by Aneko Yusagi
“That’s not an option!” I shouted.
“In that case, our only option is to attack using divine magic,” said Sadeena.
Eclair stepped forward. She held her hand to the blade of her short sword and it took the form of a magic sword.
“That I can do! Hiya!”
Ah, that’s right. Eclair had an aptitude for using light magic.
“I’ll give it a go too!”
Raphtalia had an aptitude for illusion magic, which was a mixture of light and dark magic. I guess that meant she could use light magic too. Although, not as well as Eclair.
“Light Stardust Blade!”
Eclair’s sharp thrust, along with a cloud of twinkling stars that shot out of Raphtalia’s katana, went smashing into the sludge. Eclair’s sword created a small opening in the sludge. Raphtalia’s skill made a much larger opening.
“—?!”
But Raphtalia pulled her katana away before the skill completed.
“Any more than that could be deadly for Filo. I could see her through the opening in the sludge, and she was writhing in pain every time the stars hit it.”
I checked Filo’s fuzzy status screen. Her life force had dropped substantially. Shit! Just when I thought we might be able to stop this thing!
“We still have to stop the sludge somehow,” I said.
“Naofumi! The sludge from Gaelion!” Ren shouted.
I looked over just in time to see the masses of sludge engulfing Gaelion and Filo come crashing together at breakneck speed. Damn it! We hadn’t been able to stop them! They oozed together to form a single mass, which began to swell up.
“Gaelion! Listen to me! Please!” Wyndia called out.
“Stay back! Do you have a death wish?!” I shouted.
The throbbing of my shield intensified. Something black rushed out of the shield and engulfed Gaelion. He began absorbing even the surrounding air, or perhaps “cloud of corruption” was a more accurate description. Cracking sounds came from all over his body as Gaelion slowly grew more and more massive.
“I have a feeling this is starting to get really dangerous. You have any idea what’s happening, Rat?” I asked.
“Why would I know?! It looks like your shield is just making things worse!”
“Yeah, I got that. There’s some kind of throbbing coming from the shield.”
We retreated from the cave, and the sludge came crawling out after us. Then it took on a clear, physical form. Standing a massive twenty meters tall, a fully-grown dragon was towering over us. The dragon’s eyes were filled with darkness. I didn’t know what to make of its expression. Nothing about it reminded me of Gaelion anymore. Filo . . . was nowhere in sight.
Damn it! Don’t die on me, Filo!
“GURUUUUUUUUU!”
Gaelion took in a big gulp of air. I recognized that motion. That was his breath attack for sure.
“Everyone, get back! Shooting Star Shield!”
I cast Shooting Star Shield and got ready for the breath. The others got behind me and took a defensive stance. Sadeena pulled out a second flask and began casting a spell.
“I, Sadeena, call forth the power of this holy water to manifest itself. Dragon Vein! Protect us!”
“Saint Aqua Seal!”
Sadeena’s magic engulfed me.
“Little Naofumi, that should boost your fire resistance and help protect you against curses, just in case.”
“Thanks.”
If I could withstand this first attack, then we had a chance of winning. Surely the dragon wasn’t as powerful as the Spirit Tortoise. Black flames poured out of Gaelion’s mouth and shot toward us. Shooting Star Shield dissolved instantly.
What the hell?! Shooting Star Shield had been able to withstand the full weight of the Spirit Tortoise stepping on it for several moments. His breath had melted it away in an instant! The flames continued barreling toward me. I summoned Air Strike Shield, Second Shield, Dritte Shield, and E Float Shield to protect us.
It felt like my whole body was being incinerated. I almost passed out from the pain. If nothing else, the intensity of the attack was on par with the Spirit Tortoise’s electric attack.
“Mr. Naofumi!” shouted Raphtalia.
“Holy hell . . . What’s with this intensity . . .”
“Saint Aqua Seal is peeling away. The power of that breath and curse must be incredible,” Sadeena said.
I had managed to withstand the attack somehow. I cast healing magic on myself and glared at Gaelion. These burns . . . There was no doubt about it. Those were dark curse burning S flames. The dragon standing before me looked like Gaelion, but the monster seemed to have the same abilities as my Shield of Wrath. On top of that, Filo was stuck in there somewhere. This enemy might prove more difficult to deal with than the Spirit Tortoise had been. I had to consider that withdrawal might be our best option.
“Hey, Rat. Can we weaken that thing and pull Filo and the dragon core out of its stomach?”
“I’m pretty sure you’ll be eaten.”
“You’re probably right. It might be better if someone just cuts Gaelion’s stomach open.”
Wyndia was calling out to Gaelion and trying her hardest to get through to him, but it didn’t seem to be working. I’m sure he would have responded . . . if this had been an anime or something.
“We can’t afford to hold back anymore! Raphtalia, Ren, and everyone else! Attack him all at once! Weaken him!”
“Understood!” Raphtalia shouted.
“Got it! I’ll do my best to save Filo and Gaelion!” exclaimed Ren.
“Of course!”
“Wh . . . what kind of monster is that thing?! Can we really beat it?!”
Fohl had waited until now to start wavering.
“What are you saying, Brother? This is Mr. Naofumi’s life we’re talking about. As his subordinates, it is our duty to carry out our mission, even if it means risking our own lives.”
“I won’t let you sacrifice yourself, Atla!”
These two . . . This was no time for silly banter!
“If we injected that anesthetic now, do you think it would stop him?” asked Sadeena.
“I’m pretty sure your lightning has a better chance of stopping him,” I said.
“Oh? I’ll do my best then!”
She needed to stop messing around and attack already.
Anyway, even the strongest enemy probably wouldn’t be able to withstand the ridiculous amount of firepower that Raphtalia and Ren could dish out. That’s why I was glad Ren was on our side now.
“Go!”
When I gave the signal, Raphtalia and Ren crouched down low and then rushed at Gaelion. They each used their weapon to unleash their respective skills. It was just as I’d expected. Ren’s curse didn’t interfere with his combat, and he’d powered up his weapon, so he was faster than Raphtalia.
“Stardust Blade!”
“Shooting Star Sword!”
The two attacks were essentially the same skill. The skills crossed, and their streams of shooting stars went flying toward Gaelion.
Of course, Raphtalia and Ren both followed through and swung at Gaelion’s shoulders. Ren’s sword failed to penetrate Gaelion’s scales. Raphtalia’s katana sliced through the scales but stopped just after cutting into Gaelion’s flesh. With a loud clang, sparks flew from both of their weapons . . . and they bounced off?! But Raphtalia’s attack had managed to penetrate more deeply and sent black sludge splattering into the air.
“What?!”
“He . . . he’s tough!”
“Ouch . . . my hand . . .”
Raphtalia and Ren both shook their hands painfully. Gaelion swung his hand at them forcefully in retaliation, but they both dodged and returned to my position.
“Hold on a second . . .”
Ren and Raphtalia were both heroes, technically, and they hadn’t been holding back. And yet their weapons had been stopped? What the hell?
“Lightning Strike Harpoon!”
Sade
ena leapt high up into the air and threw her harpoon at Gaelion’s stomach. When she did, a bolt of lightning went smashing into Gaelion. The flash of light blinded me momentarily.
The harpoon had gone hurling toward his stomach at lightning speed. I was sure the attack landed. But Sadeena’s harpoon failed to pierce it. It made a hollow thud, similar to the sound my shield made when I defended against an attack, and the harpoon bounced off and went flying through the air.
“Oh my . . . My finishing move didn’t even pierce his scales, did it?”
Sadeena landed on the ground and caught her harpoon out of the air. She back-stepped and returned to our position.
“Ren’s and Raphtalia’s attacks were ineffective! Of course yours would be too, Fohl and Atla! Get back here!”
It didn’t make sense. Ren and Raphtalia were both suffering from the effects of curses, but I still couldn’t imagine anything being this tough!
The flash of light had blinded Gaelion. He was groaning and rubbing his eyes with both hands. Seeing if magical attacks would be effective was an option, but I wasn’t going to hold my breath. Still, nothing good would come from standing around and twiddling our thumbs.
“Shit! He’s fast!”
Gaelion was moving really quickly now, and that only made things worse. It took all Raphtalia, Ren, and I had just to keep up with the speed of his attacks.
I stood at the forefront and took the impact of Gaelion’s claws. Ugh . . . One of his claws dug into my shoulder. He had a good amount of attack power too, apparently. I guess I was just lucky that it wasn’t enough to deliver a fatal blow. Gaelion took in another big gulp of air. He was going to use his breath attack again.
“Oh, no you don’t! Everyone, hide behind me!”
“Understood!”
I called out and had everyone gather behind me. They would be easy targets otherwise. Gaelion’s breath was on the same level as the Spirit Tortoise’s electric attack. If it’d hit anyone other than the Shield Hero, they would have been vaporized.
Flames worthy of being called hellfire engulfed my body.
“Count! Zweite Heal!”
Rat started healing my wounds. It sure was nice having someone other than myself around that could help heal.
“Should we try using cooperative magic, Sadeena?!”
“But, little Naofumi . . . If you’re busy assisting me with magic, who’s going to protect us?”
She had a point. If I tried to cast cooperative magic with her, I wouldn’t be able to focus on defense. Gaelion was surprisingly strong. If I switched my focus to casting magic, he would break free from my hold. I could tell everyone to avoid his attacks, but I wasn’t confident Melty and Rat could pull that off. It would have been nice if Ren could take over defense temporarily, but I had a feeling that wouldn’t work either.
“Little Melty and little Wyndia! You two help me cast cooperative magic! We’re going to stop little Gaelion!”
“Umm . . . okay! We have to save Filo, no matter what!” Melty replied.
“Naofumi! Watch out!” Ren shouted.
I was holding on to Gaelion’s claw and he was clearly upset. He opened his mouth and tried to bite down on me. I took one of my hands off of his claw and used that hand and my foot to keep his jaws from closing on me.
“Crazy . . .”
Ren was staring at me with a look of amazement on his face as I stood there in the mouth of the dragon.
“If you have time to stare, then fight!”
“Sorry!”
Ren leapt toward me and Gaelion and swung his sword.
“Dragon Buster!”
Flames burst out of his sword, took the shape of a dragon, and shot toward Gaelion. It was the first time I’d seen that skill. It was probably especially potent against dragons.
“GURUUUUUUU!”
Gaelion turned his attention to Ren. Or was Ren his target to begin with? Maybe a leftover fragment of consciousness that belonged to the dragon emperor Ren had killed was driving Gaelion to take revenge.
“Ren, if you feel like you can’t dodge an attack, use me as a shield.”
“I will!”
I could sense hatred. Gaelion seemed to be primarily focused on Ren now. But I still had to focus on defense. Ren’s defense rating wasn’t high enough to keep him safe. I’d really expected him to put up a better fight. It’s not that he wasn’t fast. But it still only felt like perhaps two-thirds of my own speed. He was always one step behind. I wasn’t sure if it was because of his curse or if there was some other reason.
“Rafu!”
Raph-chan used her illusion magic to back Ren up. She was making Gaelion see multiple copies of Ren, which made it hard for him to concentrate on any single one. Thanks to her help, Ren seemed to be able to attack without much danger of being harmed.
“Cursed earth! Cursed Dragon Vein flow! Let us expel this congestion by . . .”
I looked back to see Melty, Sadeena, and Wyndia chanting their magical incantation in unison. Little flickers of light that looked like fireflies began to gather around them.
“GURUUUUUU!”
Gaelion clearly didn’t intend to let them finish the incantation. He took in a huge gulp of air and prepared to unleash another one of his breath attacks. I stood in front of Melty and the others and readied my shield. When I did, Gaelion leapt high up into the air, faced me, and opened his mouth. He planned to attack from above!
“Shooting Star Shield! Air Strike Shield!”
I jumped up onto the Air Strike Shield and shielded Melty and the others from the breath. Ugh . . . My whole body was engulfed in the flames. Burns began to form on my skin. I was already weakened by a curse to start with, and these cursed flames only added to the pain. Gaelion followed up by thrusting at me with his claws. I could tell he was going to try to bite down on me again.
“Dragon Vein! Hear our petition and grant it! As the source of your power, we implore you! Let the true way be revealed once more! Give us the power to overcome the obstacles before us!”
The flickering lights began to draw together. It was clear that the three of them had their awareness focused on me.
“This might surprise you at first but stay calm. You’ll be fine. Trust me! Now, little Melty!”
“Cooperative magic!”
“The Great Deep!”
“Zee Wille!”
Maybe it was just my imagination, but it seemed like they had cast different spells.
Water suddenly appeared around us, with the three of them at its center. It was like we were in a massive aquarium. Gaelion seemed to be choking. He looked like he was in pain as he swam around trying to escape from the aquarium. Something like this had happened to us before at the coliseum. But maybe something was different this time. For some reason, Ren was writhing around and choking too.
Gurgle, gurgle . . .
That reminded me! Ren sunk like a stone in water! He couldn’t swim!
“Little Ren, you’re going to be fine.”
Sadeena put her arms around Ren, who seemed to be drowning. She brought him over to me.
“The spell doesn’t affect anyone that isn’t considered an enemy, so you’re not going to drown,” she told him.
“Huh? Oh . . .”
I guess that meant it could be used to choke enemies.
Pant . . . Pant . . .
“I’m exhausted . . .” Melty whispered.
“Yeah . . .” Wyndia replied.
The two of them were slumped down on the ground, out of breath. I took some magic water out of my shield and tossed it to them.
“I guess you would be. Leave the rest to me,” Sadeena said.
Sadeena floated up weightlessly into the water of the magic aquarium and began swimming toward Gaelion, who was still struggling to escape. She was incredibly fast. Gaelion thrashed about and finally managed to leap out of the water. He prepared to spit fire, but before he could, Sadeena burst up out of the water in front of him. She was enveloped in a mass of water tha
t was shaped like a Chinese dragon.
“Dragonfury Dual Blades!”
A loud splash echoed out and Gaelion fell back into the water and sunk to the bottom of the aquarium. The attack must have damaged him, because blood was dribbling out of his stomach.
“Gaelion . . .”
Wyndia whispered his name quietly, and then stood up and screamed out.
“Gaelion!”
“One more! Orca Strike!” shouted Sadeena.
The water swirling around her formed a tail that smashed into Gaelion’s stomach.
“He sure is tough!” she said.
“We’ll help! While we’re attacking, you and Mr. Naofumi can cast that spell!” Raphtalia exclaimed.
She and Ren headed toward Gaelion.
“Will do!”
“Gaelion!”
Wyndia continued to call out to Gaelion repeatedly.
“Please! Come back to us!” she screamed.
“Hey! Wait!”
I called out for Wyndia to stop, but she ignored me and ran to Gaelion. It wasn’t that I couldn’t understand how she felt, but she needed to think about the situation we were in.
“GURUUUUUUU!”
“Gaelion! Listen to me! I’m begging you! Return to your normal form!”
Wyndia’s voice echoed out, but Gaelion wasn’t listening. I rushed toward Wyndia to get in front of her and protect her. But Gaelion was too quick. He opened his mouth wide and was about to swallow her whole.
“Air Strike—”
I tried to summon my Air Strike Shield as quickly as I could. But before I finished . . .
“Father! Stop this already!”
Wyndia screamed out at the top of her lungs.
“GURU?!”
Gaelion stopped dead in his tracks.
Chapter Eight: Demon Dragon
“Father?”
“Huh?”
“I had a feeling that might be the case. I guess I was right,” Sadeena said in a whisper.
She and Rat were nodding as if everything suddenly made sense.
“Yes. The dragon that lived here . . . was my father.”
Wyndia nodded and faced Gaelion as she responded. Huh? Did that mean Wyndia was raised by a dragon? She looked exactly like a dog-type demi-human, the same as Keel. Nothing about her looked like a dragon. Well, her hairdo did strike me as a bit odd. It was strange. It reminded me of both a dog and a lizard at the same time. But could a dragon zombie even . . . No, wait. I guess her father was probably still a normal, living dragon when he raised her.
