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The Ancient Ice Dragon Drakthar
The following morning, King Bawigan stood paralyzed at the threshold of the bedchamber, accompanied by the Queen. His eyes stared bleakly at his youngest son. However, due to the absolute energy barrier erected by Ken, only the Queen was permitted to step inside. Meanwhile, the King could only watch his flesh and blood from behind the translucent veil, suffocated by an abyss of helplessness.
Shortly after, the Queen, who was keeping vigil at the edge of the bed, noticed an anomaly. The Little Prince’s tiny mortal shell suddenly convulsed violently. His breaths turned ragged, harsh, and entirely erratic. Panic instantaneously swept across the visages of the King and Queen.
”What is happening to my son?!” King Bawigan exclaimed, his voice cracking from sheer panic. “Servants! Find and summon Lord Ken here this very instant!”
”As you command, Your Majesty!” a servant replied, frantically sprinting out of the chamber.
Far away in another corner of the palace, Ken’s eyes abruptly snapped open. The fluctuations of his energy seals were resonating. This… I did not anticipate its rejection backlash to manifest this swiftly, Ken mused, instantly recognizing the critical crisis afflicting the Little Prince of the Ice Kingdom.
Simultaneously, Princess Julia and Princess Diyah had just arrived at the pavilion corridor, intending to visit their youngest brother. Both of their footsteps halted upon witnessing the panic paralyzing their parents at the threshold.
”What has happened, Royal Father?” Julia asked, her visage taut with tension.
”Your brother suddenly exhibited an exceedingly alarming physical reaction… his condition has plummeted drastically, unlike his usual state,” the King answered, his jaw clenching.
Diyah looked at Julia, exchanging a gaze overflowing with anxiety. “Well… I shall sprint to summon Brother Ken myself,” she declared, preparing to pivot her body.
”There is no need, Diyah. The servant has already gone to fetch him,” the King interjected, halting his daughter’s steps.
”Oh… very well, Royal Father,” Diyah replied, wringing her fingers restlessly.
The entire core echelon of the royal family was now gathered before the chamber, waiting with bated breath for any development regarding the little prince within the dome.
The rapid thud of frantic footsteps echoed. The servant returned, his visage drenched in sweat. “Your Majesty! It turns out Lord Ken was already aware of the situation prior to my arrival. He issued an absolute edict that the Little Prince be brought to the main courtyard before the Grand Hall immediately!” he reported, gasping for air.
King Bawigan furrowed his brow. “Is it… is it time?” the King murmured, his gaze piercing through the palace walls as if weighing a colossal, monumental decision.
”And he also requested that Your Majesty bring that object out this very second! He stated that Your Majesty would undoubtedly understand. Meanwhile, Lord Ken is preparing another alchemical foundation,” the servant explained, relaying the absolute mandate.
The King closed his eyes for a heartbeat, then gave a firm nod. “Very well… Tegra, Hameng! Prepare yourselves. Bring Drakthar to the courtyard right now,” the King commanded his two fiercely loyal guardian generals.
”Hah?! What are you commanding, Your Majesty?!” General Tegra asked, his eyes bulging in absolute disbelief upon hearing that taboo name spoken.
Drakthar… That name… I feel like I’ve heard the myth of that name from ancient literature, Diyah mused, her brow furrowing as she scoured her memories.
”There is no time for lengthy expositions now, Tegra. You will comprehend his intent later. Dragging that entity out of its confinement will consume time, so move as swiftly as the wind!” the King decreed with a tone that accepted zero defiance.
”As you command, Your Majesty!” General Tegra answered in unison with Hameng. Both instantaneously bolted to execute the lunatic mission.
The royal family and the vanguard of guards hastily relocated to the open courtyard before the Grand Hall. Upon arriving, General Tegra and General Hameng could be seen carving a colossal-scale Voidgate Rune pattern upon the expanse of ice. They were assisted by three other high-ranking officers, including General Bonar. Every soldier stationed around the perimeter held their breath, consumed by a concoction of curiosity and dread regarding the summoning ritual being prepared.
General Lamarr, who had just arrived from the western sector, stood petrified at the edge of the courtyard, his gaze brimming with awe. Hah… what kind of ritual are they preparing with that colossal Voidgate Rune? What kind of monster do they intend to summon into the heart of the palace? his mind churned, saturated with suspicion.
Once the ancient runic pattern was carved to absolute perfection, the generals immediately assumed their respective positions at every anchor node of the formation.
”Everyone, brace yourselves! Grip the seal chains with the absolute entirety of your strength!” General Tegra commanded, tightly clenching the energy chains tethered to the epicenter of the formation.
”We are ready!” the generals roared in unison, channeling Qi into their veins.
”Concentrate your energy… I am initiating it now,” Tegra continued.
A bluish-white luminescence detonated, erupting from the core of the Rune, manifesting a pillar of energy that pierced the ashen clouds. An astronomically extreme chill froze the ambient air surrounding the courtyard. From within that vortex of dimensional distortion, the silhouette of a legendary Star Monster slowly manifested—the Ancient Ice Dragon, Drakthar.
The mythological beast growled with profound depth. The resonance of its roar violently shook the ribcages of every mortal who heard it. Its colossal mortal shell radiated a glint as sharp as frozen crystals, refracting the pale sunlight. The moment it thrashed its massive, spiked tail, the air encasing the arena quaked furiously, as if the very fabric of space was on the precipice of being torn asunder.
”Hold the chains! Lock down its position! Do not let it advance a single step!” General Tegra roared while balancing the pull, desperately attempting to control the guards gripping the ends of the Runic chains.
It is true… That is the Ancient Ice Dragon, the secret guardian heirloom of the Ice Kingdom. Royal Father used to tell me fables about it when I was a child, but I never fathomed its size would be this terrifying, Julia thought. Her eyes widened, staring at the colossal beast thrashing beneath the binding chains of light.
”Th-that… that is an Emperor-Level Star Monster! Tier Ten!” Diyah exclaimed, her voice pitching up in absolute shock as she noticed the ten luminous star speckles radiating blindingly upon the monster’s forehead.
Julia turned her head swiftly toward her father, her visage saturated with a gripping curiosity. “Yes… you are correct, Diyah. But… for what purpose has this apocalyptic monster been dragged out, Royal Father?” she asked anxiously, casting a fleeting glance at the rampaging dragon.
King Bawigan drew a long, heavy breath, his gaze reflecting an abyssal exhaustion. He looked at his daughter and slowly shook his head. “Only Lord Ken possesses the capability to elucidate this scenario. We must simply await his arrival,” the King stated with a heavy tone, as if he himself were gambling the absolute destiny of his entire kingdom upon the youth.
Drakthar roared in absolute fury. It launched its gargantuan draconian head forward, attempting to tear the air, but the Runic chains snapped taut and restrained it with loud, magical clangs. Every time its colossal claws slammed into the earth, the ground quaked, and shards of ice erupted into the air like shattered glass.
Diyah watched in awe from a safe distance, her hands subconsciously clenching tight as she witnessed the oppressive pressure of the Dragon’s might. “Wah… its magnitude is this massive… and its destructive yield… this is truly beyond mortal logic,” she murmured, the hairs on the back of her neck standing on end.
The beast unleashed another ear-shattering roar, violently flapping its colossal ice wings. A howling tempest swept the courtyard, forcing several soldiers to hold their breath and seek cover from the blast of that primordial power.
Although the Chains and Runes shackled the Dragon’s body, the savage beast was still capable of thrashing wildly. It writhed left and right, attempting to exploit a weak point in its containment formation. The energy chains groaned and shrieked beneath the pull of the draconian muscles, forcing General Tegra and Hameng to wrack their brains and continuously adjust their martial stances lest they be dragged away.
”Its physical strength is astronomically more insane than I ever envisioned,” General Bonar commented while concentrating his Qi, staring in horror at the violently vibrating chain in his grasp.
Diyah drew a deep breath, her eyes unblinking as she tracked the dragon’s feral movements. “This… this is tantamount to trying to restrain a hurricane with bare hands,” she whispered softly.
Drakthar growled once more. Its serpentine body contorted, attempting to roll and snap the chains binding it. A lethal blue luminescence reflected off its scales in every direction, instantly transmuting the entire courtyard to appear as if it were blanketed by a razor-sharp, glittering ocean of ice.
The Ancient Ice Dragon was relentless. It jerked its body to the right with absolute brutality. Dust and chunks of marble flooring flew into the air every time its claws gouged the earth. Every occupant of the courtyard became a silent witness to how this primordial force of nature was being restrained by mortal human bodies armed merely with strategy and ancient Runes.
Diyah gasped as the dragon’s head swiveled rapidly in her direction. She could palpably feel a freezing chill piercing straight to her bone marrow from every exhale of the monster’s breath. “I have never stood this close to an entity this overwhelmingly powerful,” she said, holding her breath and taking a step backward.
”Everyone, fall back! Maintain a safe distance from that monster’s reach!” King Bawigan commanded with a heavy baritone, sweeping his gaze to warn the spectators and soldiers in his vicinity. “Even though General Tegra and Hameng are holding it at the vanguard, their muscular strength alone will not be able to endure without the support of those Runic chains. So remain absolutely vigilant!”
Everyone exchanged panicked glances; a few swallowed hard with extreme difficulty. In the epicenter of the arena, General Tegra and Hameng could be seen grinding their teeth. The veins on their necks bulged dangerously as both their hands tightened their death grips upon the chains of light that were slowly beginning to drag their mortal shells.
Dammit! Exactly how long must we act as sacrificial lambs to restrain this lunatic monster?! General Tegra growled inwardly. His jaw hardened as tough as cosmic steel, while cold sweat began to seep and drip from his temples.
”Your Majesty! What is our next course of action regarding this dragon?!” General Hameng shouted between ragged breaths. His eyes occasionally darted in horror toward the wildly thrashing draconian maw right above his crown.
”Hold your positions! We await the arrival of Lord Ken,” King Bawigan answered, striving to remain tranquil, though his gaze could not completely mask his profound anxiety.
That youth… is absolute insanity! What in the world does he intend to do to this apocalypse-bringing dragon? Hameng mused, swallowing a bitter lump in his throat.
Tegra’s gaze suddenly sharpened. He turned his head toward General Lamarr, who had merely been standing paralyzed at the outer edge of the Runic circle all this time. “Lamarr! Get over here immediately and assist us in channeling energy! What exactly are you waiting for over there?!” he barked harshly.
”A-ah… Y-yes, very well!” Lamarr replied with a stuttering tone. He stepped closer with a deathly pale visage. His heart hammered violently against his ribs as he felt the dense aura of death radiating from the dragon’s scales.
”Your Majesty! How long must we wait for him?! This dragon has been imprisoned within an isolation dimension for two hundred years! It will not cease its rampage after inhaling the air of true freedom once more!” Tegra complained, his voice strained by the crushing weight of the chains that threatened to snap his arms. The luminous chain in his grasp vibrated with increasing ferocity, nearly slipping away.
”Patience, everyone! Hold on just a little longer,” the King urged, pumping the resolve of his vanguard, even though his own grip upon his sovereign staff tightened until his knuckles turned bone-white.
Brother Ken… where exactly are you? Please hurry here, Diyah thought, staring anxiously toward the courtyard’s entrance gates.
BOOM! A devastating tremor echoed, churning the stomachs of everyone present as the dragon violently thrashed once more and slammed its massive body into the earth. The ice tiles surrounding the courtyard instantaneously fractured, forging a long fault line that snaked out to cleave the foundation of the Grand Hall’s walls. The dragon’s breath expelled a thick, freezing mist, crystallizing the ambient air and causing the temperature to plummet to a lethal nadir.
”Hold on tight! Do not let go!” General Tegra roared. Both of his arms tensed rigidly, his veins popping out as if ready to detonate under the sheer burden. The magical chains binding the dragon’s mortal shell ground together; every single jerk from the monster nearly ripped the generals’ arms from their sockets.
”I am not certain this formation will hold out much longer!” Lamarr chimed in, panicked, his hands trembling violently. Sweat drenched his temples despite the freezing aura mercilessly ensnaring his body. He had never felt this intimately close to death.
Drakthar roared again. Its primordial voice boomed, shattering the air, causing the soldiers’ ears to ring painfully. Its pair of colossal wings flapped wildly, manifesting a lethal blizzard that devastated the architectural layout of the courtyard. Ornamented ice pillars toppled and shattered into a million pieces.
”The Runic formation is beginning to fracture! Look at the ground beneath your feet!” Hameng exclaimed in horror, pointing at the colossal Runic pattern beneath their boots, which was now glowing erratically. Its lines of white light began to flicker wildly, as if its containment energy had breached its maximum absolute tolerance limit.
If this Runic formation shatters, it won’t merely be this courtyard that is leveled to the ground, but the entire structural foundation of this palace could be pulverized into ice dust! Tegra panicked inwardly, channeling every last drop of his remaining Qi into the chains.
”Your Majesty! We have hit our absolute limit! We cannot hold it back any longer!” Hameng cried out in sheer despair. His eyes widened in absolute horror as one of the primary anchor chains snapped with a deafening boom akin to a cannon detonation.
Feeling its restraints loosen, the Ancient Ice Dragon raised its head high. Its pair of eyes radiated a savagely blazing blue luminescence, reflecting off the ice surface like flashes of soul-freezing lightning.
”Royal Vanguard! Immediately form a defensive barricade at the front lines!” the King roared with a panicked tone, acutely aware that the apocalypse was looming right before their eyes.
Julia forced her legs to step backward, her heart hammering wildly. Heavens… Is this the absolute power level of an Emperor-Tier Star Monster? Even the combined absolute might of the generals and a legendary Runic formation is insufficient to subjugate it! Diyah held her breath, her gaze refusing to tear away from the gates. Brother Ken… I beg of you, hurry!
”Everyone, reinforce your martial stances! If even one more chain snaps, this monster will break loose entirely and butcher every single one of us!” General Tegra shrieked, his voice hoarse against the howling ice storm.
Drakthar unhinged its gargantuan maw, inhaling the air violently. A split second later, it unleashed a torrential blizzard of pure ice from the abyss of its throat. That explosive, freezing breath slammed into the vanguard of soldiers stationed outside the formation circle. Without even the opportunity to scream, dozens of soldiers froze instantaneously, transmuting into ice statues before shattering into fragments, collapsing the remnants of the magical barrier erected by the vanguard.
”Protect His Majesty!” General Bonar roared. He abandoned his chain, leaping in front of King Bawigan and expanding his energy shield to parry the lethal ice shards that shot forward like a rain of daggers.
Amidst the absolute zenith of that chaos and despair, the sound of exceedingly tranquil yet phenomenally heavy footsteps echoed from the direction of the gates. A man draped in a majestic, pitch-black robe strolled slowly, cleaving through the blizzard without a microscopic shred of hesitation.
”Brother Ken!” Diyah exclaimed, her visage blooming with an unfathomable smile of relief, even though her voice was nearly drowned out by the dragon’s roars.
Ken halted his steps. He slowly tilted his head up, staring directly into the raging eyes of the primordial dragon with a gaze as frigid as eternal ice.
”What exactly are you doing here, Old Friend?” Ken spoke flatly.
However, that simple sentence was accompanied by an apocalyptic detonation of Giant Gold aura that crushed the entire courtyard. Its absolute pressure instantaneously froze space and time, causing every mortal and the rampaging primordial monster in that domain to freeze rigidly in absolute silence.