Chapter 17 – Dragon Descends

Inside the palace located at the highest point of Central City, an old priest was kneeling in front of the stone statue of God and praying fervently.

“Boooom——”

The earth trembled and the chapel shook. From time to time, tiny pieces of debris fell from above, spilling onto the priest’s robes.

The elderly priest did not react to the shaking at all. He just lowered his head, even more, prayed more quickly, and with greater fervency.

“Knock knock——-”

The door of the chapel was suddenly opened from the outside, and a young priest stumbled in, speaking in an alarmed tone, “…… Archbishop, it’s a dragon, it’s a dragon!!! A huge dragon is flying in the sky outside the city!!”

“Yes, I know.”

The archbishop did not look back. He continued to kneel in front of the statue and spoke with a calm voice.

Seeing that the archbishop had little reaction, the young priest became even more anxious, “…… Your Eminence, that is not an ordinary dragon. It…… its body is more than three hundred meters long. It’s completely different from the dragons on the main continent.”

“I know……”

The archbishop continued speaking in a calm voice, “……That is a primordial dragon, moreover, a demigod primordial dragon. I know that…… Remember, you must be silent in the presence of God. This place is the chapel. It is God’s kingdom on this land. Do not behave disrespectfully.”

The young priest heard the archbishop’s words. The panic on his face evaporated, and he looked at the archbishop with reverence and respect.

Outside the city, the demigod primordial dragon was attacking the city and had almost destroyed it, but the archbishop continued calmly praying to God. He fully lived up to his name as a devout believer.

“Abir has been martyred for the Theocracy……”

The archbishop’s calm statement cast horror onto the young priest once more, “…… Lord Abir, he…..?”

But quickly he recalled that he was still in the chapel. He gradually suppressed his voice, but his face betrayed his terror.

That person was the Holy Iris Order commander Lord Abir. He was a high-ranked legendary warrior stationed in Central City, and with his strength alone he could capture the neighboring city. Such a powerful person fell in so short a time?

The priest wondered if he was in a nightmare

“There is no need to panic. His Holiness the Pope will hold a mass for Abir, and he will go to heaven to be with God.”

The archbishop continued slowly and methodically.

‘No, I’m not panicking about Lord Abir’s fall, I’m panicking about my own safety right now.’

The young priest spat in his heart, but he didn’t really dare say these words.

“Your Eminence, what do we do now?”

As the archbishop of the Central City, he was the highest officer with all the administrative power, and only he could give orders in this situation.

After a moment of silence, the archbishop said indifferently, “……Convey the following: tell the soldiers not to attempt resisting the dragon. A demigod primordial dragon is not something that they can face, and they would only be sending themselves to their deaths. Tell the soldiers who can still move to go to the granary and burn all the food and other strategic materials in Central City.”

“Your Eminence, in that case, won’t the Central City be…… His Holiness the Pope will…….”

The priest said in horror. The archbishop’s order was to abandon the city. Central City was a very important location. If they abandoned it, His Holiness would be furious once they returned to the Theocracy.

“I will take care of everything. You don’t have to worry…… Moreover, we are facing a demigod dragon. I think His Holiness would understand…… In these past few millennia, no one knows how many times Central City has changed hands. Humans, elves, beastmen, and many other races have ruled it, but never once has a dragon ruled over it. You should know that with a dragon’s temper and habits, they would not be interested in the city and territory.”

“……Even the Dragon Kingdom in the north, which has a pact with the dragons, could not make them do so. In that kingdom, dragons are only there as protectors, and the governors of the country are still humans. When this demigod dragon destroys Central City, the elves will likely take over it, so we cannot leave any important strategic supplies. As much as possible, we need to destroy every weapon and food supply. This way, the Theocracy can organize a large army to take back Central City again. At that time, the demigod dragon will have departed.”

Listening to the plans the archbishop had formulated, the young felt pure admiration for him. He remarked internally that this was why the archbishop was most trusted by the Pope.

“Since you heard my orders, quickly go. If the dragon destroys the city and leaves the granary and armory alone, the elves will probably take them away. With those supplies, we would have to pay a huge price to retake the city.”

The archbishop spoke with a stern voice.

“Yes, I will convey your orders…… then archbishop, what do you plan to do?”

“Under this cathedral in Central City, there is a storage room with many treasures and precious magic tools. It would be impossible for us to take away all these things. With the dragon’s greed for treasure, it is impossible to hide the fluctuations of wealth from him. He will definitely watch this place. You guys should run first.”

The archbishop sighed.

The priest, on the other hand, had a sad face. He thought that the archbishop was planning to die as a martyr to block the dragon so that he could buy time for them, the ordinary people, to escape.

Sensing that the priest had misunderstood something, the archbishop glared at him and said, “……. What are you daydreaming about? I’m leaving through the secret passage. Wait until you are away from the divine domain before using the holy magic scrolls to teleport away. You guys don’t need to care about me. Run as far away as you can run.”

Although the archbishop was an old priest and knew how to use high-level holy magic, his main duty was to save lives and help the wounded. He simply did not know combat. If even Abir, who was one of the strongest people in the Theocracy, had fallen, then what use did he, a healing bishop, have in staying there? Naturally, he would run as far as possible!!

The archbishop thought about his own high status within the Theocracy. He had not yet enjoyed enough blessings, so how was he willing to just die here?

Hearing the archbishop’s words, the priest’s face turned black. It seemed that the reason they had been sent outside was to attract the dragon’s attention so that he could escape. The priest had incorrectly believed that the archbishop had the spirit of sacrifice.

But because his status was not high enough, he did not dare respond and bade farewell as he passed on the archbishop’s orders.

Waiting until the young priest left and the church was empty, the archbishop jumped up and ran with agile movements that did not match his age. He quickly ran towards the back of the chapel where the secret passage was located.

……

At that moment, [Scorching Waterfall] had already completely penetrated the city barrier. Countless drops of fire fell like glorious lights onto the city. Explosions, burning flames, wailing and screaming of the countless races, trampled streets, and the fleeing crowds formed a doomsday-like hellscape.

The dragon descended from the sky. Like in the stories of old, it had annihilated the city in an instant.