Let’s Go Together – Chapter 154

At the Brink of Humanity’s Destruction

It was a dark cave.

All around, candelabras burned with mana-infused flames, casting light that only barely illuminated the deep inner sanctum. And there, far within the cave, the owner of this lair—the Gold Dragon—lay asleep.

At first glance, it looked like a massive mound of gold, as large as a hill. But on closer inspection, one could see it subtly expanding and contracting in rhythm with its breathing. Hoo… hoo… The dragon’s deep breaths reverberated throughout the cavern.

Then it happened.

Thud. Something struck the shield. The dragon had deployed a shield over the cave and the vast forest surrounding it. Though the impact occurred far from the cave itself, the dragon instantly sensed the disruption. His tightly shut eyes flew open in an instant.

His irises glowed brilliantly in a radiant golden hue, the slit pupils characteristic of reptiles standing out starkly.

He had just been about to fall into a deep sleep, but whatever it was that had been nagging at him had disturbed his rest once too often. Sleep wasn’t a necessity for dragons anyway. It made more sense to resolve the disturbance first, then return to slumber.

The dragon slowly raised his massive body from the cavern floor. Each time his claws touched the ground, the cave quaked. Stretching his vast wings, he launched toward the exit above and soared out of the cave within seconds. Bright skies and the refreshing outdoor air greeted him, a sharp contrast to the cave’s darkness.

As he flew across the wide sky, he narrowed his large eyes. Whatever had touched the shield, he didn’t know, but it was irritating.

The dragon, speeding through the air, abruptly spread his great wings downward and halted midair. Then, with a sudden dive, he descended. His wings kicked up gusts so powerful that trees in the forest bent sideways, and loose dirt scattered in every direction.

As his massive feet touched down in a clearing, they began to shift—becoming human legs.

It would’ve been foolish to move through the forest in that gigantic form. Beginning from the legs, golden particles of mana swept over him, and in an instant, his body transformed into that of a human.

He was a man with hair and eyes the exact color of his golden dragon scales.

With long, determined strides, he pushed through the forest and approached the border of his shield, confirming its boundary with his own eyes.

Hmm? Just as he was about to step forward again, he found his path blocked by a few rabbits.

When he looked down, a mottled-fur rabbit raised its head and twitched its nose at him. Tilting his head curiously, the dragon asked,

“Why?”

But the rabbits only perked up their long ears in silence. Normally, animals like these would instinctively follow his steps so as not to get in his way.

He tilted his head side to side, puzzled, then tried to move again.

Thud. A group of deer—several stags and does with large antlers—had come up beside him.

The dragon stared intently into the deer’s deep black eyes.

The deer began nudging his waist and torso with their wet noses. The moment he tried to move toward the shield, their nudging grew more insistent.

Somehow, animals from all over the forest began to emerge, blocking his path one by one.

Ha… The dragon finally understood what they were trying to do and let out a faint, exasperated chuckle. Gently patting one of the deer’s backs, he murmured,

“You’re worried about me, aren’t you?”

Worrying about a dragon… That’s the most useless thing in the world.

He bent at the waist with a faint smile and tapped each of the rabbits near his feet once.

Bark!

A silver-furred wolf following behind him let out a loud bark. It must’ve been sprinting hard to catch up after watching the dragon take off.

The gathered rabbits jerked their heads up at the sound, frozen in place. As the soft patter of the wolf’s approaching paws drew closer, the rabbits and deer glanced around nervously and finally stepped aside.

Only then did the dragon have a clear path out beyond the shield. He met the wolf’s eyes in silent gratitude.

The large-bodied wolf, as if understanding that look, stood tall in solemn stillness before sitting down. Just like the deer and rabbits, this one was worried about him too.

The dragon scratched his golden hair with an awkward hand.

“It won’t take that long.”

The wolf gazed up at him with clear eyes before lying completely flat on the ground. Recognizing that it intended to wait right there, the dragon gave a nod and turned around.

The shield stood just before him.

Had any ordinary person—one who couldn’t use magic—looked on, they wouldn’t have noticed a thing and would’ve walked right past, unaware of the dragon’s lair. That’s because he’d cast a wide-range enchantment to ensure that no human would even want to approach.

Then it happened.

Thudathudathudat!—the sound of irregular, frantic footsteps.

Boom!

A loud, explosive noise rang out right after.

The demonic beast, cloaked in black mana, darted toward the dragon like a bolt of lightning—only to slam into the shield once again with a loud crash. It seemed that this creature was the very reason the dragon’s slumber had been disturbed. With a sharp snort of laughter, the dragon muttered,

“How pitiful. Can’t even tell front from back, can it?”

Whether that thing could even be called a living being was questionable.

It was a monster that leapt at the living and drained their life force in an instant. Since it originated from the Demon Realm, the odds of encountering one on this continent were incredibly slim. The term “wandering soul” fit it almost too well.

There was nothing worth finding beyond the shield, and yet it kept throwing itself against it, repeating the same futile action.

With a cold stare toward the creature, the dragon stepped out of the shield without hesitation. While the monster flailed and slammed into the barrier with desperate force, the shield recognized the dragon as its master and allowed him to pass through effortlessly.

The moment he stepped outside, the faint scent of blood tickled the dragon’s nose. It wasn’t animal blood. A human?

He extended his hand toward the creature still charging from afar. Best to take care of that thing first.

Clenching his outstretched hand into a loose fist, he raised it briefly—then flicked it downward as though smashing something in the air beneath his knuckles.

A sharp whoosh sliced through the air.

Then, directly above the charging monster’s torso, the attack manifested.

KWA-A-AANG—!

The black beast was instantly flattened without a sound. Like it had been crushed beneath an enormous boulder, its previously bloated body pancaked to the ground like paper.

Dark mana seeped out from the splattered remains like crushed juice.

It was exactly like the creature he had once seen in the forest with Mikhail.

Expressionless, the dragon slowly approached the smeared remains. He bent slightly, reaching out a finger toward the black mana—

“…Adrian?”

Hmm? That voice sounded strangely familiar.

At the unexpected call, the dragon tilted his head with a faint smile.

It was Kyle D’Baicia, whom he had met back in Basamiel. Time had passed since their academy days, and Kyle had grown into a fully-fledged adult man.

As he reached toward the dragon, a sharp pain from one of his injuries made him wince and groan. But the wound wasn’t serious enough to matter right now.

The golden-haired man standing before him—an almost unreal presence—was unmistakably who Kyle thought he was.

He hadn’t seen him in years, not since the incident during their field expedition. Yet the man’s appearance looked exactly the same as it had during his time at Basamiel Academy.

“…You’re Adrian Heather, right?”

There was a brief silence after Kyle’s desperate-sounding question.

A deer, now calmly pressing its head against Adrian’s waist, was gently nudging him, clearly relieved now that the monster had vanished and the way past the shield was safe.

Adrian stroked the deer’s fur absentmindedly, then finally responded after a short pause.

“Not right now.”

It wasn’t a lie. Kyle practically shouted, incredulous at the absurd response.

“You are Adrian!”

At the loud outburst, Adrian rubbed his ear in annoyance. The deer beside him perked up its ears as well.

“Yeah, I am.”

Adrian finally gave in and acknowledged it with a blunt answer and an unamused expression.

“Been a while. So, later.”

With that cold farewell, Adrian turned as if to leave. Kyle, flustered by the sudden brush-off, shouted again.

“You try walking away like that—just try it, I dare you!”

An empty threat, not worth the breath it took to say. Adrian ignored him and moved to step back inside the shield. That’s when Kyle called out,

“You have no idea what kind of state this continent’s in right now, do you?”