Chapter 44: Subjugation of the Evil Dragon

There was a cave entrance on the side of the mountain range where we were currently located. At the bottom of the massive and steep rock wall, there was a large hole whereas the Evil Dragon Colchis resided. With its powerful breath, it melted that rock wall, creating a cavern which it made into a nest.

「Okay? Everyone remembers the plan, right? Especially Reid」 「Y, yeah」 「This battle, if we lose even just one person as we fight, our chance to win will definitely plummet to zero……I’m sorry, there’s no other better options than this」 「What are you sorry about. Just finding a conclusion for us to win against that Evil Dragon is already an incredible feat」

I tap Cortina’s shoulder that looks like she’s not confident enough about her plan. In this battle, I will be the one doing most of the things and it’s really complicated. Not to mention that if any of those actions are not properly done or failed, it would be the end for all of us.

However, that is also a part of our mission. Defeating the Evil Dragon is our mission after all.

I hid behind a boulder that was probably burned to the point that it looks like glass. From here on out, there is no guarantee for our survival. If we fail this mission……tens of thousands or even more will probably die.

「Now then……Let’s go」

Following Cortina’s instruction, we went deeper into the cave.

A space of several square meters were created inside the mountain, and at its center is where the Evil Dragon sleeps. His sleep seems to be shallow. If we are to make any loud noise here, it will definitely be alarmed immediately. With my gift of concealment, I could turn even off my scent, so I was setting up traps by myself while moving around the nest. That is my main role in this fight.

Around the time I finished, the sound of metals from their armor would resound as Lyell and the others approach. That noise immediately woke up the sleeping dragon.

This move is to ensure my safety. After all, even with my gift, I won’t be able to completely escape the dragon’s senses. That’s why their approach was in order to take away its attention from me.

「Grrrrruuuuuraaaaaaaaah!!」

Having been disturbed in its sleep, the Evil Dragon was annoyed and threatens those who disturbed it. I was moving along the walls where there was no wind so that I won’t be noticed.

「Maria, Gadius!」

Cortina’s voice resounded in the battlefield. At that same moment, Gadius raises his shield in front of Lyell while Maria sets up a magical barrier. Shortly after the setup, the Evil Dragon spews out a blazing breath.

Gadius’ shield and Maria’s barrier prevented the breath that could easily melt rocks. The shield Gadius is using is a legendary item that was made from the mythical era, and precious item made from the scales of a magical dragon called Fafnir. Adding to that is the extremely dense magic coating that the breath couldn’t pierce through. However, it was only a shield. At most, it would only be able to protect a single person.

Maria’s magic is also of the highest class of defensive magic. Her magic barrier was strong enough to prevent the breath of an evil dragon, but it has the disadvantage of shutting out all attacks including ones from inside the barrier. Because of having such peculiar properties, precise timing is needed in pinpointing its use. And when it comes to timings, it was Cortina’s specialty.

As soon as the breath stopped, Lyell immediately moves into action to cut the dragon. His holy sword has also been reported to be made out of Fafnir’s bones, and with his incredible strength, even the scales of the Evil Dragon could be cut.

However, the blade’s length is overwhelmingly short. Lyell’s blade alone won’t be enough to damage its internal organs. Nevertheless, the Evil Dragon felt a great sense of discomfort knowing that the hard scales it was proud of were being cut. Because of that, Lyell has successfully drawn the aggro and received the brunt of its claws and tail attack. This attack was easily blocked by Gadius’ shield preventing it from reaching Lyell.

Several minutes after the battle, the stalemate was starting to crumble. Although it was only several minutes, it was also a matter of life or death in those several minutes alone. That small amount of time could also be turned into a distress if not for Cortina who controls the tactics.

「Reid!?」

It was a shout that resounded all over the cave. Then a vibration from a thread on her hand conveyed only his voice to her.

『Not yet, just a little bit more』 「We don’t have that much anymore. About how long will you need? 」 『Roughly 40 seconds』 「Make it 20!」

Although I would usually complain 『Don‘t mess with me』 but in this situation, I could understand why she needs it. Claw attack, bite attack, tails strike, breath. If any of those attacks is not prevented, it would have enough power to turn any of us into minced meat. But Cortina precisely calculates the damage distribution, by timing the attack and blocks. But the mental burden received by other members would be different.

That’s why I need to quicken up my pace. Creating a trap to ensnare the monster on the wall with fine steel threads was my objective, which according to Cortina, would bring us closer to victory.

「Alright, I’m ready!」 「I was waiting! Reid――do it!」

It was the one order that I’ve been waiting. Maria and Gadius immediately prepared to defend the attack. Without losing momentum, I jumped from the area around the ceiling into the battlezone like a pendulum.

The dragon senses my presence and looked around. But the momentum of my fall was much faster, allowing my attack reach the target first. Mythril threads stretched out of my fingertips on both hands. It strikes the evil dragon’s scales like an avalanche. But even with my falling momentum, the attack didn’t really do much damage on the scales. With my feeble strength, I won’t be able to penetrate its scales even with the Mythril threads.

I slip underneath the Evil Dragon and moved to the other side. Feeling discomfort from my sudden attack, it prepares its claws in order swing towards me.

Following the momentum of my movement as I land, I immediately rolled on the rocky area to get away. A claw attack was aimed towards that rocky area, but the attack never reached me.

Then suddenly, the left wing of the Evil dragon was cut off and falls to the ground. The wing was in the opposite direction to where I landed.

Of course, there was a reason as to why this happened. The real purpose of my attack was distraction, and the real purpose was to tie a steel thread from my arms to its wings. Along with that is to divert its attack to where I was heading to, and using the Evil Dragon’s own strength to cut off its wings that was tied to steel threads.

「Guuurrrruuaaaaaaa!?」

The Evil Dragon screamed as it was assaulted by the pain that it had never felt before. It then aimed its hatred towards me who was responsible for the trap. After a short rampage, it then aimed its tail towards me to attack. It is a smart move to avoid using its head or claws to attack, because its tail was on the ground, it might have thought that I didn’t set a trap there. There’s also no possibility to set up strings on the ground.

And so I activated another trap. I pulled down a net well-prepared in advance. The spider-like web dropped from the ceiling in front of me. The other end is entangled to a nearby a nearby rock that was fixed on the ceiling.

The Evil Dragon swings down its tail towards me without care. The power of the tail could easily smash boulders bringing me along in the destruction. But that attack was blocked by the net. Needless to say, the rock where the net was fixed wouldn’t be able to withstand an attack that could easily crush boulders. And so the rock was crushed and broke into pieces…… causing the ceiling to collapse.

This trap was also placed according to Cortina’s instructions. It was up to me where it should be set up, but it seems like the setup was within her calculations. The trap was executed beautifully……but it’s not safe here. While barely avoiding the falling rocks, I regrouped with Maria and the others. I won’t let myself die that early. After all, there’s still one more tasks left for me to do.