*****
Dragons.
They’re the royal road to success for fantasy novels that everyone knows about.
The overwhelming sense of intimidation is at a scale which I have never felt before from any other monsters.
(I knew there’d be one, but I never thought I’d encounter it at a time like this…)
What is up with my monster encounter rate?
Every time I defeat a monster, a strong enemy appears in the blink of an eye.
A High Orc, a Dark Wolf, a Golem, an intelligent Zombie, and now, a Dragon.
Did I mention how it’s only the tenth day?
Rather than a matter of luck, it feels like something is intentionally setting up the stages.
Yes, it’s as if –––
“Kudou-san! Hurry back into the ‘Safety Zone’!”
“…!”
Ichinose-san’s shout brings me out of my reverie.
I should think about this later on.
Right now, I have to focus on what’s in front of me.
I rush back to the “Safety Zone”.
“Is everyone inside the ‘Safety Zone’?”
“Y-yeah.”
“We’re all in, Nishino-san.”
Rikka-chan and Shibata-kun respond to Nishino-kun’s question.
Our group consists of five people. There’s me, Ichinose-san, Nishino-kun, Rikka-chan, and Shibata-kun.
Aside from us, there are the trios: Momo, Aka, and Kiki.
It was the correct choice to not bring the other students.
We all look up at the sky with tense expressions.
The Dragon swoops down at us with frightening momentum and stops just outside the borders of the “Safety Zone”.
From that alone…
Gouuuuuuuu!
…a powerful gust of wind is generated.
“Kyaa!”
“Ichinose-san!”
I hold the hand of Ichinose-san who is about to be blown away and hug her.
The pressure from the wind alone is causing a storm.
“H-huh!? Ka-Kakakakakakakazu-Kudou-san!?”
“Are you okay? Please stay still.”
“Y-yesu…”
Ichinose-san nods in acknowledgement.
Even though Ichinose-san has evolved, her status remains abnormally low.
She’s wearing a piece of clothing that’s actually Aka in disguise, but it’s better to shield her from the wind just in case.
It might be slightly uncomfortable, but please bear with it.
“Nisshi, you good?”
“A-Ah, sorry about this…”
On the contrary, Rikka-chan is carrying Nishino-kun like a luggage on her left.
…Taking into account the difference in their status, I knew this would be the case… but shouldn’t the roles be normally reversed?
Also, Nishino-kun, you can almost touch her chest in that position, right?
What a lucky bastard.
Oh, and Shibata-kun is dealing with the wind by himself.
Shoot, I lost my focus again.
I immediately return my focus to the Dragon flying above us.
“Gururu…?”
The Dragon glares at us, intrigued.
Although its expression hasn’t changed or anything, I can somehow tell what it is thinking.
(Monsters cannot trespass beyond the borders… did it sense that?)
No monsters are allowed inside the “Safety Zone” unless they’re party members like Momo, Kiki, and Aka.
Dragons are not exceptions to this rule.
“Gau…”
The Dragon is floating in the air, staring at us… no, at the “space” we are in.
Sweat rolls down my back.
How domineering.
It’s as if it could shave off my HP just by staring down at us.
“…Gau…”
Our eyes cross for several seconds.
Then, the Dragon turns around and flutters its wings.
(It’s leaving…?)
For a split second, such a naïve thought passes through my mind.
No, that’s not right.
The Dragon distances itself from us and opens its mouth wide.
That’s – sh*t!
“—‘Shadow Cage’!!”
My “Shadow” spreads out beneath me and wraps around Rikka-chan, Nishino-kun, and Shibata-kun who are by my side.
A moment after –
“GUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!”
A dreadnought level roar tears through the air and pierces our eardrums.
My field of vision gets dyed white.
“~~~~~~~!?”
The ground ahead of us bursts open due to the roar.
The resulting pillars of fires and the shock waves are incomparable to the wind from before.
The barrier of the “Safety Zone” only prevents direct attacks from monsters and skills.
It doesn’t cancel out any of the secondary disasters that may occur.
Ichinose-san and I are blown away like poppy grains, unable to defend against the shockwaves that pass through the barrier.
“…Gaha… t-thank you, Aka.”
“Furu furu.”
My body rolls on the ground until my back hits the wall of a collapsed building.
Aka has swelled up and absorbed most of the impact, so I am mostly uninjured.
“How are you faring, Ichinose-san?”
“Good… somewhat. What happened to everyone else?”
“‘Shadow Cage’ made it in time. They’re safe.”
If I was slower even by a few seconds, it would’ve been too late for them.
The thought alone terrifies me.
“It’s scorching hot…”
Damn it…my vision’s flickering.
My field of vision is blurred by the strong flashes of light.
It’s also hot.
As I gradually regain my eyesight, a miserable scene projects itself through the dust suspended in the air.
No, the word miserable doesn’t cut it.
“This is baloney…”
What’s left is – nothing.
Everything beyond the border of the “Safety Zone” has “vanished”.
All the buildings and debris have disappeared, the ground has been heavily scooped out, and a huge crater with a radius of 50 meters has been formed.
The surface of the crater is sizzling red, suggesting that it is still hot.
“………”
I’m stunned mute.
What was that?
This is from a single roar?
It’s in a league of its own. A separate dimension.
Our standards are too different.
“~O~o~o…”
“..!”
I look up at the sky in a daze.
The culprit behind the scene of carnage stares back at me.
As my eyes are turning blank in hopelessness, the Heavenly Voice echoes in my mind.
“Proficiency has reached a certain threshold.”
“‘Heat Resistance’ has increased from LV 1 to LV 2.”
“Proficiency has reached a certain threshold.”
“‘Heat Resistance’ has increased from LV 2 to LV 3.”
“Proficiency has reached a certain threshold.”
“‘Mental Distress Tolerance’ has increased from LV 5 to LV 6.”
“Proficiency has reached a certain threshold.”
“‘Mental Distress Tolerance’ has increased from LV 6 to LV 7.”
I regain my ability to reason after the announcements are made.
What’s this? “Heat Resistance” went up?
I’ve forgotten that I had it since it hasn’t been of much use.
I hug Ichinose-san tightly.
This way, some of skill’s effect can be transferred over to her.
It’s definitely not because of her soft body or her sweet fragrance. Definitely not.
“Oo Oo Oo Oo Oo Oo Oo Oo Oo Oo Oo Oo Oo Oo ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!”
This is the second roar.
This time, I clearly see what’s going on.
From the mouth of the Dragon, a huge fireball with a diameter of 10 meters has been unleashed.
The fireball collides against the barrier of the “Safety Zone” and is bounced back.
Even so, the collision induces shock waves and hot air which permeate through the barrier and spread to the inside.
The ground sways, boulders become charred, and pillars of fire rise up into the sky.
It’s adequate to describe the scene as hell on Earth.
In the blink of an eye, our surroundings are destroyed.
“…! Aka, are you safe?”
“Furu furu~!”
Aka inflates itself before “petrifying” its body’s surface to create a film.
Owing to the fact that we’re further away this time, we receive less damage than before.
(It can fire powerful attacks in rapid succession…)
That alone makes it a bugged existence.
Nevertheless, the Dragon doesn’t appear satisfied with the result.
“GOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!”
Its roar sounds frustrated.
The Dragon glowers at me, challenging me to “Come out”.
(Thanks, but no thanks.)
This is why the “Safety Zone” has so much value.
Without its barrier protecting us, we would’ve met our ends earlier.
(…What should we do in this situation?)
Wait for it to give up and disappear?
I doubt that those breaths are inexhaustible.
Will it understand that its attacks are futile and head back to its nest out of boredom?
No, I should toss away such optimistic thoughts.
Although its attacks can’t reach us, there’s no guarantee that it will leave us alone.
We might be fine right now, but what if we run into it when we’re “outside”?
Resolve. I have to find the resolve to fight this Dragon here and now.
The thing is, I have few options available to choose from.
“Kudou-san…?”
Ichinose-san raises her head. The distance between us is so small that I can feel her breathe.
Her body is shaking.
Ah… I hate myself for having to say this to her.
“…Ichinose-san, can you shoot the Dragon with your monstrous rifle?”
“-!”
Barely any attacks can reach that Dragon from the inside of the “Safety Zone”.
Only Ichinose-san’s attacks are effective at this distance.
I hate myself.
I hate myself for having to rely on the girl whom I swore to protect.
Ichinose-san shows a surprised face; however, her switch flips over the next instance.
She closes her eyes to think.
A few seconds later, she answers.
“…It’ll be tough. To harm the Dragon, I’d have to either aim for its eyes, its belly, or its mouth, all of which aren’t covered by scales. With how agile the enemy is, it’s impossible for me to shoot accurately.”
“That’s reasonable…”
Its scales are emitting a bluish hue.
Common sense dictates that Dragon scales are extremely hard.
“Enemy Detection” and “Observation” also alert me of the scales’ durability.
Not only can it travel at supersonic speed, its defense is higher than that of a Golem’s.
I am obligated to repeat myself: this is a bugged existence.
Regardless, we can’t retreat.
“…Will you be able to take aim if it stops moving?”
“Eh?”
I will take on that role.
It’s my first time battling against an aerial creature.
I’ll try everything in my power to support her.
“Kiki.”
“Kyu?”
Hearing my summon, Kiki appears from my “Shadow”.
“Will ‘Reflection’ work against its breath attacks?”
“…Kyu.”
Kiki sits on my question for a little while but ultimately shakes her head.
Unfortunately, it’s not possible.
It seems that Kiki’s “Reflection” isn’t all-encompassing either.
“Kyuu…”
Her ears droop down as if she’s sorry that she can’t be of assistance.
It’s okay, don’t worry.
I gently stroke Kiki’s head.
Even without Kiki’s “Reflection”, I have my ways.
It’s nothing out of the ordinary, but it’ll have to do.
“I’ll draw its attention with ‘Art of Cloning’. Please find an opportunity to snipe, Ichinose-san.”
“…Understood. I’ll try my best.”
Fortunately, there are plenty of rubbles around us.
She won’t be lacking a hiding-cum-sniping spot.
“…Momo.”
“Wan.”
I signal Momo who is hiding inside the “Shadows”.
We sink into the shadows and emerge a short distance away where we’ve set a “Coordinate Point”.
Due to all the craters that have formed, we make a detour to leave the “Safety Zone”.
We’ll hereby commence our operation.
“…U~u~u.”
We should be hidden because of the smoke, but the Dragon’s gaze is clearly on us.
“‘Art of Cloning’.”
First, I’ll have ten clones rush forth.
“-!”
The Dragon is startled temporarily by how I have suddenly multiplied.
Nonetheless, it roars in delight right afterwards.
You’ve finally come out!
It opens its mouth and releases a breath.
At that moment, the clones all throw something which they have been holding in their hands.
Boom!
The ten clones get ripped to shreds.
The clones’ physical abilities are almost identical to that of mine.
In spite of Aka’s protection, I can’t help but dread the possibility of the same thing happening to me if I were to be hit.
“GARUOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!”
The Dragon roars in joy, exhilarated over how it has finally killed its prey.
Alas, those were just clones.
“‘Art of Cloning’.”
Once again, I activate the “Art of Cloning”.
This time, I have my clones ambush the Dragon from behind.
“Hey, I’m here!”
“!?”
My clone’s voice reaches the Dragon which is all the way up in the air.
The Dragon turns its head around.
“Gau…?”
Why aren’t you dead yet?, its expression seems to ask.
With my reappearance, traces of confusion appear in the Dragon’s eyes.
It doesn’t end there.
“—Something wrong?”
“!?”
I pop up from yet another location.
“I’m here you know?”
“Look over yonder!”
“Catch me if you can!”
“No, I’m the real one.”
“I’m here as well!”
“Why are you looking somewhere else?”
“Let me introduce myself.”
“Ran Ran Ru—”
Istart appearing one after another from different places.
“Ga…ga…?”
The Dragon’s voice is riddled with utter confusion.
The things which my first wave of clones threw were the petrified bodies of Aka’s clones.
Until they get destroyed, they’ll continue to serve as “Coordinate Points” for Momo’s “Shadow Migration”.
I’ve been sending out my clones using this strategy.
Of course, the Dragon doesn’t have a clue.
Befuddled, the Dragon keeps looking back and forth between my clones.
“Hey, over here!”
“Hah! The Dragon’s chickening out!”
“If you have the gut, stop shooting from afar!”
“Idiot! Idiot!”
“Ran Ran Ru-”
My clones run around the Dragon in circles, screaming at the top of their lungs.
Without any means of attacking, this is the only way I can attract its attention.
It’s quite a cheap method of provoking the enemy if I do say so myself.
Even then, it appears to have been effective.
The Dragon trembles in anger.
“Garururu….GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!”
It widens its mouth and showers its breath towards its surroundings.
ZUDODODODODODO!
Pillars of fire rise up and loud explosions ensue.
—That’s what we’ve been waiting for.
When it’s attacking, it definitely remains in its place.
“Ichinose-san! Now!”
“—Roger!”
Ichinose-san takes aim and pulls the trigger.
The gun that she has taken out from the “Shadow” is a monstrous rifle that was crafted to be well over 2 meters in length. It’s also known as “Ichinose Special Ver 2.0”.
The bullet that showed off its might during the Golem Subjugation mission is fired at the Dragon.
It’s aiming for the Dragon’s eyes.
The bullet hits the Dragon squarely in its right eye, almost as if the bullet has been sucked in.