The Great Mage Returns After 4000 Years (Web Novel KR)

Editors: Ana_Banana, Sei

Although Lukas had fainted, his consciousness hadn’t faded. His mind was still aware.

This might sound contradictory for most, but for Lukas, this was something he was familiar with.

‘Temporary faint.’

He would probably be able to open his eyes soon.

He naturally began to imagine the scene he would see when he finally came to his senses.

The last thing he’d seen was Kaz’s mouth becoming bloody because of his attack, and Sedi rushing towards him with a vicious momentum.

It would be best if Sedi’s last attack was enough to finish Kaz off.

But Lukas always had the habit of assuming the worst. Of course, this habit couldn’t really be called a good thing. Nine out of ten times, it was just useless worrying.

…But in other words, it meant that there was at least one time when it was the right choice to make.

It was the same for this situation.

If Sedi was unable to finish Kaz off, then Lukas would probably lose his life at his hands as soon as he recovered.

‘How can I respond to him?’

There was very little he could do.

He couldn’t use magic. He didn’t have any mana left. He would also have to deal with the consequences of completely exhausting his mana pool.

No matter how much mental power he might have, it was impossible to use magic without mana. This was especially so considering that he had to also deal with the backlash.

Hand-to-hand combat?

Even if his mana was depleted, he could still move his body, but Lukas’ fragile body wouldn’t even be able to scratch Kaz’s scales. Instead, he would be the one whose bones were broken from his attack.

It was a question that he couldn’t find an answer to.

All of his options were blocked. In the first place, the level difference between them was too high. The most appropriate response to such enemies was to avoid them until one was strong enough to deal with them.

Dragon King Kaz. Half step out of mortality.

In a way, he was similar to Lord, who had been Lukas’ greatest enemy in the past. Of course, Lord was much stronger than Kaz in every way.

In fact, if he had to pick someone that Dragon King Kaz reminded him of…

“…”

At that moment, a ‘maybe’ appeared in Lukas’ mind like a bolt of lightning.

It was an absurdly dangerous idea, but it would be enough to help them overcome this seemingly hopeless situation.

Personally, he didn’t want to use a method like this.

However, his instincts or intuition, which had helped him all his life, were screaming at him.

‘…maybe I…’

Immediately after regaining consciousness, he would use this extremely dangerous idea.

* * *

Sedi shivered. Not because she was afraid of Kaz’s threat, but because she couldn’t think of a way to prevent Lukas’ death. Her trembling was a result of her overwhelming frustration.

She couldn’t see any emotion in Kaz’s eyes. If she tried to stop him, he really would take her life.

‘What should I do?’

She clenched her fists and bit her lip.

In all honesty, she really wanted to shout that if this dirty bastard wanted to kill her father, he would just have to kill her first. However, in this situation, such an emotional response would probably cause the worst possible outcome.

Lukas and Sedi, both of them would die.

Since she couldn’t crush him by force, she had to think of a way to persuade him with her words. This was a conclusion that any intelligent being could reach, but it was very unfamiliar to Sedi, who had relied on violence all her life.

What exactly could she say to persuade this crazy bastard in front of her?

“…why… Do you want me to be your partner?”

She tried to buy some time.

Kaz didn’t answer. Instead, he continued to stare at her. The pressure on her body increased.

Sedi grit her teeth. She wouldn’t let herself be intimidated by his attitude.

“What would being your partner mean?”

[There is no meaning.]

She gained a bit of leverage.

For the first time, Kaz chose to respond to her. Sedi inwardly sighed in relief, but in the end, she was only buying time. Nothing had been solved.

[On this floating continent, there is only one being who can claim to be stronger than me.]

“…you mean the woman who imprisoned you on this island?’

[In all honesty, I have no confidence to defeat her even with my current strength.]

“So? Did you want me to be your partner so that I’d help you fight her?”

[That thought is too simple. She is not an opponent that can be defeated with numbers. Even if you were as strong as I am, I’m not sure if it would be possible.]

Everything he said made Sedi regret her decision to make him talk. It felt so disgusting to be discussing the strengths of half Absolutes.

If only she could exert her original power, then this smug bastard…

This was what she thought, but it was nothing but a wishful thought.

Even before entering this world, Sedi had already been defeated, lost everything, and been forced back to the realms of mortality. This meant that she was the reason she was so weak at that moment.

[You should give birth to my offspring.]

—What the hell was this madman talking about now?

[I need an excellent offspring… A child who has received my seed will definitely be strong. They might even have the potential to surpass me. In truth, I’ve been attempting to birth one for the past few hundreds of years.]

“Wait a minute…”

[But most of the carriers died before giving birth.]

Ignoring Sedi’s reaction, Kaz continued.

[They couldn’t withstand my power. I even tried mating with Ancient Dragons that had adapted to the island’s harsh environment, but the results were the same. But you will be able to endure it. No. Even if you can’t withstand it, you should still be able to give birth to at least one offspring. A side effect of this might be that your body gets destroyed, but what happens to you after you give birth is none of my business.]

This guy was really a crazy, disgusting piece of garbage.

Sedi finally came to accept this fact. Of course, she didn’t have any childish thoughts that he’d fallen in love with her at first sight or anything of the sort. But she never thought that he would have such an obscene reasoning behind his actions.

[…so have you stopped buying time? I don’t think anything changed.]

Moreover, he had completely seen through her intentions.

[Thanks to you, I was able to calm down a bit. My partner. I won’t kill you just because you block me. That would just be a waste. Fortunately, you’re strong enough… Even if I cut off all your limbs and your tongue, you should still be able to survive. And you’ll still be able to bear my offspring.]

“You… disgusting bastard…!”

[You can say whatever you like.]

Because it wouldn’t change anything.

Kaz was about to continue speaking but he suddenly stopped with his mouth open.

There was a deep ripple in his eyes, and his gaze shifted to behind her.

Realising this, Sedi also turned to look at whatever it was he was looking at.

“…Father?”

Lukas was standing there.

His body still swayed slightly, but his gaze was calm.

[I hoped you’d remain unconscious.]

Kaz was surprised for a moment, but that was it. There was no need for him to be too shocked. He knew the reason this man had passed out before.

This is because he pushed his body beyond the limit that it could withstand.

He didn’t fully understand the power Lukas was using, but he noticed that he was so exhausted that he definitely wouldn’t be able to use it again.

There was definitely no way for him to fight back now.

He knew that. He knew that, but…

Gurk-

At that moment, the pain in his mouth seemed to intensify for a moment. It was like a wake-up call.

He had already experienced it once before. At that moment, when he thought that he had completely overpowered Lukas and could easily kill him, he was hit harder than at any other time during their fight.

If that explosion had been a little bigger, or if Sedi had been a little stronger… Kaz would’ve died.

Suddenly, Kaz shot backward, increasing the distance between them.

“…huh?”

It was an action that Sedi didn’t quite understand.

Then she heard Lukas’ whisper.

“He’s probably wary of me. He came close without thinking once and got burned.”

“Are you okay?”

“Right.”

“…do you have a plan?”

“…”

Lukas remained silent for a while before putting his hand on Sedi’s shoulder.

“F-, father?”

Sedi’s face became red at his sudden action, but Lukas’ expression was solemn.

“How much demonic energy do you have left?”

“H-, huh? Ah. Demonic energy. I still have a bit left. But I don’t think I’ll be able to use it in my current condition.”

As she said this, Sedi looked down at her reddened skin.

“That demonic energy… give it to me.”

“…what?”

“There is no time to explain, quickly inject your demonic energy into my body.”

“Are you crazy? If you do that-”

“Sedi, I already said there is no time to explain. Soon, Kaz’s wariness will disappear. Then everything will be over.”

Sedi flinched when she heard Lukas’ cold tone. This was the first time Lukas had ever talked to her like that. She’d only spoken up because she was worried, but now she felt like she’d done something wrong.

To Lukas, demonic energy was like a potent poison. There was no way that he didn’t know this.

And yet, he was now saying that he would swallow this poison.

No matter what Lukas said, she didn’t want to watch him commit suicide.

However…

Sedi bit her lip.

“I don’t know what will happen, but if that’s what you want…”

“Right. Thanks.”