There Is No World For ■■

The voice of the unicorn from Uragan’s handle echoed in Yeomyeong’s mind.

Unlike its usual cavalier tone, this time, the voice that filled his thoughts was profoundly serious.

"[Its mind is filled with schemes to use you, blind to the fact that its own greed will lead it to be used instead.]"

"...."

"[Sympathy! I shall lend you my strength. My eyes miss no evil, so use this fool to save this land in reverse!]"

Even before the unicorn had finished speaking, Yeomyeong took a deep breath.

What was this?

He wasn’t even holding the handle, so why could he hear the unicorn’s voice?

With his sword still pointed at Pasun, Yeomyeong pulled the handle from his belt.

Something was wrong with it.

The unicorn-carved handle was glowing like red-hot metal, emitting a radiant golden light—the same as the light from the Golden Imperial Seal covering the valley sky.

Yeomyeong tightened his grip on Uragan’s handle and addressed the spirit within.

"...Explain what's happening here."

"[Sympathy, time is short. I shall tell you everything once this is over, but for now, you must stop Ohr Se Tabul!]"

"Explanation."

The unicorn’s demeanor shifted only when Yeomyeong’s grip on the handle became so firm it might have shattered.

"[Are you sure? It will be a lengthy story—one filled with the friendship and tears of a unicorn and a clan of dwarves...]"

"Keep it short. Get to the point."

"[I am also a token of the dwarf bloodline, strengthened by the Seal’s light.]"

A token? Yeomyeong narrowed his eyes, recalling the ring of the Dun clan that Commander Kwon had lost.

A handle and a token? He couldn’t see the connection.

"[I am the final token left behind by the true rulers of the Artisan Mountains, the Uragan clan.]"

Yeomyeong recalled the explanation given by the weapons dealer, Yosef, when he’d sold him the handle.

It was an unfinished weapon handle crafted by a master dwarf during the war with Stalin.

It had been a dwarf’s creation from the start, so it wasn’t strange for it to be a bloodline token.

But...

"So why did you stay silent until now, only to suddenly tell me to join forces with that madman to stop the dragon?"

Yeomyeong was ready to snap the handle in half out of frustration.

He’d just seen how mad the dragon that had fought alongside dwarves had become; there was no reason a unicorn trapped in a stick couldn’t be just as insane.

Yet the unicorn’s answer was far from what Yeomyeong expected.

"[Sympathy, because you desire it.]"

"...What?"

Because of him?

"[The dwarves’ grudge, the dragon’s revenge, they are all remnants of the past. They mean nothing to me now. That’s why I stayed silent until now.]"

The unicorn continued as if giving a speech.

"[But, Sympathy! The turmoil troubling you stirred me to action.]"

"...."

"[A unicorn protects purity and justice, both in life and death! How could I ignore a noble sympathy wavering between ideals and reality?]"

"A noble... what?"

The unicorn’s voice thundered in his mind, leaving Yeomyeong to wonder if he should snap the handle right there and then.

Yet, despite his doubts, the unicorn declared confidently,

"[Bring the handle before the Seal! I am a rightful bloodline token, too, and I shall help you control it!]"

The first thought that came to Yeomyeong’s mind as he heard this was, "Is this even possible?"

"...You can control the Seal?"

"[Indeed! I am the token of the Uragan clan, one of the nine golden bloodlines that produced kings. The authority gained through the Dun clan’s token is easy enough to seize!]"

Yeomyeong’s thoughts deepened. If everything the unicorn said was true, and he joined forces with Pasun, who could fly...

They might be able to stop the dragon and save Manchuria.

At the very least, their chances of success seemed much higher than they had a moment ago.

The Saintess's foresight, the unicorn’s words, Pasun’s temporary alliance, and the scarred dragon’s wings...

These scattered pieces of his thoughts began to coalesce.

"...Perhaps."

Yeomyeong tightened his grip on Uragan’s handle and looked at Pasun, who was waiting for his answer.

"So, are you in or not?"

Pasun asked, his golden eyes sharp. Yeomyeong lowered his sword and replied with a calm face.

"Fine. I’ll take you up on your offer, but I have conditions."

"Conditions?"

"No acting on your own. You move according to my plan."

"A plan? Well, as long as it’s not completely insane..."

Pasun’s eyes flicked toward the handle of Uragan. Despite trying to hide it, greed glimmered in his gaze.

Had he guessed the handle was key to the plan? Yeomyeong continued with the next condition without a care.

"One more thing. No holding back; go all out from the start."

"What? When I’m in a fight, I always give it my all. What do you think I—"

"Right now."

When Yeomyeong cut him off, Pasun laughed, a derisive expression clear on his face.

"Fine. I’ll show you my full power right now. But in return... you show me what you’re hiding. Got any secret tricks?"

A secret trick. Instead of answering Pasun’s taunt, Yeomyeong activated his mana flow, compressing his blood.

Bloodstream Acceleration—a technique mimicking that of monsters.

His blood vessels swelled as his body was flooded with mana and blood at an abnormal speed.

Capillaries burst under the pressure, and his heart screamed in agony, yet his regenerative ability kept his body intact in real-time.

Though he didn’t appear any different outwardly, Pasun quickly noticed the change and widened his eyes.

"...So you really are a monster, huh?"

"Enough talk. It’s your turn now. Or is it that you don’t have a secret trick?"

As Yeomyeong tossed back the taunt, Pasun chuckled.

"Just don’t be too shocked, kid."

With that, Pasun gathered mana into his fingers and pressed down on his own pressure points.

First, the spot between his brows, the Indanghyul.

Then the center of his chest, the Okdanghyul.

Finally, below his navel, the Gihaehyul.

In martial arts, these three spots were known as the upper, middle, and lower dantians.

The moment he pressed each one in sequence, the mana flowing from Pasun’s body changed drastically.

Whirr!

The mana coiling around him ignited, surging skyward.

Mana surged around him like a powerful vortex, beyond what his body could contain.

The grass and trees around him, as well as his golden hair, rippled endlessly in the powerful flow. Pasun grinned.

"Is this good enough for you?"

It was more than enough. Fixing his gaze on Pasun’s mana, Yeomyeong extended his hand.

In the next instant, the two of them shot into the sky.

"[Come out, you vermin! Come forth and witness the restoration of justice upon this land!!]"

Under the golden, wrath-filled sky of the raging dragon, the Saintess held her breath.

She had fired several shots since the first, but none had the same effect.

Blessed or not, it was impossible for a 5.56mm rifle round to pierce dragon scales.

So her only targets were exposed areas—inside its mouth, its eyes, or the membrane of its wings...

But even that was no easy feat. The dragon, seemingly familiar with bullets, adeptly used its shield to cover its weak points.

"27 bullets left."

Counting her final magazine, the Saintess took a deep breath. She could do this. No, she had to.

Just as she steeled herself and began to rise from behind her hiding tree, someone grasped her shoulder.

!

Swallowing her startled scream, she turned around to see four familiar faces.

"...Commander Kwon?"

Commander Kwon and the mercenaries of Seonjook Mercenary Corps stood there, burnt in several places from dodging the dragon’s firestorm.

"Saintess. May we ask for your healing?"

"Ah? Yes! Of course."

The mercenaries were in bad shape. Deputy Commander Kim Mansu’s back was almost entirely burned, and the others weren’t much better off.

If they hadn’t been superhumans, they would have been dead by now. The Saintess poured healing light over them.

As the healing continued, Commander Kwon glanced around and asked,

"Where’s the rookie? Isn’t he with you?"

"...About that."

The Saintess trailed off. She didn’t know where Yeomyeong was or what he was doing.

All she knew was the outcome of the future, and even that was uncertain, as the future could change at any moment.

"Don’t tell me... he ran off?"

Commander Kwon squinted, suspicious. As the Saintess hesitated, thinking of a response, Kim Mansu, waiting for his turn for healing, interrupted.

"Commander, this isn’t the time for doubts."

"...Kim Mansu, this is a conversation between the Saintess and me. You have no place here."

"Commander."

Kim Mansu’s eyes grew icy. He fiddled with his hatchet, sighing.

"I understand you put the rookie through that strange test and that you kept the true nature of this mission hidden from us. That’s your prerogative. But it’s unlike you to suspect an ally."

"...."

"What kind of conspiracy lies behind this mission? What’s chasing you so relentlessly that you’ve changed so drastically?"

"...It’s an affair involving the government. That’s all you need to know."

"The government? You mean the Korean government?"

"No need to dig deeper. This is my burden to bear..."

As the two continued, the dragon’s roar reverberated through the valley.

"[Pitiful thief, wasn’t one humiliation enough? Fine! This time, I’ll tear your limbs apart!]"

The Saintess and the mercenaries all looked skyward at once.

There, locked in a mid-air battle with the dragon, was Pasun...

"...Yeomyeong?"

Through her hidden eye, the Saintess saw Yeomyeong, flying hand-in-hand with Pasun.

At his waist was a rod emitting the same golden glow as the Seal, shining brighter the closer he got.

The very light she’d seen in her foresight.

Without realizing it, the Saintess stopped healing and rose to her feet. She picked up her rifle and spoke to the mercenaries.

"Commander Kwon. You want to stop this disaster, right?"

"...Saintess?"

"Then run. Now."

With no further explanation, she began sprinting toward the valley, and the mercenaries, catching on, looked to Yeomyeong.

"Commander, we can talk about this after we save Manchuria."

Kim Mansu was the first to follow her, securing his hatchet at his waist and running in the same direction.

The others, initially bewildered, finally realized what was happening.

"We can only put our faith in God now."

Commander Kwon sighed, and with him as the lead, the mercenaries began running.

Above, as the dragon released a storm of fire.

"Hey, are you sure this is your plan?"

Pasun dodged the incoming fire and shouted. Flying through the air with him, Yeomyeong responded calmly.

"If you don’t like it, stop now."

"Well, damn, you’ve left me with nothing to say."

Grumbling, Pasun twisted his body with deft steps mid-air.

With the recoil, Yeomyeong swung his sword, narrowly splitting the descending fireball before it exploded above them.

Boom!!

Seeing his strike miss, the dragon unleashed even more spells.

"[Fall, you gnats!]"

Fwoosh!

Balls of flame, spears of fire, fire butterflies, and towering walls of flames. An array of spells poured down on Pasun and Yeomyeong.

"That damn lizard..."

Pasun muttered, stepping on thin air. Amplified mana surged, forming a long line behind him.

A crimson streak cut across the sky. Though flames blocked his path, Yeomyeong, hanging on to Pasun, swung his sword, slicing through the blaze.

"[Fools. Did you think I’d let you close the distance?]"

Noticing the gap closing, the dragon beat its wings backward.

Even if these superhumans had a martial art that allowed them to soar, dragons were born with wings. They had no reason to lose an aerial battle.

Or so it seemed.

Pasun’s trajectory suddenly changed. Instead of flying directly toward the dragon, he arched wide, creating a long curve.

As if preparing to throw something with centrifugal force.

If he’d been holding a gun, the dragon would have deployed a shield. If he held a bomb? The dragon would have gained distance.

But all Pasun had in his hand was a strange human... so it hesitated.

"Even if you die, I won’t care!"

Before the dragon could react, Pasun twisted his body and flung Yeomyeong forward.

An unexpected attack. Was this a suicide attempt? The dragon belatedly tried to pull back, but Yeomyeong was already upon it.

In his hand was something glowing with the same light as the Seal.

It was unfamiliar, but the dragon instantly recognized the mana within.

The unforgettable mana contained in that object was all too familiar.

"[Uragan? How...?]"

Before the dragon could retrieve the Seal, it connected with Uragan’s handle.

Flash!

Over the shining Seal, a golden unicorn’s form materialized.