Volume 5 Chapter 20
Volume 5 Chapter 20: Rapid Response
Late afternoon.
The staff members of the Magic Research Institute were conducting an experiment in the plains to stabilize the Spirit Road.
They placed large amounts of mana stones in an attempt to sustain the Spirit Road.
Compared to the theoretical experiments they had done before, this was quite simple, but it was something they hadn’t tried yet.
Not trying something before outright dismissing it was not something acceptable for those working in the institute. And this, the staff were spreading containers filled with mana stones across the plains.
The containers had inscriptions on them that drew out mana from the stones and scattered it into the air.
If the Spirit Road opened, there were inscriptions ready to guide mana specifically toward it.
「I hope this will stabilize the Spirit Road.」
The male mage assisting with the inscriptions muttered, staring at the container. Nearby, other staff members chuckled and nodded in reply.
「Haha, I don’t think it will work so smoothly. But if something changes for the better, that would be nice. …Thanks to that incredible Carrier, things have started to move, at least.」
「Right? With the changes happening, maybe we’ll get some kind of result this time.」
「Yep. Well, let’s place more containers in other spots while we wait for the next opening at sunset.」
As they chatted idly, taking a few steps away from the containers, it happened.
—Khh
A light appeared behind them.
It was a rectangular, door-like shape of light.
「What…?」
「Why is the Spirit Road opening now?」
The Spirit Road had just recently opened in the afternoon. The next opening was supposed to be at sunset, not now—there had never been such frequent openings before.
…Could this be a new experimental result?
The male mage stared at the light of the Spirit Road and then noticed it.
「Hey… What is that…?」
In the light, he saw a dragon’s head with eight eyes, jet black in color.
And then, the dragon’s head shifted slightly, slithering out into the plains.
「A… dragon-type magic beast with a long neck emerged…?」
One of the staff members murmured that as the dragon revealed itself, and at the same time,
「—RAAAWR…!!」
「W-what?!」
The dragon lunged at the mana-filled container.
It happened in an instant.
A container that two adults would normally carry was swallowed whole.
「W-what the hell is that…?! It just ate all the mana stones we had prepared!」
But the dragon didn’t stop there.
Turning one of its eighth eyes at the group the dragon unleashed a sphere of light.
「…!」
「W-what…?! [Earth Shield]!」
Instinctively, one of the staff used magic to create a wall of earth.
The wall absorbed the sphere of light, then shattered instantly.
「This beast, it’s targeting us too!」
「Yes, we’ll intercept it! —[Fire Lance]!」
One of the staff, brushing off the broken fragments of earth, chanted a spell, summoning a spear of flame.
A mid-level fire spell—effective against dragons and reptile-type magic beasts. The spear targeted the dragon’s eight eyes, but—
—Poof
The flame spear vanished the moment it hit.
「It—was deflected?!」
「If it can deflected a mid-level magic, then it’s not an ordinary dragon..!」
The moment the staff shouted that,
「—Grrr…!!」
The dragon swung its neck fiercely.
Knocking away the staff.
「Gwah?!」
「No, everyone…!!」
Even with its massive body, the dragon moved with surprising speed, sending the staff members sprawling.
The dragon’s neck continued its motion, and—
「…It’s targeting me now…!」
The mouth that had gaped open to swallow the mana stones now turned towards the male mage.
The menacing, glowing fangs approached.
The mage realized.
He was about to be devoured.
But the next moment—
「What are you doing here…!」
A heavy voice roared, followed by—
—Dghon!
A thunderous sound.
「GRAAAR…?!」
Followed by the roar of the dragon.
「Ga-Gale-sama…」
That was the result of Gale striking the dragon’s black head from a side.
Gale then took a stance and said calmly,
「A dragon, huh.」
Uttering barely more than a word, he immediately dashed forward.
「Rrgh…!!」
The dragon reacted and tried to swing its neck again.
「Your weak spot is showing…」
Gale dove under the dragon, and used that momentum to punch upward.
「[Piercing Fist – Blast Jab]!」
With a direct, swift strike, Gale shattered the dragon’s weak spot, the inverted scale beneath its neck.
But the effect of that strike went further…
「Gggh…!」
It then shattered the core deep inside.
●
「Y-you did it…!」
「Wow… as expected of the hero!」
The staff cheered, watching Gale strike down the dragon.
Shattering the core positioned behind the inverted scale would kill a dragon instantly. That was common knowledge.
So, Gale believed that the dragon before him would crumble powerlessly.
But then,
「Gwaa…!!」
The black-scaled dragon didn’t collapse. It writhed violently, shaking its body.
There was no sign of it breaking down. In fact,
「Is it… regenerating?」
The shattered core and weak spot were glowing with black light, and flesh around them began to reconstruct itself.
「What…? Why isn’t it dead?」
The staff members, too, were visibly stunned.
Which means this dragon was unknown even to them. A beast they had never encountered before.
…it must be a completely new creature to everyone in this city.
Then they had to figure out how to deal with it. As they thought that, the dragon let out another cry.
「—Grrr…!!」
The dragon lord snaked back inside the Spirit Road.
Its massive body vanishing inside the portal.
「—」
And once the dragon lord’s body had fully entered the portal, the previously opened Spirit Road closed.
What remained in the plains was only the wind, left by the dragon’s rampage.
「Even after shattering its core, it’s still alive… Who… what is that thing?」
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