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Chapter 318

There was a nation known as the the United Kingdom of Syn Earth. This was the birthplace and home country of Semto, the leader of the Seven Braves. It was the largest and strongest known nation, spanning countless dimensions and universes. It housed numerous modified spaceships capable of traversing entire galaxies and interdimensional ships, and almost all known intelligent life forms belonged to this nation, which was also the closest to the realm of the gods.

Before the king who stood at the pinnacle of SynEarth, Semto was informing him of their future actions. The whereabouts of the Seven Braves, who now possessed the highest spiritual rank and combat abilities of humanity, were of utmost importance and had to be constantly monitored.

The endless expanse of white land stretched on without any bumps or irregularities, blending seamlessly into the white sky. Even Semto, with his exceptional vision, could not distinguish the horizon where the earth and sky met.

In this world of pure white, a white humanoid figure stood before Semto, who was dressed in the uniform of the kingdom. The figure’s golden eyes shone with a different color amidst the white face. Long, extended hair and the hem of what seemed to be a tunic dragged on the floor, but there was no discernible boundary between the hairline or the clothes and the skin. It was as if they were all part of the skin.

This white humanoid, Shakushanshu, who stood at the pinnacle of SynEarth and held the titular position of king, was a representative of the higher life forms known as the Iselsians, who existed purely in spirit and soul without a physical body. Unlike some humans who reached near-godly levels, their entire species was literally close to the gods. Semto gave a small bow before Shakushanshu.

Despite holding the title of king, this position arose when humans first encountered the Iselsians long ago and asked them to guide them. The Iselsians, who were earnest and kind-hearted, agreed, thus acquiring the title of king. This title did not signify superiority or inferiority among humans. Semto’s manner of interaction was because neither Shakushanshu nor the other Iselsians wished to be treated with grandiosity.

「Lord Shakushanshu, I, Semto, stand before you.」

「I’ve heard about the Nid Vashar issue. You have my gratitude for your efforts. Facing an entity so close to the progenitor Nidhogg, it was understood that this task would not be easy. Nevertheless, it is remarkable that such a creature could trouble you all so greatly.」

Shakushanshu’s communication was telepathic, and Semto nodded regretfully in response.

「It was all due to our lack of strength. Nid Vashar will undoubtedly return with even greater determination. We will protect Yuba-Yggdrasil this time.」

「Indeed, your resolve is admirable. We will support you to the best of our ability. Permission for dimensional gate travel to the planet Aoruterran, where the Ancient-Celestial Dragon resides, and notifications and arrangements with various nations have already been made. Additionally, we grant the United Kingdom of Syn Earth Hero Semto permission to use the second forbidden-grade weapon, the sword ‘Hisaiten.’ Semto, numerous signs of spiritual disasters caused by evil gods and demons have been observed across the known universe. Your continued efforts, as the highest fighting force of humanity, are crucial. Defeat Nid Vashar and reignite the beacon of hope for the people.」

Forbidden-grade weapons, capable of driving an entire world to ruin if mishandled, included magical and holy swords, as well as spiritual spears. These were strictly managed, and their use required the approval of Shakushanshu and a three-fifths majority of the Iselsians.

「If only I could give you the newly developed weapon, but it is still too problematic to handle. You’ll have to make do with Hisaiten.」

「No, Hisaiten holds sufficient power to defeat Nid Vashar. With the help of the Ancient-Celestial Dragon, I will definitely defeat the evil dragon along with Elcira and the others!」

Receiving the determined gaze of Semto, Shakushanshu slightly lifted the corner of his mouth in a nod.

「Very well. As always, we trust in you and await your good news. Our brave hero.」

With these words, the connection with Shakushanshu closed, and Semto returned from the pure white world to the audience chamber of his ship. The latest warship, granted by SynEarth, was equipped with an audience chamber allowing for telepathic contact with Shakushanshu even from remote locations.

In a room covered with a special glass-like substance that amplified mental waves, Semto, with renewed resolve, turned on his heel. He was unaware that the Iselsians, led by Shakushanshu, were already being mentally invaded by evil gods aiming to completely eradicate the Ancient-Celestial Dragon.

Harumin muttered softly as she gazed at the black-green scenery from the observation room of the ship. They were surrounded on all sides by a sticky, black-green liquid that slowly undulated.

「Passing through the dimensional tunnel, it feels like we’re inside a living creature.」

Harumin, the brains of Semto’s party, said this with good reason. To defeat the evil dragon Nid Vashar, who favored consuming World Trees, they were headed to seek the aid of the Ancient-Celestial Dragon, who resided on a planet. Since this planet existed on a different dimensional axis than the universe Semto and his party were in, they were traveling through an interdimensional navigation gate jointly developed by various nations long ago. However, they encountered an unexpected accident.

Their ship was swallowed by a creature named Bolmar, which inhabited the space between dimensions.

During interdimensional travel, unexplained disappearances had been reported, and investigations and oracles had revealed the existence of Bolmar. However, discovering Bolmar, which resided and navigated in the space between dimensions, proved extremely difficult, and the idea of subduing or capturing it had been abandoned. Unfortunately, Semto and his team, who had a time limit of at most one month before Nid Vashar’s return, had plunged into this unique creature’s belly.

Surrounding their ship were countless vessels that had fallen victim to Bolmar. Many appeared to have engaged in combat within Bolmar’s stomach, resulting in numerous wrecked warships. Fortunately, there were no others caught up with Semto and his team, so they only needed to focus on their own escape.

The drifting remnants of ships around them resembled a modern-day ship graveyard. Setting aside respect for the dead for a moment, these derelicts were valuable resources that could be reused. Luckily, time passed very slowly inside Bolmar compared to the outside. Even considering the best and worst-case scenarios for contacting Dragon, they calculated they could spend about seven days inside Bolmar.

「The biology of Bolmar is academically intriguing, but we don’t have time for that. For you, that is unfortunate.」

Harumin whispered sympathetically to Bolmar. While Bolmar was recognized as a troublesome creature, it was unlucky for it to have swallowed the Seven Braves. For these heroes, defeating Bolmar from within and returning to normal space was a simple task. Even if not, their ship’s capabilities ensured a high chance of survival.

The ship Semto belonged to was the first of the state-of-the-art Valhalla-class all-domain combat carriers, Valhalla. Powered by a new dimensional steam engine that utilized crystallized high-energy residues of a dying universe as fuel, its numerous onboard weapons made it a high-performance ship capable of defeating an entire fleet of conventional weaponry.

While Harumin was idly watching from the observation room, Semto and Sogen had finished analyzing Bolmar on the bridge and were ready to act. The streamlined hull of the Valhalla, dyed in red, opened to reveal its stored cannon. They decided to use the universal cutting weapon Gordias to slice through Bolmar.

While all Seven Braves could cut, smash, or penetrate space, it was best to resolve the situation without exerting themselves if possible. In case Gordias failed to cut Bolmar, Harumin was preparing a magical ritual for a safe transfer to normal space. At that moment, Maialte, dressed in her usual priestess garb, appeared from the corridor.

「Harumin, you’re here. We’re ready, but can you come to the bridge just in case? It’s easier to handle any situation if all seven of us are together.」

「Sure, but I don’t think there’s much to worry about. We’ve defeated countless hostile conscious spaces and living areas before.」

「That’s true, but this is the largest opponent we’ve faced. We also need to ensure no harm comes to the other side when we return to normal space.」

「Consideration is important. Still, to be swallowed by Bolmar right after starting our journey to Dragon’s planet, it seems our path will be turbulent.」

「It’s always been that way. Every time we tried to go somewhere to obtain something, we were blocked and told to do this or fetch that. It’s happened countless times.」

「This time, I hope we can reach Dragon smoothly. It would be nice to have a straightforward mission for once.」

As Maialte muttered her agreement, a second later, Gordias’s space-severing blade, formed into countless giant crescent shapes, sliced Bolmar’s massive body into pieces.

「Oh, I told them to wait until I brought Harumin.」

「It must have been Argaz who grew impatient.」

「I can see it even with my eyes closed.」

Constantly troubled by Argaz’ impulsive behavior, Maialte sighed and rubbed her temples. Harumin suspected that Maialte’s lifespan was being shortened by years due to the stress caused by Argaz.

「In any case, we’ve dealt with Bolmar. There will be no more disappearances due to Bolmar. Let’s focus on seeking Dragon’s aid.」

「Indeed. Even when we sought divine guidance about asking Dragon for help, we were told to approach him as usual. We’ll request his aid with utmost sincerity.」

While it made sense to approach Dragon normally, this was easier said than done. Dragon was a being who had destroyed numerous evil gods and was on friendly terms with the highest gods. It was hard for them to reconcile approaching such an entity casually.

Harumin, who had connected her consciousness to the higher domain of the Dragon Realm in pursuit of magical mastery, knew the overwhelming power of high-ranking dragons. She could only hope Argaz wouldn’t impulsively challenge Dragon and turn him into an enemy.

The two brains of the Seven Braves, contemplating their impending encounter with the ancient god-dragon, squinted at the sight of the purple spiral nebula and the golden river of stars flowing through space. It seemed they had safely returned to normal space. The next concern was how far they were from their destination and how long it would take to reach Dragon’s planet.

「Alright, Harumin, let’s head to the bridge. We need to discuss our next steps with Semto.」

「Got it. Don’t worry, we’ve emerged in the same dimensional axis as Dragon’s universe. We should find the gate soon.」

As the highest-ranked mage in the known world, Harumin excelled in perception. Often surpassing even the latest detection devices, she unconsciously gathered and processed information from multiple dimensions and worlds.

「If Harumin says so, I’m reassured. You’re ten times more reliable than Argaz’ intuition.」

「That’s disappointing. I aimed to be a hundred times more reliable.」

After Harumin’s quip, the ship set course for the planet Aoruterran, where Dragon resided. Along the way, they passed through various conflicts, such as battles between fleets led by giant biological weapons, the resurrection of a demon king from a supermassive black hole, the capture of poachers of the sun-sized space plant Sansan Mango, the single-handed fishing of the Milky Katsuos swimming in the thirty-seventeenth Milky Way, and the extermination of a biological weapon with infinite regenerative cells.

Despite being embroiled in such heroically troublesome affairs, they swiftly resolved each issue and finally arrived at Aoruterran’s satellite orbit. Aoruterran was a planet where, in the past, the human race and the planet itself waged a war, leading to mutual destruction. The humans had activated a device that forcibly fused all life forms’ souls, including the planet’s, but the fusion failed, nearly resulting in the loss of all souls.

High-ranking reapers from the underworld managed to recover the souls just before their disappearance, preventing a complete loss. However, Aoruterran was left as a crystal-clear, lifeless planet. Amid this desolation, only the Ancient-Celestial Dragon remained alive.

Semto and his team performed a short warp from the Valhalla, which was in Aoruterran’s satellite orbit, and landed about a kilometer from where Dragon’s presence was detected. The planet had lost its seasons, with no life basking in sunlight or moonlight. The bleak, lifeless landscape filled their hearts with profound loneliness.

「The traces of those who dreamed, not the remnants of soldiers. An aftermath of a nightmare involving countless unrelated beings.」

Upon landing, Sogen solemnly murmured, clasping his hands in silent prayer. Despite knowing that all souls had been collected by the underworld, he couldn’t help but feel a need for reparation. Argaz, indifferent to such emotions, wore a bored expression, seeing no prey to hunt.

「Hey, Sogen, finish your sentiment quickly. There’s no one here to mourn or hear the grievances. The only one here is the old dragon we need to talk to.」

「Yes, as Argaz says. I apologize for delaying us.」

While Sogen agreed without frowning, understanding their task, Elcira, who frequently clashed with Argaz, intervened.

「Don’t mind Argaz, Sogen. That barbarian there, despite saying reasonable things, is likely to challenge Dragon the moment he gets a chance.」

「Heh, you understand well. The ancient god-dragon must be the most incredible being we’ve encountered. Nid Vashar was formidable, but if the stories are true, Dragon is on a different level entirely. I’m looking forward to just seeing him, even if we’re here to talk.」

「Don’t you dare attack him! If you show any signs of hostility, I’ll send you to the bottom of a supergravity well or the far edge of the horizon of causality.」

「Haha, that sounds fun. Both places probably have monsters I’ve never seen before.」

「You’re hopeless. Without your strength, you’d be a worthless battle maniac with no redeeming qualities.」

「Hahaha, no argument there.」

Despite Elcira’s sighs of exasperation, Argaz remained unperturbed. The Ancient-Celestial Dragon lived in a cave on the mountainside, and reaching it required a short walk. For the Seven Braves, this was nothing more than a light stroll.

Upon reaching the cave entrance, Semto and his team paused. They hadn’t used any concealment magic or stealth equipment, so Dragon would undoubtedly have noticed them. Yet, there was no response from him. This lack of greeting or warning confused Semto.

「Harumin, Maialte, what has Dragon been up to lately? I don’t recall hearing much about him.」

「Recently, he annihilated an 18-dimensional invader trying to enter the Purple Star branch galaxy with ground-based artillery. Fifty-four years ago, he destroyed the stronghold of the great evil god Karavis, who attempted to turn the entire universe into a humid slug paradise.」

「There have been various incidents, but those are the most recent. It’s hard to call such events simple, but Dragon can easily accomplish such feats.」

「We could just let Dragon handle Nid Vashar. He could solve everything himself. It’s reassuring to know his power, but…」

「But what?」

The voice interrupting Semto was neither Maialte, Harumin, Elcira, Sogen, Hagami, nor Argaz. It was a male voice they hadn’t heard before. They all turned towards the cave, instantly preparing for battle. None of them had detected the presence of this being with their senses, magic, or devices. It was as if he had always been there.

「Are you the Ancient-Celestial Dragon?」

Forgetting to reach for his sword, Hisaiten, Semto looked up at the white dragon standing at the cave entrance, dazedly asking the question. The dragon’s massive body, covered in white scales like snow on a sacred peak, had three pairs of wings and eyes colored like a rainbow bridge.

「Indeed. To think you’d cross dimensions to visit me. It’s been a while since I had guests, but I suppose it’s best to ask your business first.」

The voice was calm and intelligent, unexpectedly gentle for such an imposing figure. Yet, Semto felt as if he were facing an elderly man, fatigued by time.