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‘Judging by the rusted chains, it looks like he’s been dead for at least a decade… yet the corpse has hardly decayed. It means he possessed an incredible amount of magic power when he was alive.’

Why had such a powerful person been trapped in a place like this?

Screech?

Umbra tilted its head, wondering what was going on, but Theo cautiously moved closer to the old man’s corpse.

His eyes scanned every corner of the chamber.

He soon discovered a few puzzling details.

‘The chains… the way they’re connected to the wall is uneven. Even the materials aren’t consistent.’

If this cave had been designed to restrain this old man, the connections wouldn’t have been so clumsily arranged.

Though they were firmly fixed to the wall, there were still many parts that seemed haphazardly done.

There were only two possible explanations for this.

They either had to restrain the old man in a hurry and improvised the setup.

‘Or he bound his own hands like this.’

Theo’s eyes glinted sharply.

“Did he survive by consuming this stuff?”

On the inner walls, various mushrooms bloomed in vibrant colors among the transparent crystals.

Theo plucked one and sniffed it lightly.

As expected, the scent was familiar.

Demonic energy.

“…Why is ‘Ghost Mushroom’ growing here?”

‘Ghost Mushroom’ was a plant that grew only in the deepest parts of the Demonic Sea, in dark, shadowy areas where sunlight barely reached.

It thrived solely on pure demonic energy infused with moonlight, making it a rare elixir for demons and demonic beings.

The problem was that such ‘Ghost Mushroom’ had formed a whole colony here.

‘It seems like demonic energy evaporated from the nearby Demonic Sea, drifted through the valleys, and gathered here, condensing within the crystal cave to create an ideal environment for the ‘Ghost Mushroom’ to grow…’

He understood how such conditions could theoretically form, but seeing it actually happen was still astonishing.

“So, this is why you became a Shadow Wyvern.”

Screech?

Theo let out a bitter smile as he stroked Umbra’s jaw, and the creature tilted its head, still confused.

However, Theo didn’t say anything more.

From now on, he only had to make sure Umbra wouldn’t consume any more ‘Ghost Mushroom.’

‘I’ll have to burn everything here.’

While it could be used as a valuable medicinal ingredient, such cases were extremely rare.

The same went for any thoughts of consuming it directly.

Even though the bodies of the Ragnar were highly resistant, their essence was that of a dragon.

Dragons were natural enemies of demonic energy, so it would act as a lethal poison to them.

Crackle, sizzle!

Theo extended just his index finger and channeled the Thunder Dragon Breathing Technique.

Sparks leapt from his fingertips, soon producing a large burst of bright yellow lightning.

Screech?

Umbra flinched in surprise, spreading its wings wide.

“Don’t worry. I’ll only blow up this part, so the crystals you like won’t get damaged.”

Theo reassured Umbra and was just about to summon the fire magic when—

SCREECH!

Suddenly, Umbra lunged forward.

Theo was about to convince the creature, thinking it still misunderstood his intentions, when he belatedly realized there was an attack from behind.

The corpse of the white-haired old man, which he thought was long dead, was moving!

“Kaaiiiill!”

The old man’s mouth gaped open, emitting a stench of rotting flesh as he lunged toward Theo, as if intending to bite him.

Umbra quickly darted in between them.

Thud!

The old man’s bony claws snapped as they failed to penetrate Umbra’s tough scales.

Boom—

Theo swiftly stepped back a few paces and unleashed a burst of lightning.

A bright yellow bolt crashed down from the cave’s ceiling.

Thunder Calling.

Though it was far less powerful than the magic he had used during the Second Blossoming Ceremony, the principle behind it was similar.

The bolt struck the old man’s head with a fierce blow.

It didn’t destroy him, but it was enough to cause a concussion, making him hesitate momentarily.

Even so, the old man’s sharp teeth narrowly grazed Umbra’s neck during the attack.

And then—

A new ally appeared on the scene.

“Young Master!”

Evelyn, who had finally located Theo, looked quite shocked by the sudden combat situation.

However, proving she was a seasoned master swordsman, she calmly drew her sword and confronted the monstrosity.

“White Armored Dragon Cavalry Secret Art – Barrage of Sword Strikes”

Flash! Flash!

Each swing of her magic-infused sword emitted a brilliant gleam, far more dazzling than the surrounding crystals.

It was a Sword Aura.

‘This is… an Aura Blade.’

The sword energy, said to be capable of cutting through iron, instantly sliced through the old man’s arms.

“Kaiil! Kaiiil! Roberr! Roberrr! I… I hate you all!”

Clang, clang, clang!

Every time the old man struggled violently, the chains attached to his arms clanged loudly.

But then—

Slice—

Splurt!

Evelyn’s sword relentlessly drove the old man back until she cleanly decapitated him.

Even though she had lost an arm, her swordsmanship, once hailed as the right hand of the Dark Dragon, was still among the best even within the House of Ragnar.

‘That was still dangerous. If this creature had been able to think and act properly, it wouldn’t have been such an easy fight.’

Hoo—

Evelyn caught her breath as she watched the old man’s lifeless body collapse.

Her sword was still trembling violently.

The magic power contained in the old man’s touch was that intense.

Moreover, the corpse emitted a deadly toxin that one would expect from a rotting body; even a slight scratch would have been catastrophic.

A corpse toxin laced with demonic energy.

It was one of the deadliest poisons, something to be absolutely avoided, even in the Demonic Sea.

“Young Master, are you alri—”

As Evelyn brushed off the corpse toxin from her sword and turned to Theo, she froze, her eyes widening.

Screech! Screech!

Umbra flapped its wings wildly, unable to keep still, and stomped its feet anxiously.

Theo was slumped on the ground, drenched in cold sweat.

“Y-Young Master!”

“I’m fine. There’s no need to make such a fuss.”

Theo spoke as calmly as he could, but he didn’t look fine at all.

A large portion of his left forearm had been bitten, and it was already starting to decay. His complexion had turned alarmingly pale.

If not for the thunder attribute of his magic, he might have passed out long ago.

“What happened to you…?!”

Evelyn rushed to Theo, immediately opening her emergency kit.

The problem was that they hadn’t brought proper antidotes, as today’s mission didn’t involve exploring the Demonic Sea.

“It… was my… mistake.”

In truth, this had happened when he tried to block the old man from attacking Umbra’s neck just before Evelyn arrived.

But he chose not to mention that.

“I will take you back to the base right away. Please, endure it just a little longer.”

Evelyn swiftly finished the emergency treatment and prepared to carry him on her back.

However—

Screech!

Umbra suddenly pushed Evelyn back with its head, preventing her from taking Theo.

“I’m not trying to hurt your partner! I’m trying to help! I need to take him to safety!”

Screech! Screech!

“Umbra!”

Screeeeech!

No matter what Evelyn said, Umbra reared up and screamed even louder.

Was it because it was just a beast, unable to understand?

Given the urgency of the situation, Evelyn didn’t waste time trying to persuade it and instead reached for her sword.

But at that moment—

“Evelyn…! Wait! Stop… for a moment…!”

Theo suddenly stopped Evelyn.

Her gaze shifted back to him.

“Umbra… it seems like it wants to say something. Please, just wait… a moment.”

Evelyn thought they should use this time to get Theo out of there, but he was so serious that she couldn’t refuse.

By then, his breathing had become labored.

“What… are you planning to do, Umbra…?”

Screech! Screech! Screech!

“Really… is that… possible?”

Screech!

Theo exchanged a few incomprehensible words with Umbra, then slowly nodded with a heavy expression.

“Alright… I’m trusting… my life to you…”

Screeeeech!

Umbra nodded and then moved deeper into the cave, biting down on a large amount of Ghost Mushroom.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

“What exactly are you planning to do?” Evelyn asked.

“Anyway… if we… return to the base… in this state… it’ll only be more dangerous. So… for now, let’s trust… Umbra. It seems… to have an idea…!”

For a moment, Evelyn felt a tightness in her chest.

Even the White Armored Dragon Cavalry, who operated in the depths of the Demonic Sea, always took care to avoid infection by toxins mixed with demonic energy.

If someone did get poisoned, the procedure was to secure a safe zone first and then use the antidote while paying close attention to sterilization and hygiene.

Even then, the fatality rate was as high as 70%… yet Theo was proposing to rely on an unthinkable solution.

But Theo had his own reasoning.

Umbra had grown into a second-rank demonic beast by consuming Ghost Mushroom.

Was it possible that there had been no conflict with the old man during that process?

Certainly not.

‘There must be a solution to the corpse toxin within the Ghost Mushroom. Some countermeasure that we don’t yet know.’

So, he decided to trust Umbra.

With that thought in mind,

Thud—

Theo slowly lost consciousness.

* * *

Umbra’s mind was filled with only one thought—to save Theo, no matter what.

The friend who was the first to open his heart to it, who had saved it when it was in danger.

It could not afford to lose such a human friend.

Screeeeech!

Umbra first placed the Ghost Mushroom it had bitten off onto the ground, then crushed the ice crystals hanging from the ceiling, sprinkling them over the grass and mixing them together.

The crystals in this cave were pure condensations of vital energy.

By mixing these two substances, the toxic properties of the Ghost Mushroom were diluted, and the vital energy increased significantly.

This was also the secret that allowed Umbra to grow to such a size even without consuming proper food.

“You want me to feed this to the Young Master?”

Screech!

Evelyn hesitated as she looked at the recipe Umbra had presented, but there was no other choice. It was already too late to take Theo back to the base. Reluctantly, she melted the herbs with her magic power and carefully let it drip into Theo’s mouth.

‘Young Master, please…!’

She could not bear the thought of delivering bad news to Cecilia, the one who had helped her regain her arm.

Right then,

Thump… Thump… Thump…

Theo’s heart, which had been corrupted by the corpse toxin, began to pound heavily.

Even Evelyn could feel it clearly.

Slow, but strong pulses.

It was as if the very sound of his heartbeat resonated throughout.

Thump, thump, thump, thump, thump!

Then, as his heartbeat quickened, blood surged powerfully throughout his body.

The toxic energy was purged, replaced by the pure essence of the Ghost Mushroom and the crystals.

Color began to return to Theo’s pale face.

“How…?”

Evelyn’s eyes widened, struggling to comprehend the situation.

She could see that he was recovering, but the mechanism behind it was beyond her understanding.

Nevertheless,

The healing continued smoothly, and—

Crackle, sizzle! Sizzle!

Suddenly, bright yellow lightning energy started to burst across Theo’s body,

Crack—

His skin began to split like a turtle’s shell, and dark impurities seeped out.

– The moment the ‘Shadow Demon Poison’, which had once created the Shadow Wyvern, took root in Theo’s body.

It marked the beginning of the ‘Moulting of the Shedding Serpent’.