Dragons—they were the beings that only appeared in legends. It was hard to tell whether they really existed or if their existence was imaginary through some aspiring storytellers’ imaginative tales. Regardless of how they came to be known, the fame of these unseen mythical creatures was astounding.
In stories, dragons played many roles at once. They played villains who tormented people, wise teachers who provided guidance and advice, or companions who fought alongside the main character. The image of this versatile creature naturally brought forth admiration from all around the world, and numerous royals and nobles with dragons in their insignias. Thus, people were especially shocked when a dragon first appeared on a battlefield.
Furthermore, when the dragon’s strength was as exactly as they had imagined, they shuddered with fear. They feared that they would soon become nameless extras that the dragons annihilated in the stories they read. A dragon was a great catastrophe beyond the reach of most humans. Yet, this dragon was falling from the sky with a fountain of blood spurting from its chest. Some thought they were dreaming. Perhaps, the dragon would regain its balance in the next moment and mock them for falling prey to its tricks and let out another one of those terrifying breaths.
The onlookers’ thoughts ran wild, but fortunately, their imaginations didn’t become reality. Baaam! A loud collision sounded as the dragon hit the ground, and dust scattered in the air. Everyone subconsciously took a step back. Soon, the sound and cloud of dust settled down, and all that remained was the dragon’s gigantic body that stayed inside the hole it made with its bodyweight. Its wings, which had appeared large enough to cover the sky, drooped, and its fiery face that spewed fire and hands that called forth magic didn’t move.
One by one, people started to realize that their suspicions had turned into expectations, and their expectations turned into happiness. Finally, their happiness turned into a celebration. Nobody knew who started it or if everyone had started at the same time, but one thing was clear: everyone standing on that battlefield was screaming their heart out.
Waaaaaaaaaaaaah! They saw a legend before their eyes and also witnessed its fall. They couldn’t see clearly from so far away, but they had seen white and black mana collide against the dragon, and the dragon crashed after that. With just that, people could piece together what had happened. When an evil dragon appeared in stories, another figure was bound to appear at the same time. Another legend had appeared to overthrow the dragon: a dragon slayer. Right now, they were witnessing the birth of another unbelievable existence.
The dragon breathed its last breath on the ground, and its heart stopped beating accordingly. There was no way the dragon could move on its own now.
Splurt! The giant wound inside the dragon’s chest flinched, and Zich crawled out of it. Zich was standing quite high up because of the dragon’s sheer size, and when he freed himself from the dragon’s wound completely, his body fell to the ground.
Thud! His body rolled on the floor. It almost appeared as if a human corpse was next to the dragon’s corpse. However, unlike the dragon, Zich staggered to stand up.
“Kah, ptui!” He spat out a mouthful of dragon blood. A dragon’s blood was disgusting—no, who would say blood was tasty besides Joachim from his pre-regression days?
‘In legends, dragon blood is known as miracle medicine that can save the dying, but there isn’t much to it now that I’ve tried it,’ Zich thought. Blood was still spewing out of his severed arm and broken finger; there didn’t seem to be any change in his mana either. Although Zich finally found a difference between a real dragon and the ones from legends, he was disappointed. One reason why he crazily rushed forward at the dragon was because he hoped that its blood would heal his injuries. It really was disappointing.
“Sir Zich!” Lubella was rushing to him while Weig carried her. When she arrived right next to him, she started healing his injuries. Even Zich felt pain when one of his arms was missing, and his hand was twisted, yet with Lubella’s holy power, he felt less pain in his body. Injuries that could have taken his life if left untreated began to constrict.
“Huh? What’s this…?” Lubella spotted The Key That Distorts Destiny that had disappeared into one of Zich’s fingers, and she looked confused. “I’m sorry Sir Zich, but it seems I have to cut off one of your fingers. There’s a foreign substance inside it. Usually, these things naturally seep out during the healing process…”
Zich stopped Lubella from calling Weig to help her.
“It’s fine. It’s not a foreign substance. Rather, I will call it my trump card.”
“Is that so?” Lubella accepted Zich’s explanation. No wonder it didn’t come out even though she was using her holy power. Thus, Lubella focused on healing again. As she did so, Zich’s companions gathered around him one by one.
“Are you all right… no, you clearly look like you aren’t.” Weig was the second person to come running after Hans, and he could tell that Zich's condition wasn’t great. Zich’s body was tattered to the limit and the word, ‘all right,’ didn’t fit its description in any shape or form.
“I’ll soon be fine, and if I didn’t go this far, I wouldn’t have been able to defeat the dragon.” Zich punched the dragon with his fist. Hans and the others who had approached Zich with concern all moved their gaze toward the dragon’s corpse.
“…You really defeated it.” Hans couldn’t help but feel awed. He hadn’t had the leisure to think much about the dragon’s size while risking his life, but now that the battle was finally over, the dragon’s gigantic size amazed him. Moreover, the dragon’s overwhelming power was truly astounding.
“Yeah, we defeated it, so be as happy as you want. Dragon slayer—you became someone who only comes out in legends.”
Dragon slayer. As soon as he heard these words, Hans felt a chill down his spine. Dragon slayers only appeared in legends and novels. It wasn’t just a matter of ability; one could only receive this title after defeating a dragon, but there were no more dragons in this world. Occasionally, some people claimed that they defeated a dragon, but they were all cons and swindlers. However, all the people here could use this grand title now that they had defeated a dragon.
“Really, a dragon slayer. Hahaha, it’s really a majestic title! Aren’t you the one who mainly fought with the dragon?”
Hans felt his excitement sink at Walwiss’ words. Walwiss was right. Zich was the one who fought head-on with the dragon; all they had done was support Zich.
Zich replied, “I couldn’t have done it alone. The only reason why we were able to win was because we all gathered our strengths and endured its final attack.”
Anyone could see that the dragon’s weakness was its chest after it let out its special breath attack, and the dragon’s heart was inside its chest. Zich had aimed for this area. Everyone first worked together to block the dragon’s special breath, and Chelsea only focused on healing Zich so that Zich could immediately move after the dragon let out its breath.
Walwiss said, “Yeah, that’s true. When the breath lasted longer than we expected, I thought it really was all over…”
However they successfully blocked the dragon’s breath in the end, and Zich immediately threw Estellade and Tornium at the dragon. While the dragon lowered its guard after realizing that Zich was absent, he appeared in front of the dragon and grabbed Estellade and Tornium again. It was then that Zich made his fatal attack.
Walwiss said, “That item of yours was very useful.”
Zich replied, “It’s Lyla’s. She gave it to me before I left.” Zich rubbed the necklace on his neck. It was an artifact that allowed one to teleport. Before they separated, Lyla had given it to him, and this artifact played a crucial role in their victory.
Even though it was extremely helpful during battle, Zich had kept it hidden until the very last moment. When Hans and Snoc had fallen into danger, Zich thought about using the artifact. However, even if he used the artifact, he wouldn’t have been able to save them from danger. In the end, this artifact had led them to victory.
“Even so, I can’t believe we really managed to defeat a dragon.” Weig shook his head as if he couldn’t believe it.
“Mr. Zich, you used that strange power again.” Til looked at Zich with respect as he witnessed the same power that Zich used when he easily annihilated hordes of monsters. “I didn’t think you'd be able to directly confront a dragon.”
“Didn’t you see what happened? Even I can’t directly face a dragon by myself.”
“What you did was sufficient enough to say that you directly confronted a dragon by yourself.” Who in the world could fight on equal footing with a legendary dragon? In his view, Zich was like the heroes that appeared in legends.
“It’s over.” Lubella moved her hands away. No wounds were left on Zich’s body—only his bloody and tattered clothes showed any signs of a fierce battle.
Lubella said, “If you feel uncomfortable in any way, please tell me immediately. Since you were injured by a dragon, I might have missed some areas to treat you.” Dragon curses were frequent and famous in novels. Zich might have received damage that even the Karuwiman Saintess failed to catch.
“I’ll keep that in mind. Have you finished treating the others?”
“I already finished while you were cutting off the dragon’s head.”
“That’s good news.” Zich nodded. Mihen and the other Steelwall knights stood a short distance away. Their faces were full of joy. They attach their names next to a legendary dragon slayer, and their lord’s son had faced the dragon by himself.
“Sir Tiner.”
“Yes, young master!” Mihen immediately ran to Zich at his calling.
“I guess we can say that the war is over.”
“Yes, of course! The allied forces are completely scattered! They probably won’t be able to gather their troops together, and even if they can, there’s no future for them!” The Karuwimans had taken the Steelwalls’ side and branded the allied forces as Bellid collaborators. Moreover, they had a legendary dragon slayer in their midst. Whether it was the allied forces or anyone else, the Steelwalls could easily trample their enemies.
Zich said, “So you won’t need me anymore.”
Mihen looked startled. “I-is something the matter?”
“I need to check something. Urgently.” Zich’s eyes darted toward Lyla’s location in the Clowon ruins.