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“After leaving the imperial capital, the ‘Wisdom Eye Vortex’ is causing abnormal environmental changes in a wide area around it while heading east. So, if we set up camp along its path and stay still for a whole day, the central part might approach us on its own… maybe.”
“No, that’s impossible.”
“It’s impossible, indeed.”

The world was shattered.

The storm that raged was so intense that each raindrop carried enough force to cause injuries without armor. Under Kafal’s wings spread out like an umbrella, the four of them endured it.

Streams born from the void disregarded gravity, creating reverse currents and carrying massive rocks that could be called floating islands. It looked like a canal in the sky, with ships navigating through. Here, the boundaries between sea, river, land, and sky were all blurred.

Despite being blocked by thick clouds and receiving no sunlight, the constant flashes of lightning provided clear visibility.

This place should have originally been a barren wasteland with nothing. However, the ‘Wisdom Eye Vortex’ had painted a different picture.

The earth was carved, submerged in the overflowing tsunami, and the water flowed without distinguishing between sky and ground.

In the distance, obscured by rain, it was impossible to see. However, the presence of an immensely large water tornado could somehow be discerned.

The members of the Golden Helmet and Kafal observed the anomaly from the outer edge of the affected area, where there was still a semblance of normal land.

“What the heck is happening here?”
“It resembles a dragon’s hunting ground. I saw a similar sight when I went to the Sylnir Sea with Mom.”
“So a scene from a hazardous land…”
“Did Regalia create something like this on the spot?”

This abnormal situation was caused by the rampaging Regalia. Moreover, it was on a completely different scale than the initial destructive storm when it first went berserk. This was no longer just a destructive storm; it was environmental modification.

“Watch out!”

Kafal let out a neighing sound.

One of the constantly swirling streams was now directed towards them.

Facing the approaching stream, Kafal breathed out a Fire Breath. The flames clashed head-on with the water flow, neutralizing each other. The salty scent of steam filled the air.

As long as Kafal’s lung capacity held, they could at least counter and fend it off. During that time, the four of them had retreated. Following suit, Kafal flapped her wings and leaped back.

When the defense from the breath attack ceased, the flowing streams in the air ruthlessly crushed the land where the four individuals and the dragon had stood just moments ago. The earth was torn apart, sinking into the depths of the surging waves.

“Hey, Miss Dragon. Was that easy to block, or…”
“I can handle one.”

In response to Wein’s inquiry, Kafal, with a stoic expression (though Lucella could already discern the nuances of Kafal’s expressions), answered.

“I can’t handle all of them. The world’s power is stronger than me.”

Even with Kafal, a Red Dragon capable of invoking the world’s power and bringing about drought and dryness, and Lucella, who could mimic such feats, it wasn’t enough to stop the raging ‘Wisdom Eye Vortex,’ as Kafal explained.

“It was almost stopped by Lucella alone at one point, but are you saying even a real dragon can’t stop it anymore?”
“The output has clearly increased,” noted Viola.

Viola had several instruments resembling hourglasses hanging from her tool belt, monitoring the values. One of them exploded from the inside.

“From the observed values, I can speculate… Until the day before yesterday, the ‘Wisdom Eye Vortex’ maintained an output of a Regalia. It was raging with the same output it had when it was being ‘held back’ to prevent it from going berserk—essentially, when it was being used by people.”
“So that’s why Lucella alone could handle it.”
“Yes. However, the situation has changed. We don’t know how far the fully berserk Regalia can go.”

A millennium since the human-dragon war. This meant that humans had been using the Regalia for over a thousand years, yet they still didn’t fully understand it. The technological foundation from the era of the human-dragon war, which could transcendently handle even the berserk state, no longer existed in contemporary human society. They couldn’t just go ahead and provoke the berserk state, saying, ‘Let’s see its maximum performance.’ The solution to this problem was also unknown.

“Speaking of Regalia, even the relatively minor ones were created using ten dragons, if I recall correctly.”
“It’s more of a legendary past event now… but that’s how it’s been passed down.”
“Ten dragons…”

Facing ten dragons.

Imagine the difficulty of it, everyone fell silent.

“If we had a dragon powerful enough to handle it or gather enough Regalia…maybe we could do it.”
“I mean, if we could pull off such a crazy feat, maybe.”

Doing a ridiculously simple calculation, assuming the opponent was ten dragons, they could potentially fight back if they also had ten dragons. However, that was practically impossible. While dragons might interact with humans, they strictly avoided involvement with human societies and countries. Dealing with something as delicate as a Regalia was a line they would never cross.

In the end, this is just a crisis for the human world. So the dragons won’t help.

Now, what about the human side?

The power in human hands akin to dragons…

What could confront a Regalia was another Regalia.

In the battlefield where it’s heading, there are many Regalia. If we could gather their power, maybe we could stop it.

However, gathering their power was as challenging as calling for the dragons’ help.

Letting Maltgartz handle this would be dangerous.

If the Gufare Union took charge of the retrieval, there would be a vulnerability in defense during that time, and they would have to march into Maltgartz territory. In short, it was unfeasible.

Alternatively, could the two armies cooperate or form a gentleman’s agreement for a temporary ceasefire?

That would be extremely difficult. How many years have Maltgartz and Gufare Union been at war? It’s unlikely for them to cooperate now, unless something drastic happens.

“Hey, it’s coming!”
“Geh!”

While they were focused on the world-shattering storm, they failed to notice the creeping tidal wave.

Just as the wave hit the tip of Lucella’s shoe, the water level rose enough to swallow even the towering Tim.

Kicking up waves, Kafal flapped her wings, soaring into the air.

Simultaneously, Weine reacted promptly. He leaped, grabbing Kafal’s mane and reaching out to Viola with his other hand.

Despite Tim’s formidable abilities, being clad in heavy armor put him at a disadvantage. Swept away, he was almost carried off, but Lucella’s generated wave lifted him, and Kafal’s claws caught onto his armor.

“Nice catch.”

With each powerful beat of Kafal’s wings, a surge of heat transformed the pouring rain into a mist. Lucella created a swirling double-helix water path in the air, and gliding above it, she followed Kafal.

“We should withdraw. As a reconnaissance, we shouldn’t charge recklessly without a plan in this situation”
“Got it.”

No one had objections to Tim’s decision.

The opponent wasn’t a monster or a dungeon; it was the power of this world awakened by Regalia. The adversary was a storm, a turbulent sea. Confronting it head-on was like the foolish knight challenging a windmill in a duel. It was almost akin to a suicidal act.

Kafal spiraled gracefully, facing the swirling storm with the wind beneath her wings, soaring away from the chaotic zone.

“That’s…”

At that moment, Lucella, for just an instant, seemed to see a sad light in the mist of pouring rain, in the layers of swirling water currents. A vivid blue brilliance that should be visually beautiful, yet it felt chest-tightening and suffocating, as if being strangled.

“Did you see something?”
“No…”

It was just a momentary illusion, making Lucella doubt if it was real. Like the fleeting memories of a dream that faded upon waking up, the sensation quickly became vague.

Even though Lucella couldn’t explain why she felt that way, something was trembling and echoing within her, like an ancient wound throbbing persistently.