Ju’Nero’s smirk widened as Draven’s lightning-infused strike soared through the air. With a flash of movement too fast for the eye to track, he ducked under the horizontal slash, the crackling energy missing him by mere inches.
Before Draven could adjust, Ju’Nero’s leg shot forward in a devastating kick, the force of it sending a shockwave through the air. The impact hit Draven square in the chest, a sickening CRACK echoing across the battlefield.
Draven’s body was launched backward, his armor scale shattering as his breath was violently knocked out of him. Blood spurted from his mouth as his body was sent flying, tumbling end over end across the desert sand, until he slammed into the jagged rocks far in the distance, and massive cracks ripple out and it shattered.
He fell to his knees, gasping as he used his greatsword as a sort of crutch to support himself. “Foolish insect,” Ju’Nero said, brushing his hands as if he had simply swatted away a fly. Mar’Garet screamed in fury, her eyes wide with anger as she saw Draven struggle. But before she could charge toward Ju’Nero again, the wound in her abdomen, a deep gash from his previous claw stroke, flared with pain.
She staggered, clutching her side as blood dripped down her fingers. Her anger intensified, but her rational mind still held on just enough to know she needed to mend herself.
With a fierce growl, she shattered the Law of Reality, her body snapping back together, the shredded skin and torn muscles repaired themselves instantly.
The blood stopped flowing from her wounds, the gash closing, and the lingering pain slowly faded away as she stood on her feet.
She spun around, eyes now fixed on Alister. He was still on the ground, struggling to rise, blood coating his scales, the attack he was slammed with earlier must have really done a number on him, but that alone shouldn’t be enough to keep him down like that.
Ignoring everything else, she rushed to him, her feet kicking up the sand as she moved faster than ever before.
Her breathing was erratic, her hands trembling as she reached him. Her eyes were wide with panic as she knelt beside him, her hands hovering over his bloodied body.
“My Lord! My Lord, are you okay?” she whispered desperately, her voice trembling. She touched his shoulder gently, her eyes filled with frantic concern.
Alister, still gasping for air, managed to raise a hand, resting it lightly on her arm. His voice was ragged but calm as he spoke.
“Mar’Garet… focus. We need to get out of here. This isn’t a fight we can win.”
Her eyes flashed with disbelief, her grip tightening around his arm. “What do you mean? We can still fight! We-“
“No,” Alister cut her off softly, but firmly. “We’re not going to win this. Not against him. We have to think of a way out. We can’t stay here and keep throwing ourselves at him. He’s too strong.”
Mar’Garet stared at him, a look of anger on her face. She clenched her fists, her breath ragged. Her mind was racing, torn between the need to protect him and the truth of his words.
Alister slowly pushed himself up, his body trembling slightly as he stood tall. His breathing was labored, but he managed to speak. “I’m fine, Mar’Garet. My wounds… they’re already healing.”
As he spoke, steam began to rise from his wounds with a sizzle as the exposed skin started knitting itself back together, scales growing over the healing flesh. The pain dulled and faded until it was completely gone.
Mar’Garet watched with wide eyes, her worry slowly shifting to awe. She still reached out to him, but Alister stopped her with a gentle shake of his head. “Go,” he said. “Join the others. I need to think of a way out of here, but I can’t do that with you standing by me. I need you to fight ans keep him distracted.”
She hesitated for a moment, a look of concern still in her eyes, but her resolve soon returned. She understood. Without another word, she outstretched her hand. Her spear that was sent flying out of her grasp earlier, suddenly lifted from the ground and flew to her hand. The weapon vibrated with power as she gripped it tightly.
With a primal roar, Mar’Garet charged forward toward Ju’Nero. The ground shook beneath her with every step, the air around her crackling with mana as she prepared to face him.
Meanwhile, Alister’s attention turned inward. He closed his eyes and called out to the system. ‘System, open the Dragon God Treasury. I need items related to dimensional transport. Now.’ The air around him seemed to vibrate with streaks of energy as the dragon generals battled while he waited for the system to respond.
The response came swiftly, but not as he hoped.
[No such items exist.]
Frustration bubbled inside him, but he held his composure. He wasn’t giving up yet. “What about dimensional teleportation?” he asked.
[No items related to dimensional teleportation exist.]
Alister cursed under his breath. There had to be a way out. He quickly rephrased his question, “Dimensional splitting. Is there anything like that?”
This time, the system responded with a list, three items appearing before his eyes.
His eyes scanned them quickly, but the sight of the massive prestige point values made his stomach churn.
1. Abyssal Riftblade – A sword that claims to slice through the fabric of space, allowing the wielder to sever the boundaries between worlds.
However, its success rate for creating rifts was unknown, and it required immense mastery over the void to use.
710,000. prestige points.
2. Voidsever Edge – A weapon designed to split the very essence of dimensions, but it was highly unstable and could result in catastrophic energy feedback.
711,000 prestige points.
3. Dimensional Cleaver – A massive sword that can cleave through realities themselves, though it comes with the warning that misuse could erase the wielder from existence entirely.
702,000 prestige points.
Each of the items was a sword, each starting at a staggering 700,000 prestige points.
His heart sank as he checked his balance. 321,000 prestige points…
He sighed in frustration, knowing that there was no way he could afford any of these items.
Alister felt the despair settle over him. None of these weapons offered a guaranteed way back to his planet. The risks were high, and the chances of success were slim at best. Was he truly
trapped here?
Suddenly, a voice sounded behind him, startling him out of his thoughts.
“That is the whole point of this, no?” the voice said, smooth and taunting. “It would be boring if there were alternate solutions.”
Alister stiffened as the voice echoed in his ears, his instincts immediately on high alert. He turned around, his eyes narrowing when he saw the towering figure standing before him. Ju’Nero, the massive black-furred wolf-man, looked down at him with an almost amused expression, his sharp red eyes gleaming, with his massive claws and fangs glinting menacingly in the sun light.
“You,” Ju’Nero’s voice rumbled like thunder, “Are you not supposed to be a dragon? An Overlord?” His grin widened, mocking. “You’re much smaller than I expected.”
Before Alister could react, Ju’Nero swung a colossal fist into his abdomen. The sheer force of the blow was enough to knock the air from Alister’s lungs, sending him flying backward with bone-shattering force.
His body collided with the desert sands, creating a massive impact crater, sending a
shockwave through the earth.
But Alister didn’t stay down. He fought through the pain, digging his claws into the earth, as
he remained on his feet.
Ju’Nero, unfazed, slowly advanced through the dust, his wolf eyes gleaming as he watched the dust swirl. His voice echoed across the battlefield. “Are you going to take the coward’s way out? To run away?” He let out a low, mocking chuckle.
“I thought dragons were beings of immense strength and pride. It seems I was wrong.’
Alister, his chest heaving as he recovered from the blow, narrowed his eyes. He wiped the blood from his mouth, gritting while looking up at Ju’Nero with defiance. “What good does pride do you when you’re dead?” His voice was strained, but there was a sharp edge to it.
Ju’Nero’s smile never faltered as he took another step closer. “It helps them hold their head up high in the afterlife… Isn’t that something you dragons used to say?” he said mockingly. “Fact, if I remember correctly, you dragons always have this arrogance about you, don’t you? Always so sure of your superiority, your strength. But here you are, just like all the others. A dragon with nothing but broken wings.”
Alister’s eyes narrowed. The wolf-man’s words were a taunt, a challenge meant to provoke him, to break him down, but Alister wasn’t so easily swayed.
He had faced hell before. He had been forced to survive, to adapt, to overcome. He was no stranger to pain. But this… this was different. This was not a fight he could win. The air around them seemed to grow heavy as Ju’Nero continued to close the distance.
Each step he took sent ripples through the sand, his eyes fixed on Alister with a predator’s
hunger.