Chapter 42
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: Loose Lips
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-Roooaaarrr!!!
The black dragon's ear-shattering roar shook the underground cavern.
'This is a dream. A nightmare.'
What loomed before her wasn't some lizard. It was a house-sized catastrophe, belching crimson flames with every breath.
Fight that? With nothing but a single steel rod?
"I wanna quit... I wanna report this to the labor board..."
No, a dragon raid on her first day in the field? It was like unleashing the tutorial's final boss!
"Um... Mr. Dragon, sir?"
But the black dragon raised its massive forepaw. Razor-sharp claws glinted ominously in red light.
Boom!
"Kyaaak!!"
Dayne hurled herself aside on reflex. The spot where she'd stood moments ago cratered in, rocks pulverized to dust. A graze alone would've been instant death.
At least the one-sided beatings disguised as training had forcibly unlocked her dynamic vision and evasion instincts.
'I can see it...!'
Her brain and eyes reacted, but her pathetic body couldn't keep up.
'Sword! Use the sword! Do something!'
She gripped the longsword at her waist like a lifeline. That was the moment.
Vmmm!
A radiant golden aura erupted from the plain steel blade in her hand.
It was an Aura Blade.
An overwhelming talent for the sword this body had possessed since her possession into this world. Just grasping the hilt converted mana into aura that cloaked the blade, and a swing unleashed sword qi.
[That's not easy at all.]
[A normal knight needs three years of grueling mana control training just to fire off sword qi.]
'So what?!'
The black dragon gaped its maw and charged. No escape this time. The wall was at her back.
"Get lost!!"
Dayne squeezed her eyes shut, screamed, and flailed the sword through empty air. A clumsy motion, like swatting flies with a flyswatter—no form, no finesse.
But the result was anything but clumsy.
Whoosh!
A massive crescent of golden sword qi rocketed from the blade's tip like a cannonball.
Kaboom!
The qi slammed dead-center into the black dragon's armored chest as it barreled forward. An enormous explosion rang out, and the beast's colossal bulk staggered back.
"Yes...!"
'I did it! I can win!'
Dayne's face lit up. And just three seconds later, it shattered.
-Grrr...
Smoke cleared, revealing the black dragon's chest. Not a single scratch. Or more precisely, just the tiniest scrape on its scales.
"......Huh?"
Dayne gaped blankly. That sword qi had enough power to slice rocks. And all it did was a scuff mark?
'Oh, right. It's a dragon.'
Even accounting for genre limits, this was the world's apex predator.
A being at the pinnacle of magic resistance and physical defense. No way a novice's brute-force aura-charged qi blast would pierce it.
-Kieeeek!
The enraged black dragon inhaled deeply. Crimson flames roiled in its throat. Breath attack incoming.
"Eek?! Wait!! Just wait...!!"
Dayne rolled pathetically across the floor.
Whoooosh!
Crimson fire washed over her head like a tidal wave. The tips of her platinum hair singed, her clothes charred. The scorching heat nearly incinerated her outfit.
"Cough! Cough! Hack!"
She looked up at Kasian perched on a ceiling rock. The devilish senior sat cross-legged, watching like he was at the movies.
"You bastard!! Aren't you gonna help?!"
Dayne threw all pretense out the window and howled.
"I'm gonna die! Is this training? It's attempted murder!"
But Kasian just smirked and shouted back.
"Hey now, watch the language. Maintain the hero's dignity."
"Dignity my ass, I'm about to be dragon barbecue!! Get down here and fight!"
"Who tries to chop dragon scales with raw hacks? Do you peel fish scales with your fist?"
"Then what do I do? It's too tough!"
"Don't spray your qi wide—focus it! Pressure is force divided by area. Minimize the contact surface and compress it like a needle! You're just brute-forcing volume, so it bounces off!"
"How the hell do I do that?!"
Dayne wailed, on the verge of tears.
"I'm a liberal arts major!! Don't give me science homework!!"
"......"
She could see Kasian chuckling in disbelief up top. Liberal arts—what a novel excuse in this world.
"If you don't get it, you lack experience."
"Of course I do! It's day one on the job! Who demands veteran skills from a newbie?!"
"Learn through pain. Fail and you die, simple as that. Tail incoming. Roll."
"What? Wait...!!"
Thud!
"Guh...!"
A massive impact hit. Her body launched like a cannonball, slamming into the cavern wall.
"Urghhh..."
She thought her bones had shattered. For a normal person, multiple fractures and immobility for sure. But groaning, she brushed off the dust and stood.
'It hurts... It really fucking hurts...'
Her limbs throbbed, breath caught in her throat, but miraculously, nothing broken. Just bruises and scrapes.
"......Huh?"
Dayne stared at her intact limbs.
'Why... can I still move?'
"See that?"
Kasian's voice drifted down.
"Told you. You're tough."
"Is this even human? You're a real monster..."
"So quit whining and go again. Normal attacks won't kill you. They'll just hurt like hell."
"That's what I hate! Just knock me out instead!"
Tears welled up. Why was she suffering here?
All she wanted was cake, academy life, and ogling hot male leads. Why was she in a dust pit fighting the final boss in their place?
-Grrrrr!
The black dragon opened wide again. Denser flames gathered this time. No doubt it'd be worse than singed hair.
Dayne's eyes hardened. Grievance, rage, and raw survival instinct kicked her potential into gear.
'Just do it.'
No other choice. That damned boomer senior showed zero intent to help.
The Pendragon house was a lineage of warriors. Even pre-possession, this body's original owner—Dayne—had endless sword training memories from childhood.
Problem was, post-possession, she'd lazed in bed and never swung it once.
'Not spread wide... focus on one point. Like a needle.'
Golden aura swirled at her fingertips, converging on the blade tip. It sharpened at her will, condensing to a point.
'How'd they take down the black dragon in the original? Under the jaw?'
She'd read it a dozen times. No forgetting that.
-Roooaaarrr!!
As the black dragon reared for breath...
"Die, you lizard bitch!!"
Dayne kicked off the ground and launched. Just before flames erupted, she soared toward its jaw.
Stab!
The blade pierced under the jaw, scales sundered. Then release. She detonated the pent-up mana inside.
-Kieeeek!!
Breath backfired, exploding in the dragon's maw.
Boom!
-!!!
The black dragon thrashed in agony, rolling across the floor. Its massive bulk crashed down, shaking the cavern.
"Hah... hah... ugh..."
Dayne landed, panting raggedly. Legs buckled; she braced with the sword to stay upright.
Her hands trembled.
"Did... I do it?"
She muttered, staring at the motionless dragon.
"Did I get it?"
That instant.
-Roooaaarrr!!!
No sooner had she spoken than the "dead" dragon's golden eyelids snapped open. Roaring in fury, it lunged jaws-first at Dayne.
"Don't you know that's the resurrection flag?"
A chill voice drifted from above.
Kasian leaped from his perch. The red demon sword in his hand plunged through the diving dragon's crown mid-fall.
Then, pitch-black aura from the blade ravaged its skull from within.
Same principle as Dayne's: stab, detonate mana inside. But on another level entirely.
Splat!
The dragon's head burst like a watermelon. One strike. No scream—it died instantly. The huge corpse thudded limply to the floor.
"Never seen movies? Say that line, and even dead guys pop up for phase two? People always pick the exact lines you're told not to."
He flicked dragon blood from his blade and clicked his tongue.
"......"
Dayne stared up blankly. The foe she'd poured everything into for one hit... this guy killed with a breath.
Emptiness and betrayal washed over her.
"Um... Senior?"
"What? Say thanks for saving your ass."
Dayne pointed a shaking finger at the corpse.
"You could've done that easily... so why make me suffer this whole time?!"
"It was fun. Now I get the vet vibe watching noobs flail."
"....."
"Back in my pre-possession gaming days, some psycho in panties and an upturned pot helped me at the start. Now I know why he trolled me. Hilarious."
"......Pardon?"
"Kidding. Can't drag it out or the male leads up top come down. Mana's leaking from the gate too. And..."
He placed a hand on her head.
"To gauge your potential. World needs you strong. Long road ahead, but you've got it. Worth the grind."
"......!"
Unexpected praise flushed her cheeks. The art of insult-to-injury perfected.
"Now that I've tested your durability, double the training intensity starting tomorrow."
Moment ruined.
"Alright then..."
Kasian eyed the half-open dimensional gate.
"What to do with this..."
"We... should close it, right?"
"Yeah. Otherwise, hellgate opens. Or killing the final boss throws a wrench in things. Better call Erendel quick."
Kasian slung his demon sword over his shoulder and approached the gate. Watching his back, Dayne had a chilling, ominous thought.
Her past-life corporate boss's madness fused with Kasian's psycho traits in her brain's big data.
'No way... right? Even he wouldn't...'
But she had to check. Hunches like this never failed. Cautiously, she spoke.
"Um... Senior..."
"Yeah."
Kasian turned at the gate.
"You wouldn't... before closing it..."
Dayne swallowed.
"Pull out a few demons and release them in the finals for 'real combat training'... right?"
"......?"
Kasian's eyes widened. He glanced at the gate, hand on chin.
"......"
"......"
"......."
"........."
"That's genius?"
"Ah..."
"Why didn't I think of that? Tired of basic mobs—real demons for evaluation? You've got the chops."
"C-Cancel! I'll take it back! It was a joke! And I have to take that exam too!!"
"Too late. Your idea's officially adopted."
"......"