Shun's Perspective "Haa! Haa!"
My breathing grows heavy.
My head throbs, like when I'm oxygen-deprived.
Even so, I can't afford to stop.
"GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!"
Kyoya roars.
That alone makes the air shriek and vibrate.
It's not just his presence—his roar literally makes the air tremble.
Nine times out of ten, it carries a suppression effect as well.
If it hit me directly, I'd probably be frozen in place by fear.
The only reason I wasn't was because of the barrier erected by Kathia's Purity Skill.
『Purity: n% of the power to reach divinity. Expands one's own divine domain. Deploys an impenetrable domain. Furthermore, it transcends the W System and gains the right to interfere with the MA Domain.』
It seems the Purity Skill's effect is an extraordinarily powerful barrier.
It blocks not only physical and magical attacks, but even invisible effects like suppression that don't fall neatly into those categories—an absolute defense, one might call it.
Even so, even that barrier of Purity could only protect us from the aftershocks of this battle.
"Kgh!"
Kathia raises both hands forward, gritting her teeth as she holds the barrier in place.
Immediately after, an explosion that shook the earth engulfed us.
It was the collision between Fire Dragon Guen's breath and Kyoya's full-power strike.
And the result was…
"Gufh!"
Guen's massive body had been cleaved in two horizontally.
Blood poured from his wounds and from his mouth as he collapsed to the ground.
"Hero!"
"I know! Just a little more… Alright!"
Urged by
"Nuoh!? I could see the afterlife!"
"If you've got time to crack jokes, get back to dying already."
"Now that's just cruel! I'm going though!"
Saying that, Wind Dragon Hyuban flies off.
"Alright. Let's go revive Guen."
"Yes!"
Reise scoops Kathia and me up under each arm and takes off without hesitation.
Reise's Status must be remarkably high—we arrive at Guen's bisected body in an instant.
I immediately use the Skill of Mercy on Guen and begin the resurrection.
The battle had reached a stalemate.
Guen, Hyuban, and Thunder Dragon Goka faced off against Kyoya head-on,
Dark Dragon Reise served as my bodyguard, and Kathia's barrier protected us both.
Before we set out, Kathia had told me "protect me," but in truth, it was the other way around—Kathia was protecting me.
Not that I have the luxury of dwelling on that.
Without Kathia's barrier, I would have died from the aftershocks alone.
"Kgh!"
Even now, Kyoya's launched magic swords detonated, and chunks of torn-up earth slammed into the barrier like buckshot.
I need to focus on the resurrection—I have no margin to dodge any of that.
For that matter, I'm not even sure I could dodge it at full health.
And this is just the aftershock.
The battle itself—that was the fight upon which this world's fate hinged.
Fortunately, with
If he'd been targeting me specifically as the resurrection specialist, I'd have been the first to fall.
"With Byaku joining the fight, it's even—or perhaps we're being pushed back slightly," Reise mutters while observing the battle.
I keep working on Guen's resurrection but raise my head just slightly.
"Haa!"
There, I can see
In her hands she holds the ancestral royal sword—the one I'd been carrying.
And clinging to Sue's body, coiled around her, is a small white dragon.
That small white dragon is
The ancestral royal sword I'd been carrying, and the ancient dragon that had been attached to it.
"How long are you going to sulk? Time to earn your keep," Reise suddenly declared toward me, and I was shocked when Byaku emerged from the sword in response to those words.
"I have not been sulking."
"My, my. Just because your favorite Hero died, that's no reason to abandon your duty, is it?"
"I have abandoned nothing."
"Then get to work."
While we stood there dumbfounded, the exchange between Reise and Byaku continued.
"You there, girl. I'll lend you my power. Do what you must."
Byaku then designated Sue, placed the ancestral royal sword in her hands, and sent her to the front lines.
This happened after I had completed Guen's first resurrection.
I hadn't known it at the time, but the ancestral royal sword—formally called the Hero Sword—was a special piece of equipment reserved for the Hero.
And Byaku had been its keeper.
The Hero Sword's former owner was
Reston-niisama then entrusted the sword to me.
I never imagined it was such an extraordinary blade.
But thanks to Julius-niisama leaving that sword behind, we could fight today.
Julius-niisama…
Only a Hero can wield the Hero Sword's true power.
So Sue couldn't use that power, but the Hero Sword itself was unbelievably sturdy.
So sturdy that even when locking blades with Kyoya, not a single chip appeared on its edge.
"Hmph!"
Sue cuts in with the Hero Sword, but Kyoya knocks the strike away with brute force.
If it had been an ordinary sword, both it and Sue's body would have been cleaved clean through.
Just imagining it sends a chill down my spine.
But that wasn't what happened—Kyoya's slash was blocked by the Hero Sword, and Sue merely stumbled back a few steps, seemingly unharmed.
Byaku's abilities were min-maxed into support and recovery.
Sue, buffed by Byaku's support—her Status had been pushed up to a level where she could trade blows with Kyoya.
And while not to the same extent as Sue, who was in direct contact, the other ancient dragons also received Byaku's buffs and were strengthened as well.
Not only that, Byaku instantly sent healing to anyone who was injured, mending their wounds.
An existence that was the pinnacle of support and healing specialization.
But…
"GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!"
Goka, who had lunged forward, was sliced open by a single strike from Kyoya.
"Gkh! Damn… it…!"
Goka's body had been bisected.
At that point, not even Byaku, the healing expert, could treat the wound.
Ancient Dragons.
They were legendary beings, counted among the most powerful of the creatures called Myth-class Monsters.
Five of those ancient dragons, excluding Reise, ganged up on Kyoya.
And still, they couldn't reach him.
"Hero!"
"I… know!"
I rush to finish Guen's resurrection.
The Skill of Mercy consumes a massive amount of MP.
I've been using too much MP and the dizziness is setting in.
But I can't stop.
If I stop—not just me, but if even one crack appeared in our formation, everything would crumble at once.
I was certain of that.
"Done!"
Guen's resurrection is complete.
"Gu… nu. Downed again, was I?"
Guen shakes his head slightly and rises to his feet.
Then he immediately returns to the front lines.
"Let's go."
"Yes!"
Once again Reise scoops us up, heading toward Goka.
During the transit I pull an MP recovery potion from my pocket and down it in one gulp.
My MP recovers.
But nowhere near full.
It's an expensive MP recovery potion, but the amount it restores is fixed and small.
Better than nothing, at best.
I can't help thinking how much nicer it would be if it restored a percentage of MP rather than a fixed amount, but unfortunately, no such convenient potion exists.
I reach Goka and begin the resurrection.
My MP is running thin.
If even one crack appears, this delicate equilibrium we're holding together will shatter.
And the first crack to appear will almost certainly be me running out of MP.
Please.
Before that happens, let this battle end.
I hate that all I can do is silently cheer on everyone who's fighting.
But no amount of frustration changes the fact that I'm not strong enough.
And the battle showed no signs of turning in our favor.
"GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!"
Kyoya was simply too powerful.
Ancient Dragon Power Ranking
Wind Dragon Hyuban: Manipulates not just weather but air pressure and more, turning enemies inside out. The fastest of all ancient dragons. Talks like a small-timer but is absurdly strong.
Earth Dragon Gakia: The late great dragon. His defense was so absurdly high that even other ancient dragons could barely scratch him.
Ice Dragon Nia: Freezes everything in the area into a cursed wasteland while her own outstanding defense lets her tank it out, gradually weakening enemies over time. A thoroughly obnoxious fighting style.
Fire Dragon Guen: Compared to the top five, he's a straightforward all-rounder. As a result, he tends to get overshadowed in combat.
Thunder Dragon Goka: Maxed out on raw Stats. Highest combined Stats of any ancient dragon. His Skills, however… That's why he's dead last, the idiot.
Light Dragon Byaku: In the WEB version, she appeared suddenly this time—a support and healing-specialized ancient dragon. Her own combat ability isn't low, but she's far more effective when set to support mode.
Dark Dragon Reise: ???