Chapter 235: Attack on Zombie Dragon (2/2)
They had already passed through the slope of mud and stone caused by the reason landslide, traversed the hills of the Kristoff Mountains and still moving along slowly.
Soon, they would pass through the Wailing Trail and reach the plains of the North, where Tunaya, the capital of the Silver Eagle Duchy sat!
“As expected of the God of Games… he has foreseen it already, which was why the quest he assigned from the very start is city defense and not slaying the dragon.”
Edward naturally realized the fact thanks to Angora’s tip.
“Should we contact the other Players and have them try to divert the dragon’s path?” Vela asked.
Angora was himself curious and wanted to see for himself what a dragon-slaying battle looked like, but Vela thought that it was too dangerous. That was why he stayed at the Silver Eagle Castle while she would relay his orders.
“I had Joe and the others try after our lord warned us about it, but it didn’t work.” Edward shook his head. “The zombie dragon is intentionally advancing towards Tunaya, and it might not even realize that itself…”
“Are undead still self-aware?” Vela couldn’t help asking, and perhaps finding her own question vague, she tried to add, “Um. What I meant was whether they could retain the consciousness they had when they were still alive, and whether they could think…”
Being a native of a village near the Valley of the Tragic Dead, Vela had seen all forms of undead since she was a child which had no lack of bizarre beings.
Some appeared to be conscious as if they were alive, but as time moved on, it was recognizable that it was not actually consciousness—corpses couldn’t think, and the reason behind their behavior had more to do with their instincts as undead.
“They might. The dragon did something that closely resembled thinking, but I’m also sure that even though it believes it had freedom of will, it is actually being controlled by someone else.” Edward said solemnly. “Otherwise, it wouldn’t be attacking futilely or instinctively advancing towards Tunaya while fighting after we had seen through its movements… And when it was alive, Tunaya might not even have been built yet.”
“So what should we do? It’s another four days until we could take it down, but it would reach the plains in two…” Vela couldn’t help being anxious. “And wouldn’t it leave the Players behind and attack the city once it sees it?”
“Yes, that is possible…” Edward nodded without hesitation.
Vela quietly resolved herself in that moment. If the Dead Red Dragon really reached Tunaya, she would take Angora—drag, if it was necessary—to the Lifestone and teleport to the safety of the Unnamed Town.
“…But it’s still too early to worry about that. Just now, Joe noticed something about the big guy… well, it’s not a weakness, but it is a movement pattern.”
Edward was suddenly smiling—it was a mischievous look matching his youthfulness (that would drive parents crazy), as if he was a child about to pull a prank. “Since there’s no harm in trying, I’ll switch to a new tactic… if it works, we might really shorten the time we need to take down the big guy!”