Pumpkin wasn't suited for rapid continuous firing, but the duration of its beam could be maintained for a very long time. So much so that this gun-type Teigu often functioned more like a spear...
That's right: Shoot to kill, Shinso!
Exactly that kind of spear!
Najenda only needed to lightly swing the meter-long Teigu in her hands, and its white laser could obliterate mountain peaks hundreds of meters away.
Although moving the Teigu by just a centimeter could offset the attack range by tens of meters, this level of control was not difficult for Najenda, who was now a Chrysos Heir.
And those weaknesses she had seen through were, unsurprisingly, swept clean, causing the incoming thunder to dissipate into the air once again.
At this moment, Najenda proved herself to everyone. Even though she was not yet twenty years old, she could single-handedly trade blows back and forth with the Empire's Strongest, Great General Budo.
"I didn't expect you to truly possess such strength. We'll leave Budo to you, then!"
Seeing this, the comrades beside her unsurprisingly yielded the stage to Najenda. After all, Najenda was a Chrysos Heir who wielded an Imperial Arm.
Coupled with the fact that she had blocked Budo's attacks several times in a row just now, the Chrysos Heirs were convinced that she had the ability to protect her allies.
"Yes, leave it to me!"
With Budo's personal arrival, the siege defense of the Northern Kingdom Capital officially began. Countless artillery blasts and lasers intertwined in the sky, clearly audible even ten thousand meters away.
Even with such a massive area of effect, the battle between the two sides did not become one-sided; instead, it fell into a stalemate.
But the leaders of both sides were keenly aware that this was nothing more than a probing exchange. They hadn't gotten serious yet!
—
Meanwhile, on another battlefield.
Cerydra, Hysilens, and Esdeath, alongside over eight hundred Chrysos Heirs, had ruthlessly pinned the several-thousand-meter-long Super Class Danger Beast to the ground, even freezing its joints with Enchanted Ice.
Coupled with Hysilens' singing voice, which contained the power of Nihility, taking down this Giant Dragon shouldn't have been a problem.
However, the reason a Super Class Danger Beast was considered super dangerous was because of its ridiculously exaggerated power!
Rumble, rumble—!
The Giant Dragon subdued on the ground did not move its body, but crimson patterns emerged all over its scales, accompanied by billowing white steam.
Facing the Giant Dragon directly, Cerydra instantly noticed the anomaly and immediately transmitted what she saw into everyone's minds.
"All forces retreat! Dux Alptraum, use all your power to restrict its movements! Dux Gladiorum, can you stop it?"
"I'm afraid I can't do it in a short amount of time... I need time."
"Then keep singing!"
The Chrysos Heirs, who had originally been on the offensive, immediately retreated backwards upon receiving the clear directive.
And it was exactly at this moment that they witnessed the true terror of a Super Class Danger Beast!
Unbeknownst to them, countless fissures had appeared across the Giant Dragon's body. Crimson magma—or perhaps blood—coiled around its entire form.
Boom, boom, boom—!
Then, the volcano erupted.
The Giant Dragon's body was like a massive moving volcano. Not only did it exude incinerating "magma," but crimson "rubble" also splattered into the air, forming huge craters wherever it hit the ground.
"Truly worthy of being a Super Class Danger Beast..."
If judged by elemental attributes, this Super Class Danger Beast was undoubtedly a top-tier entity with dual Fire and Earth attributes!
The Blazing Rock, forged from fire and earth, instantly flooded the Giant Dragon's body. Fortunately, Cerydra had ordered the Chrysos Heirs to retreat in time; otherwise, the consequences would have been disastrous.
Esdeath seemed to still be controlling her frost, trying to suppress the Giant Dragon in place, but she had unfortunately run into a severe elemental disadvantage. Ultimately, she could only watch helplessly as her ice melted away...
Meanwhile, Cerydra narrowed her eyes slightly. Without making any unnecessary movements, she once again brandished her Scepter. After pinpointing a specific trajectory, she swung at those Blazing Rocks like a baseball bat, hitting a direct home run.
However, since these Blazing Rocks were ultimately products of the Giant Dragon's own body, they couldn't deal any effective damage to it. But at least, Cerydra's goal was achieved...
"ROAR—!"
Having broken free from its restraints, the Giant Dragon reared its head and let out an earth-shattering roar, seemingly declaring that it had regained its freedom.
However, things were not that simple.
"You all did well. A Super Class Danger Beast is not an existence that can be easily defeated. Everything you just did has laid a solid foundation for our victory!"
For the temporarily minted Chrysos Heirs, who had only undergone short-term training, being able to fight such a colossal creature was already an incredible feat. Cerydra was not the kind of monarch to shift all blame onto her subordinates; rather, she judged based on the reality of the situation.
As far as results went, these Chrysos Heirs were truly excellent!
"Next, we just need to wait."
A victorious smile already beamed on Cerydra's face, but the Chrysos Heirs were completely unaware of what had happened.
As for Esdeath, who was breaking out in a hot sweat all over, she looked around, a visible question mark practically popping up over her head.
The girl, who had finally caught a moment of rest, didn't seem to spot the Dux Gladiorum she respected beside Cerydra.
"Your Highness Imperator, where is Lady Hysilens?"
"Fighting, of course. But... in a place we can't see!"
Cerydra led the remaining Chrysos Heirs to gradually retreat further, hovering precisely at the edge of the Giant Dragon's attack range. This ensured they avoided the magma attacks while remaining close enough to provide timely support.
As for Cerydra herself, she had already seen the Giant Dragon's true situation through another perspective.
Within a pitch-black space, a blue light suddenly flared. Dux Gladiorum, Hysilens, enveloped her entire body in "water" brimming with the Authority of the Ocean, while simultaneously using some rocks to block a certain tunnel entrance.
"As expected of Imperator, what a perfect home run!"
The target of the Blazing Rock Cerydra had batted away earlier was none other than the Giant Dragon's ear. Hysilens used these extremely high-temperature rocks, combined with the Sea Water she summoned, to directly form a solid wall, completely sealing off the Giant Dragon's ear canal.
And Hysilens had successfully entered inside the Giant Dragon's ear, ready to activate the Authority of the Ocean at any moment.
As the Demigod of the Ocean, Hysilens possessed a highly specialized ability. Though it wasn't of much use normally, it could display divine might at critical moments.
That was the ability to summon Sea Water out of thin air!
No matter her location, as long as Hysilens remained the Demigod of the Ocean, countless volumes of Sea Water would surround her!
Hysilens was the sea itself!
"Are you ready to experience a literal 'brainwashing'?"
"Although I don't know if a Giant Dragon's ear directly connects to its brain, it doesn't matter anymore... I'll just force a path through, won't I?"
In the next moment, a deep blue light swirled around Hysilens, and the ocean officially descended upon this place!