She barely managed to free one hand, swung out dragonfire, and added another layer of chaos to the already chaotic scene.
"Junior, run! Don't let them catch you! Run!"
Raymond and Diane also did everything they could to buy time for Noah.
Even Anton, who had originally been so scared he wanted to play dead, tried to do what he could.
"You little brat! If my leg gets broken, it's definitely your fault! Ow! Gently! This is my handsome face!"
His leg wasn't broken, but he was pinned on the ground by a guard pressing his face sideways against the floor.
The companions bought enough time for Noah.
She sprinted wildly, her small figure carrying the only hope.
The Crimson Flame Dragon's guards chased closer and closer behind her.
At the last moment, Noah leapt high and embedded the white crystal into the stone giant's forehead.
The next second, the giant's eyes shot out a sharp light, and it slowly moved, bypassing Noah and heading toward Constantine, who was absorbing the Primordial Energy.
The guards immediately turned their attention to the stone giant, casting their magic skills one after another, but all of them were ineffective.
Fel also joined the fight.
However, the target of the stone giant was obvious:
Constantine.
It was the guardian of the ruins. Once activated, it would only attack those who touched the Noah statue.
The stone giant forcibly broke through Fel's obstruction and charged straight at Constantine.
At this moment, Constantine couldn't stop, or all previous effort would be wasted.
Helpless, he had to raise one hand, intending to use his best fire magic to attack the giant.
But recalling how the guards' magic had all been ineffective, Constantine realized that only physical techniques, and… Primordial Magic, could harm the stone giant.
Thinking of this, Constantine quickly gathered the Primordial Energy. Since that was the one thing he had plenty of, and launched an attack at the giant.
Sure enough, the real damage of the Primordial Energy directly blew up the giant's body.
Constantine snorted coldly, "Nothing special."
However, in the next moment, from the dust stirred up by the shattered stones, a black shadow rushed out.
Using the statue as cover, she gripped lightning in her hand and charged straight at Constantine.
The sound of birds chirping echoed throughout the ruins.
Noah was best at ambushing Dragon Kings, this was no exaggeration.
Constantine had just finished gathering Primordial Energy and hadn't even pulled his move back yet, but Noah had already dashed in front of him.
"I really hate this move!"
That man's signature move, Constantine remembered it vividly.
Now even his daughter had learned it, 'Couldn't you teach your princess something more elegant and refined?'
'Fighting and killing all day, what kind of image is that?'
"Constantine!!"
Noah roared, attacking the Crimson Flame Dragon King before her with the thunder in her hand.
In the blink of an eye, the Primordial Energy and thunder magic clashed. A blinding white light exploded, instantly engulfing Noah and Constantine.
Noah was blown back by the powerful impact, even briefly losing consciousness.
Her vision went black, but in the next second, within that darkness, a series of images suddenly appeared in her mind without warning.
Ancient frontiers, engulfed in flames of war, corpses scattered everywhere, swords and blades plunged into the barren earth, stretching for thousands of miles; the sky covered in dust, colossal dragon king bodies falling from the air, shaking the ground as they crashed down.
Mountains split, rivers reversed, dragons slaughtered each other, and blazing dragon blood dyed the ice plains red.
This was a war among the most violent species on the continent of Samael, where life was the cheapest and most common commodity.
Undoubtedly, this was the darkest chapter in dragonkind's history, bloody, brutal, and primitive.
And the one who stopped this war was the high and mighty white giant dragon.
It lay on top of an iceberg, wings blotting out the sun, its roar shaking the heavens and the earth.
That was the Dragon King, the first Dragon King in dragon history: Noah.
———
Like waking from a dream, Noah was utterly exhausted.
But she seemed to vaguely hear Constantine's shout.
"You again? Why do you haunt me like a ghost?"
'Haunt like a ghost?'
'Is he talking about me?'
'Or…'
Suddenly, a warm sensation enveloped Noah, and a familiar, pleasant scent drifted into her nostrils.
She slowly opened her eyes. Silver strands of hair came into view.
"Mommy…"
Rossweise hugged her brave daughter, smiling through tears, "You can rest now, sweetheart. From here on… leave it to me and your father."
"Daddy?"
Noah turned her head to look and saw that towering figure standing between her and Constantine.
Blue lightning reflected in Noah's pupils. She listened to that man's cool and flashy opening line, "I'll send you to hell for the third time, Constantine."
———
"Leon Casmodeous…"
Reflected in the red dragon eyes was the figure of that man.
He had once been Constantine's nightmare, making the proud Crimson Flame Dragon King suffer greatly.
But it was also Leon, this very nightmare, who became Constantine's only reason to live during the darkest days of torment by the Empire.
The current relationship between Leon and Constantine was rather delicate.
It was true that Leon personally killed Constantine back then, chopping off his head and hanging it at the Silver Dragon border;
And after Constantine's first resurrection, he attacked Isha's Red Dragon Sanctuary, causing significant damage to his eldest sister.
There was definitely enmity between the two.
But to trace the root of the hatred, neither Leon nor Constantine were the true origin, it was the human empire.
If the empire hadn't sent a traitor to assassinate Leon, none of the following events would've occurred. Constantine wouldn't have led an attack on the Silver Dragon Sanctuary and wouldn't have been instantly killed by General Leon.
Even so, expecting these two to put aside their grudges and shake hands was still completely impossible for now.
Although Leon had lived with Rossweise for five years and witnessed many dragons outside the battlefield, he'd begun to slightly change his view of the species.
But if the opponent was Constantine, Leon still clung to his stereotypes of dragons.
He was the purest kind of dragon, fierce, violent, wild, stopping at nothing to grow stronger.
Moreover—
"Rossweise, Noah's not hurt, right?", Leon didn't turn his head.
Rossweise did a quick check and replied, "Her right hand was burned by magic energy and is trembling slightly. She must've suffered a strong impact."
Hearing about his daughter's injuries, Leon's gaze toward Constantine grew increasingly fierce and sharp.
He clenched his fist tightly, lightning wrapping around it, "This time I've got every reason to tear you to pieces, old bastard."
Constantine realized this guy was throwing a tantrum because his daughter got hurt.
Tch. Back then Maureen and the Empire's intel weren't thorough, they didn't even mention that Leon Casmodeous was a doting Girl-Daddy.
Although Constantine didn't care whether Leon got mad or not, for the sake of his own honor and reputation, he decided to give a quick explanation.
"Your daughter's injuries weren't caused by me."
"Bullshit!"
"..."
Old Constantine sighed inwardly, feeling tired.
'Should I explain a bit more?'
'Would that make me, a Dragon King, seem too naggy?'
For once, Constantine found himself conflicted.
"Uncle… Noah's injuries really weren't caused by the Crimson Flame Dragon King."
The senior student Yuna, who was pinned down by two Crimson Flame Dragon guards, spoke up, "She got hurt attacking a stone giant with physical techniques to protect me and Anton."
Before Leon could question her, Constantine looked at Yuna, "You're a sensible kid. What tribe are you from?"
"Thunder Dragon Tribe. My dad is the Thunder Dragon King, Odin," She stated her identity, just in case Constantine went crazy and hurt her.
"Oh, no wonder you're Old Man Odin's daughter. Way more reasonable than some people," Constantine praised Yuna while shooting a sidelong glance at Leon, no further explanation needed.
General Leon's old face turned red. He immediately assumed a combat stance, no longer wanting to waste words with Constantine.
Constantine also got serious, slowly gathering the Primordial Energy.
"Looks like you've obtained the power of the Primordial Dragon King," Leon grew wary.
He had seen the might of Primordial Energy before, and that was just what Rossweise could gather herself.
But Constantine had likely absorbed the power of the Primordial Dragon King, Noah. In terms of strength, he had probably already surpassed Rossweise.
Leon didn't dare underestimate him, today's Constantine was no longer the same as the one who invaded the Silver Dragon Sanctuary back then.
"Ah… such powerful energy, spanning over ten thousand years, all finally flowing into my hands," Constantine felt the surging energy within him, "Casmodeous, this time, I can take revenge with my own hands."
"Then… give it a try."
As the words fell, Leon and Constantine vanished from their original spots simultaneously.
When they reappeared, their wrists clashed, engaging in a pure strength showdown.
Leon opened the Nine Hells Gate, using thunder magic to reinforce his body;
Constantine's fused body, combined with his new Primordial Energy, boosted his strength by several levels.
Just this first close-range physical clash sent shockwaves outward, causing the entire ruin to shake violently.
"You're stronger than before too, Casmodeous," Constantine said.
"If I didn't get stronger, how would I truly send you to hell?"
"Hmph, arrogant brat."
The first round ended, and the two retreated, putting distance between them.
Rossweise carried the unconscious Noah to Leon's side and quietly asked, "How is it?"
"I can clearly feel the surge of Primordial Energy."
Leon's tone was low, his expression slightly grim, "He succeeded."
"I'll go with you."
"It's fine. I can still handle this. You take care of Noah and get the other kids to safety."
Rossweise opened her mouth to say more, but since Leon was confident in handling the current situation, she chose to trust him, "Okay. Be careful."
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