They were no longer aimlessly drifting. Like conscious, sentient beings, the fleshy creatures began to converge from every direction, emerging from the shadows with chilling precision.
They surged like a tide, all flowing toward the heart of the fire—toward the source of the Dragon Flame. Their destination was clear: the center, where Rayder and his companions stood.
Rayder's heart plummeted.
He stared at the ever-increasing swarm of fleshy, writhing horrors barreling toward him. The black mist surrounding them slithered like living tendrils, creeping closer with every second. A dark premonition struck him—this scene felt disturbingly familiar. It was as if he were surrounded by an endless horde of the undead, surging in from all directions.
Tonight would be far worse than he had imagined.
Even the little dragon Kidora wasn't sitting idly by. Though its body was still weak, it struggled to contribute, tiny arcs of electricity flickering from its horns and claws. But the effort was pitiful. Compared to the overwhelming flood of enemies, Kidora's lightning was like the faint glow of a firefly in a storm.
Once or twice, an arc struck one of the fleshy masses, drawing out a hoarse screech. Nodules on its surface crackled and charred, but the enormous, squirming creature pressed forward regardless, immune to pain—or perhaps so accustomed to it that it no longer registered.
Rayder knew they couldn't stay here. Remaining in place meant certain death.
There were simply too many of them. And the number was still growing.
Their reckless, mindless charge stirred something primal in him. Whether driven by fearlessness or sheer ignorance of death, the creatures moved without hesitation, and that alone made his skin crawl.
They had to leave—but he couldn't abandon Yigen.
The thought flashed through his mind, only to be rejected a moment later. No. Yigen wasn't just a companion—he was a critical part of their survival in these ruins.
Rayder's eyes scanned the surroundings, heart racing. Suddenly, a red glow flared from beneath the ground in the near distance.
It was the volcanic mouth—lava! The Dragon Lair's entrance. The glowing fissure pulsed like a heartbeat in the darkness.
A plan instantly formed in Rayder's mind.
He pointed toward the glow, yelling down at Yigen with all his strength.
"Yigen! Crawl that way—toward the lava! Hurry!"
Yigen's massive body trembled, too weak to take flight. His wings hung limply at his sides, dragging through ash and rock. But he could still crawl.
And he understood.
Though sluggish, he summoned his remaining strength and began dragging himself forward, inch by inch, toward the glowing mouth.
Occasionally, Yigen raised his head to breathe a dim, crimson flame—a flickering wisp of Dragon Flame that barely lit the path but still did its part to hold back the surrounding enemy forces.
Above them, Black Dragon Im was a storm incarnate.
Like a machine built for war, she unleashed wave after wave of devastating black Dragon Flame, incinerating anything that dared approach. Her massive body twisted in midair, tail whipping like a steel chain. Each strike created a thunderous boom as it hurled enemies away or shattered them outright.
Every now and then, she flapped her wings with such force that she summoned whirlwinds, blasting apart clusters of enemies, throwing them off balance, crashing them into each other.
The battle had turned into a brutal, drawn-out struggle.
Rayder clung tightly to Im's scales, the air thick with the stench of scorched meat, rotting blood, and burnt bones. Every second was a sensory assault.
But worse than the smell were the sounds.
The shrieks of dying creatures, the roars of his dragons, the relentless flapping of wings, and the scraping claws of the flesh monsters—it all blended into an unbearable cacophony, hammering his mind.
Each sound pierced like a nail to the skull. He felt dizzy. Disoriented. Like his very sanity was being chipped away.
Still, he gritted his teeth.
They had to reach the lava mouth. It might be the only place capable of holding back the nightmare.
As they pushed forward, Rayder noticed something terrifying.
Black Dragon Im, once invincible and unstoppable, was beginning to falter.
The intervals between her flame breaths were growing longer. After each attack, she wheezed, her chest rising and falling heavily. Her wings still flapped, but the strain showed. Her once-proud eyes now shimmered with fatigue, dimmed by pain.
"No... not good!"
Rayder's heart clenched. Without hesitation, he opened his system panel.
There it was.
Status: Cursed.
The word replaced what once said "Healthy."
He almost swore aloud.
How? How had Im become cursed? She hadn't been bitten or struck. Could just being near those mutated things infect her?
He had severely underestimated the danger of the Valyria Ruins at night.
During the day, the ruins seemed silent—decayed, sure, but not threatening. But by night, the truth was exposed.
This wasn't just a cursed land. It was a graveyard filled with vengeful spirits.
Those creatures were more than flesh—they were vessels for souls consumed by hatred, death, and pain.
He recalled fragmented warnings from earlier records.
The creatures in Valyria were not entirely alive, nor completely dead. Every organism here, to some extent, carried dormant spirits within them—silent during the day, awakened by night.
When night fell, the curse came alive. Especially when fire and dragons—two forces they instinctively feared—appeared.
Then, the curse responded with madness.
The vengeful spirits awakened and swarmed with one goal: to drag every invader into the abyss.
Rayder suddenly remembered the cure.
His blood.
He had the ability to purge curses temporarily. If he could reach Im and feed her his blood, he might be able to clear the cursed status.
But reality was cruel.
He couldn't spare the focus. Not now.
He tried to move, to lean forward—but pressure surged from all sides. The creatures, although held back, still pressed in relentlessly. One wrong move and he'd be torn to shreds—just another hunk of flesh added to their army.
And then there were the screams—nonstop, piercing, maddening.
They scratched at his sanity like claws. He couldn't think clearly.
He looked down at Yigen, still crawling, still fighting.
Then he turned to Im, her breath ragged, her power waning.
A surge of helplessness clenched his chest.
They had to reach the lava. Soon.
Maybe, just maybe, the lava zone's heat and environment could weaken the curse. Maybe it would give them a moment's reprieve.
But they weren't there yet.
And every second they lingered felt like death inching closer.
Watching Black Dragon Im's strength slowly fade, Rayder felt his heart pounding louder than the chaos around him.
He couldn't give up.
Not here.
Not now.
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