Plumpy rubbed her eyes.
No matter how many times she looked, she could not believe what she was seeing.
“Mister! I must be seeing things! There is a dragon bigger than Chubby!”
“That is a genuine living dragon.”
Unlike Chubby, who possessed brilliant golden scales, this dragon was covered in plain black scales.
It stood as high as Kranol's waist and appeared slightly older than Chubby.
By human standards, it seemed to be around ten years old.
Kranol wore a satisfied expression.
‘The young Berserk Dragons took the bait perfectly.’
The Hall of Berserk Dragons resembled voice chat from the real world.
Kranol could observe the dragons' conversations as well.
Ordinarily, that would have been impossible, but his circumstances were exceptional.
‘It must be thanks to the ‘faint Dragon Soul’ I acquired after consuming the Rot Dragon's Heart.’
It granted him Mental Immunity to preserve his sense of self and possessed the property of attracting dragons.
Thanks to that, he could even interfere with the Hall of Berserk Dragons, where their souls communicated with one another.
Although the summoned dragon was still young, ‘Summon the Berserk Dragon’ had finally succeeded.
‘Even a young Berserk Dragon is still a Berserk Dragon.’
Chubby's young age alone had served as a provocation, even though she had said nothing in particular.
Given the immense pride of Berserk Dragons, they could not possibly have ignored her.
The black young Berserk Dragon approached them and greeted them confidently.
“Hello! I am the Son of the Underground King! I came to steal that child's Orb!”
“You are remarkably honest about it.”
“Uh, my father said you have to be shameless whenever you steal something. Was that not right?”
Perhaps because he was still so young, he was immature even by the standards of Berserk Dragons.
Kranol did not mind.
Immaturity merely meant he would be easier to manipulate with words.
“Chubby is a dragon under my care. You will need my permission to take her Orb.”
“Huh? My father said you do not need permission to steal something!”
“That only applies underground. This is the surface. Steal something here without permission, and you’ll be sent to Hell.”
“Gasp!”
The black young Berserk Dragon was horrified.
Hell—the place of endless suffering where defeated evil dragons were sent!
His father had personally told him how terrifying it was.
That was why his father had always emphasized that he needed to become an ‘evil dragon who never loses.’
“Th-then what do I need to do? How can I make you permit me to steal it?”
“Dispose of the dangerous creatures in this place. If you do, I will close my eyes while you steal the Orb.”
“Hmm. Very well. I understand!”
The innocent black young Berserk Dragon began leading the way.
Plumpy, who had recognized Kranol's plan, secretly whispered to him.
“Mister! If you keep relying on Auto-Hunting like this, you will become weak in actual combat.”
“It is fine. I still intend to raise my Skills and Stats sufficiently through other means.”
Kranol's group followed behind the reassuring young Berserk Dragon.
As previously stated, their objective in coming to the laboratory was simple.
‘The Philosopher's Stone hidden at the top. I will obtain it and cure my Madness.’
Of course, Kranol acknowledged that curing his Madness might result in a painful loss of combat power.
After all, the disease undeniably granted him immense magical power.
However, the danger posed by Kranol Wizar in the original story did not stem solely from his Madness.
“Haaah.”
Kranol concentrated and opened his hand.
A dangerous-looking light gathered above his palm.
White Flame and black electrical currents began intertwining.
‘Good.’
Kranol had said from the beginning that he intended to pursue a Skill-development path distinct from those of his pet Calamities.
What he was creating now was his own unique path, one no one else could follow.
[Catastrophe Affinity increased by one stage following the previous war.]
[The Exclusive Skills of two Calamities will be synthesized.]
[‘White Flame Breath (Lv. 1)’ + ‘Black Lightning (Lv. 1).’]
[A new Exclusive Skill will be synthesized for you.]
***
What was the first thing one needed to do to exterminate Demonic Beasts?
The original protagonist had proposed a primitive solution.
Prevent them from reproducing.
“Reproductive organs are unnecessary! Removal is correct!”
“You will never use them anyway! I will erase them for you!”
Dozens of Biological Golems wandered through the corridors and vast first-floor hall of the ancient castle.
The enormous creatures were obsessed with removing reproductive organs.
‘That was why the original protagonist's experiment failed.’
The creatures were supposed to pursue the ‘annihilation of Demonic Beasts,’ but they had focused solely on the concept of ‘reproductive castration.’
In any case, Kranol's group advanced through the first floor without difficulty.
The black young Berserk Dragon caused an earthquake.
“This place is a laboratory? The human world is fascinating! There are so many things beneath the ground!”
The young Berserk Dragon did not cause an ordinary earthquake.
Rocks, living creatures, and tree roots beneath the ground became weapons and attacked the enemies.
The Biological Golems fell, while iron ore and Demonic Beast bones erupted through the fractured corridor floor.
“Ore has no reproductive organs! Difficult!”
“Bone fragments are digging through our stitches!”
Kranol's group remained unharmed by the earthquake.
Even if the ground shook violently, they merely needed to fly.
Once the earthquake ended, the two young Calamities lowered Kranol to the ground.
“Haaah.”
Kranol took a deep breath and concentrated.
The light he had created earlier gathered around his blade.
[The Synthesis Skill, ‘Black-and-White Aether Activation (Lv. 1),’ is cast.]
White Flame and black electrical currents coiled around the sword.
A new substance—Black-and-White Aether.
It possessed many possible applications, but it was particularly useful in combat.
It greatly enhanced the power of a weapon.
“G-ghaaagh!”
The experimental subjects that had fallen defenselessly to the ground were easy to hunt.
Kranol slaughtered the Biological Golems with tremendous destructive power.
Combining it with Demonic Beast Hunter Swordsmanship increased the damage even further.
[The Skill level of Black-and-White Aether Activation has increased! (Lv. 1 → Lv. 2)]
[The concentration of the new substance, Black-and-White Aether, has increased slightly.]
The Skill gained a level almost instantly.
The black young Berserk Dragon's earthquake made hunting considerably easier.
Kranol merely needed to strike the incapacitated enemies.
‘Auto-Hunting truly is wonderful.’
Rather than fighting together, it felt as though Kranol were merely following the young Berserk Dragon's one-sided performance and reaping the benefits.
The two little ones were not idling either.
Even after lowering Kranol, they actively participated in the battle.
“Why do you keep trying to exterminate others without their permission? That is wrong!”
Plumpy attacked the enemies with Black Lightning and increased her proficiency.
Chubby, however, was considerably exhausted after using Summon the Berserk Dragon.
The aftereffects of the Secret Art had left her unable even to unleash her Breath.
“Chubby. Drink this.”
“Rooooar?”
Kranol held out a small vial.
It was a Basic Mana Recovery Potion.
Even the weakest potions capable of restoring Mana were considered premium goods.
After gulping it down, strength surged through Chubby's body.
As it was a creation of the Great Alchemist, its effects were exceptional even for a basic potion.
“Rooooar!”
The revitalized Chubby immediately began unleashing White Flame Breath.
The black young Berserk Dragon looked down at the dragon younger than himself.
After hesitating briefly, he carefully offered her advice.
“Little one who has not learned to speak. You do not have to spread your Breath as widely as possible. Sometimes, concentrating it on a single enemy will inflict more damage. My father taught me that.”
“Rrah! Rooooar!”
Chubby was delighted by his advice and held her head high with pride.
After two failures, she had finally met a genuine Berserk Dragon.
Kranol glanced at them and added something.
“Chubby appears to like her new older brother.”
“Hehe. Really? I am happy too. It feels as though I have gained a younger sister. I was almost always alone in the lair.”
Plumpy tilted her head curiously.
“Why were you alone? You said you have a father!”
“My father often leaves……. He especially loves jewels, so whenever he goes out, he rarely returns.”
The fierce battle continued.
‘Impressive. Summoning him through the Secret Art was worthwhile.’
The black young Berserk Dragon's power surpassed Kranol's expectations.
Although he was still only a juvenile, the earthquake he created made even the enormous ancient castle tremble.
As expected of a Berserk Dragon, he was using an Area-of-Effect Skill to accomplish the work of more than a hundred people by himself.
‘He is not as exceptional as Chubby, but his Potential is still extraordinary. He is also slightly older, so his power is far greater.’
Since he was more manageable than an adult, he would make an exceptionally dependable reinforcement when summoned occasionally.
Thanks to him, they defeated the Biological Golems on the first floor without anyone being injured.
Kranol immediately opened the Subspace Storage.
“What is that?”
“Eat it. It is your Reward for working hard.”
He offered the dragon sausages and smoked ham that he had purchased in the metropolis.
At first, the black young Berserk Dragon stared suspiciously.
“Uh…… My father told me never to eat food given to me by strangers…….”
“Rrah! Rooooar!”
However, Chubby readily began eating the snack Kranol had offered her.
Watching her made the young dragon's mouth water.
Eventually, the hesitant black young Berserk Dragon bit into the ham.
His eyes immediately widened in amazement.
“Wow! It is delicious! It is much softer than the King Mole meat my father plundered from the dwarves!”
“Ugh! Good heavens! You eat mole meat? What kind of strange place do you live in?”
“Hehe……. Everyone lives like that underground. It is dark and barren there. There are many valuable jewels, of course, but now that you mention it, perhaps it lacks the things that truly matter.”
Plumpy crossed her arms and stared intently at the black young Berserk Dragon.
Then she opened the Subspace Storage and took out the box they had found earlier.
“Try one of these too! It is luxurious chocolate that I have been saving, but I will share a little with you! Ah, there are no whiskey-filled chocolates because Mister threw all of those away!”
“Wow, really? Thank you! By the way, what is your name?”
“Plum……. I will tell you later!”
The three children quickly became friendly as they ate together.
Meanwhile, Kranol rested while rolling the light around his palm.
‘Synthesizing the Skills made the effect extremely powerful, but it also greatly increased the Mana consumption.’
The synthesis of copied Exclusive Skills belonging to Calamities.
It was a new power granted by his increased Catastrophe Affinity.
Because it was a special technique unique to him, he needed to become accustomed to using it.
He intended to copy and combine the Skills of many different Calamities in the future.
‘The Black-Gold Dragon has only just awakened from its dormant period, so its power remains incomplete. It cannot operate several Dragon-Tooth Soldiers simultaneously.’
The Orbs also represented individual portions of the Black-Gold Dragon's power.
Since Kranol had taken one of them, the dragon should remain quiet for the time being.
‘I destroyed its First Dragon-Tooth Soldier and stole the Regeneration Orb. We should still have some time. This will delay the Black-Gold Dragon's recovery even further.’
Kranol needed to use this opportunity to prepare himself to become vastly stronger.
Of course, he would rest properly whenever necessary.
However, he had no intention of allowing himself to become complacent.
After recovering his Mana through sufficient rest, he stood.
“Rrah! Rooooar!”
“Little one who has not learned to speak, your scales are truly beautiful. If I had brilliant scales like yours, perhaps my father would cherish me much more…….”
The black young Berserk Dragon played with Chubby affectionately.
By now, he looked at her as though she were his biological younger sister.
Then Kranol abruptly poured cold water over the pleasant mood.
“That is enough. You worked hard.”
“Pardon?”
Kranol shook his head.
“I no longer need your assistance. You have already helped us enough.”
“Already?”
“Go and steal the Regeneration Orb. I will close my eyes.”
The black young Berserk Dragon was powerful, but the range of his destruction had limits.
His earthquake would become less effective from the laboratory's second floor onward.
However, the black young Berserk Dragon appeared to be contemplating something deeply.
He looked curiously at the brilliant sunlight streaming through a broken window.
“……Human Mister. Does the sun always shine that brightly?”
“Yes. It is a privilege of the surface. There are also many foods far more delicious than what I gave you.”
The hesitant dragon glanced to the side.
Chubby was resting comfortably in a sunlit spot, basking in the sunlight.
He gazed at her enviously before making a decision.
“I will not steal her Orb. Instead, could you summon me again occasionally?”
Kranol nodded.
In truth, those were the words he had been waiting to hear.
The young Berserk Dragon had lived exclusively underground and had never been given an opportunity to visit the surface.
He had only just left his lair for the first time in his life. Naturally, he would be reluctant to return so soon.
“I will summon you whenever the situation requires it. However, you must obey my requests each time.”
“Yes, of course! Please summon me to the surface again! I want to see sunlight like this often!”
The black young Berserk Dragon returned home joyfully.
He had performed admirably and made a clean departure.
Kranol looked toward the staircase leading to the upper floor.
‘Beginning on the second floor, experimental subjects far stronger than the Biological Golems await us.’
They needed new reinforcements.
“Chubby. Drink this as well. I need your Secret Art.”
“Rooooar.”
Ordinarily, it was appropriate to use the Secret Art only once each day.
However, the situation was different when they possessed valuable Potions like these.
This time, Kranol handed Chubby a vial containing a darker liquid.
After drinking the Intermediate Mana Recovery Potion, Chubby used her Secret Art.
“ROOOOOAR!”
[The Exclusive Secret Art, Summon the Berserk Dragon (Lv. 1), activates!]
[‘Granddaughter of the White Night’ responds to Summon the Berserk Dragon.]
This time, a snow-white young Berserk Dragon resembling freshly fallen snow was summoned.
Perhaps because they had ordered her friend around and made him perform all the work, she was visibly furious.
“You contemptible creatures! How dare you use a Berserk Dragon however you please? I will not be deceived like that gullible fool from underground! Give me the Orb!”
“Snow-white young Berserk Dragon.”
Kranol looked down at the young white dragon.
Upon closer inspection, her scales were chipped, and her body bore numerous scratches.
His voice immediately became exceptionally gentle.
“Your body is covered in small wounds.”
“Th-these are the marks of honorable training! Grandpa struck me because he told me to become even tougher……!”
“Come here. I will heal you.”
The second attempt at persuasion began.