Chapter 15
Chapter 15
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 15
Chapter Title: The Inner Thoughts of the Saint
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I could tell at a glance. That thing wasn't some cheap fake.
It was an existence stronger than the original.
The amount of magical power it contained seemed to far surpass mine by two or three times. So this was the difference between a dragon and a human, something we couldn't hope to match.
"Astal, what would you do when fighting an opponent with the exact same skillset as you?"
"Why are you asking that all of a sudden, Master?"
A memory of something my master once said surfaced, confirming that the creature before me wasn't an opponent who would fall to a simple spell or two.
"You are now the continent's strongest mage. To surpass your limits, you'll have no choice but to wage a lonely battle against yourself."
"...A lonely battle against myself. Master's words weren't wrong."
I couldn't help but wear a bitter smile as I looked at the Phantom Dragon, the Chameleon Dragon before me. I had anticipated such a situation and had thought of a plan in advance.
"Hmm... I don't really understand, but if my opponent were you, I'd use a spell to make it rain first."
"Oh? And why do you think that? You must have a reason."
"Why? Well, the mages of the Blue Magic Tower are said to be at their strongest when it's raining, aren't they?"
"Rain-calling magic, Rain Call..."
That thing was me from a week ago, or perhaps an even greater version. The Phantom Dragon was starting with rain as its first spell.
"...Going all out from the start, I see. Kyle! Anima! Get in close and target its hands! In the end, if my arms were cut off, I'd be helpless, so it should be similar for that thing. Then stuff a sword in its mouth to seal its breath weapon too!"
I shouted towards my comrades.
In the Magic Tower, we followed a rigid, methodical approach of whittling down opponents with careful planning, but this was a real battlefield where battles were fought.
A moment's carelessness or a single judgment could decide life or death. The reason I abandoned my staff, learned to cast magic bare-handed, and studied unarmed combat was precisely for this.
The fruit of my efforts to prevent people from dying before my eyes was now tightening around my own neck.
"Understood. Astal...!"
"Got it. I'll leave the guarding to you."
Anima and Kyle nodded and rushed forward. To cover them, I brought my hands together and began merging my magic circles.
'I have to assume the worst-case scenario. If it rains, every single raindrop will become a lethal bomb.'
Other mages wouldn't need to prepare this much. It was dangerous precisely because the opponent had mimicked me.
After all, I was the only mage who could turn each raindrop into a magic circle and hurl them at the enemy.
"The frigid chill of the extreme cold and the gales of the north, manifest here now, become the fierce howl of the wolf that freezes the enemy in the sky."
To immediately counter the opponent's magic, I combined the Frost Golem spell, which creates a living ice golem, with the Howling spell, which materializes a wolf's howl.
"...Frost Howler!"
As soon as I finished the incantation, a giant wolf sculpted from ice formed and revealed itself upon my palm.
"Awooooooooo!" The wolf unleashed a powerful, resonant howl towards the sky, strong enough to send the falling rain back upwards.
Its Howling created a shockwave with destructive force so potent it could have half-destroyed all the surrounding buildings.
"Blocking the chain of rain-based magic right away. Just what I'd expect from the Harmless Mage..."
Seeing Kyle and Anima closing in, the Phantom Dragon wore a bitter smile and glared at me. It raised its palm and began casting another spell.
"But, deflecting the raindrops upwards might have been a misjudgment."
The magic circle blooming on its palm was an ice spell. One that gathered the surrounding moisture and raindrops to form a massive ice lance.
"...Grand Icicle Lance."
"Dispel."
*Crack!*
I immediately fired an identical magic circle to collide with it. I used the principle that when two or more magic circles overlap, they either explode or lose their power.
'My Dispel skill is superior. So, the opponent will try to use its dragon advantages. With its current body, it could probably fly even with degraded wings.'
I immediately expanded my train of thought. If I were that thing, I'd immediately spread my wings and take to the air.
'The opponent will think similarly to me, so I always have to surpass that.'
A sense of competitiveness welled up from deep within my heart. If it chose to mimic me out of all of us, it must have considered me the strongest or most troublesome opponent.
"You know what prayer is needed now, right? Victoria."
"...Understood. The opponent is a dragon, so you think it will take flight."
I nodded at Victoria, signaling for her to pray. We had crossed so many life-and-death lines together that we understood each other without further explanation.
"Exactly."
"If I couldn't read the mind of our party's mage, I'd be disqualified as a Saint. Where else would you find a man as simple as you?"
Victoria let out a soft laugh, a faint smile on her lips. She was smiling while deliberately showing the veins on her wrist.
I could kind of understand why the Chameleon Dragon was angry. Just listing these situations, we were a well-matched pair.
"Our Mother in Heaven, illuminate this path with Your warm light, grant courage and peace in times of trial, and to those in need of hope, bestow hope, to those in need of strength, bestow strength.
>I pray in the name of the beacon that restores light to this world.
>Amen." As Victoria finished her prayer, vitality began to surge through our bodies. It was the moment the fatigue from dealing with the Phantom Dragon's offspring earlier vanished.
"To think such a cheap prayer without even using a Miracle would work on me. That's a bit surprising."
*Grrrr...*
The Phantom Dragon, having spread its wings, gritted its teeth, unable to steady itself against the overwhelming fatigue. If I had faced it alone, I might have truly lost.
"But now I'm with my comrades."
"Dragonica-style swordsmanship, Eleventh Form, Dance of the Will-o'-the-Wisp."
"Aerion! Create turbulence so the opponent can't take flight! And Terra, a defensive wall immediately!"
Against the Phantom Dragon attempting to unleash its breath weapon, Hero Kyle used the deflection technique from his family's inherited swordsmanship.
Spirit Mage Anima, who commanded the Wind and Earth Spirit Kings, used their respective abilities to block any collateral damage.
"Please don't forget I'm here."
*Thwip-thwip-thwack!*
The Divine Archer, Taryon, demonstrated his skill by hitting only the Phantom Dragon's eyes and vital points even from a distance.
"Deserving of being called a Hero's party. Not bad."
Watching us move as if our five bodies were one, perfectly coordinated, the Phantom Dragon assessed us with a look of disbelief.
*Tap, thud, thud.* It nonchalantly blocked the attacks of the Hero, Spirit Mage, and Archer with its arms and legs. Its posture was identical to the unarmed combat stances I had learned.
"But, you picked the wrong opponent. Of all people, it had to mimic this guy."
*Kwaaaang—!* A straight punch using the dragon's unique, immense strength collided with Kyle's holy sword. Unable to withstand the impact, the Hero was sent flying far away.
"Kyle...!!"
"You shouldn't let your guard down, little lady."
Anima couldn't help but cry out in a moment of distraction, and the Phantom Dragon seized that opening, performing a leg sweep to slam her into the ground.
'The spell to make the ground and walls soft and pliable, Claybound.'
I immediately cast the spell without incantation. A soft, squishy sound echoed, and I saw my comrades land safely.
"Casting without incantation, the ability to combine new spells, Dispel, special eyes that can read mana... Are you even human? I'm mimicking you and I'm still baffled."
The Phantom Dragon spoke as if finding it strange that I could read and counter that split-second moment. It even covered its mouth and chuckled.
"...I am human. It's just that my personality and character are trash."
"How dare you look down on the man I outbid?! Lord Astal is mine! You vile Chameleon bastard!" Victoria even had the composure to retort readily to the Phantom Dragon's words. She swung her hammer powerfully, loosening up, and I questioned her action.
"Victoria, isn't that a bit too harsh, even for you?"
"What does it matter? In the end, it's just a fake wearing Lord Astal's memories. I can't wait to see that face contorted in agony."
Victoria's hardened expression seemed sincere. It seemed she had built up quite a lot of feelings towards me.
"Then, shall we go together this time? It seems I need to get close to properly counter it."
"...Very well. Just make sure you don't get hit by me."
*Kwa-ga-ga-gak—!*
Victoria immediately charged across the ground. The force with which she stomped the earth was so great that the ground she passed over was deeply dented.
'Victoria will be the most troublesome opponent for it. We're practically polar opposites, with differences in every aspect.'
From our usual conduct and personality to our values, and even our combat styles and habits, she has elements that target my weak points.
Should I call it human compatibility? Kyle, Anima, and Taryon don't have this issue. They aren't the type to charge in recklessly like this.
"Grrrugh...!"
"What's wrong?! You fake! Did you think you could survive after daring to imitate my beloved?!"
The Phantom Dragon, struck by Victoria's hammer, let out a pained groan. It seemed to have tried to block by wrapping its arm in ice magic.
"You should keep in mind that there's a mage here to cast Dispel. It seems you haven't seen proper resistance from humans until now."
I collided an identical magic circle with its spell, nullifying it as I closed in on the creature. I aimed for the opening Victoria created and drove my fist into its chest.
A dragon's famous weaknesses are divided into a few categories.
The eyes, the muscles under the wings, and the heart region said to contain infinite mana. The location of the Dragon Heart.
"Oh... So this is the hidden Hero party after all.... I'm beginning to understand why the Demon King is going to such lengths to find you."
Struck in such a weak spot, the Phantom Dragon cracked its neck *thud, thud* as if tickled, showing it was completely unharmed.
"If a child were born between you two, a human truly capable of killing the Demon King might be born."
Amidst our attacks, the Phantom Dragon, who had seemed deep in thought, now smiled at us with a chilling grin.
"...What did you say?"
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Wha, what did you just say?!"
Seeing the opponent wearing my face say such things, Victoria's face flushed bright red with shock. Disgust surged within me, and I immediately swung my fist.
"Lord Astal and my child.... Cute and lovely.... Children with blue hair and starry-sea eyes..." Mostly because the sound of Victoria lost in her own delusions was so incredibly distracting.
"I merely spoke based on the memories inside this man's head. What's wrong with that? It just means I must absolutely kill you."
The Phantom Dragon spoke as if it were nothing, but it was a statement that could only deepen Victoria's misunderstanding.