Book 2: Chapter 166

[Rooaar!]

Chht-

The fierce roar of an apex predator caused the muscles of every creature that heard it to tense up in fear, their legs unable to move because of how intensely they were shaking. This was true even for Bargan and Ashstar, who heard the Ancient Dragon’s roar despite being several kilometers away.

Lukas, on the other hand, was only a few hundred meters away from the Ancient Dragon. This meant that the effects of the roar should have been multiplied several times.

However, the stimulating effects only worked for those whose mental power was weaker than the Ancient Dragon.

It was no exaggeration to say that Lukas was immune to such mental attacks.

[…]

And the Ancient Dragon also noticed this fact.

This bug in front of it was different from the other bugs. It used tricks that it had never seen before, and it wasn’t intimidated by its immense power.

It had never experienced such a situation in the entirety of its long life.

It wasn’t afraid, but it felt like this enemy could not be easily defeated.

The Ancient Dragon wasn’t sure what to do.

But Lukas was already thinking about how to end their confrontation.

Flap!

When the Ancient Dragon had spread its wings once again, it wasn’t to intimidate its opponent with its large size but to prepare for any emergencies.

The forest shook heavily.

This was natural, as an immensely large being was preparing to take off.

But Lukas was already prepared.

No, ‘prepared’ wasn’t really the right word.

Instead, it could be said that Lukas now knew his greatest strength.

Spell casting speed.

He didn’t need to use any chants or runes to cast spells.

There were only two things that could indicate what Lukas was doing.

One was gestures. Of course, these gestures were unnoticeable, as they ranged from the shake of a hand to a simple wink.

But the other was even harder to notice.

“Hoo…”

A sigh.

As he built up a huge amount of mana in his body, he had no choice but to relieve some of the pressure, and that was the reason for the sigh.

As he sighed, a puff of white smoke escaped from Lukas’ mouth.

There was no way for the Ancient Dragon to notice this.

Of course, even if it had noticed, there was nothing it could have done.

Crackle!

A cold breeze swirled around Lukas before spreading in every direction. Like a raging wildfire, this breeze swept through the forest, freezing everything it touched. And as if it had a will of its own, the cold breeze surrounded the Ancient Dragon.

The Ancient Dragon roared and struggled, but the ice had already begun to spread. Like a predator hunting prey, the cold breeze rushed into the Ancient Dragon’s body.

It only took a few seconds before this majestic creature became nothing more than a giant ice sculpture.

Blizzard.

Among all 7-star spells, this was the only one with enough range and lethality to freeze the giant body of the Ancient Dragon, who was the hegemon of the Samis Great Forest.

Lukas looked at the ice statue for a moment before casting another spell.

This time, he pointed his finger to the sky before making a forward slashing motion with his hand.

Boom!

A huge bolt of lightning shot down from the sky.

Giga Lightning.

It was a 7-star spell like Blizzarrd, but its single target destructive power was on par with Lava Blast. Naturally, this meant that it had the power to destroy the ice statue.

Krrr…

The Ancient Dragon’s enormous body fell to the forest floor in dozens of large ice chunks. Its body had been split into dozens of pieces, and there was no longer any chance of it surviving.

He’d won.

In all honesty, he’d won much easier than he expected.

In the end, the Ancient Dragon couldn’t even be considered a formidable foe for Lukas.

At best, it was like fighting any other monster.

Even if it had gained intelligence comparable to humans, the Ancient Dragon prioritised its emotions over logic. In fact, in terms of cunning, the mutated Dragonling that had hunted Bargan and Ashstar was much more superior.

Lukas couldn’t help but wonder why the great ‘Ancient Dragons’ were overestimated to such an extent, but it didn’t take him very long to find the reason.

For Dragonmen, an Ancient Dragon was certainly invincible.

This was natural.

After all, Dragonmen were a race who prefered bladed weapons and close combat.

The Ancient Dragon’s scales might have appeared weak under Lukas’ elemental bombardment, but it boasted an almost impregnable defense against swords and spears.

And even if they did manage to break through its scales, for a being of its size, such injuries would be similar to being pricked by a needle. In addition, all of these arguments were only based on the assumption that they were fighting on the ground. Ancient Dragons usually had the ability to fly.

A being able to soar in the sky and release incredibly powerful breath attacks was nothing short of a disaster for the Dragonmen.

On the other hand, Wizards had the means to offset these advantages of the Ancient Dragons.

Even if they had scales that couldn’t be penetrated by blades.

Even if they flew into the sky out of reach.

Even if they were to spew their breath from the air.

Even if their roar would stimulate the primal fear of every creature who heard it.

None of that could hinder Lukas.

No one in this world could understand.

What Wizards were, what powers they wielded, and what they were capable of.

‘Wizards.’

Compared to humans, they shined even more when dealing with monsters.

It might be a bit hasty, but Lukas had a thought at that moment.

In the Heavenly Realm, when it came to ‘Ancient Dragon hunting’, he might be a specialist.

[You have successfully defeated the ruler of the Samis Great Forest, ‘Bultasie’.]

[Great Achievement!]

[You have earned the title ‘Legendary Dragon Hunter’.]

[The prestige of ‘Dragon Hunter Lukas’ spreads throughout Combat Island.]

‘Prestige spreads’.

So it seemed that this was a way to spread his name in addition to winning the Championship.

With that thought in mind, Lukas turned around.

Most of the giant trees in the area had been uprooted. Thanks to this, it was easy for him to spot the survivors of the Dragonmen subjugation team that were looking at him from a distance.

Bargan and Ashstar were also with them. It seemed that they’d been able to find Igaru without any problems.

Bargan was the first one he noticed. He was currently staring at Lukas as if he was a mythical hero.

[Due to your amazing achievement, the loyalty of the wandering Dragonman Fight, ‘Bargan’, has increased.]

Lukas nodded inwardly.

This was a by-product he expected.

It would probably allow him to learn even more about the situation in Lirua.

He wasn’t sure exactly how strong the individuals in a major city would be. But he wasn’t afraid. In all honesty, the reason he felt discomfort was because he had been suppressed to 7-stars.

In his current state, even a single Swordmaster would be more of a threat to him than the Ancient Dragon who once ruled over the Samis Great Forest.

Just as he had this thought.

[The loyalty of subjugation squad leader, ‘Ashstar’, has increased significantly.]

“…”

This was unexpected, so he was a bit speechless.

However, it seemed that the voice had only just begun.

[The loyalty of subjugation squad leader, ‘Igaru’, has increased significantly.]

[The loyalty of subjugation squad member, ‘Kori’, has increased significantly.]

[The loyalty of subjugation squad member, ‘Numaha’, has increased significantly.]

[…]

[…]

The continuous ringing of the voice in his ear was deafening.

Lukas’ attention was then drawn to the Dragonmen behind Bargan.

That was why he realised that the gazes of these dozen or so Dragonmen were similar to Bargan’s.

…No.

Their gazes might have been even more intense.