IYAMD 84
The moment the dragon let out a thunderous roar, an invisible force blanketed the surroundings. Twisting midair to evade the dragon’s breath, Jaha blinked in confusion.
The air around him had changed. But he couldn’t tell exactly how.
Is this that thing called “Fear”?
He had heard before the battle that dragons could exude an aura so powerful that it plunged their enemies into terror.
But why wasn’t he feeling anything?
Jaha glanced at his unshaken limbs, confirming that he could move just fine, and then swiftly dodged the dragon’s lunging head.
As the beast opened its massive maw, poised to swallow him whole, Jaha flicked his fingers—sending a compressed shot of inner energy straight into its gaping mouth. The moment the small, pebble-sized projectile was engulfed, Jaha clenched his fist.
Boom!
The internal energy exploded inside the dragon’s throat, causing its head to snap back.
The beast let out a short, strangled cry and then fixed its now fiercer gaze upon Jaha.
Did that provoke it enough?
Still, the creature hadn’t even spread its wings yet. Jaha had to keep it occupied until it took flight.
Since his energy attacks barely left a mark on its tough scales, Jaha gathered more power. This time, he aimed for its eyes. The focused strike left a small cut on its eyelid.
Biting his lip, Jaha shot higher into the sky. The dragon swung its long neck like a flail, snapping its jaws at the empty space where he had been just moments before.
Each movement of its massive body sent tremors through the ground, kicking up clouds of dust. The dragon slowly spread its wings—so vast that they nearly filled the entire cliffside. The wings resembled those of a bat, but near their joints, sinister, claw-like protrusions jutted out.
Or were they talons?
Jaha circled around the dragon, firing off shots of internal energy. The beast was sluggish, making it easy to evade its counterattacks.
But then, the dragon suddenly opened its maw wide, inflating its chest. As its neck arched backward, a deep, guttural rumbling echoed from within.
It’s about to unleash its breath!
From behind, Marsilia’s voice barely reached Jaha’s ears. He watched as tiny sparks crackled inside the dragon’s mouth. The moment a dark mass formed deep in its throat, Jaha propelled himself even higher.
A torrent of black flames erupted from the dragon’s maw, cascading downward like a waterfall of fire.
Though slow-moving, the flames spread in a wide arc, radiating a heat so intense it sent a chill down Jaha’s spine. Most of the fire dissipated harmlessly into the sky, but stray tongues of flame licked at the cliffside, scorching it.
Wherever the fire touched, the rock melted like blackened sludge. Some parts of the cliff even collapsed from the sheer destruction.
The dragon continued spewing fire for an unnervingly long time. Realizing Jaha remained unharmed, it let out an enraged roar.
“KROAAARRR!”
Slowly, the beast began to move its wings. With just a single beat, it whipped up a violent gust, scattering bones and dust into the air like a storm.
Jaha kicked off the remaining stable part of the cliff and shot toward Marsilia like an arrow.
“You all ri—?”
Before Marsilia could finish his sentence, Jaha hoisted him over his shoulder and rocketed into the sky.
Perched atop the highest treetop along the cliff, Jaha turned to look back—just in time to see the dragon ascend.
The creature’s massive body lifted into the air, its limbs hanging heavily below. Once it reached Jaha’s altitude, six black spheres materialized in front of it.
“Jaha?”
Marsilia, who had been slung backward over Jaha’s shoulder, twisted his upper body to catch sight of the dragon.
Then he cursed.
“This is insane.”
One by one, the six spheres shot toward Jaha. He leaped nimbly, flicking his fingers at the nearest approaching sphere.
But his energy attack vanished the instant it touched the black orb—swallowed whole without a trace.
Jaha darted through the air, narrowly avoiding the pursuing spheres. But then—
“Jaha, behind you!”
Marsilia’s warning rang out.
One of the spheres, which Jaha thought had missed him, abruptly changed direction and resumed its pursuit. The six spheres wove erratically through the air, filling his vision.
“Can you purify that?”
There was no end to simply dodging them. Jaha turned his head slightly as he asked.
Marsilia placed a hand on Jaha’s shoulder, pulling himself upright.
“I can try, but it’ll take a moment.”
The man spread both hands and began murmuring something—perhaps a spell.
“O Goddess who governs life, hear your devoted servant’s plea and grant my earnest prayer.”
A prayer, not a spell?
As Marsilia continued his chant, Jaha increased his speed, weaving through the pursuing spheres. A refreshing breeze stirred from the man on his back.
Tiny green orbs of light, like fireflies, began to flicker into existence, floating upward into the air.
As Marsilia finished his prayer, he stretched both hands forward and whispered toward Jaha.
“Jaha, up!”
As Jaha dropped downward, he landed lightly on the treetop’s branches and propelled himself skyward once more.
Marsilia unleashed his holy power toward the spheres trailing behind them.
“Punishment upon the wicked who stand in our way. In the name of the Goddess, be erased.”
A deep green light surged backward, flooding even Jaha’s field of vision with its brilliance. Like the dragon’s breath, it poured forth in a storm-like torrent.
“ROOOAAARRR!”
The dragon let out a long, piercing wail.
“Jaha, head for the stronghold.”
Jaha adjusted his grip on the man’s legs, using the trees as stepping stones to push forward. Marsilia, held securely in his arms, kept an eye on the dragon and reported its movements.
“It’s following us. Good.”
Jaha didn’t bother looking back—he trusted Marsilia’s judgment, and besides, the sound of the dragon’s flapping wings was closer than expected.
Whenever Jaha ran too fast, Marsilia would caution him.
“You’re too fast, Jaha.”
“Stop treating me like a horse.”
Did he think carrying a full-grown man while sprinting was easy? The weight wasn’t an issue—his inner energy took care of that—but the sheer bulk of the man was.
Marsilia seemed to be doing his best to adjust, but his tunic sleeves kept flapping wildly in the wind, obstructing Jaha’s view.
“You’re too big.”
Jaha grumbled, and the man in his arms let out a quiet chuckle.
“I can’t exactly shrink. You’ll just have to deal with it.”
Shameless bastard.
Jaha caught sight of the stronghold in the distance and increased his speed.
By now, the stronghold should be fully alert, their ballistae loaded and ready. He needed to drop Marsilia off quickly so they could begin their counterattack properly.
“It looks like it’s about to breathe fire.”
Marsilia muttered nonchalantly and stretched both hands toward Jaha’s rear.
“I don’t know if a barrier will hold against this.”
“Just tell me where to go.”
“It’s coming.”
A low, guttural rumble echoed from behind, followed by a chilling wave of energy.
“Left.”
At Marsilia’s whispered command, Jaha veered left just as the dragon’s breath engulfed the air where he had been.
“Keep running left, Jaha.”
After sprinting for a while to avoid the sweeping fire, Jaha risked a glance back. A massive chunk of the mountainside had simply vanished.
“This is insane.”
Marsilia’s breath was too close to his face. The ticklish sensation made Jaha twitch, prompting the man to place a hand there and rub it absentmindedly.
Jaha waited for the dragon to close the gap—then bolted forward again.
With only a short distance left to the stronghold, he covered the remaining ground in a single burst and set Marsilia down near General Des.
Marsilia immediately raised a protective barrier around the stronghold and shouted to the entire army:
“The dragon’s power erases everything it touches. If its magic approaches your position, do not hesitate—get away immediately. Your lives are more valuable than the ballistae. If you want to live, run with everything you have. Understood?”
“Yes, Your Majesty!”
Thousands of voices answered in unison. The knights, already tense, aimed their loaded ballistae toward the sky.
Even from a distance, the massive dragon loomed large. As soon as it entered their effective range, Marsilia raised his hand toward the sky.
“First row, fire!”
The ballistae, each loaded with a thick iron-chained bolt, fired in unison. Every shot was aimed at the dragon’s wings. Ten bolts were shot, but only about half managed to pierce through the leathery membranes.
As soon as the bolts struck, the thunderous shouts of commanders rang out from all directions.
“Pull the chains!”
“Pull in rhythm! One, two!”
Knights stationed near the ballistae grabbed onto the chains and heaved with all their strength, trying to drag the dragon down to the ground.
“Graaaaaah!”
The dragon thrashed in midair, causing some of the knights clinging to the chains to stumble or even be lifted off the ground.
“If your feet leave the ground, let go!”
Even with forty or fifty knights pulling on a single chain, the dragon remained airborne. It lashed its long neck wildly, struggling to break free.
Jaha exchanged a glance with Marsilia. The moment Jaha leaped into the air and clasped his hands together, Marsilia drew his sword and shot upward.
Using Jaha’s hands as a foothold, Marsilia propelled himself higher, and as soon as he was airborne, Jaha shifted direction and launched himself toward the dragon as well.
Marsilia, now high above the battlefield, plummeted downward, sword aimed directly at the dragon. From the opposite side, Jaha cut through the air, mirroring his attack.
“KIEEEEEEEEK!”
Their blades tore deep gashes into the dragon’s relatively weaker eyelids. But before they could retreat, the dragon’s violent thrashing sent them both flying backward.
Jaha twisted his body midair to regain balance, then reached out toward Marsilia, who was plummeting toward the ground.
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