Fire Dragon Guen's Perspective Crap—!?
No way—I actually got ambushed!?
Are the humans I was carrying on my back alright!? Did they fall into the magma?!
I hurriedly checked their presence and, thankfully, they'd been flung onto some solid ground. Thank goodness— No, now's not the time for relief!
Facing me is a two-sword swordsman.
He looks almost human, but two horns protrude from his forehead.
That has to be one of
He's the opponent that both
Goka's a straightforward idiot, so losing to him is one thing—you could chalk it up to that. But Hyuvan is no slouch; among the ancient dragons, he's one of the strongest when you count from the top.
…As much as I hate to admit it, Hyuvan outranks me.
And even the two of them together couldn't beat this guy.
With humans—these people I'm supposed to be protecting—in the mix, can I really win?
"Kyoya!"
One of the humans—the Hero, that kid—shouts.
"…Shun, you made it."
"Yeah."
"Then I won't hold back."
"!"
Even while exchanging words with the Hero kid, Lars hasn't let his guard down around me for a single instant.
If I showed even the slightest opening, he'd lunge at me in a heartbeat.
"Wait—!"
"I won't wait. The time for talk passed long ago. That's exactly why I came here—as an enemy, I'll cut you down."
Right after those words, countless weapons materialize.
Magic swords that had been stored away via Spatial Magic.
I'd heard about Lars's fighting style in advance. He launches those magic swords and detonates them.
And the tips of those magic swords were aimed straight at the Hero kid and the two girls with him.
Then an absurd barrage of magic swords is unleashed.
You bastard!
You said you'd cut me down, but that's an explosion, not a slash!
"Nngh!"
I manipulate the magma around us!
A tidal wave of magma swallows the magic swords.
The swords detonate, and magma scatters everywhere.
N-No… the humans could die even from magma spray!
"Reise! Get the kids to safety!"
"Sure, sure."
"Huh? Wha—!?"
From behind, I feel Reise scoop up the Hero kid and the others and dash away.
"You're not getting away!"
"Your opponent is me!"
I plant myself squarely in front of Lars, who's still trying to hurl magic swords after the kids.
"You might outrank me, but I have the home advantage!"
This Middle Layer is filled with fire.
As a Fire Dragon, this is the arena where my power shines brightest!
I gather up every drop of magma in the surrounding area and slam the torrent straight at him!
"Regret ever challenging me here!"
The gap in raw power between Lars and me is probably not that large.
With the home advantage, I can reverse that gap.
If there's anything to worry about, it's
But that's a double-edged sword—once activated, it could cost me my sanity.
He wouldn't be able to trigger it right away.
According to Hyuvan, Lars used Wrath to force him into a retreat, but since Lars didn't press the attack afterward, Hyuvan suspects there's a time limit on it.
The window in which he can maintain his consciousness is probably very short.
If I can spot the telltale signs of Wrath activating and weather that brief window, there's a chance I can win!
"…
Just as I was about to be engulfed by the onrushing magma, I caught Lars's whispered words.
Before I could process what that meant— "GRRRAAAAAAAAOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"
A roar so deafening it shook me to the core rang out.
The magma erupts.
Lars charges straight through, completely unfazed by the magma that could burn even bone to ash, and leaps right at me.
"G-Guuooo!"
On reflex, I unleash my breath attack head-on.
But he brushes it off without a second thought, continuing straight at me!
He took a direct hit from my breath!
Yet he's barely slowed down—it's as if nothing happened at all!
Th-This is insane!
Even with my Thought Acceleration active, he's closing in too fast!
I reflexively drive my claws into the path of the blade bearing down on my neck.
Claw and blade collide, sending sparks flying.
But only for an instant—my claws are shredded, and I feel the alien sensation of the blade's tip embedding itself into the hand behind them.
And still the blade doesn't stop. It continues driving forward toward my neck…
"Ha—!?"
Before I knew it, I was staring up at the ceiling of the Middle Layer.
I immediately threw my hands around my neck.
It's there.
It's still attached.
But… but, what just happened just now…?
"Thank goodness…"
Hearing a voice, I finally noticed the Hero kid standing right beside me.
"What… happened to me?"
"You were dead. The Hero's mercy brought you back to life."
Reise was standing next to the Hero kid too.
I hadn't noticed either of them at all.
I'm too rattled.
But honestly, who could blame me?
Dead? Me, actually dead?
My body shuddered, and I forced it down with what little pride I had left.
"Where is he?"
"Hyuvan and Goka showed up, so they're fighting him now."
"I see."
I berated my trembling body and pushed myself to my feet.
"I owe you my thanks, Hero."
"It's all I can do, really."
"Don't sell yourself short. The fact that you can do that much is something to be grateful for."
Looking over, Hyuvan and Goka were getting pummeled by Lars with no way to fight back.
I couldn't see Nia anywhere, but she wouldn't have run off—surely she was hidden somewhere, using her signature Weakening Skill to try to weaken Lars.
But even so… I didn't feel like any of us could stop him.
"Hero. If we die, bring us back again."
"Y-Yes!"
"Count on it."
If I'm being honest, the thought of dying again terrifies me.
But here and now, we have to take him down.
I never thought he'd be easy.
But he's been defying our expectations at every turn.
"GRRRAAAAAAAAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"
To think he'd use Wrath without even caring about losing his sanity!
…I might die here.
No—I might die here over and over again.
And I don't even know if I'll be brought back.
This is the most terrifying battle I've ever faced in my life.
Fire Dragon Guen In dragon form, he has the appearance of a typical Western-style dragon. He looks imposing befitting of a transcendent being, but it's mostly posturing—in truth, he's panicking and trembling on the inside.