Lord blessed by the elves

Chapter 97 Run

Darns even roared defiantly towards the noble alliance, "Who's afraid of you despicable, vicious nobles! One day we will..."

However, before he could finish his grand pronouncements, he was abruptly interrupted by a deafening roar that seemed to originate from the primordial chaos!
The roar did not come from the ground, but from the sky, carrying supreme majesty and an aura of destruction. It instantly overwhelmed all other sounds on the battlefield and poured directly into the eardrums and souls of every living being!
Immediately afterwards, under the gaze of countless horrified eyes, a huge, scorching flame, like a meteorite, tore through the dark night and fell from the sky!

The flames were not ordinary red; their core was a chilling pale white, containing unimaginable high temperatures and energy.

"boom--!!!"

There were no screams, no struggles, and not even a chance to react.

The flames landed precisely in the central area between the rebel and noble allied positions, and terrifying energy erupted and spread instantly!
Whether it was the rebel soldiers in tattered leather armor, the noble knights in gleaming armor, or even the ground beneath their feet and the weapons in their hands... everything was instantly vaporized and vanished without a trace under the sweep of the pale flames, leaving behind only a huge, charred, deep crater with crystallized edges.

The battlefield, which had been tense and crowded with hundreds of people just moments before, vanished in an instant.

This devastating scene was also witnessed by Kruze and his men, who had just rushed out of their tents dozens of miles away.

The roar not only startled Rezaar awake, but also terrified everyone in the camp.

The three cave lion cubs in Kruze's arms trembled like leaves, clinging tightly to him, while the "panda" shapeshifting dragon, which he had hastily wrapped in a cloth bag and was still unconscious, seemed to flinch unconsciously as well.

Many people rushed out of their tents and saw a huge, dark red figure swooping down from the sky in the direction of the Horner Mountains. Then, a jet-black flame, which seemed to burn the soul, spewed out from its mouth, instantly turning a vast forest below into burning ruins. The black flame spread through the mountains and forests like a malignant sore!

"This...this is a dragon?!" After a long silence, the oldest and most knowledgeable Sterling Knight screamed in a trembling, terrified voice, breaking the deathly silence of the camp.

The word "dragon" was like a final death knell, shattering the last vestiges of hope in everyone's hearts.

Almost the instant Sterling finished speaking, Cato of Wolf's Hair was the first to react.

Without any hesitation, and without even having time to take the horse, his bronze-colored battle aura exploded to its limit. His figure shot off like an arrow, heading madly away from the mountains and the dragon's figure without looking back!
The instinct for survival overrides everything!
The other guardian knights reacted only a beat slower.

They grabbed their young masters—Lista, Rezal, Totti, and others—who were still in shock and fear and barely able to think, and without regard for noble manners or luggage, they sped off, following Cato as they fled out of the camp.

"What are you all standing there for?!" Kruze roared at his still somewhat dazed servants and militiamen. "Forget the stuff! Run with me! Now!"

His voice was like thunder, awakening the crowd who were stunned by the dragon's might.

All supplies and luggage became burdens in the face of an absolute threat to life.

Driven by the instinct to survive, everyone followed Kruze and the knights, fleeing desperately and in a disheveled state, like a frightened herd of beasts, in a direction far away from the Hornaci Mountains.

Behind them, the massive, dark red figure deep in the mountains flapped its wings with a deafening roar and suffocating heat, as if death itself was chasing them.

No one knew why this legendary, terrifying creature had appeared here, nor did anyone want to know; at that moment, they all had only one thought in their minds.

Run! Run as far away as possible! In his desperate escape, Kruze could hear the distant, chilling roar of a dragon every now and then. Each roar seemed to strike his soul directly, making his legs go weak as he ran.

Following closely behind was the deep, thunderous roar caused by the dragon's breath, and the terrifying sounds of trees being destroyed, burning, and exploding in large swaths.

Each sound elicited suppressed gasps from the fleeing crowd, who desperately squeezed out the last bit of strength from their bodies, just to get as far away from the source of destruction as possible.

Kruse held the bundle containing the lion cub and "panda" tightly in one arm, while occasionally pulling on the panting Rezaar with the other.

He could even feel the little creatures inside the package trembling violently from extreme fear.

Aidin followed closely beside him, his face pale, but his eyes still held a firm gaze.

They ran for an unknown amount of time, crossed several hills and streams, until their legs felt like lead and their lungs burned. Only then did the terrible roar and explosions gradually weaken and finally fall silent.

Kruse abruptly stopped, bracing himself on his knees with both hands, panting heavily.

He instinctively turned around and looked in the direction of the Horner Mountains.

In the distance, the once lush and vibrant mountain range is now a scene of devastation.

Vast swathes of forest vanished, leaving only scorched earth and scattered burning remains, like ugly scars on the land.

Some ridges even show unnatural twists and breaks, as if they had been ravaged by an invisible giant hand.

A faint, pungent smell of burnt and sulfur wafted through the air.

The enormous dragon shadow that had previously hovered in the sky, radiating a dark red light and bringing endless fear, had vanished without a trace, as if it had never existed.

All that remains is this devastated land, silently recounting the brief yet earth-shattering ordeal that just occurred.

"Huff...huff...I can't go on...Big brother...I...I can't run anymore..." Reza collapsed to the ground, his chest heaving violently, unable to speak coherently, his face covered in mud and sweat, looking utterly disheveled.

Kruse looked around, and his heart sank.

The group of twenty-odd people that set out had dwindled to only a few, including him, Rezal, and their loyal knight squire, Aidin. The others had all scattered and disappeared in the chaos and panic of the earlier encounter.

A silence descended, but this silence did not bring peace of mind; instead, it was filled with uncertainty.

The loneliness of losing the team, and the fear of the dragon that appeared and disappeared for reasons unknown, entwined around my heart like cold vines.

　I have a sore throat and my entire right shoulder is so painful I can't move it. Updates might be a little late for the next few days, so I apologize in advance.
　　
　
(End of this chapter)