The village was wrapped in flames. People fleeing in every direction. Above, with all the air of I own this place, a black dragon hurled fireballs. Powerful limbs, long tail, vast wings spreading from the back. Its twin eyes — burning red against the night — looked as if it were enjoying this.
“Prioritize villager rescue! Carry out those who can’t move!”
Galun-san shouted. The beastfolk guards immediately moved out — to free those pinned under fallen beams, to extract the wounded who couldn’t walk.
“We help with the rescue too! Not one left behind!”
Lyon-san called out, and the Belfast guards joined the rescue.
“Right — we have to draw that dragon away from the village.”
Pull the attention of that thing floating up there, get it away from the village. While we did, Galun-san and Lyon-san would extract villagers. That was the plan we’d built on the way here. They had the escort the ambassador mission. They couldn’t fall here fighting a dragon.
And the enemy was airborne. Their weapons couldn’t reach. Linze and I — the ones who can use magic — had to handle this.
“Light, pierce — radiant holy spear — Shining Javelin!”
A streak of light bored through the night. The black dragon flicked aside in midair and replied with a fireball from its mouth.
“Tch — Boost!”
I body-strengthened away. The fireball impacted; an explosion bloomed; embers rained.
Bad. Fight here and we add to the damage.
“Kōhaku!”
“At your service.”
In response, Kōhaku swelled to his full size.
“Linze! Get on!”
“Y-yes…!”
I leapt onto Kōhaku’s back, pulled Linze in to seat her in front of me, and we tore off south of the village.
I looked back — the dragon was loosing fireballs in pursuit. Kōhaku raced through the trees, dodging left, right, beautifully. Good — follow, follow.
I’d brought Linze because, with the enemy airborne, only she or I could put up offense. Together, we tear off its wings somehow. Everything starts after that.
Out of the trees and into a wide pasture. Open sightlines, no obstructions. Casualties should stay low here. Painful having no cover, but…
GOGAAAAAAA!!
The dragon roared. Hearing it, Kōhaku growled in challenge.
“You… insult my Master…! A mere flying lizard!”
“Eh!? Kōhaku, you can understand its words!?”
I jumped off Kōhaku as I asked, and he translated.
“‘Small worm who has spoiled my pleasure. I shall rip your body to pieces and devour you.’ That so? Nose-running pup who can’t even speak in words… This is why I cannot stand the kindred of the Azure Sovereign!”
Kōhaku bared his rage and glared up at the black dragon.
“Pleasure…? You’re saying it attacked the village for fun? Awfully self-centered.”
Acquiring sustenance, retaliating for sanctuary violation — those I could understand. Then we’d inflict measured pain and drive it off, end of business.
But it had attacked people for its own enjoyment. Then we don’t hold back either.
“Linze, I’ll bring it down. Once I do — sever the wings.”
“Got it.”
Linze gave a small, firm nod. I focused mana and unfurled a Null spell.
“Multiple!”
Small magic circles unfurled around me, aimed at the dragon like launchers. One became two, two became four, four became eight… they multiplied, and past a hundred, I triggered the next spell.
“Light, pierce — radiant holy spear — Shining Javelin.”
In the next instant, 128 spears of light loosed at the black dragon. I can’t use high-tier spells yet, but in sheer mana-volume nobody beats me. Can’t fire bazookas, but I can fire machine guns.
GYAOAAA!?
The black dragon tried to evade the rain of light, but couldn’t escape 128 spears. Several hit; bleeding, it crashed to the ground.
It instantly raised itself, spread its wings, made to take flight again. Linze didn’t allow it.
“Water, come — pure-blade — Aqua Cutter.”
A compressed blade of water flew at its wing. Spat! — half the right wing came off.
GOAOAA!!
A larger cry — pain, perhaps. The dragon tried to fly again, but lost balance, only rose a little before crashing back down. Good — no more flying for it.
Glaring with eyes full of hatred, the black dragon opened its mouth wide. A motion different from the fireball-launching one. Don’t know what — but bad!
I scooped Linze close and kicked the ground with [Boost]-charged legs.
GOOOOO! — flames poured from the dragon’s mouth like a flamethrower, dyeing the surroundings crimson.
This thing varies its breath. We couldn’t get close while it kept flame-streaming as a wall.
Linze tried Aqua Cutter again, but the wall of flame ate the force; not enough damage.
A shadow dropped down on the dragon’s head.
“Yaaaa!!”
Yae’s blade-flash sliced the dragon’s right eye.
“Boooost!!”
Behind that, Elze burst from the trees with a body-strengthened, full-power blow into the dragon’s flank.
GUGYAOAOAAA!!
“Owowow! Too damn hard, this thing!”
“At least it doesn’t regenerate, unlike the crystal monster from before, indeed.”
Yae and Elze pulled away, complaining.
The one-eyed dragon, in fury, kept loosing fireballs and flame at the two.
“Whoa!?”
“Pull back, indeed!”
The two scrambled away. Bursts and walls of flame lit the area bright.
Using their distraction, I drew sword and closed in. Leapt up, brought it down on the head.
GAKIIIIIN!
[Boost]-charged strike — and a sharp metallic ring as the blade snapped midway.
“Tch!”
What hardness. Should’ve gone for the remaining eye like Yae. The dragon’s red eye fixed on me, neck rearing up. Mouth wide, breath posture set.
Ah — bad. In that moment, a knife sailed in from somewhere and stuck in the dragon’s left eye.
Both eyes pierced — pain, perhaps — the dragon thrashed its head left and right, exhaling flames.
“Slip!”
In the gap, I killed the friction at its feet. Balance broken; the giant body crashed onto its side. Close, close. Slip really is useful. Useless against fliers, but.
But if that knife hadn’t come, that was bad. Yae? Saved. Hm? But Yae was on this side just now… opposite side from where the knife came…? …Whatever.
The dragon roared in fury. My sword broke. Dragons, of course. Need penetration. Then…
“Yae, Elze! Buy time! Linze — a big ice shield in front of me! Kōhaku, protect Linze!”
At my call, Linze gathered mana and chanted.
“Ice, come — eternal wall — Ice Wall.”
A huge thick ice wall appeared in front of me. Beautifully transparent. That’ll do.
“Modeling!”
Hand to the ice, deforming it. The structure isn’t difficult. Magical ice doesn’t melt as easily as ordinary, but reshaping it — possible.
A few seconds later, what stood was a large ice lens. Mounted, won’t tip.
“Multiple!”
Magic circles unfurled in front of the lens. 1…2…4…8…16…32…64…128…256…512!
“Light, pierce — radiant holy spear — Shining Javelin!”
512 spears of light loosed; the lens drank them in, refracted, focused them to a single point. I used [Modeling] again to adjust the lens thickness, fixing the focal length on the black dragon.
“Take it!!”
Next instant — boh! — an indescribable sound, and the black dragon’s chest had a tunnel through it. The dragon listed forward, slow at first, then collapsed with a heavy boom. Blood gushed from the chest, dyeing the ground red.
“D-did it…”
“Did it indeed, Lord Touya!”
Elze and Yae cheered as they ran over. Linze on Kōhaku’s back came over too.
“Well done.”
“As expected of my Master. That felt good.”
The fight was over. I exhaled in relief, and the ice lens shattered with a clatter at exactly that moment. Whoa — startled me.
A black shadow fell on the ground. I looked up — backed by the moon, floating in the sky, was a second dragon.
“Wha—! Another one…!?”
Bigger than the fallen black, scaled red, with white fur growing from the back of the head down to the tail. Long thick horns, long tail.
We froze at the sudden second arrival. The red dragon spoke from above.
“I bear no intent to fight. My kin caused you trouble. I apologize.”
“You can talk!?”
“I am the red dragon who governs the sanctuary. I came to retrieve the rampager — too late, it appears.”
The red dragon closed its golden eyes, sorrow there. Came to retrieve, then. If only it had been a little earlier…
In the heavy silence, Kōhaku stepped forward.
“Red dragon. Tell the Azure Sovereign — discipline your own kindred properly.”
“What…? This presence… could it be — Lord White Sovereign? Why are you in such a place…!?”
The red dragon gasped in surprise. I gaped at Kōhaku, lost. He’s surprisingly important?
“I see… it was Lord White Sovereign who killed the black dragon… no wonder a mere black was no match —”
“Mistake not. The one who felled it is my Master, Lord Touya. The pup dared insult my Master. Just deserts.”
“What…!? White Sovereign’s Master!? A human — !?”
Another shocked gasp; the gold eyes fixed on me. The red dragon descended, set down, bowed low.
“My deepest apologies for the rudeness compounded. This was the act of this one black dragon alone. With your mercy, please…”
“Aah — well, the reason’s clear. Fine. But just this once. Tell the youngsters to never let this happen again.”
“As you say. Without fail. I return at once to the sanctuary and will tell all. Then — pardon me.”
The red dragon rose, bowed again, beat its wings, ascended slowly, circled overhead once, and departed south.
“Tch — what a nuisance. This is why the Azure Sovereign…”
Kōhaku grumbled and poof — back to cub size. Doesn’t get along with the Azure Sovereign at all. “Dragons and tigers clash” — guess it can’t be helped. Hm?
I looked around — the three of them were sitting on the ground.
“What’s wrong, you guys?”
“What’s wrong… we couldn’t move…”
Elze rasped. Aah — same as Yumina when I summoned Kōhaku. That red dragon was a pretty high-tier one too. Those gold eyes — Magic Eye, maybe.
“Touya-san, you… were all right?”
“Totally. Nothing.”
“That feels unfair, indeed…”
Said, but… Probably the God-effect. Out of my hands. Come to think of it, I do feel fear, but my legs don’t lock up much.
Thinking that, I went around casting healing on everyone.