Chapter 293: The Arcane Dragon—Elefseria
"Then let me go with you!"
Gildarts thought for a moment, then made up his mind.
Originally, after witnessing the strength of the Black Dragon, he had completely lost all confidence in the mission to seal the Five Dragon Gods and was planning to give up the hundred-year quest and return to the guild.
But since George still wanted to give it a try, he was willing to take the risk and accompany him. In case George found himself in danger, he could at least help.
They were companions in the guild, and besides, George had just saved him. No matter what, he couldn't just leave like that.
"Alright, if it really proves too difficult, we'll go back to the guild together."
George nodded.
Although Gildarts was defeated by the Black Dragon in one move, he wasn't weak—at least, George thought he was stronger than Laxus.
Even if he went all out, defeating Gildarts wouldn't be easy.
With such a helper, if they could find a dragon that wasn't overwhelmingly strong, the two of them together might actually stand a chance.
As for the Five Dragon Gods, they'd figure that out later.
After all, his real goal wasn't to complete the hundred-year quest of sealing the Five Dragon Gods—it was to become a Dragon Slayer.
If he could obtain a dragon lacrima without fighting, just like Ivan did, he'd definitely prefer to avoid the danger.
If he really needed to kill a dragon, he could wait until he grew stronger and had absolute confidence before returning.
The Black Dragon had left too deep of an impression on him.
After a short rest, the man and cat immediately set off toward the Dragon Array Wizard Guild.
Thanks to George's ability to fly, they didn't waste much time and arrived at their destination before nightfall.
"That's the Arcane Dragon!"
Gildarts pointed to a castle below as he spoke.
The castle looked at least a hundred years old, its walls covered in cracks and moss. Above it was a massive stone sculpture of a dragon.
"They say this was the first wizard guild in the world. But all its wizards are gone, except for an old wizard named Elefseria. He's the one who issued the hundred-year quest."
With Gildarts' explanation, the two of them pushed open the doors and walked into the castle.
"Welcome to the Arcane Dragon Guild, Hero Number Ninety-Nine. I'm the Guild Master—aren't you Hero Number Ninety-Eight from three years ago?
You disappeared for so long, I thought you were dead."
As they stepped into the castle's main hall, an old wizard in a long robe, holding a dragon-shaped staff, suddenly appeared before Gildarts and George.
He was just about to introduce himself when he recognized Gildarts and stopped.
"Spatial Magic."
Seeing the old wizard teleport in an instant, George raised an eyebrow.
This world had spatial magic too, but it was extremely difficult to learn, and the teleportation range was limited—nothing like Apparition.
Phantom Lord's Master Jose could also use teleportation magic.
George had studied it as well, hoping to extract the strengths of this world's teleportation magic and merge them into Apparition.
Apparition's biggest flaw was the firecracker-like sound it made when used—not ideal in combat.
"If I hadn't been lucky, I really would've died."
Gildarts recalled his battle with the Black Dragon and took a breath, still shaken.
Elefseria's eyes lit up at that:
"So that means you've found clues about the Five Dragon Gods?"
All the mages who had taken on the hundred-year quest before had been killed by the Five Dragon Gods. So he had never received any solid information on them, and those who came after had to fumble in the dark, starting from scratch.
If this wizard had survived an encounter with the Five Dragon Gods, then at least it meant there were some clues now.
Even if it didn't work this time, gathering clues and intelligence step by step would one day allow a wizard to seal the Five Dragon Gods.
"No, I didn't find the Five Dragon Gods. I ran into a Black Dragon. He was extremely powerful—I could barely fight back.
If he hadn't decided not to kill me, I'd be dead.
Didn't you say the Five Dragon Gods were the most powerful dragons on the Northern Continent, the greatest threat of all?
So... does that mean they're even stronger than that Black Dragon?"
Gildarts shook his head and voiced the question in his heart.
At those words, Elefseria's entire body froze, his face filled with disbelief.
"Unbelievable... you actually encountered him. And survived. Your luck must truly be extraordinary."
"You know that Black Dragon?"
Gildarts exchanged a glance with George, who was perched on his shoulder, and pressed Elefseria for answers.
Elefseria did not hide anything and began speaking of the Black Dragon.
"His name is Acnologia. Over four hundred years ago, he was a human wizard. After his homeland was destroyed by dragons, he trained in Dragon Slayer Magic to seek revenge and began slaying dragons.
Eventually, he killed almost every dragon in the world. He himself turned into a terrifying Black Dragon, and was named by both surviving dragons and humans as the Dragon King, the Black Feather of Apocalypse, and the Source of Evil.
The Five Dragon Gods and some other dragons fled from the Eastern Continent to the North to escape his slaughter."
"That powerful?!"
Hearing Elefseria's explanation, Gildarts and George both widened their eyes in shock.
He had nearly wiped out all dragons in the world—so their disappearance was because of him. Were Dragon Slayers really that powerful?
"You said he was originally human, and that training in Dragon Slayer Magic turned him into a dragon?"
George could no longer hold back and asked.
Seeing George suddenly speak, Elefseria jumped in surprise.
"Who are you?"
He had thought George was just Gildarts' pet cat.
"I'm the ninety-ninth hero you mentioned."
George unleashed the magic power he had kept hidden, releasing an aura of Saint Ten level.
"A cat with magic this strong?!"
Realizing that George was also a wizard intending to take on the hundred-year quest, Elefseria was shocked but continued explaining:
"Dragon Slayer Magic is actually a special form of high-tier augmentative magic. It was created by a wizard named Irene Belserion. It allows dragon power to be added to the human body, giving them the ability to wield the power of dragons.
If this power is fully developed, one can undergo complete dragonification.
But for humans, that's not a good thing. Because becoming a full dragon means losing your human senses—taste, the pleasure of sleep, and more.
Even if you use magic to take on human form, you're still a dragon in essence."
At this point, a bitter look appeared on Elefseria's face.
"Just like me."
His body rapidly expanded—in the blink of an eye, he transformed into a giant dragon with a jewel embedded in his forehead.
"I wanted to seal the Five Dragon Gods, so I studied the magical texts Irene Belserion left behind and became a Dragon Slayer. Eventually, I became a dragon.
That's why I'm the only one left in the guild—my companions have all died of old age."
(End of this chapter)