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HELIO SCANS
[Translator - Hestia]
[Proofreader - Kaya]
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Chapter 18
1.
“I never called you.”
At the female's words, the male Earth Dragon's eyes narrowed.
His slit-pupiled golden eyes scanned the cavern ceiling—shiny, unblinking. He meticulously examined the stalactites and stone above before shifting his gaze back to the female.
“Then who did?”
Silence fell.
The female Earth Dragon remained speechless for a while. She truly had no memory of summoning him. So who had?
After watching his expression for a moment, she let out a short laugh.
“So what if someone did? Either way, you're here. We're together now.”
“But what about our offspring?”
The male bared his razor-sharp fangs as he continued.
“You missed your ovulation cycle. We won’t have any young this time.”
“Is that so important?”
The female rolled onto her back, exposing her belly. Twelve plump, milk-rich teats lined her underside.
Gazing across the slowly flowing river of lava, she spoke lazily.
“So what if we don’t have hatchlings this time? I’ve carried my weight every cycle. The last brood? They’ve already opened their eyes, haven’t they?”
After mating, a female Earth Dragon lays her eggs in molten lava. The eggs settle near the lava flow, incubating in its intense heat.
The incubation period is roughly 50 years.
Newborn Earth Dragons feed on their mother’s milk, and after weaning, they begin consuming the various underground animals, soil, and lava found in the subterranean ecosystem.
After about 100 years, they reach adulthood.
Once matured, female Earth Dragons leave to find their own sanctuaries. Males, on the other hand, roam in search of females entering estrus.
It’s during this wandering phase that male Earth Dragons learn a critical truth through experience—encountering a female not in estrus often leads to death.
Females are not only larger and stronger than males, but also far more aggressive. Males who approach a young female under 300 years of age are frequently devoured.
Even if the mating itself goes smoothly, any misstep afterward—such as irritating the female—can trigger disaster. Some females will eat their mates. Others throw them to their brood as food.
This “sexual cannibalism” is one of the primary reasons Earth Dragon populations remain low.
The large piles of male Earth Dragon bones scattered throughout the sanctuaries of females? That’s why.
The male Earth Dragon here, Amur, knew this all too well.
And understandably so—he was nearly 1,000 years old.
Of course, his mate—the female earth dragon Magra—was over five thousand years old, but Amur had always managed to maintain a peaceful relationship with her.
They’d mated seven times before, and each time, Magra had been nothing but encouraging. Even now, she looked at him with that slow-burning gaze of hers, as if to say, “So what’s the issue this time?”
She even reached out with her long tongue, wrapping it affectionately around Amur’s neck.
“Relax, Amur. Nothing’s going to happen today.”
And yet, Amur couldn’t shake the unease creeping through him—because of the small, glinting eyes watching him from across the lava river.
They belonged to Magra’s offspring.
The hatchlings born between him and Magra. Though they shared his appearance and the same golden eyes, they obeyed only instinct... and their mother’s command.
Hundreds had already matured and left the sanctuary, but dozens of newborns were still nursing, and plenty of juveniles were approaching adulthood. If they decided to pounce, Magra wouldn’t even have to lift a claw—he’d be devoured alive.
Amur could never forget the first time he came to this place.
Back then, Magra’s appetite had been far more ferocious, and she had summoned males not to mate—but to feed.
Amur had stood before her alongside another male. Magra, favoring Amur, had ripped the other male’s head off and eaten it on the spot.
Amur shivered at the memory of being dragged off and forcibly mated with by a Magra still wet with the blood of the rival she'd consumed.
Amur stared up at the ceiling, his voice low.
“You really don’t care who called me here, if it wasn’t you?”
Magra blinked lazily, her tone indifferent.
“Why should I? Does it even matter?”
She trailed off before finishing her thought, but Amur understood exactly what she meant.
‘I’m not afraid of anything—so what difference does it make?’
But Amur couldn't afford to be that reckless.
A lucky break like this wouldn’t happen twice.
If he came again thinking it was Magra’s call—only to arrive uninvited—her annoyance could very well mean his death.
Gaze narrowing, Amur turned toward the direction where the strange energy had been emanating and said.
“It’s been a while. I think I’ll head out for a bit. Aren’t you hungry?”
Magra gave him a faint smile and replied.
“Now that you mention it, I am feeling a bit peckish. Would you be a dear and bring something back?”
With her glossy, gleaming eyes, she glanced once at her children—then looked back to Amur and added.
“Our babies seem hungry too. Bring back plenty of prey, okay? And… you know what I like.”
Magra gestured with her chin toward a corner of the cavern, and Amur followed her gaze.
A mountain of bones piled high in the corner.
There were so many, it was impossible to count.
Earth dragons rarely go hunting on the surface—but when they do, they feast. Hundreds of lives consumed in one outing.
The leftovers were stacked here, in this very corner. That’s how the pile had grown to this scale.
Magra also had a particular... “hobby”—crafting her own “art” from the remains.
To the left of the bone mound stood a palace she had painstakingly crafted.
It was a palace made from the bones of unidentifiable creatures, pieced together with great care. Built with bones both large and small, it displayed remarkable intricacy.
Inside the palace sat a throne—also made entirely of bone. And resting on that throne was a single armored skeleton, gripping a sword.
He had been a human who fiercely resisted them nearly a thousand years ago, back when Magra had once ventured to the surface.
After his defeat, Magra gathered his bones and pieced them together to create this “artwork.” She had been frustrated when she realized one of the leg bones was missing.
So she went on a rampage, tearing through humans without a second thought, just to find a bone that matched. Once she’d patched him up—good as new, more or less—she looked at her handiwork and muttered.
- He looks lonely. I ought to make him a friend next time… Gotta be more careful when peeling the bones.
Amur could still remember it vividly.
As the memory faded, Magra’s voice drifted lazily into his ears once again.
“You’re not gonna tell me you forgot what I want, are you?”
“Of course I didn’t.”
Amur flashed her a toothy grin and replied,
“I’ll bring back a whole bunch of humans for you—big, fresh ones. I’ll make sure to pick the best of the bunch. So this time, try not to crush all the bones while you eat. Don’t mess them up like last time.”
“You ‘do’ remember! That’s why I love you.”
Magra shot him a sultry wink, and Amur gave a quick nod before diving headfirst into the stone wall.
His massive, long body disappeared smoothly into the tunnel he carved.
The rock wasn’t particularly hard, but the feeling in his gut was anything but pleasant.
The farther he tunneled toward the surface, the stronger that ominous presence from earlier seemed to grow.
And when he finally reached his destination…
He came face to face with a human.
The man wore a brown robe and held a wooden sword embedded with a crimson gemstone in one hand.
It was Damian.
＊ ＊ ＊
The Earth Dragon suddenly appeared.
While I was having a conversation with William's spirit, a vibration occurred, and as the vibration grew stronger, the creature broke through one of the cave's walls.
Crash—!
The Earth Dragon's massive body was much larger than I had anticipated. The wall it had broken through was completely obliterated. If the cave ceiling hadn’t been low, the sheer force of its arrival would have caused the entire place to collapse.
‘It's huge.’
Its body, already exposed, was enormous. And judging by the fact that part of it was still lodged in the cave wall, it seemed its full length was even greater.
What was more, the creature's head, staring down at me, looked among the most vicious I had ever seen.
It had black horns growing from its nose, and its eyes were a golden, gleaming, cracked mess. Its jaw was so powerful it could probably crush orichalcum, and its sharp teeth stuck out from its mouth. It drooled as it glared down at me.
Behind me, I could hear William's voice.
[That's it. That's the one.]
William's spirit seemed to be consumed with rage again, glowing red as it simmered in anger.
I stepped back and adjusted the grip on Nocturne, which had transformed back from its short sword form into its original staff shape.
I channeled mana through it, and as the mana rings began to whirl around violently, sticky mana gathered at my fingertips.
'For now, I need to raise as many of them as I can.'
Using Raise Undead, the piles of bones nearby started to stir. Among them was the skeletal remains of Lyernoff.
Lyernoff’s bones, infused with mana, glowed faintly with a blue aura that surrounded the body. I raised 20 skeletons and immediately issued my command.
[Kill them.]
The skeletons lunged at the Earth Dragon all at once. They charged quickly, using their sharp bone hands to attack, but they didn’t leave a scratch on the dragon. Its scales were far too thick.
That wasn’t all.
Whoosh—
The Earth Dragon finally freed itself from the wall and stood on its two legs, swinging its tail, which was covered in black scales.
The 20 skeletons surrounding it were instantly swept away. Some were shattered by the force, while others were sent flying.
I quickly stepped back and dodged the attack, but the situation was grim.
'Skeletons are useless.'
Even Lyernoff, who I had relied on, was shattered beyond recognition. It was impossible to tell where his bones had scattered.
Then, I heard Nocturne’s voice.
- Master, necromancy can’t harm it. The Earth Dragon’s scales are tougher than those of other dragons.
Damn it.
I didn’t need to hear that—I could already see it with my own eyes.
Picking up on my frustration, Equinox spoke up.
[Stay calm. When facing creatures like this, you need to strike directly. Something like this, for example.]
Equinox channeled mana in my right hand. Then, he injected it into a single bone that was lying at my feet.
The bone slowly began to float into the air.
[Watch closely. The technique is simple. Inject mana into a single bone and then throw it immediately. Like this.]
In an instant, the bone that had floated into the air shot forward like lightning. Cutting through the air, it struck the Earth Dragon's chest.
Thud—
A heavy vibration shook the surroundings. The Earth Dragon's scales remained untouched, and the bone that had been thrown shattered into dust.
However, the impact seemed significant. The Earth Dragon placed one of its front claws on its chest and let out a low groan.
Grrr—
A yellowish, molten saliva poured from its mouth. As it hit the ground, it hissed and turned into black stone.
‘It works.’
Though it didn’t deal a fatal blow, the hit had made an impact. This could work.
I stepped back and channeled mana into Nocturne. Then, just as Equinox had done, I injected mana into the nearby bones scattered around. Five bones slowly floated into the air.
I scanned for a good spot to throw them and then asked Equinox.
[What’s the name of this technique? Bone arrows?]
[No. It’s far more than just an arrow.]
Equinox pointed out exactly where to aim with the five floating bones before continuing.
[This technique is called ‘Bone Spear.’]
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HELIO SCANS
[Translator - Hestia]
[Proofreader - Kaya]
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