Ch.104Black Dragon and Explosive Dragon – 5

“Brunhilde. Look at the sky.”

“I’m looking. What is that?”

Brunhilde frowned as she observed the unnaturally spreading black clouds.

“I don’t know either. But it can’t be good for us.”

The black clouds in the sky were gathering in one direction with each passing moment. It was where Mahrvat had crashed.

As if something like that could ever work in our favor. Even at a glance, it looked exactly like the black energy we’ve been seeing all along.

“Let’s hurry. Before it’s too late.”

“Y-yes.”

Brunhilde gathered her wits and followed behind me. After using physical enhancement and running for some time, we crossed the mountain range and saw where Mahrvat had crashed.

The impact had created a large basin around the dragon’s body. At the center of the basin, Mahrvat was struggling to rise with only one remaining wing.

Naturally, it wasn’t easy. Perhaps this was the first time it had lost an entire wing, as it repeatedly tried to stand up and take flight, only to fall back down.

‘The sky… is it still okay?’

The black clouds didn’t seem to be doing anything particular yet. Though if they were strengthening Mahrvat just by being there, that would be another matter.

“They don’t seem to be starting anything yet, so let’s aim to finish this before things get complicated. If we drag this out, we’ll be at a disadvantage, right?”

Nodding repeatedly, Brunhilde’s eyes filled with determination. Now that battle was imminent, her dazed expression had almost completely disappeared.

With Eternity in hand, I descended along the slope. Brunhilde followed with the holy sword. After jumping down several cliffs tens of meters high to reach the basin, I was struck anew by just how enormous Mahrvat was.

I felt like my height might truly be smaller than even one of its teeth. Blood flowing from its severed wing had pooled like a large lake, and every time it tried to rise, the entire area shook.

“Is there a way to kill that thing? I’ve heard dragon scales are incredibly tough.”

“There is a way. Somewhere on its chest, there’s a reverse scale—a scale growing in the opposite direction. We need to stab through that to destroy the dragon heart. Otherwise, we can’t kill it. The dragon heart absorbs all attacks.”

“…Even with the magic you used?”

“You think I just tore off its wing for no reason? If I could have killed it, I would have aimed for the body.”

The scales covering a dragon’s body are nearly indestructible on their own, but what truly makes them immortal is the dragon heart.

First, the scales block attacks, and on the rare occasions when an attack exceeds the scales’ strength, the dragon heart responds by absorbing that power. The absorbed power then becomes the dragon’s own.

This applies regardless of the type or intensity of power. According to Priscilla and Elysier, it even completely absorbed the holy sword of a fully awakened hero and the slashes of a demon lord.

The only part where the dragon heart’s power doesn’t work is the wings, which is why I targeted them. To seal its mobility as well.

“They say dragons can’t absorb attacks from other dragons, but we can’t exactly bring the chairman here, can we? That’s why we’re aiming for the reverse scale.”

“Um… so where is the reverse scale?”

“There. The one under its chin.”

Brunhilde squinted at Mahrvat upon hearing my words, but a question mark appeared above her head. She couldn’t find it.

Well, it’s not particularly eye-catching by being a different color or exceptionally large. Finding one scale growing in the opposite direction among thousands or tens of thousands of identical-looking scales wouldn’t be easy.

“…I can’t find it.”

“Then ask the holy sword. Who knows? It might know.”

“The holy sword?”

Brunhilde wore a skeptical expression, but decided to trust my words. She gripped the handle and closed her eyes. Soon after, her golden pupils opened wide and looked at me.

“You’re right! I can see something faintly glowing under its chin. So that’s the reverse scale.”

‘Just like in the original story.’

In the original, it was the holy sword that revealed the dragon’s weakness to Brunhilde when she was struggling, unable to inflict any damage even after cutting off its wing. I thought I’d give her a hint, and fortunately, the holy sword still worked the same way.

“I’ll try to avoid killing it and just partially destroy the dragon heart so the chairman can finish it off himself, but don’t push yourself too hard. We shouldn’t risk our lives trying to keep it alive. Bringing back a corpse is better than becoming corpses ourselves. Don’t you agree?”

Even if things went wrong, I had ample means to extract both of us, but I didn’t want to fight carelessly relying on that. Brunhilde gripped the holy sword with a resolute face.

“I understand.”

“Good. Let’s go. If that strange black energy comes down, I’m counting on you.”

“Yes! Leave it to me!”

I immediately dashed forward, kicking off the ground. Brunhilde followed a step behind, as if escorting me. Mahrvat reacted to our presence and rose up. An unknown power blazed in its dull gray eyes.

Even with one wing severed, a dragon was still a dragon. As it rose, its massive body temporarily blocked the sun, casting a shadow.

“Mira! The clouds!”

“So it won’t go down quietly, huh?”

The clouds that had been floating in the sky began to gather around Mahrvat as it stood up. Like a whirlwind, they wrapped around Mahrvat’s body and scattered black energy in all directions.

“Brunhilde! It’s your turn!”

“I’m on it—Huh? Whaaat?!”

Brunhilde, who was about to swing the holy sword against the black energy, suddenly made a strange noise.

Before I could turn to see what was happening, a light so powerful it dispelled all the spreading black energy erupted from behind me.

The swirling clouds that had been gathering around Mahrvat melted away as soon as they touched the light. The black energy, shattered and dissolved, was purified and disappeared without contaminating anything.

“…Brunhilde?”

The hero who had caused this sacred miracle of purification stood frozen in place, holding the glowing holy sword, looking more surprised than anyone else. Brunhilde, staring down at the holy sword, muttered something.

—…I know. No more… fighting… alone…

The words came through broken and intermittent, making it impossible to interpret perfectly, but it was clear she was having some kind of conversation with the holy sword.

‘Did the holy sword have a consciousness?’

I don’t think I’d heard about it being an ego sword.

“Mira.”

Brunhilde met my gaze, apparently finished with her conversation.

“Don’t ask any questions, just do what you need to do. I’ll handle everything else somehow.”

I simply nodded and immediately gripped Eternity tighter before rushing forward. Asking questions now would be foolish. After all the things I’ve done myself, how could I not trust others when they do the same?

As I closed the distance toward Mahrvat, the golden light behind me grew more intense. Remarkably, despite the light shining from behind me, no shadow formed in front of me.

The light, defying the natural laws of nature, illuminated my path. Even more surprising was that Eternity was gradually absorbing some of that light. A golden aura was beginning to envelop the blade.

‘What was this called again? Resonance phenomenon?’

The phenomenon where the holy sword’s power naturally grants fighting strength to nearby people as it grows stronger.

There was only one condition for receiving this power: only those truly trusted by the hero could receive it, which is why only the protagonist’s party could receive it until the very end.

I don’t know how it awakened now, but there’s no harm in accepting it. I quickened my pace and glanced back.

Brunhilde was floating in the air.

With both hands raised above her head, poised to bring down the holy sword.

—Gooooo…

Light gathered in the holy sword, and then it was swung. The sky split, dividing the world in two. Morning came to one side, darkness to the other. The burst of radiance dyed the sky golden.

The black clouds rushing toward Mahrvat were no match for the light. Colors melted and mixed together. All colors were buried in the brilliance, transforming into a single hue.

At the same time, the energy swirling around Mahrvat completely evaporated. I could see its movements becoming noticeably slower. Like the Vampire Lord, it seemed the demon god’s power had been strengthening it.

This is enough. As I closed to a distance where attack was possible, I drew forth my mana.

It swept its foreleg across the ground. All manner of debris was thrown up from the churned earth. A wave of immense soil, earth, and rocks came crashing toward me.

I had no intention of taking the hit quietly. Rapidly activating all my mana circuits, I pulled back my right hand holding Eternity over my left shoulder, preparing to swing.

I released my mana as I swung Eternity. An intense mana reaction erupted along the trajectory where Eternity had passed.

—Kwagwagwagwagwak!

The trajectory transformed into a barrier. A high-tier defensive magic blocked the wave of earth. The dragon’s foreleg collided with the barrier, creating cracks, but I had long since moved past that spot.

I kicked off the ground and leaped. The spot where my foot touched burst into flames. I swung Eternity once more. The blade couldn’t penetrate its scales, but instead became a binding spell that caught its foreleg.

Kigik, the sound of the binding spell twisting came immediately. By the looks of it, it would last barely three seconds. That’s enough. I was already very close to its reverse scale.

Just then, the foreleg tore the binding spell to shreds and broke free, but it was already too late. My preparations were complete. I used swordsmanship while drawing forth magic.

Sword-Magic.

A swordsmanship that combines swordplay and magic, replacing incantations and magic circles—where the act of swinging the sword becomes the incantation and the sword technique itself becomes the magic circle.

Magic manifested and erupted from the path of the swung sword. Simultaneously, the completed technique scattered the radiance bestowed by the holy sword.

—Ultimate Technique. Heavenly Pillar Flash.

The tip of Eternity made contact with the dragon’s reverse scale.