Epic of Ice Dragon: Reborn As An Ice Dragon With A System

Chapter 2441: The Beginning Of The End [22] END

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Finding himself immersed in the endless liquefied primordial essence, Drake swam as quickly as possible, careful not to overuse his power and risk damaging Yggdrasil's interior.

"Andromeda! Where are you?!"

As he called her name, Drake's glowing eyes finally located Yggdrasil's core. Almost half had turned completely red, while the other half remained silver, desperately resisting the crimson energy's advance.

That silver half was Andromeda.

"Andromeda! Are you all right?! Loki's dead! What's happening? Is it not over yet?"

"The Yggdrasil Core is about to be overtaken! I'm doing everything I can, but it's not enough!"

"Then get out of there!"

"If the core falls completely to the crimson energy, Yggdrasil will become the Crimson Queen! We can't let that happen, or the same tragedy from original Earth will repeat itself!"

"No, there's a way to stop it!"

Suddenly, Root manifested within Drake's body. His voice echoed from the nature-dragon armor on Drake's shoulder.

"Root?! What are you doing?"

"Hey, you can stop this?"

Alma and Hermes reacted instantly, sensing Root's intentions.

"This was the very reason I was reincarnated. Mother Yggdrasil gave me a second chance—and a purpose!"

"Root… Are you sure?"

Drake hesitated, but Root's resolve was absolute.

"I am! This is what I must do."

"No! Root!"

"Hey, wait!"

Alma and Hermes tried to stop him from acting recklessly. He was their friend and guardian. They couldn't lose him like this.

"I'm sorry, you two," Root said gently. "Just know… I've spent the happiest years of my life with all of you."

"R-Root!" Alma screamed as Root's soul and body emerged from Drake. Empowered by the fusion, he reached Yggdrasil's core and grasped it with his claws.

The Fate Matrix—the white core above Yggdrasil—had already shattered into tiny crystals. Root seized those as well.

"Root, what are you planning?!" Andromeda asked.

RUMBLE!

Yggdrasil trembled violently. Part of her glowing body began turning red. Dragons and titans in Helheim sensed an ominous presence rising.

"We'll sever the core before it's fully overtaken. Then I'll consume it and replace her body with my own!" Root declared.

"T-That's possible?! Can you even hold the entire world?!" Andromeda cried.

"I can. Don't worry," Root smiled. "As long as Drake and everyone else help me… we can do this!"

"Consider it done, friend!" Drake roared. "Alma, we need your Mana!"

"Damn it, Root!" Alma screamed through tears, pouring every drop of her Mana into him.

Root gazed at the core. His Authority spread across its surface, beginning to separate the two halves.

Andromeda assisted, her power surging like a silver sea that enveloped the core. Yggdrasil's faint voice echoed from within.

Drake unleashed everything he had, using his Laws to forge a new core through Root and the remnants.

"HAAAAAH!"

Surtr, Emerald, Amethyst, Triton, Hydra, Celene, Benladann, Miranda, Yuki, Yudra, Drakda, Benladra, Kate, Ruby, Charlotte, and everyone else compressed their powers in that critical moment. Their unified cries resounded across the world.

The Ancient Gods manifested, pouring all their divine strength to save their mother from destruction.

"Mother, hold on!" Jord called.

"We won't let you die!" Logi roared.

"This world cannot fall!" Aegir cried. "If only Sif were here…!"

The three Gods focused their power, yet it still felt insufficient. Yggdrasil's core trembled, destabilizing further.

"Uncles!"

Helena's voice rang out. Drake saw her rushing forward, clutching a green orb.

"S-Sif?!"

Logi, Jord, and Aegir stared in disbelief.

"I found this green orb after beating Loki! It started talking, so I figured it was important!" Helena explained.

FLUOSH!

A figure of nature and green energy emerged from the orb—long-haired, with glowing golden eyes, neither fully goddess nor god, but something in between.

"This brave girl guided me here. It's good to see you again, siblings!"

"You're back?!" Aegir shouted.

"There she is!" Logi exclaimed.

"Please help us!" Jord pleaded.

"There's little time for explanations!" Sif nodded. "Loki captured me long ago, using my powers to enhance his sorcery. Now I'm free—and with the power of Nature and Beginnings, I'll do what must be done!"

Sif, Logi, Aegir, and Jord united. Their four orbs spun together, forming a rainbow sphere overflowing with elemental power before surging into Yggdrasil's core.

They were Yggdrasil's children, the Primordial Gods. Their true forms were these crystalline orbs, lifeforms akin to the Crimson Queen, born from their mother.

FLAAASH!

Root, Andromeda, Drake, and everyone witnessed an explosion of brilliant light. The Crimson Queen's power weakened. Her scream echoed through space and time.

"AAAAHHHHHH! HUMANITY…! MUST BE PURGED! THE UNIVERSE…! MUST BE SAVED…! FANTASY… MUST DIE!"

As everyone poured their bodies and souls into the effort, Drake felt reality warp around them. Root's body wrapped around the core.

Then everyone's consciousness was drawn into a realm of twisting chaos, void, and crystals.

There, they faced her—a giant mass of red crystals faintly resembling a tall woman in a flowing red dress.

"W-What is this place?!" Alma cried.

"We're… just souls?!" Benladann gasped.

"This feels so strange!" Miranda exclaimed.

"We're inside Yggdrasil's Core!" Root announced, overflowing with power.

"Then we just have to defeat that thing to save the world, right?!" Drake cracked his soul knuckles. "No problem!"

"YOU ARE MAKING A GRAVE MISTAKE! ALL WORLDS BORN FROM HUMANITY MUST PERISH! YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND THE DAMAGE YOU'RE CAUSING TO YOUR UNIVERSE! REALITY WILL BLEED, AND EVERYTHING WILL END BEFORE YOU REALIZE IT! I WAS CREATED AS THE ANTIBODY—THE PROTECTOR OF THIS UNIVERSE, ITS GUARDIAN!"

The Crimson Queen screamed. Giant red crystals erupted everywhere, threatening to pierce and crystallize their souls, killing them instantly.

Drake touched the crystal floor, drawing on Yggdrasil's power and her children within.

"Humanity long ago found a way to counter your power, Crimson Queen—and that's Yggdrasil herself! The power of Fantasy! The ultimate Concept that brings humanity's dreams to reality!"

Drake roared. All souls behind him overflowed with power, merging into his own. Andromeda remained behind, spreading her essence through Yggdrasil's internal circuits to aid her.

"Root, let's go!"

"Very well, Drake!"

Root and Drake charged. Giant crimson crystals rose to meet them. Their claws tore through, releasing rainbow watercolor-like essence from their souls.

The power of Fantasy itself.

CRASH! CRASH! CRASH!

"NNGGUUGHHH?! F-FANTASY! IT'S A CANCER! WHY WON'T YOU UNDERSTAND?!"

The Crimson Queen screamed as her crystals shattered into white fragments and vanished. Drake and Root pressed forward, enduring strikes that weakened and tore their souls.

"Fantasy is not a cancer. It's what inspires humanity to keep moving forward! If anything, Fantasy is humanity's greatest creation—an endless realm of dreams and hopes! It embodies everything good in our world!"

"Fantasy created this wonderful world I wouldn't trade for anything—even the universe itself!"

Drake and Root's voices resounded. The entire world shook. On the surface, people watched giant red branches burst from massive cracks, only to turn white and crumble into dust.

BAAM! BAAM! BAAM! BAAM!

Their fists shattered the crystals, ripping the Crimson Queen apart and forcing her from Yggdrasil's Core while salvaging what remained.

"YOOOUUUUUU!!!"

Yet the Antibody—created solely to save the universe—refused to yield. Her purpose demanded destruction of all threats to reality's fabric.

She would not stop until fulfilled.

Her crimson crystals darkened to pitch black. Drake and Root's claws, coated in purest Fantasy essence, barely matched them.

CLASH! CLASH! CLASH! CLASH!

RUMBLE!

"Ungh?!"

"Aggh!"

Drake and Root groaned as parts of their souls crystallized and crumbled.

Yet they roared and pressed on, shoulder to shoulder, even as their souls bled and tore.

They had to succeed.

No one else could.

Within Drake and Root echoed the roars of friends and family.

Alma.

Hermes.

Benladann.

Miranda.

Benladra.

Kate.

Drakda.

Yuki.

Yudra.

Ruby.

Carmilla.

Rakasha.

Emerald.

Amehia.

Tyrannus.

Surtr.

Nadia.

Mina.

Ignis.

Leona.

Jamar.

Kraxka.

Larzak.

Hector.

Tisha.

Pekora.

Charlotte.

Hydra.

Celene.

And more—those absent lent their power through Drake's bond.

The Ice Queen.

Belle.

Helena.

Hel.

Muspel.

Ran.

Nifl.

Fafnir.

Asga.

Alf.

Vana.

Svartalf.

Midga.

Jotun.

Skadi.

Surtr.

Vilive.

Deeper still, within their Records:

Tiamat and Ymir.

Their powers converged at this moment.

Within Drake and Root's souls, Ymir's gigantic hands manifested alongside Tiamat's massive claws.

Both channeled their strength into a sphere of shifting rainbow watercolor-like essence.

Then…

"{Primordial Fantasy Embodiment}: {Echoes Of A Living Dream}!"

FLUOSH!

The sphere surged forward, clashing against the Abyssal Crimson Queen. Her darkened crystals could not withstand the overwhelming power of Fantasy.

The attack cracked her body. Her core burned with Fantasy's flames.

Crack… crack…!

"YOU'RE MAKING A GRAVE MISTAKE! YOU'RE DOOMING THIS UNIVERSE! FOOLS!!!"

Her alien voice wailed in agony as Drake and Root's fists pierced her core. Her body exploded into pale, transparent crystals.

"THIS… ISN'T OVER…! MORE LIKE ME WILL COME! YOU WILL NEVER REST…! NEVER!!!"

"Then we'll face them, no matter what! We'll find a way to save this universe without destroying everyone! Fantasy isn't necessarily a cancer—it can be the cure!"

"What… a bunch of fools… humanity is truly… admirable for its stubbornness…"

BOOOMMM!!!

Drake and Root stood victorious, fists raised as light shone brightly in the realm within Yggdrasil's core. Pale, transparent crystals rained from above, slowly dissolving into ashes.

"It's done…" Drake sighed. "I need a long vacation… Haaa…"

"It's my turn now," Root smiled, gazing at the salvaged 30% of Yggdrasil's core. "It's small, but better than nothing… The world may never be the same, Drake. But I trust you and everyone else… that you'll care for Yggdrasil and her people."

"Root…" Drake watched Root approach Yggdrasil, smiling gently.

He wanted to stop him, to find another way.

Yet it was clear this was Root's wish.

Perhaps, from gratitude and kindness, he wanted to repay Yggdrasil for everything she had given him.

"Mother Yggdrasil… Don't worry. I'm here for you… just as you once were for me. And I always will be."

"R-Root… I'm… scared…"

"It's okay… you're not alone anymore. Never again."

He embraced the core, golden and rainbow wood enveloping her as his soul merged, slowly restoring missing parts.

The core, once diamond-shaped, never regained its original form. It became an apple-like fruit with a dragon head roaring to the side.

Drake smiled as the realm within Yggdrasil's Core transformed into a lush, ancient prehistoric forest beneath a cosmic, star-filled ceiling.

Yggdrasil's voice echoed softly.

"Thank you, Drake, for everything…"

The Dragon King smiled.

"Don't mention it. We were just protecting our home. Is it stable now?"

"Yes… but I need great rest. For the next few eons… I'm sorry…"

"That's fine. Rest well, Yggdrasil. We're heading back."

Drake soared through the cosmos, leaving Yggdrasil's roots and finally returning home.

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