Sand Mage of the Burnt Desert

Chapter 45

In the darkness of the desert, as Zeon laid eyes on the man, shivers ran down his spine.

The man seemed like a mirage in the desert, not quite of this world, despite standing right before him.

Zeon knew his instincts weren’t deceiving him. This was an unexplored territory untouched by human footsteps.

Perhaps the only humans who came here were Zeon and Deioden.

Even these two had struggled through battles to reach this place.

Dyoden, being an extraordinary being beyond human limits, emerged unscathed, but Zeon had faced numerous brushes with death, leaving indelible scars across his entire body.

Yet, the man before them showed no signs of wounds.

His unnaturally pale skin, visible between his clothes, with all his veins showing through, an eerie sight.

What struck Zeon the most was that the man traversed the desert night without any gear – no armor like Zeon, no sword like Dyoden.

Nevertheless, the fact that he could leisurely stroll through the desert night meant that he was a tremendously strong individual.

Such an individual appeared completely unannounced.

Zeon cautiously inquired.

“Who are you?”

“Just someone passing through the vicinity. I saw the light from afar and decided to check it out.”

“And your name?”

“Haeltoon.”

At that moment, Zeon felt the blood in his entire body freeze.

“Then, the Dra—gon?”

“I’m merely a passing guest for now. No need to be so cautious.”

The man who identified himself as Haeltoon said with a faint smile.

At that moment, Dyoden interjected.

“A lizard whelp without fear…”

“Going a bit too far there. Still, to compare a mere lizard to a dragon…”

“So, you’ve been hiding here after all.”

“Hiding? What am I supposed to be hiding from? I’ve merely been residing here for quite some time.”

Haeltoon replied nonchalantly, unperturbed by Dyoden’s intensity.

“What’s going on here then, lizard?”

“Though your address irks me a bit, being broad-minded, I’ll try to understand. Imagine someone unwanted showing up at your home. Would you stay quiet? I’m no different. Uninvited guests arrived at my place, so I came out of curiosity.”

“Uninvited guests? Us?”

Dyoden’s eyes gleamed intensely in the darkness.

Even in his frenzied gaze, Haeltoon remained unfazed.

“Isn’t it appropriate to call someone who commits such unheard-of actions an uninvited guest? Or does it carry a different meaning here on Earth?”

“You all are the uninvited guests. Lizard! Who was it that terraformed Earth and then tried to force migration?”

“We regret that a bit. But we had no choice either. Krasias, who attempted to terraform Earth, is a being above gods. At least in our world, they hold that level of status. Who could dare challenge what they did?”

“You’re a little lizard, but your tongue is quite big. You’re all the same damn lizards.”

“I’d appreciate being assessed on the same level as them here. But I could never compare myself to them. In our world, they’re on the level of a creator. They merely chose a similar facade to ours for convenience.”

“So, why are you here? To boast about how great Krasias is?”

“Your resentment and fighting spirit are truly remarkable. It makes me tremble.”

Haeltoon looked at Dyoden with amusement.

Contrary to his words, there was no tension or intimidation in his expression.

He continued.

“Think of it as a natural disaster. Like a storm or an earthquake. In that case, you might be able to live more at ease if you consider it that way.”

“So, are you suggesting I should just turn around and leave now?”

“Politely advising you to do so.”

“What ridiculous nonsense. It’s easy to talk about other people’s problems. If you were in my shoes, could you just forget and live?”

“Unfortunately, forgetfulness is not a blessing granted to me. However, letting it fade away might be possible.”

“You’re just blabbering with that filthy tongue of yours. You’re nothing but a lizard brat. Let’s see if you can still spout that idiotic nonsense after I rip out that tongue of yours.”

“Mmm! I’d rather not. While I can convey thoughts telepathically, communicating through voice is much simpler.”

Haeltoon casually approached Dyoden.

Zeon watched, holding his breath.

Haeltoon nonchalantly approached the Sand Angler carcass.

“Oh, a Sand Angler. I quite fancy those too. You could say it’s a delicacy.”

Crunch!

He reached out and tore off a chunk of the Sand Angler’s flesh, chewing it vigorously.

There was no trace of dignity in Haeltoon’s demeanor during this act.

Unconsciously, Zeon found himself speaking up.

“Uh, that’s actually mine.”

“Hmm?”

“I caught it. Shouldn’t you ask for permission before eating?”

“Haha! Is that so? My apologies!”

“If you’re really sorry, could you at least give me something?”

Haeltoon pretended to be seriously concerned about Zeon’s nonsense before opening his mouth.

“Handing over my possessions isn’t quite my style. But if you happen to survive later, find the Stone Mountain, a hundred kilometers north from here. There’s an abandoned dungeon there with some useful items.”

“A dungeon?”

“If you’ve got the knack, it won’t be too hard to find.”

“What exactly is this dungeon? How can such a thing exist?”

“Hmm! An intriguing question. You’re the first to ask me that. Simply put, the dungeon is a fragment of Kurayan. It was supposed to vanish along with Kurayan’s destruction, but remnants were crystallized in the rifts of time and space due to the terraforming and its interactions.”

“So, it’s like Kurayan’s scraps?”

“You have a knack for simplifying difficult words. That would suffice as an explanation. It could be quite useful if turned into a chimera.”

“Really?”

“No! Think of it as a treasure trove left behind between Kurayan and Earth. If you search well, there could be some valuable items.”

“And what about the creatures inside it?”

“Those too are remnants of Kurayan. Pitiful beings trapped and unable to vanish due to the rifts in time and space.”

He said so, but there was no pity in his face.

Unbeknownst to Zeon, dragons were originally such beings.

Beings standing at the pinnacle of Kurayan.

Except for Krasias, there was nothing above them, not even gods.

Even gods could only exist if there were believers.

Belief gathered, forming a divine status, allowing their existence.

So, when Kurayan was destroyed, and most races and species died, the gods would inevitably cease to exist as well.

Dragons, on the other hand, could exist as independent beings even without such elements.

Even in Kurayan, they were absolute beings, capable of being absolute beings on Earth as well.

Haeltoon continued.

“To come here after defeating my guardian, Akaruk, is quite commendable. But Akaruk was not my only guardian. In fact, he’s closer to being a failure. My true guardians are much stronger.”

“So, what are you trying to say? Lizard whelp!”

“I’ve been saying it all along, haven’t I? Just go back. I’ll forgive you then. I’m a forgiving dragon, after all.”

“Cowardly lizard bastard!”

“Hearing that over and over again makes me feel quite upset. If you blurt that out once more, you won’t be forgiven.”

“Won’t be forgiven my ass… You don’t have the courage to come forward yourself so you keep sending your puppets…”

“What?”

Swoosh!

In an instant, Dyoden swung Kreion.

Haeltoon, taken aback, tried to evade but was unable to avoid Kreion.

Thud!

With an eerie cutting sound, Haeltoon’s body was split in two.

Haeltoon’s with his upper and lower body were separated and rolling on the ground, but there was no bleeding from the severed parts.

Dyoden looked down at the dismembered Haeltoon and said.

“I expected as much. Cowardly lizard whelp. Sending fakes to babble nonsense. That’s how your kind is. That’s why I cannot forgive you more.”

“Haha! I did not expect this. Anyway, I understand your intentions well.”

Haeltoon, laughing with his severed waist, spoke.

Zeon’s expression slightly turned queasy at the eerie sight.

Lifting Kreion, Dyoden said.

“See you soon, stupid little lizard!”

Swish!

Kreion was directly plunged into Haeltoon’s head.

Only then did the vitality vanish from Haeltoon’s body.

It was the perfect death brought about by Dyoden’s ability, the Authority of Death.

Taking back Kreion, Dyoden said.

“Trying to threaten me by sending a chimera.”

“This is a chimera?”

“Yes! The cowardly lizard whelp didn’t have the courage to show up, so he sent a chimera. Kuck! Ptuu!”

Dyoden spat on the chimera.

Zeon observed the scene in silence.

* * *

“Ugh!”

As Haeltoon opened his eyes, a strange noise echoed as his scales clashed.

Shrrr!

From head to tail, spanning a staggering one hundred and fifty meters, his entire body was covered in dazzling golden scales.

Two horns adorned his head, while a pair of wings neatly folded over his torso.

His four legs were sturdy enough to support a massive underground structure.

Rising to his immense height, Haeltoon blinked.

The link with the chimera severed, dealing a significant blow to his soul.

At that moment, a woman standing before Haeltoon cautiously spoke up.

“Are you alright?”

“The connection with the chimera has been completely severed. It’s true that he possesses the Authority of Death.”

Haeltoon shook his massive head and spoke.

“The Authority of Death?”

“Yes! It’s astonishing that a mere human possesses the ability that only Krasias possessed in Kurayan.”

Haeltoon looked at the petite woman.

While her upper body was human, her lower half resembled a spider’s thorax.

The magic of combining different life forms to create a new being—chimera magic.

One of his specialties was studying various life forms and creating chimeras.

Creating chimeras was originally forbidden in Kurayan. Even dragons, positioned at Kurayan’s apex, faced sanctions for delving into chimera magic.

Therefore, Haeltoon had never dared to contemplate creating chimeras in Kurayan. But Earth was different.

Unlike Kurayan, there were no restrictions here.

Dragons that had transitioned to Earth were busy establishing their own domains, showing little interest in the lives of other entities.

This afforded Haeltoon the opportunity to indulge in his avid interest in chimera magic.

The woman standing in front of Haeltoon was called Eblis, one of the chimeras created in such a manner.

She was a fusion of human and spider, possessing the wit of a human combined with the cunning of a spider.

Thus, she was entrusted with the important task of managing his lair.

Eblis glanced cautiously at Haeltoon while bowing her head.

Haeltoon’s lair was made entirely out of gold.

The walls, ceiling, and floor were all gold.

In the aftermath of the terraforming, most of the ground turned into sand, but the mineral veins deep underground remained intact.

As a gold dragon, Haeltoon created his lair in a gold vein.

He researched chimeras to his heart’s content within the golden lair.

To create a chimera he liked, Haeltoon brought women from each race to his lair, polymorphed, and mated with them.

He combined the offspring obtained this way with monsters to create chimeras.

Eblis, like the other guardians protecting the lair, was a chimera created through this process.

He loathed stepping out into the outside world, made of sand, in contrast to his golden lair. Therefore, instead of his true self, he sent out chimeras, leading to the current situation.

“Dyoden!”

There was a liveliness in Haeltoon’s golden eyes.

He was furious with Dyoden, who dared to kill his alter form.

The chimera created from his alter form was extremely special.

Partially serving as a vessel to contain a part of his soul, it allowed him to wield the abilities of a dragon. Thus, conventional means couldn’t kill the chimera.

The severed link meant the chimera’s perfect death.

Being able to bring a perfect death to that chimera meant that he possessed the capability to bring death to him as well.

He didn’t know how a mere human had acquired such an ability, but it was undoubtedly a significant threat.

Haeltoon instructed Eblis.

“Mobilize the guardians.”