The fusion of killing intent with mental energy was a highly risky maneuver for any intelligent being.
If the user did not have extraordinary self-control, they could turn into a mindless monster that only knew how to kill. Ülgen, a proud member of the Fatih race, naturally trusted his self-control. However, he was also aware that the risk was never completely eliminated.
The source of his anger was both this risk and the fact that he was closer to death than ever before. With a terrifying roar, he destroyed his human form and reverted to his white dragon form, attacking the dark mage and his parasite.
"!"
The dense darkness summoned by the dark mage to aid their escape was protecting them from Ülgen's attacks. This darkness, which had almost taken a tangible form, was capable of deflecting even his attacks, which were now two and a half times stronger than before.
However, before the dark mage could celebrate, Ülgen began to concentrate his attacks on a single area. His powerful blows were strong enough to outpace the regeneration rate of the darkness in a specific spot. Within seconds, he managed to thrust his claw into that void and tear a piece from the parasite. As the parasite screamed in agony, Ülgen prepared to deliver a second blow, convinced he could kill it!
"Hmph!"
But his opponent was not simple; the second attack was halted by a dark claw and pushed him back. By the time he regained his balance, the enemy had already vanished.
"Ah!" Ülgen roared in frustration, then descended to the training ground after reverting to his human form.
As he sat cross-legged, trying to balance his mood, he turned to the cheerful young man who was looking at him in astonishment. Though the battles in the mind realm had caused enough damage to strip away his cheerful demeanor.
The young man's physical features were quite interesting. Blue hair and turquoise eyes were his prominent features. Both his status as a knight and his fair skin indicated that he was from a region in the central lands. At the very least, it was certain he was not from Vinumregnum.
At the moment, he had a serious expression on his face and had laid his training sword on the ground. Bowing, he expressed his gratitude. "I owe you my life for freeing me, wandering knight Willbert, from the malevolent parasite that invaded my mind."
Then, with a bitter smile, he added, "Unfortunately, due to the dark mage's attacks wounding my mind realm, I will die before I can repay my debt to you..."
"You don't need to be so worried," but Ulgen's words surprised him. "If I didn't care about your mind realm, I could have captured that parasite at the cost of your life. Don't worry about the mental damage--hah!" Before the young Fatih could finish his sentence, his rising killing intent caused him to shout angrily. But he quickly regained control. "There are prices to pay for the technique I used, don't disturb me now," he said, closing his eyes and beginning to cleanse the killing intent mixed with his mental power.
Willbert also sat quietly across from him, waiting. The prospect of dying again shortly after regaining his freedom had put him in a depressive state. However, the white dragon before him seemed to possess the power to change his fate.
After an hour, Willbert's hopes were realized as Ulgen opened his eyes and his intense mental power began to spread throughout Willbert's weakened mind realm. The young Fatihs gray eyes shone with a majestic light as he began to utilize some small advantages granted by his race.
Willbert, as his mind realm was being repaired, felt his loyalty and gratitude toward the white dragon in front of him growing. He even thought he could die for him without hesitation. For a wandering knight like him, who valued his freedom and life above all else, these were unusual thoughts. Yet it felt so natural that he concluded everything he had experienced up to this point had led him to serve Ulgen.
"Good, at least I've gained a subordinate with peak ninth-degree strength," thought the young Fatih as he finished repairing the mind realm. Then he stood up and looked at Willbert, "I've removed the damage preventing the regeneration of your mind realm. Still, you should avoid anything that could harm your mind for a year. Now, I'm returning to my physical body, we'll talk outside."
Willbert nodded quickly to show he understood, then Ulgen's spiritual silhouette slowly faded away.
...
"!"
Opening his eyes in the outside world, Ulgen was shocked as he looked around the wrecked room. What shocked him wasn't the shattered runes and traces of explosions in the room; it was the figure of Draklon, standing angrily with bloody hands, staring at the horizon!
"Senior, are you okay?" The young Fatih immediately stood up and approached the bronze dragon out of respect.
Hearing Ulgen's voice, Draklon's anger vanished, replaced by a friendly smile. "I'm fine, little friend, but are you okay? Even with the power of the runes, I couldn't destroy that mage's energy probe," he said, his voice filled with regret. As a powerful adult dragon, he felt he had failed to protect the younger one.
"Thanks to you, I'm fine, senior. The dark mage's energy probe wasn't strong enough to destroy me," Ulgen said, letting out a small sigh. "But I couldn't prevent the parasite from taking its soul..."
"Parasite?" The bronze dragon raised an eyebrow. "I sensed traces of a necromancer's power in that ominous energy."
"I believe it's no ordinary necromancer, senior. However, we didn't come out of this struggle empty-handed. After the parasite's soul left the body of the dark knight, I had the chance to save a wandering knight named Willbert," Ulgen said, then looked seriously at the half-charred and melted runes. "Although I couldn't obtain the parasite's memories, the interaction between the mage called Master and me provided a few useful pieces of information."
Ulgen's words made Draklon serious as well. "I see. Tell me what you learned and your assumptions," he said, and the two talked for a few hours until Willbert woke up and stood.
At first, Ulgen explained why he pursued the dark knight, including how they had set their sights on the fate of one of his subjects. After listening seriously, Draklon told him not to hesitate to ask for help from him or his subordinates as long as he was nearby. Then, with Willbert's awakening, they finished their conversation.
Under their calm gazes, the wandering knight slowly removed his helmet and tucked it under his arm. His pale eyes looked at Ulgen with gratitude and awe. He knelt on one knee and began to speak loudly.
"I am Willbert, a low-born and wandering knight. In my youth, I refused to submit to the religious doctrines of the Holy Empire and decided to travel the world for the rest of my life. During one of my adventures, I encountered a much stronger dark knight in a swamp and was brought to the brink of death in our fight. The dark knight who defeated me placed a marble-sized green spherical creature into the wound on my chest, and from that day on, I lost my freedom. For years, I was trapped in my mind realm and isolated from the world by the parasite that took over my body.
Today, I am grateful for the freedom given to me by Master Ulgen. And I swear on my name that I will serve him with all I have until death and even beyond!" As his long speech ended, a small aura resonance emerged from Willbert's body and connected to Ulgen.
This aura resonance represented the strongest oath an aura user could take. Once someone swore with this resonance, breaking the oath would result in a painful death.
"Hahaha, my young friend, I can't understand how you manage to be both lucky enough to earn a knight's loyalty and unlucky enough to attract the attention of a powerful dark mage!" Draklon laughed and patted Ulgen on the shoulder.
"You may rise, Willbert. I accept your loyalty. Don't forget to greet my esteemed Draklon as well." At Ulgen's words, Willbert immediately bowed to the bronze dragon.
After a brief interaction, the three began to speak normally again. Without feeling the need to hide it from Draklon, Ulgen blessed Willbert with dragon blood and commanded him to settle in Hvítreiðr. Shortly after Willbert's departure, Ulgen also bid farewell to Draklon and began flying towards his mother Albiria's territory via an indirect route.
His enemy, the dark mage, had most likely noticed the fate on the girl from his tribe months ago. Otherwise, he wouldn't have encountered the dark knight near the secret mountain abandoned by the Whitefang clan. Ulgen was certain that the dark mage's next action would affect Hvítreiðr. Even though he had Sven, the Incarnation of the Fatih and the city's second-in-command, their rate of growth might not be sufficient for the upcoming danger.
Hvítreiðr held a crucial place in his future plans. Therefore, he could even reveal his dragon form as a last resort to protect it. He had already displayed his dragon form to gain the people's sincere loyalty and to establish his presence as a Conqueror in their hearts. However, there were certain measures he had communicated to his subordinates through the Fatihs Incarnation to prevent this information from being leaked, and he didn't want those efforts to go to waste.
Of course, ensuring things didn't get that bad was mostly up to him. With sharp eyes scanning the horizon, the young white dragon muttered, "Hah, I'll make that dark sorcerer pay for eyeing my subjects!" before plunging into his mother's territory.