'This is bad… really bad!'
As Adonis stood before the Dragon before him, these were the initial thoughts in his mind.
'I never expected a Dragon! Not even in the worst-case scenario!'
The 99th Floor had become a Dragon's Nest.
The fact that there were no Monsters, and the Boss was pretty much nonexistent in this Floor, meant that this Dragon had gotten rid of all of them.
This place was now his domain.
'Everyone is frightened. Even Lucielle!'
Adonis couldn't blame her.
'Despite how strong she is, she's still very young. Besides, I'm sure she's never experienced a Dragon as powerful as this before…'
A three-horned Dragon!
'The battlefield should be filled with one and some two-horned Dragons.'
Those were the weaker kinds—foot soldiers and mature ones.
The three-horned Dragons and above were the real deal.
None of them could be messed with very easily, as they had the role of Commanders.
'I can't believe my first encounter with a Dragon in this timeline is a Dragon Commander.' Adonis gritted his teeth as he narrowed his eyes.
'This is really bad!'
Right now, however, he could not afford to hesitate or dwell on any other distracting thought.
His opponent was right in front of him, and his allies were right behind.
The same allies he swore he'd protect!
'Fifty are already dead. It's tragic, but… I can't let it weigh too heavily on my mind.'
Not right now!
What everyone needed from Adonis right now was action.
And he had to deliver.
~VWUUUUSSSHH!~
Bright golden energies danced around him as he glared deeply at the foe he had to face.
'I'm only Level 30 now. I'm not very confident I can defeat this thing…'
Adonis knew he had to be Level 50, at the very least, to confidently assert his victory against a creature of such caliber.
At this point, he couldn't boast of such power.
'Even though I had Lucielle and the others summon Monsters for me to personally kill so I could Level Up for this mission…'
It still wasn't enough!
Despite that, Adonis knew he couldn't give up.
'I have to try!'
~BOOOOOM!~
More power rushed through him as he called upon his Skills.
[Grand Light Magic]
[Divine Sword Summon]
[Absolute Defense]
Adonis was instantly coated in what seemed to be a golden armor of sorts.
His new form radiated majesty, but also pure power.
In his hand was a sword whose beauty was beyond description, shining brightly as he brandished it.
An aura—a field of unparalleled energy—remained around him to protect him from the adversary, and shimmers of light kept swirling around him.
Adonis, at this point, looked every bit of an Angel as Seraph did.
Of course, he lacked the wings and celestial beauty she possessed.
But something about him looked holy.
Sacred.
Powerful!
"T-that is…! You are… what are you?"
*******
For the first time since its arrival, the face of the Dragon showed something other than condescension and disdain.
It showed fear—albeit subtle.
"This power… where did you get it from?!"
It was clear what the Dragon Commander was referring to as he stared at Adonis.
"How is a human wielding able to use powers in the Absolute… no… Divine Tier?!"
Everyone knew that the limit of a human in H'Trae was the A-Tier.
That was why, even the strongest in the entire United Human Alliance, had a single A-Tier Skill.
It was extremely rare—the very pinnacle of power.
This phenomenon wasn't only restricted to humans alone, though.
Most beings in this world had similar limits.
The only exceptions were the Dragons!
Dragons were known as the strongest beings in H'Trae for the very reason that they could bypass such limits and reach even the Absolute Tier—S—and beyond.
So why…
"… Why is a mere human displaying such power?!"
The Dragon appeared confused, and it genuinely was.
Even for three-horned ones such as itself, S-Tier Skills were very rare.
It only had one, which was the bare minimum for a Dragon of its caliber.
'To think my foe would have an S-Tier Skill and even an SS-Tier one…!'
It was unbelievable, to say the least.
Initially, it had desired to take its sweet time devouring its prey, but now… now it knew better.
'I'll have to kill this one fast!'
"Lucielle, NOW!" Adonis roared as he took his own step forward.
The Grand Mage took action and darted towards the prisoner—
Head Warrior Brutus—while Adonis charged forth to the Dragon.
The entire area shook as these simultaneous actions were taken, and the Dragon watched all of this with a deep frown on its face.
'Tch! I'll deal with that woman later. For now, I should focus on this human!'
Dragons had the natural ability to see how strong a person's Skill was.
They had a deep bond to Mana, and the laws of the world they lived in.
They were the closest to nature—the strongest beings to exist in this world.
They were the very pinnacle.
Seeing Adonis charge towards it, the Dragon only had one thought.
'I must destroy him!'
********
~WHOOOSH!~
Adonis flowed, easily traversing the distance that existed between him and the enemy he had to defeat.
It didn't matter that the power he wielded now was subpar, compared to its full potential.
It didn't matter that it wasn't going to last forever, and currently knew nothing about his enemy.
It didn't even matter that he was already feeling the strain on him.
What mattered was one thing.
'Right here, right now… I MUST KILL IT!'
~BOOOOOMMM!!~
The area reverberated, trembling as Adonis finally swung his blade for the first time after reaching the very front of the Dragon.
The Divine Sword bypassed all defenses, so it could not be blocked against.
If the Dragon Commander attempted to raise a defense, it would all be over.
Adonis made sure to move his muscles as hard as he could, aiming for the head as he swung his shiny blade.
He desperately prayed to make contact.
Unfortunately…
~WHUSH!~
… His prayers were declined.
'A-ahh!'
Adonis couldn't see the Dragon Commander in front of him any longer.
Instead, an overwhelming wave of bloodlust rushed to him from behind.
It was at this moment that Adonis knew…
'H-he teleported behind me!'
… About how impossible his opponent would be.
~BOOOOOOM!!!~
A blast of destruction radiated all around the area where Adonis and the Dragon stood, causing everything around them
—the unstable ground especially—to shatter apart.
Both opponents found themselves sliding across the debris, creating distance between themselves once again.
"Haaa…" A heavy breath proceeded from Adonis' lips.
He recognized how close he had come to dying a few seconds before.
'If I didn't use Light Magic to send my body into overdrive and recoil right behind him… his attack would have connected.'
Thankfully, he was able to land in the direction closest to his friends.
'I can't let that thing get close to them!'
Dragons were very twisted creatures. His friends could be used as hostages, or even killed in the most brutal way to break his fighting spirit.
'I can't allow that!'
A massive cloud of smoke existed between them, but Adonis clenched his blade tightly and focused on sensing even the slightest change in his environment.
His enemy was one who could teleport.
'I can't be too careless!'
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Thanks for reading!
