Chapter 134 : Chapter 134

Translator: AkazaTL

Pr/Ed: Sol IX

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Chapter 134 – The Cloud Bridge (2)

My son had been clever— unlike me.

“Your boy is a genius.”

I had been a retired ranger. A petty hunter living day to day by catching wild animals with old traps and outdated tricks. An uneducated man who couldn’t even read, a relic unable to keep pace with a world that changed too fast. A man left behind. If I were to summarize myself, that was it.

“He learns one thing, and understands ten—no, a hundred.”

For such a man as me, the son I had late in life was my only pride. Just looking at that bright little boy filled me with warmth. He became the new purpose that gave meaning to my faded life. If I could protect him, I could do anything—truly anything.

“You’re blessed, old friend.”

My son was an extraordinary child. Though I’d never hired him a tutor, nor sent him to the Academy even once, he learned from discarded books, from the words of wandering gypsies, and from the simple life of his foolish father. By the age of twenty, my son had become an inventor; by twenty-two, he was already counted among the finest talents in the city.

Foreigners from the eastern continent called him a needle piercing through the pocket—a dragon born in a ditch. Their praise delighted me, of course. What father wouldn’t smile when hearing his son praised? But sometimes, I couldn’t help feeling a quiet unease.

“Do you know why moths fly into flames, Father?”

My extraordinary son— My bright and gifted boy had a dream.

“We mock them, don’t we? Watching those foolish creatures burn themselves alive, we call them stupid bugs.”

“That’s right.”

“But do you know? Moths don’t leap into flames out of stupidity. To them, everything bright and blazing is a star—a sun, a moon. Moths beat their wings toward all that shines, trying to fly higher.”

“……”

“I think moths are beautiful. Even if they’re insects, they must feel pain. When the flame burns their bodies, they struggle, they suffer. Yet they never stop flapping their wings. To soar higher—to embrace a higher sky—they throw their lives into the fire.”

My son— wanted to fly.

“I want to live like that too.”

He wanted to ascend.

“People call me a genius. They praise me for rising from nothing, for succeeding through my own ability. But I’m not satisfied. The world is vast, and what I’ve achieved is no more than a grain of sand. I want to reach higher, to stand among the stars that blaze at the summit of the continent. I want to go to the highest place.”

Born in a lowly city, he longed for light. He longed for the sky.

“Upward—higher.”

Watching him, I swallowed my words. My son… don’t you know that the moth’s end is to burn? Even if you stay here, down below, I would be happy. Even if you live as small and humble as your father, I would protect you until my dying breath. No matter how tall you grow, you’ll always be my little boy. You can lean on me forever if you wish. I can live only for you. I could swear it before the gods themselves. So, instead of seeking dangerous skies… why not stay on this earth? Why risk your life to be great, when you could stay safely by my side?

“The sky…”

But I swallowed the words that rose in my throat. They were words no father should say. If I spoke them aloud, my kindhearted son would give up his dream. He would stay behind, watching over his old man forever. And I… I couldn’t bear that. I couldn’t burden him with my smallness— not when I’d already failed to give him all that he desired. So I did the only thing a father like me could do.

“Fly. Fly as high as you can.”

I smiled. I pretended to be fine, and nodded.

“You can do it, Icarus.”

But now, looking back, I should have stopped him— even if it meant being hated forever, even if it meant being the chain that bound his feet.

My son left for the capital to see the wider world.

He returned seven years later.

Older, smaller, humbler, I saw him again. The once brilliant son was crawling on the ground, drooling, ragged, broken. His skin was torn and covered in bruises— the marks of countless beatings. Around his neck hung a signboard.

「The fate of one who dared to dream of the heavens.」

.

.

.

The memory was vivid. The grief and rage of a father facing his shattered son boiled over— fusing into a single, sharpened edge. The sword’s emotion focused on one thing only.

The dragon.

“Human.”

It looked upon us— the ruler of the skies.

“Why do humans tread this path?”

The dragon’s voice echoed—not mere sound, but a presence. It wasn’t growling with its throat; it was speaking with its will. Even the tremor in that voice scraped against my skin.

「Dragon Tongue.」

“Dragon Tongue…?”

「The dragons’ words carry will. Their language itself can shape phenomena and bend souls to kneel before them.」

Our entire group stood frozen.

The dragon’s vast eyes swept over us slowly.

“A Witch. An old human. A young one from the east. An orc… and another young human. What a bizarre mix. Traveling to the Empire for a circus, perhaps?”

Every time its gaze met mine, it was like being stabbed by invisible needles.

After studying us for a moment, the dragon flicked its tongue and spoke again.

“You two.”

It lifted a claw, pointing to Audrey and Sherizik.

“You may use our bridge. You have the right.”

“……”

“But the rest of you—I cannot permit.”

Its voice boomed through the air.

Audrey muttered,

“Damn it… what the hell is this. Why now?”

“……”

“Why does a dragon show up now? This hasn’t happened in over a hundred years—and suddenly, the moment you’re with us, this happens? Damn it… damn it all…”

She cursed my luck. Fair. My luck was extraordinary.

But this was no time for sarcasm.

“Is there a way to escape?”

“Only one.”

“And that is?”

“Teleportation. To get out of a dragon’s sight, it has to be long-range teleportation—but that means we can’t choose the destination. It’s random. Still, anywhere would be safer than here.”

She wasn’t wrong. Without waiting for us to agree, Audrey began chanting quickly— but before the incantation was even halfway through—

“Stop.”

The dragon had noticed.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

“……”

“Lowly human, who sold your body to the gods to gain borrowed nobility… Did you think you could trick me with such a petty trick? How insulting.”

Its voice grew sharp, and the air turned cold. I asked quietly,

“If we fought… could we win?”

“Absolutely not,” Audrey said flatly.

Sherizik nodded in agreement.

“I concur. Perhaps on the ground, maybe—but here? Impossible. Better to beg for mercy.”

“You think it’ll show mercy?”

“Ah. By mercy, I meant asking it to kill us quickly.”

“……”

“Well, dying in battle against a dragon in the sky isn’t the worst way to go. I could at least boast about it to my ancestors.”

Damn.

She said it with dignity, but it was just like every other orc I’d met. I’d forgotten—these green folk feared no death. If given a choice between dying gloriously or living pitifully, every single one of them would choose the former.

As my head spun, Audrey snapped,

“Think of something. Anything. Fast.”

“What?”

“I can’t cast anymore. That damned dragon’s seized all the Mana in the area. It’s hard enough just to breathe right now.”

“You lost it?”

“Lost? Don’t be ridiculous. The first magic came from dragons. Every spell we use is an imitation of their Mysteries. The moment it caught me meddling, the fight was over.”

While she muttered, the dragon drew closer. Its massive claws slowly scraped against the glass barrier, making a shrill, grating screech that tore at our ears. Audrey bit her lip.

“O ruler of the sky, why do you threaten us? To my knowledge, others have used the Cloud Bridge over the last century—unofficially, yes—but without issue. We have no wish to disgrace your kind, nor to reveal your path. Please, let us pass quietly. If not, we will turn back. Only spare our lives.”

I had never heard her speak so humbly. She added—

“Please, for my husband’s sake. You who reign in the heavens all serve my husband, the Heavenly Father. If you harm me, he will be angered.”

A subtle threat, but the dragon didn’t even twitch.

“Yes. He would be angered if I harmed you. But if only you remain unharmed, there will be no problem. Did I not say there are three unworthy among you? It is only those three I shall destroy.”

“……”

“I have been insulted, but I will overlook it this once—for young Witches are precious beings. But for the lowly humans… there will be no mercy. Not a shred.”

Crack. Fissures spidered through the glass.

“I despise humans. And among you, one reeks of a vile stench. I don’t know what it is, but it offends me deeply— enough to stir me from a century of slumber. A stench of…”

The dragon’s slit eyes narrowed.

“…steel.”

Steel.

The moment the word left its mouth, everyone turned to me. The path that had stood unharmed for a hundred years, the sudden catastrophe, the danger that had befallen our group— everything made sense. Audrey’s eyes sharpened like blades.

“You son of a—”

Then came the crash. A deafening boom echoed as the glass of the Cloud Bridge shattered in an explosion of light and noise. The bridge trembled violently, and our bodies were flung into the air. Weightlessness for a heartbeat— then the pull of gravity.

We began to fall endlessly.

As we plummeted, every gaze turned toward me. Bathed in all their lovely attention, I had only one thing to say.

…Well. Sorry, everyone.