Chapter 86: Ultimate Magic

"Are you okay!?"

The members of the Sanctuary Knights, including me, and the Kings had been blown away by the explosion from the battle between the Dragon and the Giant. I’d stayed back like the King had told me to, but the shockwave still hit hard.

"Leo… did the Dragon’s Leader fall to the Giant!?"

Luca managed to stand, voice shaky as he looked around, trying to make sense of it.

The Giant had swung that impossibly huge axe at the Dragon, but the impact was so violent I couldn’t be sure.

Now, only the Giant’s form was visible. So… the Giant won, then. A monster versus a monster… yeah. This isn’t a world for humans anymore.

We just stood there, staring blankly at the scorched wasteland.

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Whew. Glad we evacuated like the King said. If we’d stayed, we’d be dead. No amount of lives would’ve been enough.

"Look! Carlo, Liu! Gojo took down the giant Dragon! I knew he could do it!"

Watching the King’s excited face, I felt every ounce of strength drain out of me.

"King’s in good shape. I’m all bruised and don’t wanna move. And Liu’s barely breathing—Heal Magic, please."

Still… Gojo… maybe the real threat wasn’t the Dragon’s Leader after all. Maybe it’s you.

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"I… did it… I took down the Dragon’s King…"

Before me stood a colossal Giant, frozen mid-swing, massive axe raised high. The spot where the Dragon’s King had stood moments ago was completely gone—wiped out.

No sign of the Dragon’s Leader anywhere.

I didn’t even notice—tears were already spilling over. It’s over… Goyo finished it.

Beside me, my flying dragon stood, always fighting by my side. Closer look—it was battered, torn up all over.

Even though I hated the Dragon so much…

My flying dragon, the one who truly connected with me… I’d always resisted giving it a name, but now that the hunt’s over, I’ll give it one.

I headed toward Leo and the others, the dragon walking beside me.

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The Titan pulled the axe from the molten ground and slowly rose. It looked down at the scorched wasteland, then vanished—dissolving into particles of light.

“…It’s over.”

Even after the Titan disappeared, the lava still flowed. It’ll probably stay like this for a while… I’ll go check the center, where the Fire Dragon King once was.

And there it was. The Fire Dragon King’s “Magic Core.” Something that shouldn’t exist. I didn’t understand what it meant back then.

I picked up the “Magic Core” and examined it—

Dragon King’s Coffin SSR

Boosts Intelligence stat up to 10x.

“Dragon King’s Coffin,” huh? If I have this, I can amplify magic power dramatically… I’ll wipe it clean, then eat it.

Back before, even with infinite mana, there was always a limit to how much I could release at once… Now, I should be able to cast stronger spells than ever.

Checking my status, the Saint Warrior level had maxed out. Of course—after defeating the Dragon’s Leader. Barrier Art profession rank had risen from F to C too.

I chose Saint Warrior as my next job. Wanted to push Barrier Art rank higher. I pulled out the Saint Warrior’s job board from the sub-space and touched its surface.

Just as I was turning to head back to where everyone was, Wang came walking over from the other side.

“Gojo—did you do it? You took down that huge dragon, right?”

“Yeah… it’s all good now.”

After that, I met up with Mr. Liu and the members of the Sanctuary Knights. Most of them had that unreadable look on their faces, but Leo spoke up.

“Gojo… I’ve got a million questions, but first—thanks. If it weren’t for you, Freyja, and everyone else… we’d all be dead.”

Callo nodded in agreement when Leo said that.

“Yeah. Only a freakin’ giant like that could’ve taken down the Dragon’s Leader, right?”

Freyja arrived last, riding her flying dragon. She looked like she wanted to say something, but Leo raised a hand to stop her.

“And now… I want to ask. Gojo… where did you get that power? You’re not just some ordinary talent, are you?”

Everyone here was staring at me…

“Alright. I’ll tell you about myself… but first—”

I raised my right hand high.

“Let’s clear out all the Earth Dragons in this area!”

That dragon would’ve been tough even for Leo’s crew. I decided to take care of the ones I could see—so I channeled magic upward.

“What the—?”

The clouds parted. Sunlight spilled through. Leo and the others stared, confused. My magic reached the stratosphere, forming countless icy fragments.

The ice shards grew slowly in midair—morphing into ice pillars over a hundred meters tall. Hundreds of sharp, frozen spikes hovered silently in the upper atmosphere, frozen in place, waiting for my command.

“—Nivlheim: The World of Frozen Separation—!!”

I swing my arm down, and every ice pillar obeys gravity, plummeting toward the ground. Hundreds of ice spears crash from high above, piercing through the Earth Dragon’s shell and driving deep into the earth!

Hundreds of Earth Dragons die screaming in agony.

Hundreds of massive ice pillars rise from the ravaged land—nothing but a grotesque, surreal sight.

"...Missed a few...?"

A dozen or so dragons that dodged the attack scramble to escape. This time, I press my hand to the ground, pouring out an immense surge of magic.

The earth beneath the Earth Dragons裂开, and a huge “mouth” emerges. The mouth swallows them whole, crushing their tough shells, devouring them. The mouth crawls out of the ground. It’s a giant earthworm—created from soil magic.

Inside the mouth, sharp teeth jut out, and layered within, more mouths—dozens of them.

Multiple earthworms wriggle up from underground, lunging at nearby Earth Dragons. One by one, they’re devoured—until not a single one remains.

I went all-out, got carried away using such powerful magic... but from the outside, this scene—hundreds of ice pillars stuck in the ground, dozens of giant rock worms writhing everywhere—must look like a living hell.

I glance nervously at everyone’s faces, half-expecting horror... and sure enough, they’re all pale, frozen in shock.

Well, whatever. They’ll get it once I explain. I was feeling optimistic, thinking I’d head straight to Wang and Leo—when suddenly, “Hostile Detection” flared up.

What...? This reaction... I’ve never felt anything like it before.

I look at my fingertips—they’re trembling, tiny tremors. My gaze drifts toward the abyss.

Something’s coming up—