Chapter 225: The Strongest Hero's Family

This day, or rather this night, was destined to be recorded in the kingdom's history.

"The sky, why has it gone dark?!"

"There was sun just now, how did it all go dark in an instant?"

Just before the "Night Owl" raid, the sky suddenly plunged into pitch blackness, dragging the entire city into night.

People were utterly bewildered; it wasn't even dinner time yet, how had the sky suddenly gone dark?

But some of those unlucky souls who had survived the Dragon Calamity were now trembling in terror, their souls shaken from their bodies.

"It's here! It's here!"

"White Night! It was just like that on the day of White Night too; it was clearly daytime, yet the sky suddenly went dark. This is an omen, the omen of the apocalypse."

They, who had experienced the despair of that night, remembered every ill omen of that day; the night that suddenly descended upon the day was the most profound nightmare in their memories.

Then, also in their memories,

"Awoooo!"

Roars of beasts and cries of birds from all directions swarmed in.

Herds of beasts appeared simultaneously in the darkness, but the most dangerous were always the dark owls that blended seamlessly with the night.

As top-tier hunters of the night, "Owls" had absolutely no reason to act during the day.

Yet, as a being possessing wisdom and holding deep hatred for the entire kingdom, she had brought her own clan.

This was a revenge, a hunt, and could even be seen as the opening of a war to destroy the nation.

"This is war, sound the alarm!"

"Count of Radiance" Albert Luciford, still busy within the city, was the first to realize the truth as the city lord.

Wails and screams were everywhere, yet no one knew exactly who the perpetrators were.

Night can bring life sleep and comfort, yet it can also conceal the perpetrators and crimes within.

The attacking shadows were already constantly creating death; with every rise and fall, someone instantly turned to minced meat, and this was only the beginning.

Nearby towers, buildings, and even arrow towers collapsed instantly! The attackers were barely visible.

"What is that..."

Albert saw it: a massive shadow stepping on an arrow tower, swallowing an archer inside in one bite.

It seemed to be a bird-like monster with a round head, its flesh appearing and disappearing in the darkness like a ghost.

In fact, to most ordinary people and even low-tier superiors, these giant birds were invisible!

And beneath their spread wings, herds of beasts surged out; these things began hunting everywhere the moment they appeared... screams were everywhere, wails were everywhere.

"Gurgle."

The shadowy monster bird stepping on the arrow tower tilted its head, spinning wildly.

Its blood-stained beak gaped open; its unmovable, dim yellow eyes emitted a bloodthirsty light. It seemed to be trying hard to reveal a mocking smile.

"Die!! Beast!"

A top-tier Great Warrior's thrown spear exploded with full force, turning into a meteor, attacking that monster bird.

"Crack!" Finally, the collision occurred.

The explosion successfully pushed the monster bird back; it flapped its wings and flew away directly.

But Albert's face grew even more grim; this was an attack he had launched with complete seriousness, aiming to kill. If even he could not easily kill it, and the entire city was filled with these "gurgle-gurgle" monster birds, what would happen to everyone else?

The veteran warrior, having seen countless battles, seemed to already see the future, the apocalypse that was about to arrive.

Could it be that this city, which had finally developed, would end right here?

Could it be that the kingdom, which had just recovered some vitality, would ultimately be unable to escape the fate of destruction?

Could it be that the opportunity for renewed prosperity he thought was approaching, seeing the continuous emergence of young talents, was merely a beautiful dream?

"At least, Your Majesty the Queen, and the Princess... must not be harmed, they must not!"

Having made his decision, Albert abandoned seeking help from others and led his personal guard toward the City Lord's Mansion.

Coming neither too early nor too late, it was clearly targeting the Queen. At the very least, the royal family must survive; as long as they were alive, the kingdom could continue to exist, and the people could continue to be protected by the kingdom.

"Boom!"

But before he even reached his own City Lord's Mansion, the sudden explosion of the building right before his eyes made his heart grow cold.

And the red figure floating up from the shattered ceiling made his scalp go numb.

"How can there be such an absurd monster?"

Red dragon wings spread, and a flame-covered Dragon Knight slowly floated upward.

It was at least four meters tall; the light and heat radiating around it were enough to evaporate seawater.

Floating in the sky, the very energy of its existence directly distorted the surrounding air and mass, making it completely impossible to see clearly.

Looking at this obviously out-of-spec existence, at this moment, Albert was completely stunned.

"No, absolutely not!"

He also remembered that night of despair, the Dragon Calamity; the rumor that a Great Red Dragon would appear after the White Night... was that true as well?

He suddenly exploded with power, attempting to stop that dragon beast that was rising into the sky.

"Huh?"

The opponent merely glanced at him from afar, and Albert, who had reached the pinnacle of the Great Warrior realm, was completely unable to move.

The dragon eye's intimidating gaze directly poured into Albert's brain, completely freezing him in place.

That was a true monster, a super demon beast capable of tearing him apart in an instant.

Visions of death played out repeatedly in the warrior's mind; no need to fight, no need to roar, just a single claw, and only death awaited him.

A large amount of cold sweat constantly broke out; the veteran warrior, for the first time, felt despair.

It was the gap in life levels, the despair of a small frog encountering a giant python.

Struggling is also utterly meaningless.

"Could today be the end? Could our years of desperate struggle be utterly meaningless?"

Albert was already despairing; the Great Warriors, the Radiant Guards who had followed him, lay scattered across the ground.

It was merely because of that single glance, that Dragon's Might separated by such a vast distance.

I've never seen it before, yet why do I feel it's somewhat familiar, even somewhat warm?

But in the moment of despair, for some reason, Albert seemed to touch upon hope once more.

That "Dragon" raised that sword, the Hero's Sword that no one could ever forget.

"Rise. The sun that belongs only to me."

His calm and confident words resonated throughout the entire city.

Some felt something entirely different; the moment they heard that familiar voice, tears immediately streamed from Albert's eyes.

"How is this possible, how is this possible?" If he could move, he would pinch his own cheeks to confirm whether this was yet another sweet dream of "him" returning.

But what happened next proved this was not another sweet dream from which he woke in surprise midway through.

A "sun," a super fireball radiating light and heat, slowly rose upon the sword tip held aloft by that Dragon-Man.

When the sun reached its expected height, it exploded violently!

The clouds were directly shattered, and the entire city was illuminated!

The night was finally dispelled.

A vast number of Night Owls finally revealed their true forms; large black-feathered and brown-feathered owl monsters appeared under the sunlight.

Some flew about wildly in madness, some plummeted straight to the ground, and others were completely stunned, falling into a dazed state.

And the vast swarms of rats, rat monsters, and rat tribes they commanded, whose evil deeds had just been hidden in the darkness, were now clearly visible.

"It is him, only he can illuminate the entire battlefield, the entire city." Albert knelt on his knees, tears streaming down his aged face.

Night had already covered this city, but the sun in the sky erupted with light that lit up the entire battlefield.

Already, some old Night Owls were flying about in terror; the Dragon Calamity had provided a nightmare-like experience not only to the victimized Orc tribes.

"Kneel, or die."

And that red Dragon-Man simply leveled the raised sword, then gave it a gentle sweep and a pull.

"Aaaah! Aaaah! Aaaah!"

"Goo goo goo!"

Accompanying countless screams was a massive slash that severed the sky.

Where that sword intent carrying blazing flames passed, countless demons and monsters were split in half, then evaporated amidst despair and wailing!

This scene made Albert nod repeatedly. Yes, that was the flavor, an utterly unreasonable power.

He no longer hesitated; only the man from his memories, that invincible man, could display such absurd feats.

However, Albert's plan to rush forward came to a halt.

He saw the red Dragon-Man touch his own hairless beard, shake his head, and lower his sword; it was still him, this was his old habit, which meant he...

Albert was instantly so terrified his scalp went numb; he immediately shouted to the people behind him.

"Don't go over! Get down, lower your heads, don't look!"

The Radiant Guards and guards who were still conscious could not understand this at all in that moment.

"Fools, cover your heads to save your lives! My Lord the Hero feels the firepower is insufficient and intends to unleash a ultimate move!"

Yes, this familiar scene meant My Lord the Hero felt the firepower was insufficient and planned to switch to "a bigger sword" or "a larger, more durable battlefield."

But this time, Albert misjudged; this was not the full-strength Lex, who truly could not directly burn down the entire battlefield.

However, he had prepared in advance, or rather, the other him had prepared in advance.

"Contract, summon 'Lia'."

Suddenly, a bizarre metal weapon was summoned by him.

She... it twisted and deformed continuously during its journey.

By the time it was grasped by "Lex," it had transformed into an utterly absurd "mechanical great lance."

It was a three-segment crystal structure resembling a particle cannon; after "Lex" linked it to his right hand, flames burned faintly in the center.

And when Lex became serious, the flames burning within directly transformed into a "compressed little sun."

"Truly a fine weapon. Rapid-fire mode, activate."

Massive light and heat condensed at the muzzle of the great lance, which resembled a ship cannon, gradually being compressed and fused, until finally...

"Fire."

The light and heat from the muzzle, under perfect control, transformed into countless meteors streaking across the sky.

On this day, everyone in the entire Radiant City witnessed countless meteors piercing through the long night.

Those orange-red meteors, like running suns, effortlessly tore through the obstacles of darkness and wild winds, turning countless giant birds and great beasts into ashes.

One, two; they split almost infinitely mid-flight, yet always managed to lock onto their targets with precision.

In the end, the sky above the entire city was filled with countless meteor showers, along with the desperate wails of various monsters and giant birds.

Finally, the birds had either flown away or were completely dead, and the night had also scattered.

"My Lord Lex! My Lord Lex!"

And Albert, whose legs were still weak, rushed over immediately, attempting to stop the red Dragon-Man who was about to return to the house.

At least, to ask clearly what had happened, and how he could return from the Underworld once more.

But what was given to him was merely the Hero shaking his head in refusal.

"... It is already complex enough; you should not get involved. The Queen is fine; before she emerges, do not come over."

The "Hero" sighed and stepped back into the "execution ground."

Just as he drew near, "Lex" heard the "cursing" and "quarrelling" inside the house.

"My dear sister, you hypocrite spouting benevolence and righteousness, do you know how much suffering I endured the night you reported our elopement?"

"As punishment, Father stripped the flesh from me, stripped the bones from me, glee, glee, he ate it all, he ate it all for three days and three nights, it hurts, it hurts."

Mad words, clearly crying out in pain, yet brimming with delight.

"This is the reason for the destruction of the nation; from the very beginning, you were wrong. The kingdom must never be shamed." In her icy tone lay nothing but disdain and anger; the Queen remained utterly unmoved.

"The kingdom? Fool, you are the biggest fool who knows the least. The entire royal palace is the only place where you take the kingdom seriously, you know? You should have been the one eaten. Sister, I was so good to you, yet you still stole my man."

"Smack!" Accompanying the boot hitting the ground was the sound of brains splattering.

The Queen remained utterly unmoved; she knew that facing such a "monster," not communicating, not listening, and not believing was the most rational choice.

But the next moment, the girl's giggling laughter echoed again through that damaged side hall.

"Hee hee, isn't this my invincible dear?"

When "Lex" entered again, the black-haired Princess let out a mocking laugh, even though her body was pinned to the ground and several nails were embedded in her head.

There was a footprint on her split-open brains, yet she seemed to feel no pain at all, merely laughing happily.

Her sister, Queen Marianna, looked at her with a face ashen with rage.

The Princess could not reassemble her flesh; the wounds on her chest and neck were fatal, slashed open viciously by the Hero with the Hero's Sword. There was basically no chance of survival, and the searing wounds still faintly smelled of roasted meat.

But she still had not died—or rather, the true her had never come in the first place.

"So terrifying, so terrifying. Truly worthy of my invincible dear, hiding such terrifying power. But it seems it won't last long. Next time, I'll come to you in my true form to be intimate. I hope you remain as strong as you are now, giving me the best experience." Rosalind giggled, still happily mocking.

That slash in the chest hurts so much, super much. That heartless bastard, sure enough, cut me again for some wild woman.

She smiled, yet her heart was filled with the most vicious curses.

She was satisfied, very satisfied.

She knew that the "girl" the man before her cared about most was already dead; he had lost again in a complete mess.

Ah, the pleasurable sensation of her fingertip piercing her own blood relative's heart was truly intoxicating.

She happily struggled to turn her head, hoping to take one last look at the "niece" she had just killed.

She prepared to watch "Lex's" pain and despair, to watch her bastard sister weep, having lost the last shred of hope.

Even though both of them acted very strong, Rosalind knew they valued that stupid Princess very much, that foolish Princess who seemed like a mixture of her dear one and her sister! Clearly, what they loved most should have been only her.

"Uh? Mom..."

The sudden words made Rosalind pause.

She whipped her head around and saw a hesitant golden-haired figure outside the door, unsure whether to enter.

"... I seem to have died, yet I am alive again. How..."

Rosalind whipped her head around again. Where the Princess's corpse had been, there was only a pile of broken snake skin.

She turned back, and her original smile and pride had vanished completely.

"I curse you, I curse your whole family! I will slaughter your bloodline. You wait, just wait..."

Like a head transformed into a banshee, it gradually faded, turning into a black bird of lament.

Even in the final moment, she continued to curse everything, cursing her blood relatives, her family, her lover, and her kingdom.

Neither Lex nor Marianna looked at her again; they both stared at Dai Niya, whose face was full of unease, and showed expressions of joy.

Marianna ran over and directly embraced her daughter, whom she had lost and regained.

And Lex hesitated, wondering whether to approach.

"Smack!"

That fierce slap was perhaps the response to his approach.

"Bastard Lex." For the first time, Lex saw the "Princess" cry, crying like a child, yet still holding an even smaller "child."

The "child" looked utterly bewildered: Who am I? Where am I? What on earth are you doing? Why are you holding me? Why are you all kissing?

Yes, before the man could even complain, a faint fragrance rushed to his face.

That long kiss was quite prolonged; after all, they had waited at least fifteen years.

Lips collided with lips, teeth knocked against teeth.

"Uh, did you fill in the missing tooth?"

"Fool..."

And the "child" held by the two of them was completely dumbfounded.

Who am I? Where am I? What are you doing? Am I the one who is superfluous?

(End of this chapter)