[Vol. 8] Chapter 333: Judged as Small Fry
It was as if Leonis suddenly realized something. His face changed again, and he tried to react, but the young dragon lady quickly raised her palm. Golden flames that could burn everything appeared out of nowhere, locking him in place. He could only watch as the blood-red light rushed straight toward him!
In a hurry, Leonis launched a full-force counterattack. But strangely, the red light wasn’t energy or a spirit attack, and even the mysterious powers of the “Serpent” could not affect it at all. The two forces crossed in the air, and in the next moment, the blood-red light turned into chains and instantly sank into his phantom soul body.
[!]
The world before the Emperor suddenly changed.
No longer was it the dusk sky under the [Ring of Heaven and Earth]. Instead, everything far and wide was void and darkness. Beneath his feet stood a huge arena, its main colors red and black, filled with a heavy aura of iron and blood, like an ancient gladiator colosseum where people once fought to the death.
Suddenly, Leonis felt something strange. Looking down, he was shocked to find that he hadn’t arrived here in his true serpent form, but instead in the form of his soul’s phantom avatar. A wave of weakness hit him, as if he had been forcefully pulled away from his real body. For the first time, a faint uneasiness rose in his heart.
What kind of power could do such a thing?
He quickly looked around, and to his surprise, he wasn’t the only one. Even the mysterious figure that represented the “World’s Rules,” always wrapped in endless light, had also been dragged here. That being, however, only stood quietly, as if deep in thought.
Other than the two of them, there was also a third person standing gracefully in the center of the vast arena.
It was a breathtakingly beautiful girl with flowing black hair and a spotless white robe. In her hand, she held a long, slender holy staff that shone with a soft glow, standing out in this red-and-black world. A knowing smile curved on her lips, showing a row of smooth, snow-white teeth.
“Hello, you two. Nice to meet you~”
“...A domain?”
Although the sudden change caught him off guard, Leonis was still an emperor and a great schemer. He quickly calmed himself, his sharp gaze scanning the surroundings. He felt the invisible chains of rules binding his body, then focused back on the black-haired girl.
“So, even when nearly ten ‘Chosen Ones’ joined forces, they still couldn’t trap you in that place. When exactly did you arrive here?”
“Hm… probably around the time you finished absorbing those powers and flew into the sky, getting ready for a big fight. I was afraid of being noticed while watching, so I used a really powerful item to hide my presence~”
Leonis’s expression hardened. He truly hadn’t noticed anything at all.
“It seems we all underestimated your strength. No wonder you are the goddess worshipped by the world’s largest religion… Where is ‘White’? Did you kill her?”
The priestess spread her hands, not giving a clear answer.
“Who knows? Maybe I wiped her out so completely that not even dust is left. Or maybe I was merciful and let her live. Instead of worrying about her, you should worry about yourself. After all, this isn’t a place you can easily escape from.”
“Hmph…”
Leonis let out a cold snort.
“Goddess, I admit your strength. I also didn’t expect to be tricked like this. You are indeed the most troublesome enemy I’ve ever met. But now, I am the ‘World Serpent.’ My rank is no lower than yours. Even in this situation, do you really think you’ve already won?”
“World Serpent, huh… what a fresh title.”
Not caring about the hidden provocation from the emperor, Violet only smiled. The [Iron-Blood Arena] was her domain. Compared to this schemer, who hadn’t fully inherited the rank of “Serpent” and who clearly lacked enough combat experience despite his level, she was more interested in the other presence that had also been dragged here.
“No need to rush. Let’s first see the true face of a certain being.”
Saying this, she turned her gaze toward the mysterious figure wrapped in dazzling light. Seeing that, Leonis also paused his urge to act and instinctively followed her line of sight.
The rules of the [Iron-Blood Arena] forbade all offensive skills and many other abilities. At first, Violet wasn’t sure if this would work against a being that seemed to have the protection of the world’s rules. But since she had already managed to drag it here by force, it was clear that its authority wasn’t as high as she had thought.
Or perhaps, it meant that this special arena’s rank was extremely high.
The light surrounding that figure looked like a shield, but it was clearly a special skill that worked for both defense and attack. Since that was the case, here in the arena it too would be restricted and weakened.
The priestess waved her hand, and the rules of the arena pressed down at full force. The figure hidden inside the golden light, which had been impossible to see clearly before, finally started to become visible.
“…Eh?”
She had imagined many possibilities beforehand. Even if another version of herself with golden eyes had walked out from that light, Violet believed she wouldn’t be too shocked. But when she truly saw the being’s form, she couldn’t help opening her mouth slightly in surprise at the bizarre sight.
The one inside the light wasn’t a living creature at all, it was a roughly made wooden doll.
It wasn’t like the doll-people who looked almost the same as real humans. This one was crudely made, like a stick figure pieced together. You could barely make out its hands, feet, body, and head. It had no hair, two stones stuck in as eyes, and no nose or ears. Those had simply been left out.
Clearly, whoever made it was very limited in skill and didn’t put much effort into it either.
No wonder this thing hadn’t spoken a single word since its arrival. At first, they thought it was because of lofty pride as a higher being. But now it was obvious, it simply couldn’t talk. After all, its so-called “mouth” was nothing but a curved line drawn with a brush!
Seeing this, even Leonis, who almost never showed emotion, was caught off guard. He had fought fiercely against this mysterious being that descended from beyond the world to stop the rebuilding of the [Ring of Heaven and Earth]. But even he hadn’t known, nor could he have imagined, that its true form would be something so crude.
“What kind of joke is this… The so-called [Will of the World], the [Guardian of Rules], and it turns out to be nothing but a puppet made of cheap wood?”
Just moments ago, the emperor had been secretly proud that he had fought the world’s manager directly and was only slightly at a disadvantage. Especially since not long ago, he had still been a mere mortal who hadn’t even reached the mythic realm.
But now, after seeing this true form with his own eyes, a wave of deep humiliation rose inside him. For the first time, clear anger appeared on his normally cold, unchanging face.