The Berserker’s Second Playthrough in the Game - Chapter 188



Only Krnovel

Episode 188 A flower that destroys the world (2)

The world has been destroyed.

This time, the elves of Hesiliad had no choice but to think that way. It was worth it. Yes, a scene that truly seemed like the world had been destroyed unfolded before my eyes.

Gwagwagwagwagwagwagwagwagwa-!!!

Wherever you went, flames and smoke billowed. Houses carved from stumps, native bushes and ornamental trees, stockpiled game, and even the flesh of elves—everything in the city was reduced to mere firewood.

“Gyaaaaaaah!!”

“Aaaah, save me, save me…” … Kek, kek, breath, I can’t breathe… … .”

“Ah, ah… … Oh, mother of the world, ah… … .”

Screams, screams, and wails mingled to form a chorus of destruction. The guardians of the World Tree, who had the mission to protect their people and the sacred tree, naturally did not just sit by and watch the tragedy. They somehow tried to put out the flames, but… …

– Fufuuuuu – !!

– Peeeeek, peeeeek!!

Coo coo coo coo… … .

… … It wasn’t enough.

Elephants pumping up and spraying large amounts of groundwater, flocks of birds pouring buckets of water from the sky, and rock blocks that served as firewalls only slightly slowed the spread of the fire.

That fire, which gave off a terrible sulfur smell, was no ordinary flame. Now there was only one hope of putting out the flames.

The power of the agent of the great World Tree and the World Tree Keeper.

The old elf who had just left to meet her returned to the Guardians’ side.

“Te, Tevio! What happened?”

“Did the World Water Keeper say he would help you?”

“… … .”

‘White Turtle’ Tevio shook his head heavily.

Soot darker than ash spread across the guardians’ faces.

On the other hand, Tevio showed no signs of disappointment. He only went reluctantly, but he had already given up. Ever since I saw the image of a giant towering over the trees, spreading flames furiously.

– Gurruruk, gurrururur – !!

– Khoooooooo – !!

That was the spirit of hellfire that Melissa had been secretly carrying.

That means that Melissa started this fire intentionally.

“… … .”

If she had set her mind to it and spread the flames, it would have been virtually impossible to stop them. This was how the downfall of the elves had finally come.

Perhaps because he had prepared himself for it, Tevio was not afraid but rather felt that what was coming had come. The old man, who had spent his entire life struggling and barely surviving, had already completely forgotten the word “foolishness.”

However, the struggle for survival is the privilege and duty of the living.

Even if it was a disaster that they had brought upon themselves, they were not without the right to be angry. Furthermore, even if they themselves were the first to bow their heads to the wrong world leader, what on earth could the new sprouts that emerged after them have done?

He could not continue to be a shameful teacher in front of his disciple who had bravely saved the apostle from exile. Tevio, the ‘White Turtle’, firmly opened his aged eyes.

“Hey, guys, don’t be discouraged. The reason the World Water Keeper didn’t lend a hand is because we can solve the problem with our own strength.”

“Ha, but Tevio… … . Even though all the guardians are fighting hard, the flames are growing bigger and bigger… … .”

“If there is no firewood, the fire will go out on its own. Let’s stop wasting our energy on useless things and focus on evacuating the citizens from here.”

“yes?! What do you mean by that? If that were to happen, wouldn’t the fire spread to the World Tree?”

“Don’t worry. The World Tree is protected by divine powers, and the World Tree Keeper is also watching over it. He himself has told us that there is no need to worry about the World Tree burning down.”

““… … .””

The younger guardians regained their lost hope at the white lie of the eldest guardian. Each of them wore a determined expression and began to move busily to evacuate the citizens.

Unfortunately, the expiration date of that hope was extremely short.

We have not yet escaped the disaster of fire, but the omen of another disaster has arrived.

“Uh, ha, the sky, why suddenly… … .”

“What on earth is that…?” … .”

Darkness suddenly rushing into the sky.

It was darker than the night sky and faster than dusk. It poured in from the far end of the sky and covered the entire sky in the blink of an eye. It blocked the sun, which had been mercilessly observing the earth, and turned the world into premature darkness.

“The sun… … “Is it gone?”

“It’s the end!! The end is near!!”

“Alas, Mother World-Worshiper… … . The gods of heaven… … Even the gods of heaven have forsaken us… … .”

“Te, Te, Tevio, what is this, what is this strange change… … .”

“… … .”

The elves cried out in great confusion. Even Tevio, who had maintained his composure until now, froze like a stone.

But their prediction was wrong.

This was not a sign of disaster, but rather a trick to prevent disaster.

Beneath the firmament, which was obscured by darkness and became a blind spot for the ‘watching eye’, the torrent that would finally extinguish the calamity began to emerge.

*

A land that trembles with imminent danger.

Ddd …

The tremors gradually became stronger, and an explosion burst through the ground.

―――――――――――― Kwakwakwakwakwang – !!

In an instant, the solid ground turned into a gushing wall. Rocks, pebbles, and sand were mixed together indiscriminately, defying gravity. As the fountain of rolling stones subsided, a dizzyingly vast swath of land was revealed.

What caused this strange incident was neither a natural disaster, nor the Great Magic, nor the Great Holy Law. It was simply the movement of some creature leaving its nest after a long period of seclusion.

The dragon looked up at the pitch-black sky with fierce eyes. When he realized that he was not truly punished by heaven, he let out a boiling roar from a deep sense of liberation.

– [Coo-o-o-o-o-o-!!!]

Coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo coo on!

A fierce dragon knocked down a huge tree like grass. As he spread his wings, a gust of wind blew and a majestic shadow was cast. Atop the golden behemoth, which demonstrated with its entire body that it was the most powerful creature on earth, was a bronze-skinned warrior carrying a huge axe.

The rest of the party and the recapture team are all remaining below and watching. Kadim glanced down at them indifferently.

“Then, let’s all live and see.”

A rather ironic farewell for someone leaving for hell.

There was no time for the others to react. Because Lapustran leapt straight away and soared high.

Kwaaaaaaaang – !!

A violently brilliant brilliance split the black sky in half. The recapture team was mesmerized by the absurd spectacle and had their mouths open for a long time as if they were putting it together. A great battle between the last dragon and the god of battle… … Where else in the world is there such a mythical combination?

I couldn’t stay in my thoughts forever. Lilaa clapped her hands to get everyone’s attention.

“Okay, now let’s quickly get ready and leave. “I can’t waste the time they gave me by risking their lives.”

The group quickly gathered themselves together and looked determined.

Yesterday, they finally accepted Khadim’s operational proposal.

It was an extremely dangerous proposal, but it also had great benefits in return. Everyone in the group strongly opposed it, but Khadim’s will was firm. When he even said that according to the rules of the wilderness, they should follow the will of the victor, everyone had no choice but to accept it.

The die is cast. A ‘night shadow’ has already spread across the sky, and the dragons and warriors have also left. In order to even slightly increase the probability of success in the operation, we had to act quickly.

The size of the recapture team grew considerably as the dark elves who followed Lilia joined in. Remillion, who was in charge of actual command, divided the personnel into squads yesterday. He gathered his men and representatives from each squad to review the operation one last time.

“As I said, our primary goal is to safely take Lilia to Hesiliad, where the World Tree is located. It would be better to have as many escorts as possible, but before reaching the destination, you must divide your forces and disperse attention. Therefore, we will move at once at first, then divide into squads one by one at certain points and advance individually, and when more than half of the squads reach the outskirts of Hesiliad, we will enter the destination simultaneously.”

The biggest obstacle to the mobile operation was the fires surrounding the forest and the source of those fires, the Infernos. Therefore, Remillion sent a scout party in advance to determine their current status as a top priority.

Remillion unfolded a map containing the information he had gathered.

“Here, Boseona. The Infernos are starting from Hesiliad and are gradually spreading outward, and the fires are spreading along their path. I think their goal is to burn as large an area as possible with hellfire.”

“… … .”

“As you go, there will inevitably be times when you face the fire of hell. We provided prevention measures against it, but… … Don’t be too overconfident in this. Although it blocks the heat and smoke to some extent, it will be useless if it is completely engulfed in flames.”

Remillion took out the blue necklace around his neck and showed it off. Her gathered people all wore similar things around their necks. An artifact that provides air purification and flame retardant effects in a certain range. It was ‘temporarily borrowed’ from the dragon’s treasury.

“More than anything, the worst situation we must avoid is coming face-to-face with ‘Inferno.’ With our current strength alone, we can never stand against those incarnations of disaster. If Lilia’s squad encounters Inferno… … “It would be safe to say that the operation immediately failed.”

“… … .”

“The good news is that they haven’t reached here yet, and the hellfire hasn’t spread anywhere nearby. Therefore, if you take a detour to the outskirts from a distance like this, you can minimize the risk… … “What are you doing now?”

Everyone’s eyes swung back to follow Remillion. I wonder when he left, to the peddler who had broken away from the crowd and was squatting alone.

Duncan couldn’t help but be embarrassed.

“Uh, uh… … That, that’s why… … .”

Whoosh whoosh –

The other party members were equally bewildered. Even putting aside the fact that he was gathering fallen leaves and setting them on fire, the red dagger in the vendor’s hand and the flames it was emitting looked just like the ‘hellfire’ spreading through the forest.

A cold suspicion lingered in the glare that was glaring down at him. Sensing the crisis, Duncan quickly put away his Hellfire Dagger and jumped up from his seat.

“I, I, I, Remillion… … sir? Well, I, I just did an experiment… … “Well, the fire of hell is very powerful, but isn’t it ultimately a fire that requires firewood to burn?”

“… … yes. But is that really hellfire?”

“Uh… … Yes, that’s right… … But, more than that, what I just found out is… … .”

The fire of hell is so strong that it burns the fuel quickly and extinguishes quickly. If it spreads to other fuel, it will continue to spread, but it will not catch fire again in places that have already been reduced to ashes. The spirits of hellfire are heading to the outskirts to burn more forests.

So, there is no need to go around, you can set a counter fire and burn all the firewood, and if you attack head on, you can avoid the spirit and the fire at the same time and shorten the time… …

“… … Wouldn’t you… … peel… … yo. this?”

The result was deduced by digging through a pile of fallen leaves and playing with fire while others were seriously checking the strategy.

Remillion looked at the short, shrinking man and then let out a laugh as if it was absurd.

“… … “I think I understand a little bit about why Lord Kadim took you with him.”

*

The sky is filled with brilliant golden wings fluttering.

– … … Why are you trying so hard to go to hell?

Even though all sounds were torn apart by the strong wind, the dragon’s voice still resonated majestically. The barbarian warrior stood on top of the dragon’s head, holding onto its remaining horn and silently looking down at the burning forest.

– I understand that the wizard is targeting you first since you are his former comrade. But wouldn’t it be enough to lure him to another location? If it were the real dragon, it might be different, but if a mortal like you were to go to such a sinister place… … .

“… … Didn’t I say that? It’s not just to lure you, but to provide a surefire way to win.”

Kadim’s decision was this:

In fact, it was an overinvestment of effort for him and the dragon to attack Melissa at the same time. Didn’t you say that even if the dragon were to fight alone, the win rate would be 80%? It wasn’t a bad idea for him to increase his chances by assisting in battle, but this was a much more strategically correct choice.

To prepare in case the dragon is neutralized due to ‘unknown variables’.

He had to admit what he had to admit. The current suppression force was largely dependent on the dragon. If that dragon were to be neutralized, the odds of winning would be infinitely slimmer. Even if he could muster the strength of the first round, he would never be able to subdue Melissa on his own.

The story would be different if the power of the first round was brought out, and even more power.

An in-depth method of using magic called ‘Shape’.

Among them, ‘the type that utilizes divine energy by mixing it with other energies’ was nothing short of a deadly poison to beings who used fire as their main weapon. If he could activate it somehow, he would be able to easily defeat Melissa by himself thanks to the difference in rank and absolute compatibility advantage.

The problem was that the mixed energy was none other than ‘blood energy’, and to fill it up, a huge amount of ‘devil blood’ was needed. At least a few dozen, and to see the full effect, a few hundred would be needed… … It was impossible to obtain that much devil blood in the middle of a large forest, let alone a demonic realm.

Only one.

Except in the case of entering ‘Hell’, where infinite demons are rampant.

“… … So, while I prepare the means to win in Hell, you should deal with Melissa. In fact, it would be best if you just subdue Melissa, but if the situation is not favorable, you can just stall for time and then retreat. Once I’m ready, I can easily take care of it by myself.”

– … … .

“And if Melissa follows me to Hell, the Reclaimers will be safer than ever. I see no reason why I shouldn’t go to Hell.”

Unspoken and unspoken. The dragon didn’t argue anymore. I just couldn’t understand the madness of these mortals, I was sick of it, and I just muttered in my head in a way that didn’t match my size.

“… … .”

In fact, that was not the only reason why Kadim wanted to go to hell.

From what I’ve heard, Melissa’s real downfall began after she returned from hell.

It may just be because I wandered alone in a place infested with demons and magic for decades, but… … There was also the possibility that there were other causes. Because she somehow survived the equally terrible demonic situation 300 years ago. In other words, ‘something specific I saw in hell’ may have been the decisive factor in Melissa’s deterioration and the key to the final truth that she had hidden.

So, I’m thinking of going to hell myself and see if there is such a thing… …

– Look over there, Tushin’s lackey. Your crazy co-worker has prepared a bunch of presents for you.

… … The sarcastic voice woke me up.

What the dragon said was true. Even though the sun was covered with a black curtain, brilliant fireworks were flickering like a cluster of stars before my eyes. It wasn’t that hard to figure out that those were all fireballs prepared by Melissa.

– It won’t do even a single bit of damage to the main dragon, but it might be fatal to you. If you don’t plan on going to hell sooner, you’d better prepare yourself.

“… … “You have a lot of unnecessary worries about someone being the old man in the back room, Dragon.”

Kadim twisted his mouth and tensed his muscles.