Chapter 33:
Fight to the Finish
A-an elder dragon…
Thanks to the dragon speaking, Mile now realized the truth as well.
There’s no way we can beat it! Elder dragons have twice my strength, twice my magical power, and are smarter than any human! There’s no way we could!
For a short time now, she hadn’t moved at all. The nanomachines had heard Mile’s unconscious cry of distress and were currently in the process of performing an emergency healing, but it would take a bit more time before she was able to move.
If her bones had been merely broken, the healing would have been incredibly fast, perhaps even instantaneous. However, bone fragments had torn her muscles and organs to shreds so repairing her would take that much longer.
The greatest problem of all, though, more painful than broken bones, was that Mile’s heart was broken.
Since she had first learned of her own strength, Mile hadn’t once felt truly in danger. Even up against bandits or powerful monsters, she would think, If it comes down to it, I just have to get serious. I’ll be fine —and that was true. Therefore, she had always had plenty of leeway and went about her days carefree.
But now, her life was in true, mortal peril. She was up against an elder dragon, an unbeatable foe.
Despair and defeat consumed her.
The wheels in her head were refusing to turn. She couldn’t think. As the creature of nightmare approached, prepared to visit death upon her, she could do naught but watch helplessly, paralyzed with unimaginable pain, waiting for the end to come…
“Aaaaaaaaarrrhhh!!!”
As the elder dragon plodded towards Mile, Mavis rushed in. She struck the monster with the literal limits of her power and might.
Thwack!
However, even this mighty blow did nothing more than scratch the dragon’s hide.
“Oho, scratched my scales, did you? You’re a formidable one. However…” With a swing of its arm, the dragon flicked Mavis away. “Know your place, whelp!”
Just like Mile, Mavis was sent crashing into the ruins and collapsed into a heap. Unlike Mile, however, she hadn’t taken a powerful blow from the dragon’s tail. It had been a mere flick of its hand, so her injuries weren’t fatal. Even so, she was in no shape to move.
By then, Reina and Pauline had gotten to their feet and were preparing a second round of spells. Even after seeing what happened to Mavis, they had no intention of stopping.
There were just some things that took priority over others. Now wasn’t the time to waste carefully incanted spells or precious seconds on futile things like calling out Mavis’s name in worry.
Finally, their spells were complete.
“Blaze, O flames of Hell! Burn my enemies down to the bone!”
If the dragon was going to repel her spell, Reina would just have to surround it. For this, she used an area-attack fire spell, her specialty.
Fwooosh!
“Wh…”
The dragon didn’t even look Reina’s way. The whorl of flame that was set to envelope the dragon merely vanished, as though it was nothing.
“Rocks, show me your truest form!”
By nature, Pauline wasn’t the type of mage to cast a powerful spell or simply pull together an incantation on the spot. So without the blessing of a surplus of time, she couldn’t use powerful attack magic.
However, the elder dragon was utterly ignoring both her and Reina. It had deemed them non-threats, unable to harm it and unworthy of its time.
Therefore, there was a spell that Pauline could use.
Judging by what had happened so far, it was clear that any magic would vanish before it struck or deal no damage even if it did. However, Mavis’s sword had damaged its scales, even if only to the faintest degree. Thus, this was the only spell she could use.
It was one Mile had devised especially for Pauline, who was weak when it came to combat magic:
“We need to think of a special move for you, Pauline! In case you’re in a spot where ice magic, which is your specialty, doesn’t have enough physical strength for what you need to do. This is a last-ditch magic, for when your chances of victory and survival are at zero. Let’s call this ‘Zero-Zero Magic’!”
Mile had taught her rock sculptures weren’t made by humans. Rocks held whatever forms were within them all along; humans merely came along and chipped away the excess parts, to reveal what was hidden inside.
Therefore, she just had to request the rock to reveal its true form.
“Zero-Zero Magic No. 1, Rock Reveal!”
Suddenly, rubble began to tumble from a two-meter-high slab amongst the ruins. Bit by bit, its form changed. Beneath the rubble was…
A structure two meters in length. It resembled a spear but was the same thickness from tip to end. It spiraled and twisted, much like a screw.
Were someone from Mile’s previous life to view it, there was no doubt they would have uttered to themselves, “Oh, a drill…”
“Turn, turn! As a wagon axle turns, as a cyclone swirls! Use your power, and pierce my enemy! Shoooooot!”
Ka-shunk!
“Graaaaaaaaarrrh!”
Granted ballistic stability from its rotation, just as Pauline directed, the drill shot straight into the elder dragon’s flank. The hard and sturdy rock of the ruins withstood the initial shock of striking the dragon’s mass. Combined with the kinetic energy of its own mass and the rotational force, it pierced the dragon’s scales, buried itself inside, and then shattered.
Even if the section that had been struck was relatively close to the surface, and even if the makeup of its body made it invulnerable to pain, even the elder dragon couldn’t withstand countless stone shards exploding within its body.
Normally, no one would be stupid enough to challenge an elder dragon, and even if they were, such a fool would never be able to wound it. Even if they knocked it down or struck its little toe with a tree, they would never cause an elder dragon to feel pain.
Which meant elder dragons were unaccustomed to pain. Weak to it. This particular one was exceptionally so.
“H-hyou bwastaaaaaards!!!”
The dragon bellowed in pain and rage at the humiliation of being wounded by a lesser life-form.
Then it took a deep breath.
Without a doubt, it was preparing a specialty of all its kind: Dragon’s Breath.
There was no time for Pauline, who had just finished firing a spell, or Reina, who was on the verge of finishing her next, to prepare any protection magic. Even if they had, any spell they could muster would be as tough as wet tissue against dragon fire.
The moment they saw the crimson flames blazing in the dragon’s wide-open mouth, the two knew death was coming for them.
“Father, everyone…I’m so sorry…”
“All I wanted was to be with Alan and mother, and together we could…”
“Magic Shield!!!”
Dr. Clairia stepped into the fray. She had prepared her strongest protection spell and held it in waiting. Now, she channeled all her magical energy into an expansive shield. Even so, it wouldn’t have held back an elder dragon’s breath at full strength. Thankfully, this attack had been weak.
And of course it was weak. No matter how angry the dragon was, you wouldn’t use a bomb to kill a mouse. There was also the fact that the dragon was unaware that amongst its opponents was an elf, a race far more skilled with magic than humans.
However, though the shield protected against the core of the breath attack—the flames and the heat—they still took the force head-on. The three of them were sent flying. Thankfully, they weren’t blasted into the ruins as the two before had been but still soared an impressive distance. They plummeted to the ground, unlikely to rise again soon. The elder dragon, having already lost interest in them, ignored the three ladies and began to stalk toward Mile once more.
Oh no! I have to save her…
From her position collapsed on the ground, Mavis had seen everything. Now she tried her best to pull herself to her feet, but because she had struck her head, and her bones and tendons were injured, none of her limbs would cooperate.
I know, the Micross! If I just use the Micross…
Even with that solution in mind, her arms would not work the way she willed them to. Bit by bit they inched toward her side, but she had almost no sensation in her fingers. She couldn’t find her pocket at all.
The elder dragon was already standing over Mile, reaching out its right arm.
No! I’m never gonna make it!
Just as Mavis plunged into despair, there was a sharp ringing in her ear. The sound gave her a strange sense of déjà vu…
Shiiiiiiing… Bang!!
“Gwaah!”
The elder dragon drew back its outstretched right arm in a panic, gripping its palm.
Mavis raised her eyes.
Could it be? If it was, then she would see, up in the sky…
And indeed, when Mavis looked up, she saw above her—
“Yahooo!”
—a girl about ten years old, shouting out. Beneath her, a familiar wyvern finished a drop attack and turned back to reascend.
“L-Lobreth!”
The singular reinforcement the region’s lord had sent out had now arrived.
Lobreth, flapping high in the sky, once more began an easy descent, likely to use his breath attack once again. However, this was incredibly reckless.
“This pitiful excuse for a dragon dares to challenge me…”
Viewing the wyvern as a foe who could cause harm, the elder dragon took a defensive stance. Just as Lobreth approached at a shallow angle, opening his mouth wide to prepare another blast of breath…
Boom!
A fireball burst from the elder dragon’s mouth.
This was nothing like the small flame it had fired toward Reina and the others; this was a true fireball, a sphere of searing death.
The high-velocity fireball smacked straight into Lobreth’s left wing. He crashed into the trees with a scream from the girl upon his back. The curtain had fallen on Lobreth’s performance just as quickly as it had risen.
However, those scant few moments weren’t for naught. Within that narrow window Lobreth and the girl had granted them, Mavis finally managed to find her pocket, seized one of the capsules inside, and flipped the lid open.
“I’m counting on you, Micross!”
Just as Mile taught her, she said a word of prayer, “to increase the effectiveness,” and gulped down everything inside. Every last drop.
“I can finish healing later. For now, I just need to focus my spirit, ignore the pain, and get this body moving! Let’s gooooooooo!!!”
Mavis fought with all her might to control her body, harnessing her own powerful spirit. As she believed she couldn’t use magic whatsoever, Mavis had no idea that what she was doing was, in fact, using healing magic.
As the pain vanished, and feeling and motion returned to her limbs, Mavis knew this didn’t mean her wounds were truly healed. It meant she had stopped feeling the pain. Her spiritual power supported her bones and ligaments to the lowest necessary degree. However, that was enough for her.
She drew another capsule from her pocket, the third that day.
Mile’s words ran through her head:
“Please only use one of these at a time. If you absolutely must, you can use just one more. However, if you do, please don’t push your body too far. When you use these, your muscles and ligaments will compensate to a fair degree, but eventually they won’t be able to keep up. If you overdo it, you’ll end up with fractured bones and torn ligaments. Your whole body will fall apart.
“And whatever you do, avoid using three or more at all costs. You should use only one, at most two, in a time of crisis—and in those moments you need to exercise the utmost caution. Got that? If you mess this up, you could end up dead!”
However, Mile had also taught Mavis a special spell that would smash through those rules, no matter how much Mile tried to warn her. As Mavis swallowed the contents of the third capsule, she uttered those words:
“To hell with that!”
Then, she took a fourth capsule, and a fifth, staring hard at them. Mavis borrowed a decisive phrase Mile used now and then:
“If this isn’t the time to use these, then when is?!”
And with that, she took the two last capsules.
Mavis’s short sword, her main weapon, had been thrown who knows where when the dragon sent her flying. All she had now was the sword she’d brought from home, previously broken and remade into a dagger by Mile. Smoothly, she drew her blade.
There was the faintest whisper… As the air around her began to stir, Mavis grinned.
“Looks like this will be our first real battle together. I’m sorry I’ve only used you for cooking up until now. This might be the first and last time we ever fight as a pair, but please, give me your all!”
A tremor seemed to run through the dagger.
Scrtch…
“Hm?”
Scrtch, scrtch, scrtch…
Beads of light flowed from the dagger’s blade. Then, upon it, a divine and brilliant, shining crest appeared.
“Is this your true form? Haha, never mind a dragon, I bet you could cut down a devil, or a god!”
It was the coating that had been applied to the blade to keep it from standing out and to dull the cutting edge. The nanomachines that clung to the dagger to maintain this coating had decided to remove it of their own volition.
Through many tearful days of misfortune, the nanomachines had heard Mile say those decisive words, too. Now they thought it to themselves:
IF NOW ISN’T THE TIME TO REMOVE THIS, THEN WHEN IS?!
If this knight was willing to put her life on the line for that girl, then they would aid her. This was the consensus of the nanomachines.
Mavis faced the elder dragon with this dagger in hand. She let out a battle cry.
For a short time, the elder dragon watched the trees, in case the wyvern had only pretended to fall and would try to send logs flying the elder dragon’s way. But when it showed no sign of that, once again the dragon turned back toward the girls.
It was well aware the human who had attacked it with a sword before was heading its way. But even in top form, she had barely scratched its scales. She had lost her main weapon and now relied on a tiny, back-up blade. Plus, with her body still battered, there was no way she could do any harm.
Knowing this, the dragon allowed her to attack as she pleased.
It could easily have brushed her away with claw or tail, but allowing her to attack, allowing her to see she couldn’t so much as wound it, would reinforce the futility and despair, as well as the fear of elder dragons that made them so legendary.
And so, the dragon struck a pose that let the girl know that while it knew she approached, it was completely ignoring her. It wouldn’t even realize she had landed an attack. But then…
Stab.
“…Hm?”
The elder dragon froze.
“Hm? Huh? Wha…?” It was in such shock, its brain couldn’t make the connection. It didn’t even feel much pain.
Something had pierced its side, through tough scales and powerful hide, far deeper than the few inches the drill had managed. Only when it felt a red-hot, searing sensation coursing through its side did the dragon stop staring, dumbfounded.
“Grr-raaaaaaaaaaaah!!”
With all her might, Mavis attempted to move the blade.
Learning from earlier failures, she hadn’t tried to slice through. Instead she buried the blade deep into the dragon’s flesh, so far that with another inch, the hilt would be engulfed.
From there, she had to move the blade again, but moving it from a dead stop would take tremendous strength; moving it after it had already pierced not only the tough hide and scales but the peritoneum and outer muscles, as well, was a high hurdle indeed.
If she only had to pull it straight out, it would have been comparatively easy. However, never minding the difference in their sizes meant targeting the dragon’s heart was impossible, inflicting a large gash would cause the dragon far more damage, she thought. Whether her intuition was correct, she couldn’t know.
“Nghhhhhhh…”
Mavis mustered all her strength to pull the blade sideways. Finally, with a crunch, she felt it move, just a little.
When she gave even more power, she felt it drag. Yes, it was definitely moving!
“Raaaaaaaaahh…!”
Rip.
From somewhere within Mavis’s body, there was an unpleasant sound.
Rip, riiiiiiip…
Snap!
“Gaah!”
Snap. Crackle. Rip. Pop!
“Waaaaaaaah!!”
“Graaaaaaaah!!”
Lagging behind a beat, the elder dragon, staring at the knife ripping through its belly, began to feel the pain. In a frenzy, it sent Mavis flying with its claw again. This time, she landed close to Reina and the others.
The other three had thankfully not lost consciousness, so they had managed to crawl behind a stone wall and heal each other with magic. When Mavis, seriously injured, was cast their way, they rushed out. All three concentrated their healing magic on her. Without paying sufficient attention to the elder dragon.
“Y-you measly humans…”
The elder dragon had managed to stop the bleeding from the wound in its gut with its own magic, but of course the wound itself didn’t instantly recover. Outside of Mile, and Pauline, who had received her instruction, the only ones who could use such rapid healing magic were the Wonder Trio.
The dragon glared at the fallen Mavis, as well as the other three. It opened its mouth wide, drew in a great breath, and quickly, along with a bright flame…
Bam!
Ka-boom~!
It looked at the sky and fired the blast.
A rock had struck it in the face at the last second, forcing the elder dragon to change the direction it was facing.
“Who dares?!”
The dragon turned, froth and saliva dripping from its mouth in anger. Before it stood Mile, her armor, clothes, and hair in shambles. Just like the dragon, she trembled and seethed in anger, her stance imposing.
“Guess what?” she thrust her index finger forward and shouted at the dragon. “Now, you’ve made me really angry!”
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