— RRROOOAAARRR!!!
The red dragon thundered across the chamber, jaws wide open, fully intent on swallowing Luki whole.
He stood his ground for a heartbeat, staring straight into the maw of an actual dragon, then bolted to the right in a sharp sprint.
The beast was faster. Much faster.
But if there was one thing Luki took pride in… it was running for his life.
And so the hunt began, a frantic game of cat and mouse, with the dragon on his heels, giving him no room to breathe.
It lunged, snapped its jaws, slammed its claws down, each attack a lethal blow meant to end him instantly, yet not a single strike connected. Luki slipped away from every assault by a hair's breadth, moving with desperate instinct and precision sharpened by months in the depths.
Meanwhile, Lili, who had the unfortunate privilege of seeing the dragon from up close, very close, did her utmost not to wet herself on the spot. She barely had the strength to scream, let alone do anything else.
Her face, already pale from sickness, had turned ghost-white.
Was she scared?
Probably.
— Hunff. — The dragon skidded to a halt, hot smoke billowing from its nostrils as if to say, "I'm tired of this."
Then, as if suddenly remembering something very important…
It spread its wings.
FWOOOM… FWOOOM… FWOOOM… FWOOOM…
Each beat slammed the air like a hammer, birthing violent gusts that tore across the chamber.
Luki staggered, metal plates rattling as the wind nearly ripped his feet off the ground and that, was saying something, considering he was carrying several kilos of steel on his body and a Pallum on his back.
Then the beast rose into the air.
— RRROOOAAARRR!!!
A roar of pure, majestic intimidation shook the entire hall as it hovered above them, long neck lifting, jaws opening wide. A sharp, shrill whine filled the space, the unmistakable hiss of death drawing breath.
Luki felt dread spike through his spine.
— Luki-sama!!! It's going breath!!! — Lili shouted, the fear clear in her voice.
He didn't hesitate. He sprinted toward the far edge of the chamber, boots scraping against scorched stone as he ran for dear life.
Up above, the dragon snapped its head downward... and unleashed hell.
BWOOOOSH!!!
A torrent of flames burst from its throat.
FWAASH!!! FWOOSH!!! KRAAASH!!!
The inferno slammed into the floor and exploded outward, rolling across the chamber in a violent storm of fire that devoured everything in its path.
The heat was so intense that the scattered gold coins began to hiss, their edges softening before collapsing into molten blobs that slid across the blackened stone like liquid mercury.
Luki, meanwhile, was running with everything he had, his legs little more than a blur.
The flames chased him mercilessly, licking at his heels. Even through layers of metal, he could feel the blistering heat boiling against his armor, threatening to cook him alive. Lili on his back had even worse.
But luck, or sheer stubbornness, favored them. The wave of fire started losing momentum, thinning out as its reach ran short. Luki pushed harder, widening the gap until he finally outran the inferno.
He skidded across the floor, catching himself against the nearest wall just as the room behind him transformed into a sea of roaring flame and churning black smoke. He stood only a few meters from that hell.
— Luki-sama, that was close! W-What do we do? There's no way we can beat that thing! — Lili asked, adrenaline trembling in her voice.
— We just have to reach the other side. He's strong, but he can't stop me if I decide I'm getting out of here. — He answered, calm and sharp, confidence radiating through every word.
FWOOOOSH!!!
The dragon continued spewing fire without rest, like a god of wrath and destruction incarnate. The difference in power was painfully clear.
Yet even dragons have limits.
The beast finally ceased its torrent, descending slowly through the smoke, utterly unbothered by the flames licking at its scales.
It straightened its posture, lifting its head high and, through the fire and smoke, fixed its gaze on Luki with an expression that felt almost human, a silent, taunting challenge.
— Tch. — Luki felt it.
The two simply stared at each other for a long moment, while the flames, lacking proper fuel, gradually diminished.
Eventually, nothing remained but a few stubborn embers scattered across the floor.
— Lili, you should cover your face. Things are about to get even hotter... — Luki said, tense, once again slipping into a combat stance.
— Uhm. — With some difficulty, Lili squirmed her arms around inside the bundle of cloth until one hand slipped out through the head opening, pulling the fabric closed around herself.
Now her life rested in Luki's hands more than ever, but she trusted him completely.
— Standing still won't get us out of here… so let's go! — Luki said, as if psyching himself up.
He bolted forward, angling slightly to the right.
The dragon reacted instantly.
It lunged with a swipe of its massive claw, fast enough to kick up a sharp burst of wind ahead of it. But Luki slipped under the arc of the blow, diving into the attack's blind spot and sticking close to the beast's flank.
Of course, it wouldn't be that easy.
The monster unleashed a relentless barrage: a snapping bite, another, then a stomping strike that shook the floor. Luki rolled low, feeling the vibration crawl up his bones. A rising slash followed, and he barely leaned back in time for it to shred only air.
Then came the tail, a violent 360° sweep that tore across the chamber.
Luki vaulted over it, planting a hand on the dragon's own scales to redirect himself past the follow-up bite that clamped down where his head had been a heartbeat before.
The tempo surged.
A bite. A stomp. A claw. A tail. Bites layered between strikes like a practiced rhythm. No hesitation. No breathing room. The dragon fought like a living engine, hatred echoing from every roar.
Yet not a single blow found him.
Luki moved as if dancing, minimal motions, perfect timing, instincts sharpened to a razor edge. Even when claws flashed so close he could feel their wind on his eyelashes through the helmet, he didn't falter.
A step back. Two steps. A surge forward. A slide to the side. A drop under a sweeping arm. A leap over the tail as it carved through the air.
If not for the dragon's murderous roars, the scene would've looked choreographed.
After a long chain of blows that felt like an eternity, Luki finally found an opening to strike.
Having slipped near the monster's hind legs after dodging its latest attack, he noticed something, the dragon didn't move immediately afterward. Maybe it was fatigue, maybe a momentary stumble in its rhythm. Whatever the reason, this was his chance.
It was his turn to attack.
Luki planted his feet, set his stance, and drew his blade horizontally to his right. Then he swung with the full strength of his legs, core, and shoulders.
'Take this!'
BAM!
The strike connected, scales cracked, a few chipped away, and droplets of blood flicked across the air. But the damage was shallow. The beast was far too tough for a simple blow to bite deep.
But the dragon felt it.
With the sword now in his left hand as he prepared to follow up, the monster abruptly shifted back, forcing his second swing to cut through empty air.
— ROAAAR!
Enraged, the dragon snapped at him with a violent bite, but Luki kept swinging despite having no target. The uncontrolled momentum of his blade made the beast hesitate, it didn't want to take a direct hit to the face.
Step by step, the dragon retreated.
Step by step, Luki advanced, swinging without fear.
Perhaps offended that a creature so far beneath it dared to threaten it, the dragon decided to escalate once more.
It snapped its jaws open toward Luki, and a fierce glow began building deep in its throat, the unmistakable heat of gathered flame.
Understanding exactly what was coming, Luki immediately broke into a sprint.
FWOOOM!
A blazing fireball tore past him and hammered the ground, exploding into a spray of burning shards that rolled across the scorched floor.
Another followed.
FWOOOM! FWOOOM!
The dragon fired in rapid succession, each projectile bursting like a miniature sun the moment it hit anything solid. Luki darted around the edge of the beast, boots skidding on ash-covered stone, moving in a tight circle to stay out of the monster's direct line of fire.
He could feel the flames licking the air behind him, each near miss scorching his right exposed arm. His lungs burned, his heartbeat roared in his ears, but he kept going faster, tighter, sharper.
FWOOOM!
A fireball passed close enough that the heat punched his cheek like a slap. He threw his weight to the side and rolled, coming back to his feet without losing momentum.
The dragon twisted its massive body to track him, wings flaring, tail whipping furiously across the battlefield as it tried to cut off his route. But Luki refused to slow down. Every time the creature aimed, he shifted direction, making its shots land just a breath behind him, always too late.
He ran in wide arcs, then sharp zigzags, forcing the monster to constantly reposition, keeping its aim just slightly off.
All the while, Lili clung to him from inside the cocoon of cloth, feeling every violent turn, every jolt, every shockwave of fire crashing behind them, yet trusting him completely.
And still, Luki kept moving.
Because stopping meant death.
'My turn to shoot, you overgrown airborne lizard.' He thought, tired of running.
Luki dropped his sword and, in a motion halfway planned and halfway instinct, drew his kukri and hurled it straight at the dragon.
It struck the beast in the eye.
— RRRROOOOAAAARRRR! — The dragon roared toward the ceiling, for the first time in the fight truly feeling pain.
Its face twisted into an expression of pure hatred, almost human in its fury. Who would've thought a reptile could glare like that?
The dragon beat its wings again as fire gathered in its throat, preparing to unleash the same overwhelming attack that had reduced the chamber to ash moments ago.
But just as its massive body was about to rise, it realized two things:
It couldn't spot its prey…
And something was hanging from its rear leg.
'They say to kill a dragon you aim for the spots without scales. Well, I got one eye… now for the other.' Luki thought, a wicked smile forming as he stared at his target.
— OOOAAAH!!! — he shouted.
Clinging to the beast with one hand and bearing the weight of his body, armor and a cursed Pallum, Luki raised his sword and drove it to the hilt into the dragon's most vulnerable point.
Its asshole.
— ROOOOOOOAAAAAAAR!!! — The dragon shrieked skyward, experiencing a kind of pain it had never known in its short existence.
Its wings faltered, and its many tons of muscle began to fall.
Luki released the monster's leg and gripped the sword with both hands, twisting it deep inside the creature as blood poured from the torn opening.
Then, using the full weight of his body, he didn't pull the blade out, he swung it, ripping a massive gash all the way up to the base of the dragon's tail.
Luki kicked off the beast for momentum and landed on the ground with surprising grace, as if the move had been rehearsed.
Meanwhile, the dragon crashed down behind him, humiliated, broken and bleeding out.