Within this section of Nibelungen, beneath the Zero Overpass now submerged by seawater, things were just as Shirou and the others had guessed—on the side closer to land, the water was only a few dozen meters deep. But on the opposite end lay the true ocean.
And as for what was hidden beneath the deep sea...
In ancient Western mythologies, terrifying creatures were believed to roam the depths—whether it was the Kraken from Norse tales, or the Hydra and Charybdis from Greek legends, such myths cast the sea as a place of evil and darkness, a realm of death.
Meanwhile, in the East, the sea was imagined as home to a grand and majestic palace—the residence of the "Dragon King" who ruled over the seas and rainfall. This splendid crystal palace, adorned with coral, pearls, and gemstones, was said to be surrounded by treasure troves and water-dwelling yokai.
But, as always, the truth strayed far from imagination.
Here, in the true deep sea, there weren't a multitude of diverse sights to behold. Instead, there stood an architectural complex built to the scale of dragons.
The buildings were arranged in concentric circles, expanding outward layer by layer from a central circular plaza surrounded by ringed columns.
Between structures flowed currents of water, connected by alchemical arrays with a distinct rhythm. These currents drew in the seawater and formed air-filled water membranes above, below, and around the buildings, isolating them from the corrosive flow of the ocean.
The exteriors of the buildings were adorned with vivid bronze reliefs that gave life to the sturdy walls. At the corners, lighthouse-shaped towers were formed by massive bronze dragon sculptures holding up glowing lamps—gruesome in appearance, like a pair of dragon's eyes glaring at the world.
At the highest level of this circular, terraced city, towering ringed columns cast massive, wavering shadows in the dim ocean depths. Within those shadows, the silhouette of a noble and magnificent dragon could be seen.
Its body was about the same size as the dark blue dragon retainer that had previously burst from the water, but its scales were darker—almost black navy in tone. Its massive wings were curled upon its back, limbs powerful, and tail swaying rhythmically, striking the surrounding water to power the alchemical array beneath it.
If one looked closely, at the very core of that array was a long, curved spear—identical in shape to Gungnir.
This dragon was Leviathan in his true form, and the spear was the "key" to this Nibelungen, or rather, its control authority—bestowed by Odin.
This spear—a replica of the Spear of Fate—acted as the hub that activated the alchemical arrays spread throughout the complex. Using it, Leviathan operated the Zero Overpass Nibelungen and linked it with others, particularly his own—this entire sea.
This was why vast parts of the overpass were suddenly submerged in oceanic conditions.
"Still not enough... As I thought, controlling a Nibelungen without being its original owner is exceedingly difficult. Even going all out myself doesn't make it any easier."
Leviathan's dragon voice sounded like a sigh.
In truth, the control array Odin had granted him only covered this central plaza. The greater alchemical matrix within the surrounding complex merely amplified the effect.
It was said that Flamel, the chief alchemist and vice principal of Cassell College, had arranged a massive matrix beneath the academy to expand the range of his commandment-type genryū (Dragon Words) to cover the entire campus.
But compared to what Leviathan had achieved here, there was no comparison—the human and dragon approaches were worlds apart. This place amplified the effect of space-opening arrays to the extent that it could link entire Nibelungen realms.
To the minds of the Secret Party, who claimed to know dragons best, this was an unthinkable feat.
And yet...
It had gone awry, Leviathan thought bitterly.
His original plan had been to use this spatial-opening matrix to transport reinforcements from distant Nibelungens to this overpass in one go.
Once all preparations were complete, he would crush all those opposing the Medical Society and its players in a single sweep.
But one unexpected event after another had thrown his plan into disarray, leaving him in utter frustration.
First were the two humans who had appeared near the Nibelungen. They seemed to be carrying a "Black King's Egg," which caught his attention.
Judging them to be harmless, he lured them in and sent the "White Whale" to test them.
Then came a pair of red-haired humans who thoroughly irritated him.
The man, of course, was Shirou—an old rival who had fought Leviathan's human-shaped puppet. The red-haired girl bore Odin's mark, and she had somehow entered without Leviathan's permission, dragging someone else with her.
If Odin were present within this Nibelungen, he could've blocked Nono from finding the entrance altogether. But Odin wasn't here—he was still waiting to be resurrected.
So the burden of control fell to Leviathan, who lacked Odin's fine command of the realm.
Unable to divide his attention, Leviathan hastily redirected the White Whale to handle the troublesome duo and then sent Kraken and Hydra as well.
But just as Leviathan was overwhelmed and struggling, a new crisis emerged—Norton and Jormungandr followed those red-haired interlopers in.
Those two had just been the vanguard—and damn that despicable Norton, who even brought another first-generation kin, Jormungandr!
Leviathan seethed. He should've seen it coming. As the schemer who struck down Odin from the shadows, Norton was bound to use underhanded, unpredictable methods. It was obvious all of this tied back to him!
Anger and resentment welled up inside Leviathan. His carefully-laid plans were collapsing entirely, and it all came down to a difference of mere moments.
Had they entered the Nibelungen just a bit later, everything would have gone his way! Norton was to blame for everything!
"Woooo—"
From within the moist, enclosed air of the vast plaza, a whale song echoed—low and mournful, like an elegy for the fallen.
Leviathan turned his gaze to the edge of the plaza, where the mountainous White Whale swam closer. Its wounds were still visible, though the bleeding had stopped. And even if it hadn't fully recovered, no creature dared approach it here—not with dragon blood scent lingering around Leviathan.
"What did you say?!"
Leviathan's attention sharpened at the whale song. He could understand its meaning clearly.
"You're saying the dragon retainers I sent out have been hunted by an unknown enemy?"
The whale's calls were panicked and uneasy.
For years, it had roamed the ocean unchallenged, blessed with noble dragon blood and genryū. It ruled over pods of whales near Greenland like a monarch. Its only rivals had been Kraken and Hydra—other creatures chosen by the Sea King.
But today, everything had changed. First, it was injured by some strange metal object wielded by that red-haired human. Then, it watched as the cunning Kraken was slain effortlessly by a small creature.
Its instincts screamed danger. That small being had the exact same dragon-blood aura as its king—in other words, it was kin to Leviathan.
And now, even Leviathan's royal guards were being slain by this creature... The White Whale could only panic, unable to think of a counterplan. All it could do was rush back to warn its master.
"To kill my retainers directly... Based on your description, only one of my siblings could do that."
Leviathan was bewildered. A first-generation kin—but not Jormungandr or Norton. He knew they were still on the far end of the overpass, blocking reinforcements from other Nibelungens.
So who was this mysterious new sibling that had entered the realm undetected?
He hadn't sensed any intrusion at all.
But now that the dire situation was laid bare, Leviathan had to act. If this continued, he would be the next one hunted down—and he knew his siblings wouldn't hesitate to finish him off.
Faced with impending disaster, humans might grovel or negotiate. But as a Dragon King, Leviathan would never show even a hint of weakness.
He thought again of his brother—the one who had grown more and more human over time: Odin.
To allow his immense body to hatch, Leviathan had been the last of the Four Monarchs to awaken. Years ago, Odin had roused him from the Greenland Sea and signed a blood pact between kin, promising a "New Era."
Odin swore that the destined "Ragnarok" had already been averted in this new age.
He promised Leviathan a shared world, where the Medical Society would rise openly as a dominant power, bending the world to their will.
At first, Leviathan scoffed. He couldn't believe Odin had stooped to cooperating with humans, even giving away alchemy and merging it with human technology—all to create a method of birthing pure-blood dragon heirs, even splitting his own power to do so.
But Odin solemnly explained that only by doing this could humans be lulled into a false sense of security.
A Dragon King who sought children, who wanted to build a family—such human-like desires would make humans believe he was not a threat. Because humans could be convinced that a Dragon King had feelings, weaknesses... soft spots.
Leviathan had been skeptical then.
But Odin had sighed, saying that the times had changed. Humans were no longer easy to deal with. Their science had advanced drastically, their nuclear weapons powerful enough to shock even dragons. The old ways simply wouldn't work anymore.
After truly understanding the modern world, Leviathan had stayed silent for a long while—then ultimately agreed to join Odin and the Medical Society's plan.
He had Odin craft puppets and a mask to house his consciousness and power, allowing him to appear before the Society as a faceless human.
The only flaw was that Leviathan couldn't act as convincingly human as Odin. Only their youngest sister, Jormungandr, might be able to pull that off naturally.
So he maintained a cold demeanor and stayed distant from the Society's other members, reluctantly managing its affairs solely for the sake of the promised new era.
"Odin... If I don't get to see the new era you spoke of, I won't accept that."
Thinking this, Leviathan chuckled bitterly and gave up maintaining the alchemical arrays. He had to act himself.
"After all, I bet everything on that future."
The sea began to surge violently, its waves roaring in rage.
(End of Chapter)
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