Chương 41: Confronting The Nightmare Nest’s Lord

In the heart of the Frozen Castle, Hrymdra stared into the crystal ball before her, her face tight with worry. Now that the curse had been almost completely lifted, she felt far better—yet the relief only sharpened her fear. Elizabeth had kept her promise, and the young dragon had been facing the terrors of the Nightmare Nest completely alone.

"Elizabeth..." She stretched her divine senses as far as they would reach. Even with most of the curse gone, she remained too weakened to leave her castle.

"Please return! It's too dangerous!" Through her Divine Ice Crystal Ball, Hrymdra quickly located the girl. Shock rippled through her as she watched Elizabeth battle two powerful beings, defeat them both, and grow visibly stronger with every clash. She had even gained a new companion.

"Why?! Please return! Stop risking your life—you've done enough!" Hrymdra cried, desperately trying to reach her. But her voice could not bridge the distance.

"My divine power is still too weakened by the curse. I cannot pierce this thick layer of nightmare essence!" Her tone cracked with frustration.

"No... Astraea, please tell the girl to stop this!"

"I've told her multiple times, Hrymdra!" Astraea replied.

"But she won't listen—she's as stubborn as she is determined! I'm worried too. As a mere system assistant, I can hardly do anything except support her... What do we do?! She barely survived her second encounter. Even though she has grown so strong and prepared, the boss might be several times stronger than her. She's walking into suicide!"

"We need to call for help," Hrymdra said, forcing down her pride and the solitude she had clung to for so long.

"For her... I... I must swallow my pride and speak to my family. By now, some of them must have noticed the wound in the realm. I will call them, and... I will call Grandmother."

"Grandmother?" Astraea asked, startled.

"Wait, you mean...?!

""Yes," Hrymdra replied gravely.

"Her." ♢♢♢♢ The heat in the air grew impossibly thicker and more overwhelming the moment we stepped into the final room, revealing yet another endless inferno of red and purple flames consuming everything in sight. I advanced carefully, flying above the worst of the blaze while channeling my Ice Magic to form a protective coating of frost around my body. At the same time, I wrapped myself in my Harmony and Chaos Auras to shield against harm.

In the distance, a tall figure sat upon a massive throne of beast bones, wreathed in flames and staring directly at me. A chill raced down my spine despite the searing heat. I clenched my teeth, flew closer, and as I prepared to land—"Sorrowful Winter Garden." FLASH! In a single heartbeat, the surroundings froze solidly. Every flame vanished, suppressed beneath layers of deep cold and frost. Snow fell steadily from the ceiling as if true winter had claimed the chamber—a breathtaking, haunting sight.

This evolved spell no longer simply created ice and a garden of frost. It warped space itself, forming something akin to a Pseudo Domain. Through the constant snowfall, it kept freezing everything around us without end.

"?!" The boss on the throne nearly froze solid, shock flashing across its form. It shattered the ice with raw force, rose to its feet, and glared at us with pure fury. This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"..." It lifted a sword forged with red crystals. Flames erupted once more, engulfing its body and the surroundings.

"Oh hell no." I countered by unleashing Sorrowful Winter Garden against its inferno. Ice and fire collided violently. In that moment, we clashed. RUMBLE! The boss reached me; it's form now clear. A four-meter-tall humanoid clad in heavy red-and-black crystal armor. Beneath the plates, it resembled the other monsters: a skeleton of nightmare energy and infernal crystals. Its giant sword slammed against my Eclipsing Blade.

I roared, channeling every skill and ability I possessed while smashing it downward with my Tiamat Scale Shield.

"Knife Rain!" Hundreds of Harmony, Chaos, and Ice Knives rained down in seconds, exploding across its body. The opposing forces of Harmony and Chaos amplified the damage, while the ice weakened its flames. Yet the skeleton surged through the blasts, its fire undying, eyes blazing. It charged and delivered a crushing kick that drove me into the ground. I groaned, clenching my teeth and snapping at its head—only for its sword to lunge into my jaws, piercing my upper jaw and tearing a scream of agony from me.

"Aaaaagggh!" I ripped the sword free, kicked the creature away, and vomited blood as flames raged inside my skull. Gritting my teeth, I froze the burns and faced the monster as it came at me again.

"Come!" I roared, yanking it closer with my whip, then swung my Eclipsing Blade. Paragon appeared at my side, attacking in perfect sync and doubling our power.

"Eternal Blade Arts – First Form: Horizon Cut!" A sharp horizontal slash of silver and gold struck the boss, hurling it across the room and into the ceiling. A deep wound cracked its armor and body, pieces beginning to break away. However—"RAAAHHHH!" With a furious roar, the boss rushed me, summoning dozens of crystal nightmare-flame swords and raining them down without mercy. I dodged as many as I could, but they kept coming, closing in from every side.

"Damn it!" I swiftly reversed my Knife Rain with Harmonious Chaos Reversal, conjuring Chain Rune Blade Dominion. Dozens of elemental swords materialized and clashed against the incoming projectiles while I closed the distance between us. I tore into its armor with Demon Claw, exposing the towering crystal skeleton beneath. It smashed my face into the ground, shattering several teeth before I could react. CRASH!

"Ugh?! Y-You!" I twisted away desperately and slipped into Stealth just before another punch could crush my skull. I swung my blade again with the same technique. SLAAASH! However— BOOOM! A massive explosion erupted the instant my attack landed. The creature emerged from the flames and smoke like a relentless terminator, glaring at me before unleashing dozens of lightning-fast punches that burned with eternal fire. CLASH! CLASH! CLASH! CLASH!

"Nnnggh! Enough!" I leaped back from the brutal assault, slammed my tail into it, and kicked off the air to charge once more. I fused multiple Rune Blades into a massive Harmonious Frost blade and drove it straight through the monster's body. CRAAASH!

"?!" The creature froze for a moment as I hit it with Freeze Shock again. Its eyes gleamed brightly—and then a voice whispered into my heart.

"It's futile, my child."

"Eh?" BOOOMMM!!! Its entire body exploded in a storm of flames that swallowed me whole. The blast sent me flying into the walls, shattering them. The ceiling collapsed as fire consumed everything.

"Aaaaaahhh! W-What the...?!" I screamed in agony, desperately layering barriers, auras, and spells around me, but the flames were endless. Coughing violently, I unleashed my dragon aura at full power, opened my jaws, and fired a breath attack that punched a hole through the falling ceiling. I barely escaped the collapsing ruin.

"Cough, cough… ugh…" I landed on the snow, vomiting blood and groaning in pain. My body was a wreck—covered in wounds, missing legs and tail, one wing destroyed, half my body scorched black.

"Matter… Restructuration…!" I clenched my teeth and began repairing my body while gasping for air, still struggling to process what had just happened.

"D-Did that thing just try to kill itself? Paragon? Mongrel? Dryad?" I called them and they appeared behind me. I had been saving their help for later in the fight, but it ended so abruptly and strangely.

"D-Did that do it?" I asked.

"Is it dead?" Dryad and Mongrel wore expressions of pure dread. They couldn't speak through the immense pressure now radiating from the spot where I had stood moments earlier.

"Wait…" I turned back, and my heart sank as a giant silhouette emerged.

"What you have been fighting was nothing but a decoy to buy time—and it served its purpose well. You are too late, my child. This entire Realm shall fall under the Nightmare Beast King's dominion."