The theme of the Alchemical War changed every year.
The ‘Rock Transmutation Contest,’ the ‘Golem Grand Melee,’ the ‘Homemade Potion Tasting,’ and so on.
However, they all had one thing in common: they invariably produced a spectacle of absolute madness.
“What insane thing will the alchemists do this year?”
“They said it is a pet Chimera competition. You can already tell that all sorts of bizarre and ridiculous creatures will gather, can you not?”
“A few participants even died during the last Golem Grand Melee. This year will probably be no less dangerous.”
The Alchemical War was the most popular event in the metropolis of Aletica.
It had originally begun as a way to honor and thank the Great Alchemist who had pioneered the region.
In recent years, however, it had become a tourist attraction guaranteed to draw enormous crowds.
It was so famous and highly anticipated that nobles from other territories traveled there to watch the Alchemical War.
At this time of year, when the streets were exceptionally crowded, spectacles that could be seen nowhere else unfolded throughout the city.
“Wow! Look at that! That hound has two heads!”
“That is nothing special. I saw a winged monkey pass by earlier.”
“Wait there! The carriages are all being blocked by those snakes with chicken feet!”
“Argh! Be careful not to let your Chimeras slip on the wet road!”
As artificial Demonic Beasts, Chimeras came in all manner of bizarre forms.
Livestock with an additional head or several tails were commonplace.
The sudden increase in the number and variety of Chimeras made the city scenery rather entertaining.
Every so often, however, something truly remarkable appeared among them.
Amid the grotesquely fused livestock were creatures whose dazzling forms resembled works of art.
“Wow…….”
“Wait, those are nothing like the Chimeras I know.”
“Can something like that truly be created by human hands?”
There was a mare with the rainbow-hued wing cases of an insect.
There was a beautiful peacock draped in the bark of a fir tree.
There was even an armored freshwater shark that rolled its own aquarium wherever it went.
The creature that stood out most of all was an elegantly blazing monitor lizard.
Even the steam spreading around the Salamander in the rainy weather gave it an impressive appearance.
“Good heavens, a Salamander can grow that large? They are normally small enough to fit in one hand!”
“Exactly. Was that not a Chimera that was difficult to transmute even at its normal size?”
“Wow, it keeps burning instead of going out, even in this rain. How is that possible?”
“His alchemical abilities are extraordinary, as expected of a leading contender.”
“Mr. Bineureban! Please look this way! I came from far away because I am your fan!”
The elite alchemist, Bineureban Will.
As one of the leading contenders for victory, he struggled to maintain a calm expression.
Naturally, he was immensely pleased with himself, but showing it too openly would damage his image.
‘I narrowly missed winning last time, but this time will be different.’
His exceptional abilities had made him a perennial favorite, but he had repeatedly failed to take first place.
This year's Alchemical War, however, would be different.
Chimera transmutation was the field in which he had the greatest confidence.
When Bineureban reached the registration desk, he unexpectedly noticed a familiar pair of faces.
“What is this? Are you participating as well?”
It was the beautiful dark-blond girl and the gaunt-looking handsome man he had encountered earlier.
The girl glared fiercely at him, while the man merely gave a careless nod.
Bineureban smirked and spoke condescendingly.
“You should not expect too much. There is a reason this competition is called an alchemical ‘war.’ It may be too much for the older brother of a child who plays with shoddy transmuted toys. You should withdraw now unless you are confident.”
His words were highly sarcastic, but they were not entirely wrong.
Fatal accidents sometimes occurred during the Alchemical War.
Even among the organizers, some criticized the dangers involved.
Ironically, however, that only made the tourists more enthusiastic.
The sight of fresh blood had always excited the masses.
“You have come to apply for the Alchemical War? Excuse me, but where is the Chimera in your possession?”
A city hall employee approached and questioned the handsome man and the beautiful girl.
Their pet Chimera was nowhere to be seen.
Kranol silently snapped his fingers.
SNAP!
At that moment, Chubby deactivated her Invisibility.
Everyone nearby stared with their mouths agape.
A golden-scaled hatchling wreathed in pitch-black lightning!
Several alchemists recoiled in alarm.
“Argh! Th-that is lightning-attribute Magic!”
“Hm? What is wrong?”
“You fool! If that electricity spreads through the rainwater, everyone will be electrocuted!”
Those who understood the fundamental laws of the world were horrified.
Contrary to their concerns, however, nothing happened.
“H-huh? We are fine?”
“You are right…… How is that possible?”
Some Skills in this world could be used in increasingly varied ways depending on the user's capabilities.
Plumpy, in particular, had possessed an innate talent for precisely controlling Black Lightning from the moment she was born.
By consuming a little more Mana, she could even distort some of the supposedly immutable laws of physics.
As a result, the high-level Black Magic merely enveloped Chubby in a powerful and imposing glow.
“Good heavens! You’re telling me that thing is a chimera? How could he possibly have acquired a dragon factor?”
“That is not even the most remarkable part. Just how high is its quality? Look at how natural those scales appear.”
“That Black Lightning is extraordinary as well. It does not spread even though it is wet. How can that be possible?”
“Could it simply be illusion Magic? Let me touch it and…… Ah, that stings!”
“I have never seen his face before……. Who is that alchemist? Which family does he come from?”
Not one of them considered the possibility that Chubby was a genuine dragon.
There was no conceivable reason for an arrogant dragon wreathed in electricity to follow a human so obediently.
The overwhelming display threw the registration hall into an uproar.
“E-everyone, please calm down!”
“Remain in line! Someone could have their foot trampled!”
As word spread and more people gathered, the crowd of spectators grew even larger.
It reached the point where the flustered city hall employees could barely control them.
“Rooooar…….”
Perhaps uncomfortable under so many human gazes, Chubby remained pressed close to Kranol.
Plumpy, on the other hand, was delighted by all the attention and bounced excitedly.
“Wow! Look at her! Our Chubby is much more impressive than that fire lizard, is she not? Bleh!”
“……!”
Bineureban's face rapidly turned red and blue with anger.
He was one of the favorites to win, yet his Chimera had been completely overshadowed.
A creation produced through arduous transmutation was also a source of immense pride for an alchemist.
For Bineureban, who had entered amid such high expectations, this was a humiliating insult.
“Damn it! Hurry up and follow me, you useless creature! I need to increase your flame output!”
“Hrrrnnn…….”
The dejected Salamander followed its displeased master.
Bineureban left the registration area as soon as he had completed his application.
“Rrah. Roooar.”
“I know. Endure it for a little longer.”
Kranol soothed Chubby, who was whining because she wanted to leave.
Amid the confusion, Kranol completed the registration process.
His participation in the Alchemical War was now confirmed.
***
Was it truly necessary to draw this much attention?
In truth, Kranol did not particularly enjoy standing out either.
However, attracting attention in this manner would make it easier to earn additional points in the competition.
‘The Philosopher's Stone. A miracle that can never be reached through ordinary means.’
The grand prize of this year's competition was necessary to reach the ‘Great Alchemist's Hidden Laboratory.’
Therefore, Kranol could not allow anyone else to win.
He had, of course, considered using Invisibility or another ability to steal the grand prize.
‘That would be foolish. I would be turning every alchemist here into my enemy.’
Even with Invisibility, it would be difficult to penetrate the city's formidable security.
More importantly, even if he succeeded, countless alchemists would pursue the culprit for the rest of his life.
It would be far more efficient to participate and win the competition himself.
‘Public attention is also important in this competition. One portion of the judging is determined by a popularity vote.’
The original protagonist had once participated in the Alchemical War as a ‘judge.’
However, that happened much later in the story.
Even so, Kranol had learned the general structure of the event from that storyline.
He knew which competitions had been held throughout its history and what kind of contest had taken place in each round.
‘First, I need to attract people's attention and make Chubby stand out. That is the first step.’
There was a reason the alchemist with the Salamander had become so offended.
He understood how important public attention was in this competition.
Countless curious people followed Kranol as he left the registration desk, but he consistently ignored all of them.
“Rrah. Rooooar…….”
Seemingly drained by all the attention, Chubby quickly activated Invisibility and climbed onto his shoulder.
“Yaaawn! I am tired too……. We could return to the Subspace Shelter, but I want to sleep in a comfortable inn.”
Plumpy also appeared exhausted after secretly using and controlling Black Lightning for so long.
They returned to the inn where they had arranged accommodations and went to bed early that day.
“Haaah.”
As Kranol lay down and closed his eyes, a sigh escaped him.
He hated this moment, when everyone should have been happy, more than any other.
The most frightening and painful part of his day had begun.
***
How many hours had passed?
If the moon had been visible in the night sky, he might at least have been able to estimate the time.
While he lay there in a daze, a violent headache suddenly struck him, and blood poured from his nose.
“Urgh!”
He reached toward the bundle placed across from the bed.
In desperation, he shoved whatever herbs he could grab into his mouth and chewed them.
A bitter taste filled his mouth, but the pain was so intense that he could not even perceive it.
“……Ngh. Ugh. Haaah.”
Only after the pain finally subsided did a belated groan escape him.
He was drenched in cold sweat and too exhausted even to wipe away the blood beneath his nose.
This was why he suffered from insomnia.
The attacks of Madness came without warning, regardless of the time.
Kranol repeated this ordeal every night.
‘……Perhaps I should get some fresh air.’
Unable to fall asleep, he climbed onto the roof of the inn.
The rain was still falling, but he simply allowed it to soak him.
The rainwater washed away the dried blood beneath his nose, leaving a metallic tang.
“…….”
With his hair drenched, Kranol looked down at the ground.
He had thought the building was low, but it was considerably taller than expected.
The temptation that had always ensnared him returned once again.
Would it not be better to simply fall and end everything?
Even if he struggled to survive, he might ultimately become nothing more than a Calamity who burdened everyone around him.
Was there any reason he had to continue living in such agony in the first place?
“Rooooar…….”
“Ah.”
At that moment, he heard a familiar cry.
Kranol turned around.
“You are not asleep?”
Chubby had apparently awakened and approached him with drowsy eyes, seemingly concerned.
Still half asleep, the little creature tried to lick the blood beneath Kranol's nose.
However, he declined because he did not want her saliva on him.
“You do not need to worry about me. I still have plenty of herbs.”
“Rooooar!”
Chubby shook her head.
Only then did Kranol realize that he had misunderstood something.
Chubby had not come looking for him because she was concerned about him.
She had awakened because something entirely different frightened her.
“……What?”
Upon taking a closer look, he saw that Chubby was trembling in fear.
While he stared at her in confusion, the Status Window appeared.
[The additional effect of the Secret Art, ‘Summon the Berserk Dragon,’ has activated.]
[The aura of a Berserk Dragon has been detected nearby.]
[The Black-Gold Dragon's Dragon-Tooth Soldier is approaching this metropolis.]
‘……A Dragon-Tooth Soldier is coming? Here, right now?’
Kranol went blank for a moment.
The Black-Gold Dragon's Dragon-Tooth Soldier.
A gigantic servant that had inherited a portion of the final boss of Act One's power.
A vicious Boss Demonic Beast capable of destroying one or two cities with ease.
Such a monster was now approaching this metropolis.
‘In that case…….’
The meaning of the Status Window message was clear.
……People were going to die.
A great many people were going to die.
Above all else, however, there was an even more horrifying truth.
‘……That cannot be.’
The Black-Gold Dragon had awakened from its dormant period.
Three years earlier than in the original novel.