Chapter 73
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Translator: Xrecker
Chapter: 73
Chapter Title: Man vs. Wild
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Tyrannosaurus Rex.
T-REX for short.
In Latin, the name literally translated to "tyrant lizard."
And what stood before me now wasn't a Tyrannosaurus, but Gav's true form.
Gav, having released his polymorph, bore a striking resemblance to the ancient dinosaurs I knew.
To be honest, I almost pissed myself.
I had been expecting a fistfight, not a starring role in Jurassic Park.
And in this form, the arm injury Ozma had inflicted was no longer a disadvantage.
Tyrannosaurs hardly used their arms anyway.
Kyaooooooooo──!
Gav, in his dragon form, let out a mighty roar.
Fear, one of the signature abilities of the Dragonkin.
A weaker person would have fainted at the sound.
Thankfully, having already warmed up my mana furnace, I was unaffected.
Gav lowered his massive head, a low growl rumbling in his chest.
[Are you ready to fight?]
It was difficult to speak with a dinosaur’s vocal cords. Gav’s thoughts were transmitted directly into my mind.
“Isn’t this cheating?”
I said, my voice filled with genuine disbelief. The blue-scaled tyrant snorted.
[Why is it cheating? I’m just fighting in my original form.]
“I know, but…”
The size difference was so immense that a hand-to-hand fight seemed impossible.
Assessing the situation, I quickly enveloped my legs in the same Whirlwind Bone Cutter spell that covered my arms.
The plan had changed to hit-and-run.
Sensing the shift in my mana, his large, green eyes glinted.
[So you haven’t lost your fighting spirit.]
I slammed my Stormbringer-clad fists together, creating a powerful gust of wind.
“I made it to the finals. I can’t just run away without a fight, can I?”
[Gyahaha! Good! Then let’s see you struggle!]
As his hearty laughter faded from my mind, Gav and I moved simultaneously.
The massive dragon charged at me.
Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!
The ground shook. I used wind magic to launch myself into the air.
Gav’s massive jaws snapped at me, following my movements.
I blasted wind from my palms, changing direction in mid-air.
The massive maw chomped down on the spot where I had been moments before. I then deactivated the wind spell and slid down Gav’s long neck like a slide.
Gale Force
I launched sharp, vacuum blades from both hands.
Clang! Clang!
While they would have torn through even the thickest armor, they couldn't even scratch Gav’s tough, scaly hide.
Like Nick Iron, those with high defense were always a pain to deal with. Humans would have been dead several times over.
“Tch!”
I clicked my tongue and took a running start.
As I launched myself into the air again, Gav shook his body.
So, a Penta Spell won’t work either.
I extended my hands towards the sky.
While I usually cast spells without a medium, I was now wearing gauntlets made of orichalcum, also known as "seven-colored gold" (七色金).
A medium drastically reduced casting time.
Rumble! Rumble!
Dark clouds gathered in the clear sky.
Weather manipulation was my specialty.
Gav, sensing the change, spread his wings.
[Don’t run away!]
He flew towards me at an incredible speed.
“Shit!”
Canceling a spell mid-cast was a waste of mana. I began evasive maneuvers.
My movements were much more fluid in the air.
I narrowly dodged a swipe of his massive tail and flipped my body over.
As I cut off the mana to the Whirlwind Bone Cutter spell, gravity took hold, and I began to fall.
My flight was essentially hovering. Without a continuous blast of wind, I would plummet to the ground like a rocket with no fuel.
The wind rushing past my face made it difficult to see, and flight goggles were a necessity.
Gav, seeing me fall, swiped at me with his large hind legs.
I narrowly avoided being torn to shreds by his claws, using a timely blast of wind to change direction.
Gav, annoyed by my evasive maneuvers, roared,
[Fall!]
Stone pillars erupted from the ground, shooting towards me like arrows.
I quickly dove under Gav’s body.
The stone arrows, having been aimed at me, stopped in mid-air. Gav had stopped them, realizing they would have hit him as well.
I seized the opportunity.
Wind Hexa Spell—
Thunderbolt
A surprise I had prepared earlier descended from the sky in a flash of blinding light.
[KRAAAAAAAAH!]
Thunderbolt was one of the most powerful wind spells in my arsenal.
How many creatures could survive a direct hit from a lightning bolt carrying hundreds of millions of volts?
Even a dragon, I calculated, wouldn't escape unscathed.
As expected, Gav, struck by the lightning, his body charred and smoking, plummeted to the ground.
What? That was too easy.
I couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong. He was a dragon, after all.
I remained vigilant, watching his massive body fall.
Gav’s closed eyes snapped open.
Kyaooooooooo──!
A roar, far more powerful than before.
He spread his wings, stopping his descent, and his jaws began to glow.
Breath!
I quickly increased the output of Whirlwind Bone Cutter and shot away.
BWOOOOSH!
A beam of pure energy, more like a laser than a flame, pierced the sky.
Even from a distance, I could feel the intense heat and the sudden drop in oxygen.
The beam of light, radiating immense heat, shot through the dark clouds, reaching high into the sky before disappearing.
Gav, having unleashed his breath attack, soared into the air again, his massive body closing in on me at an incredible speed.
I cut off the wind supporting me and began to freefall.
The wind roared in my ears.
Crack!
My flight goggles cracked under the immense pressure.
I looked up at Gav, who was diving towards me like a bird of prey.
His body was charred, but the attack hadn’t been fatal.
Gav’s talons extended.
A human body would be instantly crushed.
He was clearly trying to kill me. I clicked my tongue and spread my hands.
Wind Finger Flick
Ten bullets of wind shot towards him.
This time, I aimed not for his tough scales or hide, but for his eyes.
[Futile!]
Gav, closing his eyelids just in time, bared his teeth.
Realizing I was about to hit the ground, I flipped my body over.
A momentary opening.
That was all I needed.
BAM!!
As I landed, my limbs were once again enveloped in wind.
All martial arts began with a firm stance.
And the Magic Arts I had learned was no exception.
With a single step, I focused all the mana in my body into a single point.
The massive jaws, wide open, were just above me.
“Let’s see if your mouth is as tough as the rest of you.”
A sphere of condensed storm energy formed in my hand.
I threw it into Gav’s mouth and shouted,
“Wind Pill!”
You had to announce your new moves. It was the rule.