Dromkez (3)

"Civilizations do not grow solely through war. Political, administrative, and cultural developments are also indispensable parts of a civilization. When you are establishing a civilization on a new plane, do not forget even a single one of these elements."

- A teaching from the Civilization Guide course at the Fatih's Academy

Ülgen and the four raiders faced each other at an equal distance between Tu'bask and the Whitefang soldiers. Due to the speed of fourth-degree fighters, both sides had consciously left fifty meters of distance between them.

The three warriors who had advanced during the journey with Sven, thanks to the difficult battles they faced, stood in front of the Whitefang soldiers, watching their lord with admiration in their eyes. They knew their lord's true form was far more imposing and powerful than his human guise, so they had full faith that he would be safe even in his human form.

Of course, there was the possibility of the infamous Tu'bask raiders resorting to treacherous tactics. However, their lord had also explained to them step-by-step what to do in such a situation and had expressed his trust in Sven.

The young Fatih assessed his opponents. They wielded, respectively, a great axe, a great sword, a bow, and dual daggers. As the potential strategies of his enemies swiftly crossed his mind, he began to prepare his countermeasures. He drew his great sword from his back with both hands and assumed a battle stance, gradually closing the fifty-meter distance.

Although not as efficient as Ülgen, the Tu'bask raiders had also been observing him. No one who had survived raids on the heart of Azderos was weak. As soon as they saw Ülgen make his move, Olpar and the eldest of the three brothers drew their heavy weapons and began advancing towards him from both sides. Their auras gleamed on their weapons. The youngest brother, wielding daggers, was suddenly enveloped by a dark aura, turning into a faint shadow that dispersed in the wind.

However, the first attack came from the middle brother, the archer. He began firing arrows at Ülgen one after another, each one empowered by his aura. Some were curved, while others were straight. Just as the arrows were about to reach him, Ülgen, who had been advancing slowly, suddenly burst into speed, shattering the arrows aimed at him from all directions and charged at Olpar and the eldest brother.

The eldest brother lunged forward to meet Ülgen's sword with his own, while Olpar leaped up to strike from above. The clash of the three figures sent snow and dirt scattering in shockwaves.

Surprisingly, the first figure to emerge from the smoke was the youngest brother with the daggers. No one had seen how or when he appeared, but his current state was pitiful. He was staggering with a pained expression, clutching his severed arm with his remaining hand, covered in dirt and blood.

The middle brother, who had stopped shooting due to the risk of hitting his friends, realized there was no time for hesitation when he saw his younger brother covered in blood. He quickly resumed firing arrows, hoping Olpar and the eldest brother wouldn't get hit.

As the arrows flew through the dust and dirt, the sounds of sword clashes and shockwaves began to echo again. Seconds passed, and with a final clash, two figures were thrown back.

One was Olpar, who had lost his axe, and the other was the eldest brother, barely holding onto his greatsword with bloody hands. Unlike Olpar, who was bruised and battered all over, the eldest brother appeared in relatively better shape. Their expressions were as grim as if they had eaten a plate full of excrement.

Under the anxious and curious gazes of the Whitefang clan, Ülgen emerged from the dissipating dust with an arrow in his left shoulder and a dagger in his right shoulder. Despite the blood oozing from his wounds, his face was filled with a fierce desire to fight, as if his body was not his own.

After deflecting the second volley of arrows with a single sword movement, he picked up the fallen axe and threw it at the youngest brother, who was trying to blend into the darkness. As the axe flew, he spoke nonchalantly, "Not enough, come on!"

"Gabl! No!" the eldest brother cried out in anguish as he watched his youngest brother fall to the ground, the axe buried in his back. In the next second, he turned to Olpar with an intense killing intent. "Either you reveal your trump card now, or I'll tear you apart before I kill this bastard with my bare hands!" His teeth gnashed together like grinding swords.

Despite being enraged by the threat, Olpar knew that killing Ülgen was more important. Without any hesitation, he triggered a transformation in his body and began howling like a madman. Hearing the howls, the eldest brother lunged at Ülgen without giving Olpar a second glance.

Ülgen, who had already shattered the third and fourth volleys of arrows, grinned as he saw the eldest brother charging towards him. He took a deep breath and swung his aura-covered sword first.

In a split second, the eldest brother dodged the attack with an unexpected agility for a heavy weapon user like himself. His burst of speed seemed to be enhanced by a special technique. If his opponent were normal, he probably wouldn't have escaped the finishing move he was about to execute after dodging.

However, the only thing that greeted him was a freezing breath that froze his face. The eldest brother felt as though even his thoughts were freezing. Driven by a triggered survival instinct, he made a reflexive swing. He was lucky; his swing perfectly synchronized with the volley of arrows from his middle brother.

Grumbling, Ülgen swung his sword in a wide arc, deflecting both attacks. He had planned to eliminate the eldest brother before a gray silhouette crashed into him at an absurd speed.

As the two of them were flung through the air, the gray silhouette aimed a cunning claw swipe at Ülgen's wrists, intending to weaken his grip on the sword. However, contrary to his enemy's expectations, Ülgen suddenly released his sword and began delivering superhumanly powerful punches.

The punches were so powerful that they left dozens of shockwave traces in the surroundings during their ten-second tumble. Moreover, the shockwaves nullified the silhouette's momentum, allowing Ülgen to land on his feet unscathed. In the next second, he delivered another fierce punch, stunning his target, and gripped its throat like an iron vice. Although the Young Fatihs body wasn't unscathed, there was a look of surprise and slight delight in his eyes.

"Hah! So, a werewolf. At first, I was going to kill you. But..." before he could finish his sentence, the shadow of a great sword loomed over his head.

Using the werewolf-transformed Olpar as a weapon, he struck the greatsword of the eldest brother. Trying to mitigate the impact on his comrade, the eldest brother flew back five meters with the werewolf's body, but before he could hit the ground, he received a jaw-shattering kick, feeling his sword forcibly wrenched from his hands in the moment of shock.

At that moment, Olpar regained his senses and, with a feral howl, swiped his claws at Ülgen. However, the sword Ülgen had just seized was enough to block the attack. Nonetheless, he couldn't avoid the three arrows that buried themselves in his back. This caused him to lose his balance momentarily, creating an opening that Olpar could exploit.

"Die!" Olpar snarled, swiping his claws again, causing cracks in the greatsword before shattering it with a powerful kick.

In the next second, he tried to slash his enemy's chest with his claws. But he was caught off guard by the icy breath. Unlike the eldest brother, who struggled to regain control, the werewolf shook violently, shattering the ice trying to spread across his body. This time, however, he couldn't avoid the two fingers thrust into his eyes.

The pain-filled scream made even the eldest brother, who was trying to recover a few meters away, shudder. With a devilish expression, Ülgen ate the two plucked eyes and continued his barrage of punches.

Blinded, Olpar didn't know how to defend himself against the onslaught of punches. The relentless barrage of heavy blows was breaking his body's resistance and bringing him closer to death. Just before losing consciousness from a final blow to his head, he heard the words, "You will beg for death."

Seeing Olpar's mangled body tossed like a rag doll towards the Whitefang side, the middle brother instinctively reached for an arrow from his quiver, only to find it empty. As he watched helplessly, clenching his teeth, he saw his enemy place a foot on the eldest brother's head and began to press down mockingly. Drawing a short sword from his belt, he charged with all his speed.

Laughing derisively at the charging archer, Ülgen started to crush the eldest brother's head under his foot with an air of mockery.

"No, let go of the elder brother!" the middle one shouted with all his might. But as he got within five meters, he heard a crunching sound, and his hopes shattered.

The next second, a bloody hand pierced through his chest, and as blood trickled from his mouth, he caught a glimpse of dragon eyes briefly appearing on Ülgen's face. "Ah, I see. This war has been a game all along..." were his final thoughts. He realized that the entity before him was a mighty dragon, whom they couldn't even dream of harming.

Of course, he hadn't realized that their actions had brought Ülgen's human body to the brink of death. Young Fatih tried to regain his labored breath as he looked at the three bodies around him. After wiping the blood from his mouth with the back of his hand, he spread his arms wide and struck his chest three times to declare victory according to northern customs.

As the jubilant Whitefang soldiers erupted into a thunderous cheer, the Tu'bask side remained silent. Ülgen didn't bother to break their silence. If they didn't surrender by evening, he wouldn't hesitate to punish them with a night raid. Without even bothering to retrieve his discarded greatsword scattered in the distance, he walked towards Sven and the others.

As the gaze of his soldiers and third-degree commanders washed over his body, he continued to exude his imposing presence. After ordering them to set up temporary tents instead of a campsite, he sat down in a wide open area designated for himself. With Sven and the third-degrees right beside him, the soldiers began to carry out his orders.

Meanwhile, Ülgen felt a sense of relief spreading from the depths of his soul. He couldn't yet reap the tangible benefits of this relief, but he knew exactly what he needed to do to make use of it. "Dromkez is complete. Next, a true conquest."