"Huff... Huff..."
Arthur panted heavily, his chest heaving. His body was covered in a dense web of injuries, blood trickling from various cuts and claw marks.
But—
The three CP0 agents before him now lay motionless on the ground, undeniably, completely dead.
"Tch."
With a low grunt, Arthur slowly retracted from his transformed state. His bloodlust faded, his mind gradually returning to clarity. Only once he steadied his breath and calmed his inner fury did he allow himself a moment of rest.
"Ugh..."
Rubbing the space between his brows, Arthur muttered wearily,
"Damn it... Every time I enter that state, it's the same. I still can't control it."
"Until I fully master the Red Dragon bloodline, I can't afford to use that form lightly."
Shaking his head, Arthur didn't bother with the surroundings any longer. He turned and sprinted off toward the rendezvous point.
Time was running out.
From the start of the mission until now, nearly three and a half hours had passed. While the total allotted time was six hours, the actual safe window was only four. Any more delay would spell serious trouble.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Arthur raced through the terrain and soon arrived at the designated meeting point.
Waiting there, arms crossed and grinning, was none other than Edward.
"Gurararara!"
The moment he saw Arthur, Edward laughed heartily.
"Arthur, you brat! Of course you'd be the first one back!"
One glance at Edward was enough for Arthur to tell: this guy had clearly gained a lot of loot.
But just like Arthur, he had already stashed it away using some method and left the Red Line unburdened.
"Wind King's Hammer!"
"Quake!"
Without a word, the two joined forces, wiping out the incoming enemy patrols in a single synchronized strike.
Crack!
Landing back on the ground, Arthur maintained a steady breath. His coat and shirt had been completely torn apart—he stood bare-chested, muscles flexed and blood-streaked.
Buzz...
With a sweep of his magic, Arthur summoned his knight's armor to cover himself.
Couldn't go around shirtless forever—that'd just be embarrassing.
"GURARARA!"
As the dust cleared and enemies were crushed, Edward looked at Arthur's actions and laughed again.
"Looks like you ran into some serious beasts, huh?"
Arthur nodded.
"Three CP0 agents. What about you, Edward? Didn't you run into any?"
That's what puzzled Arthur. Surely Edward should've encountered CP0 as well.
After all, Rocks had sent six people, which implied there were at least five Admiral-level enemies on the Red Line. Arthur had assumed that Shiki's target was originally meant for him, but Shiki had confidently insisted on going, and Arthur hadn't bothered to argue.
"Yeah, I did."
"But I took care of it."
Edward said it bluntly, almost arrogantly.
"That guy was strong—no doubt about it. But I beat him. Shame he managed to escape."
Arthur raised an eyebrow. Damn... so this is Edward in his youth?
Even though Edward hadn't yet reached his peak, he was already this monstrous?
If that CP0 agent had been strong enough to match Vice Admiral or even Admiral-level, and Edward defeated him in about an hour, then...
"???"
Arthur froze.
He'd spent over three hours just dealing with his own battle.
And Edward had already wrapped up his fight in nearly half the time.
Which only made one thing clear: Edward was absurdly overpowered.
Shaking off the thought, Arthur told himself not to let the system make him stupidly arrogant.
This world was full of terrifying entities. Just because he had advantages didn't mean others were weak.
And right then—
"Edward?"
"Arthur?"
Three more voices called out.
Ochoku, John, and Silver Axe had returned.
But—
Compared to Arthur, the three of them looked much worse for wear.
Their wounds were obvious. Their auras were unstable. Clearly, they were hurt badly.
"Looks like you guys... failed?"
Edward didn't hold back, asking bluntly.
"..."
The three fell silent, their expressions sour. The silence said it all—they had failed.
And honestly, it wasn't surprising.
They had chosen to attack the God Valley, the city of the Celestial Dragons.
If it were that easy to plunder, it wouldn't be called the sanctuary of the world's rulers.
Arthur, Edward, and Shiki had all chosen different targets.
But only those three—Ochoku, John, and Silver Axe—went after God Valley.
Heh...
Everyone knew how ridiculously wealthy God Valley was. But wealth means nothing if you don't survive long enough to enjoy it.
The fact that the three of them were even alive was already a miracle.
"Huff…"
Ochoku let out a long breath and spoke:
"We underestimated them. God Valley is crawling with elites. If we hadn't reacted quickly—and if the defenders hadn't chosen to stay within the city walls—we probably wouldn't have made it out at all."
Silver Axe added grimly:
"If they had pursued us... we might not be the only ones who failed. We all would've been in danger."
Then—
"Run!"
"RUN!!!"
A hoarse, panicked roar echoed in the distance.
Shiki came flying in, his entire body a mess. He wasn't critically wounded, but he was clearly battered and exhausted.
Compared to the other three—
Shiki looked even worse.
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