Ancient Red Dragon Subjugation (3)

Sparkle—

"...."

I spotted a twinkling light off to one side on the ground. And then, the irresistible scent of treasure drifting from the direction where Ha-eun was.

"Looks like she finally pulled it off."

As the dark crimson flames entered my line of sight, I let out a smirk. Five years ahead of my estimate?

Clang!—

"Hey, dragon! Don't get distracted!"

"It's fine. I've got two eyes."

"What the...?"

Anyway, after taking my linked Breath head-on, followed by the nonstop close-quarters brawl, the beast's stamina was already scraping the bottom of the barrel. It had to know it was done for if things kept going like this. On top of that, I'd been collecting and selling the scales peeling off it without melting—netting a cool 200 million won already. Even if it tried to throw the fight on purpose, it couldn't lose at this point.

Flap!—

Maybe it was thinking the same thing, because the thing unfurled its massive wings. One beat of those wings whipped up a storm-like gale as it lifted into the air—the Red Dragon trying to escape?

Thud—

I shot up even faster, landing right on its snout and saying, "Your Breath couldn't even touch the World Tree. Why not call it quits already?"

[....]

Groooowl!—

"Whoa?!"

But it didn't look like it was done yet. The beast shook its head violently, flinging me off. Then, a massive magic circle materialized in front of its enormous maw. I tried to trace the forming lines with my eyes, but they were nothing like the spells I knew—impossible to parse.

The next instant, the giant circle flashed brilliantly before oxidizing away.

Rumble-rumble-thud—

Hundreds, thousands of tiny magic circles popped up all around me. What kind of spell was this?

Whoosh!—

"Oh?"

Then, beams of light connected between two of the circles. They crumbled away, drained of power. So it was a spell that linked lines with light.

Activating my Dragon Eye, thousands of lines sprang into crystal-clear view. Folding my wings, I darted through the gaps between them at breakneck speed.

Zip-zip-zip-crack!—

I weaved through the light beams like an acrobatic flyer. While I was at it, I used the Dragon Eye to reverse-engineer the magic circles' structure as I brushed past.

But...

'This seems manageable.'

The patterns were surprisingly simple. That initial giant circle must've just been for summoning these smaller ones.

Should I mimic it?

I traced a stroke in midair. One stroke, two, three... Designated start and end points, infused mana.

Flash!—

Clang!—

"Oh..."

I deflected an incoming light beam with the exact same spell, carving out a blind spot. Not bad cost-performance-wise.

And there at the end was the Red Dragon, most of its scales already melted off from my previous Breath. It looked like it'd burned through nearly all its mana on that spell.

Time to wrap this up. No more loot worth stripping anyway.

Swoosh—

I raised my hand, then slowly lowered it, activating the skill.

Thud!—

[Urgh....]

Already drained of strength, the beast plummeted straight to the ground the moment I tweaked the gravity just enough for its size. Kinda anticlimactic.

Ah, but I've racked up a nice pile of cash. Been a while—maybe I should break out a divine authority?

"Hey guys, wanna see something cool?"

Named dragons with titles each have their own unique divine authorities. Naturally, as a Gold Dragon, I've got a few too. And yeah, this is probably the one the viewers are thinking of.

Midas's Hand.

The authority to turn anything I touch into gold, if I so desire.

Of course... it has the drawback of crumbling back to sand if there's not enough mana.

Still, I've turned plenty of fools into gold with it before. Sold wyverns that invaded my lair to humans as "gold prizes," and they loved it.

Anyway! Turning that massive beast entirely into gold would cost a fortune, so it's practically impossible. But...

Just a little showy flash? Why not?

It's hostile to us anyway. Even turning it to sand would be legal.

With that in mind, the moment I went to invoke the authority...

Ehehe...

"Hold up, guys? Status window says no can do."

"We'll save this for a viewer participation event next time. Grab one of the chatters who just spammed and use it on them."

"Ugh... ban that freak."

And just like that, I couldn't hold back my true feelings anymore. Wait, no—this might actually deserve a bit more of my true self.

These guys get away with more and more because I let them—

Thud—

"You... you've pushed it this far. As king of the elves and proxy, I offer my thanks!"

That's when Kairan burst in from behind, sword hilt in hand.

...This guy's still playing it solo serious.

"No, I did all the work here, so it's obviously mine—"

"Unnie!"

I sighed, about to give Kairan a piece of my mind, when Ha-eun came rushing up, calling my name.

Turning around, I saw Ha-eun covered in wounds here and there, clothes torn, left arm dangling limp and clutched by her right hand—unlike me and Kairan, who were unscathed.

"Ah! Ha-eun, you okay?!"

I'd been so caught up in the fight that I'd forgotten about her...

This is why I told myself not to get too excited. Sometimes I just lose it when something fun catches my eye...

At least Terra looks fine.

"I-I'm okay, unnie."

"Doesn't look okay. Want me to lick it?"

"Y-Yes?!"

At Ha-eun's freaked-out face, I chuckled and offered a World Tree's Leaf. This thing's the MVP.

Should I ask the elves for more?

"Anyway! Unnie! You have to give that Red Dragon's head to that guy!"

"Eh... no thanks."

"I agree," Bern added, approaching with a weary sigh, minor wounds dotting his body.

"Doesn't the treasure at the end of the truth excite you? If this is a reenactment, we must meet the conditions."

"You heard that from Ha-eun, right?"

"Can't deny it."

Come on, I took it down—why should I hand it over? What did the sword guys even do!

"Fine, whatever. If there's better treasure than its head, sure. But if there's no treasure...?"

These idiots...

"No. No matter how I think about it, I need to be the one to take it down."

"Right now—"

"Just the head, right? Tell it to bow. I'll land the killing blow."

"...."

"...It's coming. Get ready."

Step—

"The elves' fate is already sealed, but I cannot stop."

Shing—

A colorless sword drawn. As Kairan tilted it, the blade took on a red hue. Bern and Ha-eun glanced at me as he assumed his stance.

"You watch from back. Ha-eun, take a break."

Without waiting for a reply—

Thud!—

Taat!—

Kairan and I charged the Red Dragon almost simultaneously. His sword slanted at ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠an angle—similar to Bern's technique from our last spar.

Swoosh!

As if to block it, the Red Dragon made its final struggle, launching a massive fireball into the sky.

Boom!—

It burst in midair, raining down fragments like a meteor shower.

Ha-eun should be fine with Bern and Terra there, right?

Splat!—

I glanced back briefly, then smashed an incoming fragment with my fist as I pressed on. Beside me, the debris flying at Kairan was shredded by the sword aura cloaking him.

Auto-hunt mode? I gotta learn that.

Thud—

We reached under the Red Dragon's jaw in a flash. Kairan adjusted his stance midair. I summoned a foothold platform between his gleaming eyes; he kicked off it for another leap.

Hummm!—

As he jumped, he focused his body-enveloping sword aura into one point. The trembling blade, charged with power, settled calmly in an instant.

And with a single stroke...

Moonlight Final Execution Slash - True.

Slashslashslashslash!—

The massive slash rent space itself. Filling the rift was moonlight—cold and serene. I led with my claws, diving into it.

Slash!—

After my claws raked through, I summoned another platform in front of me and Kairan. The moment I turned back...

A beat late.

Flash!—

The moonlight slash was shredded by the chain-like swing of my claws. Blood erupted from the Red Dragon. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠As its massive body crashed to the ground...

The dragon's voice echoed once more.

Before the words could finish—

Boom!—

The Red Dragon's head thudded down right in front of the World Tree.