The Returner

Yi Ji-Hyuk’s eyes burned in madness as he glared at the undead dragon rising up high into the sky .

“How dare a dang corpse fly in the sky?!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

One should at least try to respect the basic rules! Every world has settings to uphold, after all! One might excuse an undead walking around, but flying is definitely a no-no!! (Yi Ji-Hyuk’s inner monologue)

Not only that!

“Dragons or whatnot, if you lived your life and died, then you should stay dead! Why are you still walking around, refusing to stay dead?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

When Yi Ji-Hyuk roared at the top of his lungs, Affeldrichae nodded her head sagely next to him .

“Definitely true . ” (Affeldrichae)

“Follow the laws of nature, I say!! Laws of nature!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“What a wonderful self-criticism . ” (Affeldrichae)

Huh?

What is this lizard woman even talking about?

Self-criticism? You mean, me?

Wait, those words make sense, don’t they?

A human isn’t supposed to live for over 1000 years, so… . .  (Yi Ji-Hyuk’s inner monologue)

“… . Hey, that thing is one of your kin, so do something about it, will you?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Miss Lizard Woman, no, Affeldrichae frowned in unhappiness .

“If I said that a zombie and you are of the same species, how would you react, Mister Ji-Hyuk?” (Affeldrichae)

“I’d probably say that the fool looks a lot worse for wear, that’s what!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

*SFX for a shaking head*

It was wrong of him to expect a normal sort of response from her in the first place .

“In any case, do something! They’re flying away!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“That is a difficult task for the current me, unfortunately . ” (Affeldrichae)

“… . But, aren’t you the Lord of the Dragons?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“The current me is simply a human with the knowledge pool of the Lord . If I can’t revert back to my original form, then I don’t even have the qualifications to be referred to as the Lord . It is unfortunate, but true . ” (Affeldrichae)

The contents of her words could indeed qualify as ‘unfortunate’, but the way she said it didn’t sound like that at all . She sounded as if she couldn’t be bothered by the whole thing .

“Completely useless . Useless, I tell ya!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Hah, seriously now… .

So useless, like a coffee mix with its lid taken off!

Completely useless, like seriously, man! (Yi Ji-Hyuk’s inner monologue)

“Uh? What the h.e.l.l?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

It was then, Yi Ji-Hyuk spotted an enormous amount of Mana gathering inside the undead dragon’s mouth .

“It’s not planning to quietly fly away, now is it?” (Yi ji-Hyuk)

*SFX for a Dragon’s Breath being fired*

The air around the Zombie Dragon’s maw froze, before a snow-white beam of light speared into the ground . Even Yi Ji-Hyuk had to shut his mouth and spectate that unfolding sight .

The Dragon’s Breath spread on the ground, freezing everything it touched – buildings and people alike .

ROOOOAAAAAR!!

As the Zombie Dragon flew past, the ground below was turned into a land of ice . All the high-rising skysc.r.a.pers were soon covered in thick layers of snow .

“… . G.o.dd*mn it . ” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Yi Ji-Hyuk spat out a groan . It didn’t take a genius to figure out the fate of those people trapped within the buildings .

Even if he didn’t want to care, even if he told himself that this was none of his business, seeing thousands of people die in a single breath still left behind a nasty, uncomfortable taste in his mouth .

‘Nasty, uncomfortable taste?’

Who?

You mean, me? This Yi Ji-Hyuk?

Don’t make me laugh .  (Yi Ji-Hyuk’s inner monologue)

Only about three months ago, Yi Ji-Hyuk was busy murdering tens of millions of people in one go, so what was that feeling just now?

Uncomfortable?

“What a funny notion that is . ” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

If all those dead people in Berafe heard this, then they’d be spinning in their graves like mad, that’s for sure .

“Hah . I almost ended up acting like a fake . Ugh, I’m feeling nauseous . ” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Yi Ji-Hyuk was a ma.s.s murderer, a monster and a devil far worse than that dragon . In that case, he should never forget his position .

Yi Ji-Hyuk’s eyes narrowed to a slit as he glared at the distancing Zombie Dragon .

“Nevertheless, you messing around in my territory… . That won’t do . ” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Sure, here ain’t it .

But you b*stard, you are flying towards it .

Yi Ji-Hyuk looked to his side .

“Mister Choi Jung-Hoon!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“Yes!”

“I gotta bring that thing down, so get me its probable flight path . I want to know where it might land . ” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“Yes! Already on it . There should be a call coming in soon . Every resource, satellites, whatever, we can get our hands on is being utilised as we speak!” (Choi Jung-Hoon)

“Okay . Seo Ah-Young!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“Yes?”

“Teleport back home with Hae-Min and gather everyone you can find . You gotta set up a defense line before that thing shows up . ” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“But, what am I supposed to do against a flying monster?!” (Seo Ah-Young)

“Well, in that case, go suck on your thumbs in a corner or something! h.e.l.l, if you get bored, you can even stand by the sidelines clapping your hands, while chewing popcorn!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“… . I’ll do my best . ” (Seo Ah-Young)

Seo Ah-Young bit her lower lip .

She knew her task was an incredibly difficult one, but that didn’t mean she should just stand on the sidelines and do nothing . Even if it was a single strand of straw, only those willing would be able to grasp it, after all . A miracle was a special privilege bestowed onto only those willing to make the first move .

More importantly, though, there was no way she’d reply with “Oh, sure, I’ll do that” after hearing those mocking words from Yi Ji-Hyuk!

A woman had her pride, too! So, she could not obviously say, “I can’t do it” after he said all those things to her!

Yi Ji-Hyuk turned around after hearing her answer, before sensing someone grabbing hold of his clothes .

“And me?” (Doh Gah-Yun)

Yi Ji-Hyuk shut his mouth tight after spotting Doh Gah-Yun holding onto his sleeve .

“You, come with me!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

From Yi Ji-Hyuk’s right hand, a jet-black Gate opened up . And a ma.s.sive black hawk flew out from it before the creature unfurled its wings . Yi Ji-Hyuk jumped up on its back while calling out to the others .

“Get on!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Affeldrichae and Doh Gah-Yun wordlessly climbed aboard the hawk . Not only them, but Choi Jung-Hoon, too!

“Huh?”

Yi Ji-Hyuk stared suspiciously at Choi Jung-Hoon . The latter man’s face reddened in embarra.s.sment as he received Yi Ji-Hyuk’s questioning eyes .

“… . What is it?” (Choi Jung-Hoon)

“No, wait, like… . What do you think you’ll accomplish by coming with us?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“If I were to hand out orders, I gotta know what’s going on, you know?! What now? Are you looking down on me because I’m a regular person?” (Choi Jung-Hoon)

“It’s not that I’m looking down on you, but… . ” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

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What can you do by coming with us?

You planning to do a cheerleading dance at the back or something?

Didn’t know you had a cheerleading background, huh .  (Yi Ji-Hyuk’s inner monologue)

“Wowsers . Just from your eyes alone, I can pretty much tell what you’re thinking right now . ” (Choi Jung-Hoon)

“… . Congratulations, I guess . ” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“Should I say thank you, then?!” (Choi Jung-Hoon)

Choi Jung-Hoon licked his lips and held tightly onto the back of the hawk .

“If you fall off, you’ll die . ” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“I’ve already survived several near-death experiences standing next to you, just so you know!” (Choi Jung-Hoon)

“But, I haven’t done anything, though?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“Let’s stop wasting time and get going already!” (Choi Jung-Hoon)

“Sure, sure . ” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Yi Ji-Hyuk stood on the head of the hawk and called out .

“Oh-Sik-ah!”

Oh-Sik hurriedly ran and jumped up on the hawk as well .

“Hold on tight . ” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

The black hawk carrying everyone took to the skies . And then, with a frightening explosion of speed, began chasing after the Zombie Dragon .

“Uwaaaaahhh?!” (Choi Jung-Hoon)

Choi Jung-Hoon was flung backwards by the explosive increase in speed, and he barely saved himself by grabbing onto the tail of the hawk at the very last second .

“W, waaaaaiiiit!!” (Choi Jung-Hoon)

“I told you to hold tight, didn’t I?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Yi Ji-Hyuk shouted without even taking a single look behind him .

‘Aren’t you supposed to at least pretend to look back?! What would you have done if I really fell off!!’

Choi Jung-Hoon gritted his teeth and climbed up higher on the back of the hawk .

But, why were they flying so fast?

“D*mn, it’s already so far away . ” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

It’d been only a short period of time, but the Zombie Dragon was already so far away that the naked eye could barely spot it in the distance . However, following the d*mn thing proved to be easy . Well, the ice-white frozen ‘road’ on the ground showed them the way, after all .

Although it was convenient, if one thought about the number of people who died from that, then… .

“We must make sure that creature never sets foot in Korea . ” (Choi Jung-Hoon)

“Talking is cheap, let me tell ya!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Yi Ji-Hyuk snorted grumpily .

It seemed that this guy had no idea what kind of an existence a dragon was . Even if it was just a “zombie”, a dragon was still a dragon . If that monster possessed just half of its power when it was still alive, then it’d be no different than a flying natural disaster .

Of course, that statement might sound like an exaggeration if it was in the past, but now, it was different . The Yi Ji-Hyuk of now would have a real hard time fighting that Zombie Dragon .

If he had enough Mana to support him, that rotting carca.s.s of a reptile would’ve been taken care of in one go, but he no longer enjoyed that kind of luxury anymore .

‘This is dangerous . ’ (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Indeed, he was feeling the danger . He was also aware of the fact that this problem would only get worse .

Stronger monsters and creatures would no doubt make their entrances down the line, and the current him was not strong enough to defeat them . No, if he was facing off against monsters, then he might be able to do something and eke out a win .

But, what if a demon king, or the truly powerful beings from Berafe crossed over?

Didn’t matter which side, they’d be filled with b*stards who’d do anything to kick Yi Ji-Hyuk’s a*s, so of course he was rightly feeling the threat to his life .

If someone like Dioreh the First crossed over, Yi Ji-Hyuk would end up meeting Latrel less than one second later .

“Mana!! I need more Mana!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“Mana!! I need more Mana!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

As Yi Ji-Hyuk was growing even more aware of his thirst towards Mana, he heard a calm voice coming from his side .

“Nothing would change by trying to find something that isn’t there . ” (Affeldrichae)

“You think I don’t know that?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“If you know, then you should do something about it . ” (Affeldrichae)

“Don’t cry to me when I beat up your friend, okay?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“Who’s my friend?! How can you compare the Lord of Dragons to a lowly undead?” (Affeldrichae)

“Didn’t you just say that you don’t have the qualifications to be called the Lord anymore?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“That’s why… How will you defeat that monster?” (Affeldrichae)

“Kkyah~ . Would you listen to her expertly changing the topic? Dear Miss Lord is changing the topic~!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“That’s not true!” (Affeldrichae)

Yi Ji-Hyuk’s mouth formed a wry grin .

So, how should he go about defeating that undead flying reptile?

Hah . Yeah, I wonder about that myself . This sure feels weird .

I haven’t worried about coming up with methods to defeat different species, so I don’t even know where to even begin… .

Well, it’s been 300 years already since the last time I thought about something like that, so… .

After that point in time, all he had to do was simply destroy everything, and that would invariably solve pretty much all of his troubles, so until now, he didn’t need to think too deeply about methods and whatnot, really .

“A Zombie Dragon, eh . A zombie, an undead… . What’s an undead’s weakness?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Choi Jung-Hoon shouted out .

“… . Dumba*s!” (Choi Jung-Hoon)

“How dare you?!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Yi Ji-Hyuk spun around and kicked Choi Jung-Hoon, who had just managed to climb back up on the hawk’s back .

“Uwaaahh?!” (Choi Jung-Hoon)

Choi Jung-Hoon momentarily became airborne, before his flailing arms somehow found something to grab hold onto .

“But, why?! I was trying to say that an undead should be a dumba*s!!” (Choi Jung-Hoon)

“Oh . Really?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Oops . I didn’t know .

You should’ve explained it faster .  (Yi Ji-Hyuk’s inner monologue)

Yi Ji-Hyuk quickly turned around .

He thought he could hear Choi Jung-Hoon shout out something to him, but thanks to the howling wind, it was rather hard to tell what was being said . It did sound like he was mentioning some stuff about dogs and also about birds, though .

Was he trying to say to use Oh-Sik in this case?

Or, maybe that was not it?

“Look! Over there!” (Affeldrichae)

Affeldrichae pointed towards a spot in the sky .

Finally, the back of the Zombie Dragon could be seen as a small speck in the distance .

Kyyyaaahhck!!

But at the same time, the flock of Drakes acting as the escort of the undead reptile began flying towards Yi Ji-Hyuk’s group .

“Richae!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“Yes?”

“Take care of them!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“If you entrust me with a task I can actually carry out, then I shall do so with all my being . ” (Affeldrichae)

“But, they are similar to you, though!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“I’ve told you this before, haven’t I? By that logic, you’re also a monkey, Mister Ji-Hyuk . ” (Affeldrichae)

“But, they are similar to you, though!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“I’ve told you this before, haven’t I? By that logic, you’re also a monkey, Mister Ji-Hyuk . ” (Affeldrichae)

Imma seriously cook this d*mn lizard woman and eat her one day!!!

“I get it, so do something about them!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“I’ve never imagined for once that a lifeform of Mana such as myself would be inconvenienced by this much . Really, being unable to recharge one’s Mana is troublesome . ” (Affeldrichae)

If she could revert back to her true self, then she wouldn’t need to rely on the ambient Mana, but on her Dragon Heart, instead . As she was currently, doing that was impossible .

Affeldrichae quickly chanted a spell .

“… . Chain Lightning!” (Affeldrichae)

A lightning magic left her hand and flew towards the flock of Drakes . And the sparks of electricity danced in between the flying reptiles .

“Did that work?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Affeldrichae shook her head .

“No, it didn’t . It wouldn’t have worked anyway . ” (Affeldrichae)

“Hah, really useless, I tell ya . ” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“Instead of doing this… . ” (Affeldrichae)

“Mm?”

“Jump up . I’ll support you . ” (Affeldrichae)

Ho-oh?

Now that I think about it, that’s not a bad idea, is it?

Yi Ji-Hyuk could fly as well, but the flight spell ate up Mana like crazy, and the resulting speed wasn’t all that fast . Using that magic to engage in an aerial dogfight with a flock of Drakes was the same thing as jumping in the river to kill himself .

However, if this lizard woman was going to a.s.sist him, then the story would certainly be different!

Yi Ji-Hyuk gave some orders to the hawk, and then jumped up high from the black creature’s back . At the same time, Affeldrichae created a platform made of air in the middle of empty sky . Yi Ji-Hyuk stepped on it, crouched like a compressed spring, before shooting up super fast like a bullet .

He repeated this action a couple more times and arrived in the midst of the Drake flock . He then spread his arms wide open .

“Thanks for the meal!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

From Yi Ji-Hyuk’s body, countless black tentacles rushed out and flew in all directions .

Kiiieeehk!!

With sharp screeching cries, the Drakes were swallowed up by the tentacles .

“Well now, quietly become… . Huh?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Slash!!

It was then, Drakes’ talons slashed apart Yi Ji-Hyuk’s tentacles .

“Hah?”

Because he had to produce many, he couldn’t create each one with a lot of Mana, but still, this would be the first time his tentacles were destroyed ever since his return to this world .

“You implying that it won’t get easy from now on, is that it?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Yi Ji-Hyuk’s expression crumpled as he free-fell to the ground .

Not every one of them was free, but majority of the Drakes had tore their way out of his tentacles .

“Hmm . So, now what?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

It was here that Yi Ji-Hyuk heard urgent voices calling out to him .

“What the h.e.l.l!! You!! You’re falling!!” (Choi Jung-Hoon)

Oh, really? Who is?

Mm . Falling, eh . Falling… .

That means someone is falling…

Oh, wait . It’s me!

Yi Ji-Hyuk activated the flight magic and went up again .