Chapter 195: One Light

Clarisse’s voice echoed through the mountains before fading away, leaving an eerie silence behind.

The "goddess" rolled her eyes when the one she had called showed no sign of appearing. Instead, her gaze settled on the young dragon, who looked as though he had committed the greatest crime imaginable, ready to attack her at any moment.

"I suppose I’ll deal with this myself and go wake him up," she muttered.

But before the situation could escalate, adult dragons began appearing one after another. None of them could pretend they hadn’t heard someone shouting for one of their Pillars and simply remain where they were.

"This place never changes. No matter when I come, I’m always welcomed the same way."

"Are you from Valvradis? Why did you come all the way here looking for Idris?"

"Why is it that every time you see a human, you assume they’re from there?" Clarisse replied with a grimace, annoyed that her own empire wasn’t nearly as well known over dragons.

"It’s the closest nation to Dkadror. Reix, stand down. This woman isn’t ordinary."

Clarisse raised an eyebrow, the corners of her lips curling upward when she heard the older dragon describe her that way. The younger one, Reix, clicked his tongue before exhaling a stream of fire onto the ground, barely visible at such an altitude.

"Idris has been sleeping for days ever since he returned from outside. If you wish to speak with one of the Pillars, we can see if any of the others are available."

She narrowed her eyes, her arrogance fading slightly. Compared to humans, the number of dragons who had broken through the Fourth Limit was considerably higher. Not to mention they had both Idris and that woman among their ranks...

Maybe they know something about the dragon currently in Azure, she thought as she studied the dragons surrounding her.

"Are any of you currently outside the Dragon Continent?" she asked.

"Many of our kind are. We don’t forbid anyone from leaving. Dragons are free, human."

Clarisse frowned.

Doubt flickered across her face.

She knew that among the dragons were members of that woman’s faction, those who weren’t particularly pleased with what they were searching for.

She carefully examined the dragons before her before asking again:

"But... is there anyone in particular whose presence outside would be unusual? I heard one of you was in Azure..." she whispered the last part.

A sharp click echoed through the crowd.

The dragon who had been speaking the entire time transformed into a human and shot a deadly glare toward whoever had made the sound.

Then he turned back to Clarisse.

"We haven’t heard anything about that. And anything related to the Sea Race is a sensitive subject around here. If your business involves them, you’d be better off leaving soon. Not everyone agrees with Idris—or even remains neutral."

"Even some of the Pillars might consider your presence... unwelcome," he added, realizing she still hadn’t understood that leaving was in her best interest.

Clarisse hadn’t come all this way just to leave empty-handed.

"IDRIS!" she shouted again, standing firm against the annoyed stares of the dragons.

Golden eyes snapped open inside one of the mountain caves, veins bulging across the dragon’s temples and forehead. His expression was sluggish, but thoroughly irritated at having been awakened.

Idris had finally reacted.

He slowly lifted his enormous body, completely unhurried, muttering,

"What the hell...?"

Despite his drowsiness, his senses had caught every disturbance outside.

"Can’t you keep your mouth shut for one damn second, Clarisse?" Idris’s dry, rough voice echoed as he emerged from the cave, his colossal silhouette gradually coming into view beneath the daylight.

"So you finally got your lazy ass moving. I was about to find out what roasted lizard tastes like," she replied without the slightest hesitation.

"You’re impossible, woman. As if you’d actually dare lay a finger on anyone from my race. Isn’t that why you’re here? Did you say there’s a dragon in Azure?"

Clarisse bit the inside of her cheek before answering through gritted teeth.

"That’s right..."

"I don’t know which idiot decided to go there at a time like this, but it wasn’t anyone I personally sent, woman. So stop making a scene here and go back to your precious dream empire where everyone keeps showering you with compliments."

"Don’t come complaining if I end up killing one of yours, Idris. I did my part by coming here to ask," she declared as she turned around, unwilling to waste any more time.

Behind her, Idris’s voice could barely be heard as he questioned the dragons gathered around him...

...

A few days earlier, on the shores of the Weaver Empire, the closest coast to the sunken city of Azure.

A woman in a maid’s dress, her shoulder-length hair swaying gently, walked along the beach with a worried expression.

Her footsteps stretched across the vast expanse of sand until she stopped before the sea. She took a deep breath, let out a quiet sigh, and slowly stepped into the water.

Adela did not cultivate aura, and using mana alone to adapt her body for such a journey would not be easy.

It was possible.

But it wouldn’t be easy.

At that moment, she truly wished she had stopped to plan this better with Elizabeth...

After spending an entire day beneath the sea without any sign that she was getting closer to her destination, that feeling only grew stronger.

She had reached the Ninth Circle during all this time. What would once have seemed unimaginable now filled her with quiet pride.

Yet it still wasn’t enough.

She needed to grow stronger if she wanted to satisfy her Master, and now it seemed becoming stronger was also necessary simply to reach him...

Adela continued onward, enduring the crushing pressure and exhaustion with the little oxygen she could extract from the water at such depths. Fortunately, things improved somewhat once she reached Azure’s waters.

The darkness of the ocean, however—something that would have been an absolute obstacle for others—was a source of strength for her.

Her primary attribute resonated more powerfully there than ever before.

Days passed, and it seemed she might actually make it.

But exhaustion continued to pile up.

Her clothes had remained soaked for what felt like an eternity, and she no longer had enough mana to keep herself protected. She pressed forward through sheer determination alone.

Her vision blurred.

Her arms and legs could barely move anymore.

They no longer wanted to keep going.

They wanted to surrender to the darkness that had always accompanied her.

Yet the only light in her life continued to appear within her mind.

"Master" she whispered, her life slowly fading away.