chapter 4: The Language Of Myths
925 Words
Chapter 4
The Language of Myths
The corrupted serpent charged through the ruined district like a living catastrophe.
Buildings collapsed in its wake.
Black flames distorted the air itself.
Yet Elias Veyron remained standing calmly in the middle of the street.
Lightning danced across his fingers.
Tiny sparks.
Nothing compared to the storm surrounding Thor.
But every summoner nearby immediately sensed it.
Their expressions changed instantly.
Because that lightning did not feel borrowed.
It felt natural.
As though the concept itself acknowledged Elias.
Seraphina noticed it too.
Her eyes narrowed sharply.
“…Impossible.”
The serpent roared and slammed downward with enormous claws.
BOOOOOOM!
The street exploded apart.
Dust swallowed everything.
Several soldiers shouted:
“HE’S DEAD—”
CRACK.
Lightning erupted through the smoke.
A black silhouette stepped forward casually.
Completely unharmed.
Elias looked down at the shattered concrete around him.
Then up at the giant serpent.
“…Okay.”
He adjusted his coat calmly.
“That definitely would’ve killed old me.”
The battlefield went silent.
Thor’s laughter echoed across the sky again.
Clearly entertained.
The corrupted serpent recoiled slightly.
Confused.
Afraid.
Elias pointed at it.
“See? There it is again.”
The monster snarled.
“That fear.”
His amber eyes sharpened with curiosity.
“You’re not afraid of dying.”
He looked directly at the black corruption spreading across its scales.
“You’re afraid of disappearing.”
The moment those words left his mouth—
the corruption reacted violently.
Black flames exploded outward uncontrollably.
The System instantly responded.
---
WARNING
NULL CORRUPTION INSTABILITY DETECTED
---
Seraphina stared at Elias in disbelief.
“How did you know that?”
Elias answered without looking away from the serpent.
“Because myths are built from identity.”
His tone became unusually serious.
“Dragons symbolize dominance, majesty, power, immortality.”
He pointed at the corruption.
“That thing attacks meaning itself.”
Even Thor observed Elias more carefully now.
Not as a mortal.
But as something increasingly abnormal.
The serpent suddenly screamed.
Not roared.
Screamed.
Its body twisted unnaturally as black veins spread further.
Elias’s expression shifted immediately.
“…Oh.”
That was bad.
Very bad.
The creature was destabilizing.
And judging by the amount of energy building inside it—
it was about to explode.
Seraphina realized it too.
“Everyone evacuate NOW!”
Panic erupted across the district.
The corrupted serpent raised its head toward the sky.
Black energy gathered endlessly within its mouth.
Space cracked around it.
Thor lifted Mjölnir.
The heavens thundered violently.
But Elias suddenly spoke.
“Wait.”
Thor paused.
> “You have a plan?”
“Absolutely.”
Elias smiled confidently.
Then pointed at the giant unstable monster.
“I’m going to annoy it psychologically.”
Several soldiers nearly collapsed.
Seraphina looked physically offended.
“That is your plan?!”
“Trust the academic process.”
Before anyone could stop him—
Elias stepped forward again.
The serpent glared at him hatefully.
Elias crossed his arms.
“You know,” he said casually, “for a legendary draconic entity, your symbolism is kind of inconsistent.”
The serpent froze.
“…What?” Seraphina whispered.
Elias continued thoughtfully:
“You’ve got feathered serpent traits, eastern dragon structure, corrupted draconic adaptation…”
He tilted his head.
“You’re basically mythological identity theft.”
The monster roared furiously.
“See? Defensive behavior.”
Thor actually looked impressed now.
Elias pointed dramatically at the serpent.
“You don’t even know what mythological category you belong to!”
The corrupted creature lost control completely.
Black flames erupted everywhere.
The instability skyrocketed.
---
WARNING
NULL CORRUPTION DESTABILIZATION CRITICAL
---
Elias immediately looked upward.
“NOW.”
Thor moved.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!
The sky shattered with divine lightning.
Thor hurled Mjölnir.
The hammer crossed the battlefield like a living storm.
Then struck the serpent directly.
Time itself seemed to pause.
And then—
the heavens exploded.
A colossal pillar of lightning consumed the entire creature.
Thunder echoed across Bastion-7 like the roar of an ancient god.
The corrupted serpent disintegrated completely.
Not burned.
Purified.
The black corruption vanished alongside it.
Silence followed.
Then rain began falling softly from the storm clouds.
Elias blinked upward.
“…That was significantly cooler than expected.”
Nearby soldiers stared at him like he was an eldritch lifeform pretending to be human.
One man whispered shakily:
“He roasted a calamity-class monster to death…”
Seraphina rubbed her forehead slowly.
“I already have a headache.”
Golden text suddenly appeared before Elias again.
---
CALAMITY-CLASS THREAT ELIMINATED
CONTRIBUTION ASSESSED
PRIMARY DAMAGE:
THOR
PRIMARY DESTABILIZATION:
ELIAS VEYRON
BONUS ACHIEVEMENT ACQUIRED
[LANGUAGE OF MYTHS]
You possess abnormal comprehension of mythical structures.
---
Elias’s eyes widened slightly.
“Oh.”
That sounded useful.
Very useful.
Thor descended slowly from the storm-filled sky.
The god stopped directly before Elias.
For several seconds, thunder echoed quietly around them.
Then Thor smiled.
A genuine warrior’s smile.
> “You truly are strange, Elias Veyron.”
Elias grinned immediately.
“Thank you. I work very hard at it.”
Thor laughed once more.
Then the storm above the city slowly began fading.
But before disappearing completely—
Thor looked at Elias one final time.
> “The path ahead of you will shake countless realms.”
Lightning flickered around his form.
> “Grow stronger.”
Then the god vanished into the storm.
The pressure disappeared instantly.
Leaving behind only silence.
And one very important realization.
Every person in Bastion-7 had witnessed it.
A god had not merely answered Elias.
The god had acknowledged him.
- Writer
