***The Scarlet Grand Canyon***
“Hey, you’re supposed to accept favors sincerely. How can I show face if you don’t…”
“Unfortunately, Shutra taught me to doubt favors. I can’t accept yours yet, as we haven’t built a true bond.”
“Hey, you ate the fruit that silver dragon brought back just fine.”
“Rozaria is different.”
Azgrad and the black dragon Dahak’s argument continued, but it remained an endless stalemate. This was, after all, enemy territory. Hmm, I wanted to join the fray soon, so perhaps I should throw them a lifeline.
“Then, why don’t you cooperate to defeat us, and then you can fight each other at your leisure? That way, you can fully enjoy a tag-match with me and this slime, and a battle with the black dragon. It’s killing three birds with one stone.”
“Hey, black dragon. It seems we have no choice but to cooperate for now.”
“…Are you an idiot after all?”
Finally, things settled in a way that benefited me. A Battle Royale would be fine, but if they knocked each other out, it would be incredibly anticlimactic. I want to be sure they fight me.
“Hey, black robe. Don’t think I’m the same person as before. I’ll show you this power that was sealed away.”
“My name is Kelvin. Enough with the prelude, hurry up and do it, go!”
Something protruded from both sides and came towards me. As I dodged, I assessed the situation. A giant tree had suddenly jutted out from the canyon wall.
“Yeah, that’s the way.”
“Show off!”
It seemed it wasn’t just the giant tree I dodged. Trees grew in clusters from everywhere, turning the canyon into a forest in an instant. In this dry land devoid of any greenery, these trees sprouting from the ground and walls and continuing to grow rapidly were extremely unnatural. This must be Dahak’s power.
“High-ranking dragons apparently have high pride. Wouldn’t it be more interesting to crush you after making you go all out, rather than just defeating you?”
This was my honest opinion, but if Dahak lost without using his full strength, his subordinates might not agree to the contract. If that happened, they might refuse the contract later for that reason. If they wanted a rematch, I would welcome it, but I had three more dragons to contract with afterward. I needed to break their spirit here and now.
“Heh, heh, heh… Azgrad, there’s another idiot like you here.”
“Don’t underestimate an idiot. Besides, I’d be in trouble if you didn’t fight me with all your might.”
“What do you think we are, both of you? … Don’t regret this!”
Dahak’s roar caused the giant trees that had formed the forest to react and begin to shift again. I tore through the approaching trees, which grew and writhed, with the slashes of the Great Wind Demon God Scythe, but new buds emerged from the cut bases, growing rapidly and regenerating. Meanwhile, the ever-increasing horde of giant trees attempted to encircle and crush us. Hmm, seeing these trees move so much reminded me of the Wicked Old Treant in the Dark Purple Forest.
“Kuroto.”
Kuroto unleashed Super Magic Compressed beams towards the surrounding trees, sweeping them away. The light beams burned away the trees one after another. Oh, so they didn’t regenerate from this? Since they didn’t regenerate from the scorched marks left by Kuroto’s Super Magic Compressed beams, they might be weak to fire or heat. However, the forest of giant trees continued to multiply. So, I should try to break through on that front. Yes, I should take a cue from that dragon.
“Kuroto, can you increase the number of heads? Like that dragon over there.”
With telepathic communication, I indicated the three-headed dragon Alex was dragging on the ground. Immediately after my question, two more dragon heads sprouted from the sides of the pseudo-black dragon version of Kuroto. Good, it was just as I imagined. It pays to try.
“Whoa, seriously!?”
“Tch, here it comes!”
Gray trees, with leaves and trunks, sprouted from the ground, generating a shield of giant trees large enough to hide Dahak’s massive body. Was this different from the regeneratibve trees?
“I’ll handle the surroundings. Kuroto, deal with the grey ones.”
Once I understood their nature, I had nothing to fear from these trees. I imbued my fingers and Kuroto’s three heads with magic power and fired them at our targets.
“Radiant Lance: Crossfire!”
Ten white flashes were shot from the tips of my fingers. As soon as they were released, they formed a parabola, but bent at a right angle the moment they detected a target. The light beams, piercing at high speed and repeatedly heading towards the target, now seemed to be reflecting randomly. From top to bottom, right to left, the Radiant Lance: Crossfire, crisscrossing everywhere, showed no signs of disappearing. I hadn’t used it in a while, but the individual luminous lances had also widened. This magic had grown stronger.
Meanwhile, Kuroto was also attacking fiercely. With the increased number of cannons, the power of the Super Magic Compressed beams became even more intense, and Dahak’s shield let out a pained scream, on the verge of collapsing. Well, it was admirable that it endured even for a short time, but I was surprised by Kuroto’s potential, whose power had tripled with the added heads. The consumption of magic power stored in reserves must be immense…
“Damn it!”
Dahak, emerging from the collapsing shield, unleashed a verdant breath. However, it was of the same power as the initial Super Magic Compressed beams. Consequently, Dahak was pushed back, and the boundary of the breath gradually shifted.
*I haven’t seen Azgrad behind Dahak for a while. I’ll search the area with my Detection Skill.*
“…He’s trying to flank us.”
From a blind spot diagonally below and to the side, where the regenerative trees obscured visual contact, I detected a strong presence. He wasn’t using any stealth skills, though his movement was concealed by the trees. He was moving on something.
“Take this—”
“Impact.”
“Guh!?”
As expected, Azgrad was moving on a giant tree. He probably intended to launch a surprise attack, hidden among the surrounding trees. I preemptively tried to knock him down with Impact. However, Azgrad stabilized himself by stabbing his lance into the tree at his feet.
“You know, this giant tree burns well?”
Flames leaked from the lance stuck in the tree. The giant tree Azgrad was riding on was engulfed in flames in an instant, its body scorched red. With the momentum of the emitted flames, Azgrad detached himself into the air, and the flame-wreathed giant tree approached me. However, it was within range of the Radiant Lance: Crossfire. The luminous lances had already identified Azgrad as an enemy and were heading towards him.
“Ugh, gooo—!”
Azgrad used the regenerative tree as a new foothold and was fending off five Radiant Lance: Crossfires. He even had the composure to glare at me, looking for an opening to attack. Judging by his Status, Azgrad was a skilled fighter comparable to Clive. He seemed proficient in close combat, so he’d likely withstand this much. The problem was the fire tree…
*CRUNCH.*
While maintaining the engagement with Dahak, Kuroto released a portion of his dragon form, opened an even larger maw, and devoured the fire tree. Wasn’t it hot? Kuroto’s durability was second only to Gerard’s. For the omnivorous Kuroto, it was like eating a piping hot pot of stew; there was no problem. With a crunching sound (merely applying force internally), the fire-hardened giant tree was instantly drained of its magic power and digested.
“Ngh!? Uooo!?”
As a bonus, I stealthily extended a tentacle towards Azgrad and tossed him towards Dahak. Dahak, on the verge of losing the breath contest, caught Azgrad at the moment Kuroto stopped his Super Magic Compressed beams. Now, we were back to square one.
“Alright then, show me your next technique, your next plan.”
“Th-this guy…”
“Don’t regret your carelessness!”
I felt like I’d heard him say that before. I had tried my best to make my expression as cheerful as possible, but I guess it was no use? Well, we’ll just crush them one by one with all our strength. …Hmm? Are we going to fight again in the end?
“Oh, poison this time.”
A purple mist spread around us. Looking at the ground, I saw flowers I had never seen before in full bloom. They seemed to be dripping nectar, releasing poison. However, this would affect Azgrad too—
“Somehow, the air suddenly feels fresher.”
“I grew a purifying plant on my back. Don’t fall off me next time, or you’ll die.”
…Seems like they’ll be fine.
“Sacred Heavenly Garment.”
The Great Wind Demon God Scythe was released in exchange for this holy aura. I was getting excited about the variety of abilities. Well then, shall we move on to the next match?
My total score has finally exceeded 70,000 points.
Thank you for your continued support.
