The connection to the gods is broken.
It was the first thing the Northern Army recognized upon arriving in this world.
"Your Highness, my connection to the gods has been lost——"
"I can still use some of the holy arts, but it depends on what's left in my body."
The people of Lionheart, the knights, have been serving the gods and enjoying their miracles since time immemorial.
No one could have imagined the loss they felt when they realized their connection to the gods had been severed.
Even Karina, for now, could not hide her sense of loss at the lack of divinity. The gods-─
"Do not lose sight of what we must do. We have pursued them all the way here for vengeance."
Karina scattered darkness to envelop them with her vast power. Her vessel, as a Holy Knight, still contained an overflow of power.
I don't know if it will last long enough to defeat the demons, or the Archduke of Lust, but──
[Yes, the hedge of holy power that protected you is gone, the last remnants of it dissipating.]
This was not lost on the Dragon King, who had been stirring in the heart of the Grand Dukes for a very long time.
* * * * *
[Crunch—!]
The battle against Archduke Kangyou and his legions was a desperate one, but it ended in victory for Karina and her legions.
"Grand Duchess Karina has slit the throat of Archduke Kangyou!"
"Victory! Victory to the Lionhearts of Dragonia!!!"
"Glory to Ventasis!!!"
Though it took many sacrifices, we were able to annihilate the Archduke of Lust and his legions. Hereby——.
"Your Excellency, the Empress will be pleased!"
Delvoske, the Grand Duchess longtime butler, prostrated himself before Karina, tears streaming down his face.
The Great War against the Demons had cost them many loved ones.
Countless knights have died at the hands of Malus, the Chaos Lord summoned by the Emperor of the Empire after sacrificing three million of his subjects, and entire continents have been ravaged by demonic overlords such as the Archduke of Lust, the Archduke of Corruption, the Archduke of Slaughter, the Archduke of Sloth, and the Archduke of Wisdom.
After so many deaths, she finally succeeded in getting her revenge.
"Now— I must find a way to return to Lionheart——"
What happened to the Lionheart King, what happened to her father, and did the kingdom eventually fall?
It's not that they don't know what happened after they left, which is why they abandoned the Alliance and traveled to the Otherworld to fight the Great Battle.
If Lionheart has already been destroyed by the demons——
'The next vengeance is only beginning.'
On that day, the day they vowed to give their souls to Ventasis, all the Northern armies swore to burn themselves in the fire of vengeance to destroy evil, down to the last man.
"Gather the troops. Find a way home."
After a long day of fighting, fatigue set in. I'll rest for a while, then return to Lionheart.
-Waaaahhhhhhhh!
At that time the patrols reported that enemy forces appeared from behind.
"Your Excellency, we're under attack!"
"Is it the remnants of the demons?"
"No. They are the flags of the Seven Kingdoms! They have betrayed us!"
"——"
Immediately after destroying the Demon Archduke's legions, the seven kingdoms of this world betrayed Karina and the Northern Army in unison.
Surprisingly, the Northern Army was unconcerned by this betrayal, for to them, the honor of a nobleman and the integrity of a king was a matter of course.
It's not that they ignored the possibility of treachery per se. They just didn't expect it to happen, and they didn't expect it to be so united.
Those who have lived their lives in faith, honor, and integrity are, in a sense, hothouse plants.
-Lord Gaspar!
-Protect the Archduke!
One by one they fall.
Exhausted from the clash with the Demon Legions, the Northern Army slowly crumbled before the 850,000-strong army.
Karina had used up all of the holy power she had left after moving to the Otherworld.
The only thing keeping her alive is a powerful artifact called the Dragon's Heart, which generates its own magic.
'It's dangerous. If I keep using dragon power like this, I'm going to die——'
She was already using the Dragon's Heart well beyond its optimal maintenance period. It is also a period that takes into account the purification effect caused by holy power.
However, her holy power was already depleted, and she had nothing but overflowing dragon magic. If she continued like this, she would inevitably become a dragon.
But
"I'll take the lead. Cover me."
"Your Excellency!?"
Karina hesitated, then abused her vast magical power instead of her holy power. Enemies who met her gaze died instantly, and the energy in her sword swept through the troops.
She had only used the overflowing power of the Dragon's Heart, and yet the battlefield was being overwhelmed by her.
How could she not use it, for every time she pushed, hundreds of Northerners were spared.
'I must send them back. To their homeland—!'
That is my duty as Archduke of Dragonia, to represent the North. One must be willing to lay down his life for the knighted, the noble, and the free people of this world.
But
The Northern army is dwindling, and the Alliance is closing in on them in overwhelming numbers.
There were too many enemies for one man to turn the tide.
"It is over, otherworldly invaders."
"You infidels will all die here."
And so it came to pass, with only an angelic hundred Northerners remaining. Delvoske, who stood by Karina's side until the very end, spoke up.
"Your Excellency, we'll buy you some time, if you'll just get out of here."
"——"
Karina watched the line crumble wordlessly.
Should she have seen this?
To be the one to lead them all, and to see herself fail in the end.
It would be sad, surely.
It must be gnashing of teeth, anguish, and gut-wrenching pain.
How could she bear the pain of seeing her trusted followers fall one by one?
"Do not forgive me."
Karina said, remembering her father, so far away, so different from the world she now lived in.
"I will give you my flesh and soul, Dragonia."
That day Grand Duchess Karina became 'Emperor Karina' and the beginning of the Legion of Dragons legend.
The founding myth of Dragonia began with the slaughter of 850,000 Seven Kingdoms troops.
Karina ceased to be the Grand Duchess of Dragonia and became the Emperor of Dragonia.
* * * *
"The deal is already done. I have given my flesh and soul to Dragonia, and in return, Dragonia has processed the souls of the northern army into middle stones."
In place of the lost paradise, the dragon's magic created a false one, to keep them there until the real paradise would one day be rebuilt.
Thirty thousand people. It was the price Karina had to pay to settle the souls of all the Northern Army in crystal form.
"Karina——"
"It was a small price to pay, if one person could save thirty thousand."
And it's not a sacrifice.
As the Grand Duchess of Dragonia, Karina has a responsibility to her 30,000 men.
"Your Majesty seems intent on bearing the dragon's curse in my stead, but it is too late."
"——"
His daughter's soul will not be saved and even her body is no longer hers.
How was the father supposed to react to those words?
"No, it's not too late. It's not too late!"
He denies it. Despite his daughter's testimony and the dragon's sneer, he cannot give up as long as he is her father.
[Foolish, Lionheart, you already know how reasonable a pact between your kin and me is.]
"Shut up—!"
Leon drew his holy sword. He swung the holy sword relentlessly towards the black aura that was spilling.
-Kang!
But it was his own daughter who blocked the sword. Or, more accurately, the dragon spirit that had taken over his daughter's body.
"This bastard—! Get the hell out of Karina's body!"
The blue eye transformed into red eyes with torn pupils. Dragonia said.
[I gave your daughter what she wanted, and she paid the price, it's not something you can reverse.]
-Thud!
A mighty blast of dragon magic shot through the sword, knocking Leon back. Even the holy sword couldn't cut through it and it instantly took over the space and formed a magical form.
-Quack, quack, quack!
Every single one of them was instant death magic. Black magic explodes, creating a cloud of dust.
-Hmph!
White divine water flows out of it. Even in the aftermath of the explosion, the Lionheart King's fierce steed manages to drag his rider out.
[The bloodline of the Heavenly Horse, you impudent beast.]
In an instant, a dense barrage of magical arrows shoots toward Stallion, who tries to close the distance. Each one is high-powered. Even Stellar Iron Armor would melt before this firepower, but──
"Run, Stallion!"
Leon, faced with the ignorant conversationalist, makes an equally impetuous charge. Stallion doesn't hesitate for a moment, running straight through the hail of magic arrows.
-Kii-ii-ii-i!!!
[Hmm?]
At the moment of the clash, the sound of flesh splitting is not heard, but rather the sound of metal bouncing off metal.
In the moment of conflict, the magic arrows deflected off of Stallion's claws without even wounding him.
Stallion, a steed of the Goddesses of Light, given to King Lionheart, the mightiest of chargers. Having served the Lionheart King for hundreds of years in war, this steed can defend against any frontal assault.
Its power is unstoppable, even against dragon magic.
[They're still annoyingly powerful.]
Dragonia's vast reserves of magic are so vast that even a fallen dragon's mind can recreate some semblance of its former glory in the flesh of a Holy Knight.
The explosion of magic was enough to make all onlookers gasp in horror.
"Monster, monster——"
Archmage Cornwall Ong reacts with fear as he shields the audience from the aftermath of the explosion.
As an archmage himself, he understands the horror of the dragon's power.
'It's a force to be reckoned with.'
It was a foe of the gods.
'How can anyone survive in the face of such unbelievable destructive power?'
"Top left! Swoop!"
The Lion King yanked on the reins as the divine beast springs into action without even a fraction of a second's delay at his rider's command.
The genius of Leon, who utilizes advanced horsemanship and absurd amounts of holy power to complete his kills.
He relies on his resistance to break through attacks from the front, and dodges attacks from the flanks and the air with breathtaking range.
As Leon continues to charge and dodge at the same time, his jousting lance slowly becoming more threatening, Dragonia murmurs in annoyance.
[Then I will crush you with inescapable and overwhelming firepower.]
A massive magic circle appears behind Karina's back.
Dragon Speech──
[Leon, dodge!]
A dragon that has lost its body and is left with only its soul recreates its power. Even the gods were intimidated by its eeriness.
A torrent of fire and the wrath of a dragon king that melts everything burns even the flesh of the demigod.
"This king is a victor. A knight of the gods who brings victory."
[——?!]
Before the Dragon King's flames can reach the Lionheart King, Leon's holy spear blocks the flames from the front, and the power at its tip is——
Divine Punishment
A war god who controls and focuses all flames everywhere.
"This king carries with him hundreds of years of warfare and the favor of all the gods. To face such a king is to face a whole world, old lizard!"
The dragon king's flames do not bounce from the Lionheart king. In fact, the flames are even denser than before, compressed into the tip of the spear.
[You—!]
Dragonia immediately channeled a vast amount of magic power to create a magic shield. In the blink of an eye, the shield seemed to compress an entire castle.
"I'll give it back!"
The dragon king unleashed more magic on the dissolving shield. It is a vast, seemingly endless force that can withstand even his own breath.
But──
A knight is one who charges.
On horseback, full speed, straight and true.
Charge, charge, charge, as far as their swords and spears can reach.
Hence the knight, the flower of the battlefield, boasts absolute breakthrough power.
-Kwah!
And this man before him is the pinnacle of all knights, the Knight King.
──?!!
The tip of Leon's spear pierces through the cracked magic shield in an instant and reaches Dragonia.
Dragonia blocks it with a sword, but the charge doesn't end with the clash of weapons.
-Ahem!
If the spear fails, the shock of the warhorse is the second blow.
The white divine beast unleashed a shock of immense breakthrough power on Dragonia, and Karina's body bounced back with a thud.
[You—!]
At that moment, the vast amount of magic power in her body became a shield, absorbing the impact.
Dragonia immediately tried to sweep the rider off his feet with the insolent beast, but her torn pupils couldn't see the rider on the horse.
[Where—?!]
With an eerie feeling, she looked up to see the gleaming holy sword still striking down.
[Thud—!]
Dragonia blocked it with animal-like reflexes, but Leon unleashed a wave of light just as the attack was blocked, knocking Dragonia off her feet.
-Thud!
-Quang—!
Leon continues to push forward. He skillfully pushed them into close combat.
"Even though you're a dragon king, you're just a beast with high firepower. You don't seem to specialize in close combat. Do you think you can handle this king with your sword skills?"
[Arrogant—!]
The dragon furiously swings his sword, but it ends up in vain, allowing Leon to approach.
Little by little, little by little— until it overwhelms him.
"You bastard!"
Forward.
"Bring back my daughter—!"
"Fall, dragon king—!"
Like the man who once challenged him, Zeke the Dragon Slayer, he was just an insignificant mortal in tin can armor.
"Fool. A dwarf no bigger than my fingernails, you dare to challenge this dragon king."
Faced with the absolute disparity in power, the man was indomitable.
Shouting the name of a worthless god, he charged forward, and forward, and forward, and forward, until at last──
"Dragonia—!"
Ahead of him, beyond all odds.
'He won't stop?'
Three hundred years of human history overwhelms the immortal dragon king.
Incantation
The terrifying density of magic power turns into an enormous wave of light and engulfs the Lionheart King. But──
The power of the goddess, the lord of all light, is channeled into the holy sword.
The holy sword is now the Extreme Light, capable of cutting through even light.
[I see.]
It could not be stopped.
The Dragon King, who had taken over the Holy Knight's body where all the power had swept through, fell to the floor of the dueling arena and looked at the holy sword that had burrowed beneath his chin.
[You are a born warrior. Something immortals like us lack, the history of war itself.]
At one point, he scoffed.
It was ridiculous.
He said it was foolish when the gods declared that mortals would end the Age of Dragons but the age of dragons is over, and it is the gods and their knights who have triumphed.
The poison that poisoned the dragons was their arrogance and the indomitability of mortals.
[Indeed, if you are a fighter, you are better than me.]
"Bring Karina back."
That is why he was foolish.
He tried to reverse a bargain that cannot be overturned.
He knows it but why does he act like this?
It is in their nature to challenge the impossible, but the impossible is impossible because it is impossible in the first place.
Karina Dragonia sacrificed herself for the souls of 30,000 Northerners, and the price has been paid.
Regardless, Karina's soul and body will not be spared; her desire to bear children was only to ensure that the Dragonia name would live on before her own existence was extinguished.
Even then, she seemed to have no other desire than to know that Leon was alive.
"Impossible, Your Majesty. I made a reasonable bargain, and it allowed me to fulfill my obligations. Do not make my choice meaningless."
"Karina—!"
Karina said, grabbing the hilt of the holy sword pointed at her.
"Delvoske and— the thirty thousand northerners who followed me, lead their souls to paradise, with that my duty is fulfilled."
"No! You can't do that! You must bury me, never the other way around!"
'You could have made a face like this.'
Karina smiled bitterly as she looked at the Lionheart King, who had always been steadfast and strong.
His love, the one thing he was willing to sacrifice to be king. His people. His friends. Even herself.
She knew now, having walked the same path.
One who bears so much responsibility should not regret it.
Nor can he cry, for he must always appear unwavering to all who watch his back.
Karina has certainly made the right decision to fulfill her duty.
Still, she can't help but feel sorry for the father she'll leave behind.
[Dragonia, enemy of gods.]
At that moment, the goddess appeared in the form of a pure white light. Appearing as Leon's halo, Arianna spoke to the dragon king in Karina's heart.
[A moment ago, Ten Thousand Gods came to an agreement, a proposal made by Darkness.]
At those words, everyone focused on the goddess's voice. Instinctively, they knew what was coming next, and how grave it would be.
The Goddess spoke.
[Join the pantheon, Dragonia, we are willing to accept you into our community of destiny.]