba-dump. As the towering creature’s jagged, golden eye shot a fierce glare in my direction, I heard the sound of my own heartbeat resound in my ears. “...” Subconsciously, I felt something grasp at my chest, instinctively realising that it was my own hand. I was far different than I was back then, but after seeing the real deal once more with my own eyes, I couldn’t help but flash back to that moment... or perhaps more accurately, perceive that moment as if overlapping with the current, blending the two together to become indistinguishable. Maybe that’s why, despite having grown incomparably stronger, I was still... lacking. “――Present yourselves with honour, lest you covet eradication.” Without warning, a deep grumbling echoed across the blackened skies, and for a second, I couldn’t tell if it was addressing me or not, causing me to flinch with hesitation. The being hadn’t moved from its position atop the crater of the volcano far away, and yet it was such a loud rumble I would have thought it to be spoken by someone adjacent. Then, a much lighter, much more pleasant voice responded. “Please excuse me. Could you clarify your meaning? I believe I am the sole participant for this Floor Objective...” I already knew what was bound to happen the second those words exited her mouth. Seemingly ignoring her plea for elucidation, the dragon reiterated. “Final warning.” “...” “...” ‘Tsk.’ “―My apologies. He’s talking about me.” In the end, I had no choice but to reveal myself.

Chapter 266: Antagonist of Earth (11)

Comments (0)