From Overlord To Multiverse.-Chapter 68 - 67: Battle Of Peaks

Oebd snarled, his massive eye narrowing as he twisted his head.

The human was carving into his back like a demon!

The dragon roared and dove toward the earth.

BOOM!

A thunderous crash followed as the colossal body slammed into the ground, creating a massive crater.

Unscathed by the impact, Oebd rose and craned his neck to look at his back.

But the human was gone...

Pain.

A jolt of agony lanced through his abdomen.

Oebd's blood-red eye widened in disbelief. He looked down.

The same human stood below—relentlessly slashing at his belly, fire swirling around him.

ROAR!

Oebd bellowed in fury and unleashed a torrent of flame, engulfing the area where Lioro stood.

But—!

The man didn't even flinch.

The flames roared around him, yet he kept slashing like a man possessed.

'Even without my flame immunity, your breath was just a tier 9 attack... it can't bypass infinity,' Lioro thought calmly.

His blade moved faster, more savagely.

He had discarded his shield, now wielding his sword with both hands, every strike carrying brutal weight.

A shadow loomed over him—a massive claw descending.

Lioro didn't even look at it.

He vanished again.

In the sky, he reappeared, floating above

Oebd with a calm gaze.

He watched. Thinking.

'This is the problem when you fight a YGGDRASIL player...'

Teleportation. Time magic. Elements. Yin-Yang. Chi. Martial Arts.

Too many variables.

To defeat a YGGDRASIL player, you needed counters for everything.

If not?

You became like Oebd—a beast with the stats of a World Enemy, but none of the toolkit.

'A real World Enemy in YGGDRASIL like the 'Lord Of Seven Sins' had layered resistances , broken passives, and skills that could suppress even max-level players along with World Item effect immunity. Oebd has the stats... but not the substance.'

Lioro opened his mouth and activated his buffs.

"Martial Arts: Body Strengthening. Enhanced Magic Resistance. Flow Acceleration. Focus Battle Aura. Sense Weakness. Capacity Building. Fortress. Greater Ability Boost: Slash. Strong Assault."

Multiple different coloured lights flashed on his body.

A surge of power coursed through him.

Lioro's eyes gleamed with a powerful light.

Below, Oebd didn't attack.

Instead, the black dragon stared at him warily, cautious now.

Lioro smiled.

And disappeared once more.

SLASH!

A searing pain tore through Oebd's abdomen again.

Worse than before.

The beast roared in anguish.

His claws struck out in rage—connecting with nothing.

Again. The human had vanished.

ROAR!

Madness crept into Oebd's cries.

How?! How does he keep escaping!?

Inside Orario.

The gods watched with bated breath as the black dragon thrashed in fury.

"He's losing!" a bearded god shouted in disbelief and awe.

"Is this truly the end of the Calamity? After so many centuries..."

The divine spectators murmured, some in excitement, others in stunned silence.

But not all were cheering.

Some gods sat still, silent, fists clenched tight.

These were the ones who had lost everything in the last battle.

Their Familia... gone.

And now, they watched, praying, for a single outcome.

The death of the One-Eyed Black Dragon.

The monster that had taken their children.

He deserved to burn.

Hephaestus was among them.

Her heart ached from the loss of her beloved children. She had considered returning to Heaven... but stayed for those who still remained.

Her crimson eye stared at the screen, unblinking.

Yet a flicker of curiosity pierced her pain.

"...Who made his armor...?"

Her breath caught. The craftsmanship was unreal.

Even from a distance, she could see it, perfection.

Mortals shouldn't be able to make something like that.

Not even she could make something better.

As she stared, lost in thought, Hermes muttered beside her, rubbing his chin.

"...No. This won't be enough. It's still not enough..."

----

Oebd's roars tore through the heavens, forming tornadoes of destruction around them.

But it was useless.

None of it touched Lioro, who kept flickering across space like a phantom.

The battlefield turned into a scene out of the apocalypse, with lightning flashes, violent hurricanes, and the earth trembling beneath their feet.

Time passed.

Nearly an hour.

Lioro frowned, stopping mid-air as he inspected the place he had been relentlessly attacking.

The wound...

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It wasn't widening anymore.

Feeling the pressure of an incoming wind blast behind him, Lioro calmly teleported away. Once again, Oebd's massive claw struck only empty air.

The Black Dragon roared in pure frustration, its single blood-red eye locked onto the untouchable human.

Appearing in the sky once again, Lioro's expression turned serious.

Especially when his gaze settled on the injuries he had inflicted.

The wounds...

Were not only shallow.

They were starting to heal.

'Sun Breathing... is it useless?' Lioro's frown deepened.

Oebd's regeneration was overpowering the anti-healing effect of his martial art technique.

'This... is troublesome.'

Physical attacks weren't enough to overcome its monstrous vitality.

Magic?

Useless, Oebd's racial resistance nullified all tier magic.

Plus, that colossal body! His attacks were like pinpricks on a mountain.

Even worse, the ones he did inflict were healing.

'Undead summons are no good either, their max level is 70. A Tier 10 Undead Dragon? It'd get destroyed with a slap or two....'

After all, Oebd was easily four times bigger than a tier 10 undead dragon and possessed Level 100+ physical stats.

'If I transform into a dragon myself... the +25% stat boost still wouldn't bridge the gap. Worse, I wouldn't be able to cast spells while transformed... no teleportation.'

Space distorted.

Lioro reappeared above Oebd's head, sword flashing downwards.

Roar!

The battle resumed.

Another hour passed.

At some point, the monster wave inside the city was completely crushed, and the undead forces stood in silence beyond the gates, vigilantly watching their lord's battle.

Night Lich clenched its skeletal fist, a hollow sound echoing through the stillness.

The Abyssal Dread Knight quietly gripped its sword tightly.

They could clearly see it.

They didn't have the power to even scratch that monster.

Up above, Lioro's breathing grew uneven.

Continuous teleportation and high-speed combat were slowly gnawing at his mind.

And yet—

The Black Dragon stood there, barely wounded, staring coldly at him.

Perfectly calm.

Lioro exhaled sharply, stealing a glance at the worried undead below.

Just as he considered using more desperate methods—

Oebd suddenly raised his head, mouth opening wide, gathering a terrifying amount of mana.

But this time...

It was different.

'Hm?' Lioro narrowed his eyes.

This wasn't like the earlier breath attacks.

The sheer amount of energy condensing in its mouth it dwarfed anything he had seen so far.

Far greater even than his Tier 10 spell, Hollow Purple.

'Super-tier magic?' Lioro's heartbeat quickened in anticipation.

This was interesting.

The Black Dragon's massive body began to glow, dark mana swirling like a black sun around it.

It pointed its mouth—

At Lioro.

'Well, whatever it is, I can just teleport away—'

But then—

Oebd abruptly turned his head away.

And aimed it—

At the dungeon city.

Lioro's mind froze, then he cursed loudly.

"Fck! You dirty son of a btch!!"

The Black Dragon unleashed a ray of pure destruction, a beam of annihilating mana that raced toward the Dungeon City faster than sound.

The humans below stared helplessly at the incoming doom.

It was too fast.

They would never make it.

But at the last possible second—

A flash of silver and frost appeared.

Lioro.

Standing firmly in front of the city, shield raised high.

Without hesitation, he activated his shield's power.

"Skill: Absolute Defense!"

A crystalline frost instantly encased him.

Five seconds of complete invulnerability.

The black beam struck.

Terrifying waves of destructive mana ricocheted off the Ice Dragon King's Shield, smashing into the ground and carving deep, smoking craters all around.

5 seconds.

4.

3.

2.

1—

'F*ck, it's not stopping!'

Lioro cursed just as the shield's invulnerability expired.

The breath attack slammed into him head-on.

Feeling the monstrous mana surge washing over the battlefield, Elsa moved instinctively, her heart pounding in fear.

Meanwhile, from the gods, angry shouts echoed:

"Cheating! The monster used a dirty trick!"

"Foul! I call foul!"

"He turned his breath on the city... What a disgraceful creature," Takemikazuchi muttered grimly.

On the undead side—

"Protect the Lord!!!"

At the Night Lich's desperate cry, all the undead forces surged forward toward the Black Dragon.

At the forefront, the Abyssal Dread Knight sprinted with terrifying speed, the earth shattering under his steps.

Oebd narrowed its crimson eye.

Spreading his wings wide, the Black Dragon summoned the mana around him, drawing in the air, the ground, the sky itself.

The breath beam intensified even further.

Lioro, still gripping his shield tightly, was pushed back inch by inch despite his full resistance.

Creaking sounds echoed as cracks spiderwebbed across his shield.

Grinding his teeth, Lioro roared:

"Skill: Negative Impact Shield!"

A purple energy barrier burst outward, momentarily blocking the breath.

But it would only last for a second.

Without hesitation, Lioro activated his next move:

"Heroic Spirit: Einherjar!"

A glowing mass of light separated from him, instantly molding into a white figure, an exact copy of Lioro himself.

The Negative Impact Shield shattered.

The breath hit him again with unstoppable force.

"Go!" Lioro shouted.

The Heroic Spirit, spreading a pair of gleaming dragon wings, took flight straight towards Oebd.

The Black Dragon's eye gleamed coldly.

It knew.

This was the only window it had to kill the human.

Beating its massive wings, Oebd poured every ounce of power into its breath attack.

The beam intensified to its peak.

Cracks splintered across Lioro's Frost Dragon King's Shield.

"Skill: Divine Forge Reinforcement!"

A dark red Hume covered the Frost Dragon King's shield, holding it together.

The attack was blocked!

Oebd's red eye shone with a blinding light.

He pushed himself even further.

Lioro's shield remained firm!

But then suddenly!

The red hume around his shield started becoming unstable.

A bad premonition hit Lioro.

Then—

With a sharp, resounding crack—

The shield broke.

Not because of Oebd's attack.

But because the shield forged from the corpse of a lv 35 dragon, forcefully pushed to work as a lv 90 equipment and could no longer support a 500% increase suddenly brought by his Epic classes's active skill.

The cold armor covering Lioro dimmed immediately, the set's combined effect vanishing, his stats plummeting.

Lioro gritted his teeth and moved faster than thought.

"Skill: Negative Impact Shield!"

A second purple barrier formed.

Lioro raised his hand.

"Skill: Sacred Throwing Lance!"

A radiant lance, crackling with pure holy power, materialized in his grasp and shot forward like a meteor.

The breath attack broke through the new shield again.

Lioro crossed his arms over his chest, Ice Dragon King's wings spreading wide in final defense.

The people of Orario, watching through Ouranos's divine screen, held their breath as one.

The gods leaned forward, eyes wide, forgetting even to breathe.

Cracks tore across Lioro's armor, deep, jagged lines of destruction.

Meanwhile, the Abyssal Dread Knight reached the Black Dragon.

Without hesitation, he leapt high, sword raised.

Roar!

Oebd turned his gaze towards the incoming threat, raising a claw to swat the knight aside.

But that was exactly what the Abyssal Dread Knight had wanted!

He roared deliberately to draw Oebd's attention, even though he knew his attacks wouldn't work.

It was a diversion.

And it worked.

The Heroic Spirit Einherjar flashed past the distracted dragon's guard and slammed into its exposed throat—

At the same time the Sacred Throwing Lance struck like a shooting star.

Boom!!

Both attacks collided simultaneously.

Oebd's head jerked to the side violently.

The destructive breath veered off-course, blasting harmlessly into empty ground, gouging a massive canyon into the earth, sparing the city.

But...

There was no joy.

No cheers.

Only silence.

Everyone's eyes were locked on the image displayed by Ouranos's magic screen.

On the figure of Lioro, armor cracked and battered, his wings drooping, his body trembling mid-air.

"...Was it... useless after all?"

A male god muttered in a hollow voice.

Despair spread among the gods and mortals alike.

They had seen it clearly:

Lioro couldn't defeat the dragon in a direct clash.

And Oebd could unleash that devastating breath again, as many times as needed.

It was only a matter of time.

Quietly, Hermes stepped beside Ouranos.

He leaned in and whispered something in the old god's ear.

Ouranos's stern eyes flickered slightly.

After a moment's thought, he gave a small nod.

Hermes grinned, a cunning, daring smile.

Turning back to the battlefield, he fixed his gaze on the falling figure of Lioro.

And whispered under his breath:

"Let us give you a push, Hero."

----

Outside Orario

Lioro landed heavily, dust rising around his feet.

His Frost Dragon King's armor groaned, fissures spiderwebbing across the chestplate, some shards already piercing into his skin.

But he didn't falter.

The super tier breath attack had been blocked.

He was still standing.

Reverse Cursed Technique was working in full, countering the lingering effects of the super-tier magic.

"...Tch."

Lioro exhaled, his eyes locked onto Oebd, who was now exchanging violent blows with the Heroic Spirit Einherjar and the scattered undead forces.

Well, mostly the Einherjar. The undead were just distractions at best.

But even that divine spirit was faltering.

It lacked teleportation and infinity.

It was only a matter of time before it will be crushed under the dragon's claw.

Footsteps rushed toward him.

Lioro turned.

"Lioro!"

Elsa.

She sprinted toward him, followed by the Night Lich.

Her face pale, eyes wide with concern.

She raised a trembling hand to reach for him—but froze when she saw the state he was in.

Cracked armor. Blood. Metal fragments embedded in his skin.

"...You..." she whispered, voice breaking.

Lioro said softly. "I'm alright. Don't worry."

Her lips quivered.

"...Sorry," she whispered, "for being useless..."

He shook his head firmly.

"I should be the one saying that."

"No!"

Elsa's denial came swift and fierce. Her voice cracked, filled with emotion.

Behind her, the Night Lich's undead flame flickered rapidly with anxiety. He wanted to speak to his Lord too, but he dared not interrupt the scene before him.

'Dammit! I also want to say something! I'm worried too!'

Before he could muster the courage, Lioro's voice cut through.

"Start retreating."

Elsa and the Night Lich both snapped their heads toward him.

"I'm not leaving without you!"

"The undead never retreats!"

They shouted at the same time, eyes blazing with stubborn fire.

Lioro blinked. "...What the hell are you two talking about?"

Then, rubbing his temple, he clarified:

"I meant retreat with the civilians inside Dungeon City. So the Black Dragon doesn't try that dirty trick again."

The two fell silent, looking... incredibly embarrassed.

Elsa turned red. The Night Lich's flames dimmed.

Lioro sighed.

"Super-tier magic has a long cooldown. At least 12 hours. He can't use it again anytime soon."

He looked up toward the battlefield.

"And while I can't defeat him... he's helpless against me too. No anti-teleportation."

His mind was already spinning with possibilities.

Secure the civilians. Keep teleporting in and out. Hit-and-run tactics. Wear him down.

He could ask Hephaestus to forge a weapon in the meantime, a spear tailored to slay the Black Dragon to counter its healing.

While he calculated scenarios, Elsa's confused voice broke through his thoughts.

"...What is that...?"

"Hm?"

Lioro turned.

And froze.

Two figures stood a short distance away.

One standing tall, the other floating gracefully, her long hair billowing unnaturally, like a divine banner in the wind.

A man and a woman?

No... a goddess.

The woman had her arms wrapped around the man's neck in quiet affection.

Then, their faces became clear.

And Lioro's eyes widened.

"Bell Cranel...? Goddess Freya...?"

The original protagonist.

And the mad goddess.

Both of them were supposed to be gone—one dead, the other returned to heaven.

Instead of replying, Freya leaned in, her lips brushing Bell's ear.

Her voice, soft as silk, echoed through the air:

"Are you sure about this...?"

Bell nodded silently.

Freya smiled, mournful, proud and gently removed her arms from around his neck.

Bell turned toward Lioro.

Their eyes met.

Lioro didn't speak.

Bell didn't either.

Then, without warning—

Bell turned away.

He faced the Black Dragon.

An illusory knife appeared in his hand, flickering like moonlight.

He suddenly dropped into an attacking stance.

And then.....

Ding

A faint bell chime echoed, as soft as falling snow.

Then their forms vanished like mist.

Elsa and the Night Lich looked in confusion, not understanding what just happened.

Lioro on the other hand.....

Was grinning like crazy.

Because the key to victory...

Has finally arrived.

[Super Tier Magic 'Hero's Strike' has been detected...would you like to learn it?]

Lioro reached up, grabbed the half-broken helmet on his head, and took it off.

Silver hair tumbled free, catching the light.

As knowledge of the spell surged into his mind, he grasped his Frost Dragon King's sword.

Tightened his grip.

And stepped forward.

"Let's go."

He smiled brightly.

"It's time to hunt a dragon."

----

Inside Orario

Hermes burst to his feet, eyes glowing with manic glee.

"YES! Do it! Kill that beast and be immortalized in the heart of the world!!"

All gods turned to him, giving him a weird look.

Even Ouranos took a deliberate step away from him.

Hermes, still grinning like a lunatic, pumped his fist in the air.

"The final hunt! The one we've been waiting for! The end of the calamity!!! AHAHAHAHA! Are you seeing this?? Zeus!!!!"