I, Guinevere, am going to crush you, you curry stick, today!

A cold hand gripped her left wrist.

"Hey?"

His other hand was then grabbed as well.

"—!"

With all sorts of wonderful fantasies still lingering in her mind, her body was suddenly pulled upwards by an unimaginable force. Before Terena could react, she was forcibly dragged out of the shadows and, with a powerful over-the-shoulder throw from the dragon-transformed girl, crashed heavily to the ground! Dust flew everywhere!

P.S.: I missed all my chapters in September, and there's another one coming up! Please recommend and vote with your monthly tickets!

Chapter Sixty-Three: Dragon! Dragon! Dragon!

Let's rewind a moment.

"You are--"

Inside the mysterious space, Guinevere stared in astonishment at the giant dragon that emerged from the black mist.

She had almost guessed the other party's identity. She just hadn't expected that, among the so-called Seven Nightmare Children, following the Demonic Boar and the Bone Bird, a dragon would suddenly appear... the difference in their levels was simply too great!

I wonder what the other four look like...

The more nervous she was, the more prone she was to overthinking—probably one of the few bad habits she carried over from her past life. But Guinevere still remembered the important matter. She tried to open her eyes as wide as possible, so she could stare directly into the nearly half-meter-long black dragon's pupils without losing ground. This guy clearly wanted to take over her body. Although she didn't know exactly how he would do it, logically speaking, this kind of thing was a clash of wills and souls; if she lost her nerve, she'd lose…

Whether this claim was reliable or not, Guinevere herself wasn't sure. However, at this moment, she was inexplicably restrained and couldn't even move a finger. Apart from trying to open her eyes as wide as possible, she really had no other options.

But the black dragon before them didn't seem to have much intention of putting up a fight.

It showed only a slight emotional fluctuation in its first sentence; when it spoke again, its deep and slow voice was devoid of any emotion: "Human, put away your hostile gaze. Just as you can understand my language, I know your name, your origins, and... your purpose."

“Language… Dragon language.” Guinevere hesitated for a moment, then asked, “Are you a dragon?”

"It's just a vessel that was once used. You don't actually think that the two you dealt with were a pig and a bird, do you?" The black dragon let out a rumbling sound from its throat, as if it were laughing: "Of all the vessels I've used so far, I especially love this form. Because it is full of fun from birth to death."

"it?"

"That's not the point. What you should be curious about is how to leave this place."

The black dragon's enormous head swayed from side to side, and this small movement alone brought up a powerful gust of wind. Guinevere's hair was blown wildly backward, and she felt the wind rushing towards her face like knives, stinging her face. She couldn't help but twitch the corner of her mouth slightly.

“I am indeed very curious about these two questions. But questions that cannot be answered are meaningless, no matter how curious you are, right?” the girl said, while observing the black dragon’s reaction. But for a “country bumpkin” who had never even seen a wyvern before, it was highly unlikely that she could suddenly read an expression from a dragon’s face.

The black dragon seemed to notice the probing gaze, but only let out a low chuckle: "The correct way to put it, on the premise that I'm unwilling to tell you the answer—"

"You mean...you're going to help me leave?" Guinevere was genuinely taken aback this time. "Aren't you...you weren't here to take over my body?"

“The other brothers might have the same idea. But unfortunately, I have absolutely no interest in a female without horns, without wings, and completely bald without a single scale.” Whether the other person was joking or genuinely thinking this, Guinevere felt, in a sense, as if she were experiencing racial discrimination…

She looked at the black dragon's open single eye: "In that case, may I ask where this is, and what should I do to get back to where I came from?"

"Human, your attitude changes very quickly."

The black dragon did not answer directly. Guinevere shook her head at its words—she then realized that her body was no longer bound by that inexplicable restraint and could move freely: "The attitude towards enemies and benefactors should naturally be different. If I had said 'please' from the beginning, how should I speak to you now?"

"My benefactor..."

"You are my benefactor, of course. Or... although it's a bit of a mouthful, I can also call you Enlong."

"Sharp-tongued." The dark red eyes narrowed slightly. "But you seem to have misunderstood something. I'm letting you leave now not to save you, but to save myself."

"Self-rescue?"

“You must have heard our story from that magician. Because of a mistake my mother made, the seven of us lost our bodies and can only remain in this void forever…” He paused for a moment, then continued, “It’s more meaningful to keep you alive than to occupy your body and have a fleeting dream.”

"This is the edge of nightmares, a corner abandoned by the world. Humans, go back to where you belong and find a way to awaken us from this nightmare. Let us be freed from this eternal torment. This is my condition, and my request."

"And this—"

"That is what I gave you—"

The voice just fell.

The black dragon's massive body suddenly disintegrated, turning into a misty fog that enveloped Guinevere. In the blink of an eye, the fog dissipated, and the girl had vanished without a trace.

As the man and the dragon vanished, the empty space was filled only with the soft echo of the last unspoken words:

"...A coming-of-age gift."

*****

Silent footsteps traversed a secret passage, untouched for who knows how long. In the darkness, a red-haired figure draped in a white cloak gradually came into view. The young man, carrying a harp bow, carefully avoided the cracks and stones beneath his feet. Occasionally, a step would startle snakes and insects, causing them to scatter, but none dared approach him.

At some point, the road began to slope upwards, and after a moment, a faint light shone through from ahead. His footsteps remained light and silent as the young man activated a mechanism, his figure appearing silently in a house in a corner of the deserted village, dust rising with each breath. The window was only slightly ajar; he looked out and paused, slightly startled.

It was those two from that time...they went up against Terenas?

Then he noticed the figure standing beside him, spear in hand, and a flicker of joy, perhaps imperceptible even to himself, flashed in his eyes. It was Sir Royal; he was still alive…

But what exactly happened to that girl named Fina...?

Suddenly, Tristan's expression changed, and he instantly retreated half a meter. At the same time, a figure approached from afar and crashed straight into him!

*****

When she came to her senses, everything was still a white blur, but suddenly she heard a whooshing sound of wind breaking through the air. She didn't know exactly what was happening, but alarm bells were ringing in her mind; she felt the threat of death. Guinevere's scalp tingled, but judging from the speed at which the sound was approaching, it was too late to dodge.

If only there were a way to block it...

Just as this thought crossed her mind, a barrier magic she had no recollection of suddenly surfaced. It was highly suspicious, but in her haste, she couldn't worry about that now. With the mindset of a drowning person grasping at any straw, she was about to try it when her body moved faster than she could. With a shout, her magic surged, forming a semi-circular shield in front of her, successfully blocking the spear that had come hurtling through the air at the last moment. Guinevere opened her eyes and saw Royal holding the spear, his eyes wide with rage. It was he who had just stabbed her.

What the hell!

Startled, the girl completely forgot all the etiquette she had learned over the past decade, and cursed under her breath. This guy with thick eyebrows and big eyes had actually turned against her?!

Is Al alright?

But she immediately sensed that something was wrong.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw something that looked like wings gently swaying, and something seemed to have appeared above her head. But when her gaze moved downwards, she saw that her feet had turned into dragon claws...

"Fuck!"

Looking back and forth between her own body and the angry-looking Royal in front of her, seeing her current indescribable monster girl appearance in his eyes, Guinevere finally blurted out the curse word.

What happened? What did that black dragon do to me?!

"you……"

Royal seemed to have calmed down as well, sheathing his spear and looking in their direction. The girl secretly breathed a sigh of relief, especially noticing the seemingly unharmed Artoria beside her, which put her completely at ease. She considered how to explain, "Wait, Uncle, don't get so worked up. There's a reason I'm like this... Wait, could this be...?"

Before she could figure out how to concisely explain the strange changes in her body—although she herself didn't know what was going on, she figured it must be related to that black dragon.

It couldn't possibly be that the other party not only brought her back, but also, according to its dragon aesthetic sense, kindly fitted it with wings, horns, and scales... Thinking about it carefully, she really couldn't rule out that possibility, and Guinevere felt like crying. But in her emotional state, for some reason, she suddenly felt nauseous.

"Wait, uncle, turn around first. You, you, you, what are you still looking at me for? Turn around now—" This impulse came so quickly that she couldn't suppress it at all. Before she could finish the sentence, she covered her mouth with a "uh." For some reason, Royal was still staring at them without blinking... Is he crazy?!

"belch!"

Unable to hold it in any longer, she let go, expecting a torrent of vomit to come out. But instead, all that came out of her mouth was a loud burp—it sounded like a drunken burp. Guinevere's face flushed red, but the next instant, she involuntarily burped again—watching herself unleash a fireball the size of a washbasin!

"Hey?"

Sparks were still flying from her mouth, and the girl stood there, stunned for a long time.

She blinked, then blinked again, looking worriedly at Royal, who had been sent flying back by the fireball while brandishing his spear. He should be alright, right...? "Aaaaaah, whatever!"

Regardless of what had happened to her, the most urgent thing now was to capture Terena. With this thought in mind, Guinevere turned around and headed towards Artoria and the other person. Unexpectedly, the strength of this body seemed to have suddenly increased a lot. With just a simple step, she cracked the ground and was thrown into the air by the reaction force. In her panic, two wings spread on her back, and she was lifted up like a bird, flying forward with the wind. But for a moment, Guinevere couldn't control these suddenly added wings and could only be carried forward, crashing straight into them.

"Al, get out of the way—"

Just as they were about to collide, she couldn't help but let out a scream. A few steps away, Artoria looked up and met her gaze. At first, her eyes were wary and confused, but then they turned to realization. Her ponytail swung up, and the girl dressed as a boy dodged to the side. Guinevere whistled past, and then saw that half of Terena's body was hidden in shadow. There were no magicians present, and given that she could manipulate shadows, she probably wanted to escape.

How could I let you have your way!

She gritted her teeth, seized the opportunity, and stretched out her hands to grab Terena's raised hands. With her wings propelling her body forward, she also pulled the voluptuous figure in the purple robe out of the swamp-like shadow with a powerful over-the-shoulder throw, and the two of them fell to the ground at the same time.

Terenas was thrown to the ground, while Guinevere was propelled forward a short distance, half of her body slamming into the wall of a house. Normally, although the impact would have looked severe, it would have only resulted in a few more bruises on the girl's body.

But with this impact, the entire house began to shake violently, dust billowed everywhere, and countless cracks appeared on the walls. The cracks continued to widen, and it looked as if the entire wall was about to collapse!

*****

It's now……

Standing in a corner of the room, his gaze pierced through the dust and sand, fixed on the purple-robed figure separated by a wall.

Tristan's fingertips landed silently on the bowstring. With just a gentle pluck, he was absolutely certain that he could kill the culprit who had wreaked havoc on Cornwall on the spot, while the strange half-dragon girl beside him would be completely unharmed.

If he didn't have this confidence, he wouldn't have chosen to use this strange weapon that is both a zither and a bow.

But just before he plucked the bowstring, a hand suddenly reached out from the side and gently patted his shoulder. There was someone else besides him! How could this be—Tristan's heart skipped a beat, then he caught a faint scent of flowers. A white hem of clothing flashed past his sight, and a pleasant voice softly chuckled in his ear: "Put down the bow."

Despite it being the first time he had heard such a voice, it possessed an irresistible power that compelled him to obey. Tristan's heart stirred, and he actually put down his bow as instructed.

"You are……"

"Shhh."

A slender, long finger pressed against his lips. The young man froze, his face slightly flushed, and in that moment of surprise, the fragrance of the surrounding flowers seemed to intensify.

"You can't kill her like that."

boom!

The entire wall before them finally collapsed, and the silver-haired woman with a hood placed her hand on Tristan's shoulder, chuckling softly, "After all..."

Sunlight streamed into the suddenly open view.

The dust and cobwebs were still there in the small house, but it was completely empty, without a single person in sight.

"...Death is her real killing move."

P.S.: Here comes the 4,000-word chapter! My brain almost crashed while writing, so I really didn't have the energy to think about the title... In other words, please don't criticize the meaning of the title!

Finally, please give all your recommendation votes and monthly tickets to this diligent emperor!

Chapter Sixty-Four: A Wave Rises (Part 1)

The moment she landed, there was a dull thud, and her whole body ached as if it had been torn apart. But more than her physical pain, she was filled with disbelief at the reality of the situation. The plan had only just begun; ten years of preparation had been laid out, and now was the moment to reap the rewards. How could this be...? Terena struggled to her feet in the dust, spitting out a mouthful of blood-tinged saliva with difficulty, and glared fiercely at Guinevere, who was also getting up.

No, the person before me is no longer the Scottish princess named Guinevere. A soul from the depths of a nightmare has taken over this body. Because of her meticulous planning in secret, even the proud First Son and the unruly Third Son agreed to obey her commands after their arrival.

Are you planning to betray me?!

"—"

The only response she received was a deep roar. Even though she couldn't understand the specific meaning, Terena could tell that the other person wasn't speaking any human language.

That's the language of dragons.

Long ago, before humanity became the master of the world, power was in the hands of the gods. Dragons soared with outstretched wings, and fairies frolicked and played—an era unimaginable to people today. Dragons, even among the many fantastical creatures, were the most elite and extraordinary. From the moment of their birth, they were blessed by the world, needing no chanting or runes to cast spells. Their roars were equivalent to, or even surpassed, the high-speed divine incantations of a divine magician.

Legend has it that among the Seven Nightmare Children, only the fifth child, by chance, was able to descend into the world in the form of a dragon in the past. Even after returning to the Nightmare, he still asks others to call him by the name of that dragon.

It thus became the only one of the Seven Sons to have a clearly defined name.

"—Fafner!"

There was no answer. The half-human, half-dragon girl lifted a panel from the wall that was pressing down on her, spread her wings, and dust scattered, blocking out the sunlight overhead. Her dark red, vertical pupils suddenly looked over in the sudden darkness.

The dust in the air seemed to carry an ominous aura. Knowing that the blond sword-wielding boy was about to catch up, and that staying here would surely mean certain death, Terena couldn't care less. Her hands crackled with electricity and flames: "In the name of God!" This time, she didn't transform into twin swords. She took a few steps, closing the distance, and her fist, engulfed in flames, slammed out with a whoosh.

"—"

The half-dragon girl let out a low growl, and surprisingly, instead of dodging, she opened her arms to meet the attack. The two were vastly different in size, one fat and one thin, and when they stood together, it was like a flag being erected next to a large rock, the contrast was particularly striking. Normally, Guinevere's dual swordsmanship was based on using the opponent's force to deflect and neutralize, rarely engaging in direct confrontation. Terena was certain that, according to the girl's usual fighting style, she would choose to retreat to the side, which is why she chose this fighting method.

However, she only realized what was happening after she threw the punch.

The person before me is probably no longer Guinevere.

boom!

A blazing fist slammed into the half-dragon girl's shoulder, instantly turning her clothes to ashes. But what was revealed wasn't the girl's soft, white skin, but rather scales as hard as iron. The flames of magic burned the scales, yet left not a single scorch mark. The flames dissipated, and the scales quietly vanished, revealing half of her left shoulder once more. The lightning-wrapped left hand then struck out, but the half-dragon girl spread her five fingers, catching the full force of her punch head-on.

Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack! The girl exerted force with her five fingers, and a series of bone-cracking sounds came from her palm. Terena's hand, along with the various gemstone rings, was completely turned into a blurry mass of flesh and blood under this seemingly light grip!

"Ahhhh!"

The woman's face contorted in agony, and she let out a heart-wrenching scream. But a glint of ruthlessness flashed in her eyes, and her free right hand suddenly extended two fingers, aiming straight for the half-dragon girl's eyes. The latter, however, tilted her head back, then thrust it forward with a heavy headbutt. Black mist billowed, and jet-black scales suddenly appeared on her smooth forehead. With a snap, Terena's two fingers broke off!

"you!"

"—!"