The cavern felt like a loaded weapon.
Everything was quiet—but not calm. The air was heavy, thick with energy. Runes carved into the walls hummed faintly. Glowing crystals above gave off flickering light—purple, green, and blue—that made the room feel even more strange and alive.
John didn't move.
He could feel the dragon in front of him… waking up.
The Primordial Black Dragon.
Something ancient. Dangerous. Angry.
The ground gave a light shake. Dust began to fall from the ceiling. The air turned harder to breathe, like it was pressing down on his chest.
Tony stepped back without thinking. "It's… waking up," he whispered, voice shaky.
John kept his eyes on the beast.
'I have to stay calm. No mistakes.'
He slowed his breathing. Focused everything on the dragon.
The huge creature uncurled itself slowly. Its massive body stretched out, black scales catching the flickering light. Its eyes opened—bright violet and full of power.
And those eyes locked onto John.
---
Tony and Eccaruss had already left John all alone in front of the dragon. Right now, they stood at the edge of the cavern.
'This is going to be hard,' John thought.
After that, he began to think about how to face this thing.
'Fighting with space and time element is out of the question, these elements will dry my origin pool faster. I will have to use different elements in this fight. Even though they will be less effective, long-term damage could do the trick.'
John took a deep breath and pushed upward.
Wind exploded beneath him.
He flew into the air, wings of wind forming behind his back. His body floated high above the dragon now, looking down from above.
The dragon followed him with its glowing eyes.
---
The dragon growled—a deep, low sound that made the entire cavern shake.
Then it opened its mouth.
A black ball of energy started building inside. It looked like a miniature star—dense, spinning, dangerous.
"Already going all out, huh."
John also didn't wait.
He raised his right hand and pointed toward the dragon's chest.
"Blaze Shot."
A fast line of fire shot from his palm like a bullet. It hit the dragon right in the chest. The scales there glowed red for a second.
The dragon flinched—but barely.
It didn't stop.
The black energy in its mouth grew bigger, thicker. It fired.
BOOM.
A massive blast flew toward John like a cannonball made of shadows.
He flew sharply to the left—barely dodging it. The blast hit the ceiling behind him, breaking a section of stone that crashed down into the pit below.
'Damn, this was too close.' John didn't think that this heavy firepower would be so fast. He almost got hit by it.
But John didn't waste time. He moved again, flying in a zigzag pattern.
From above, he shot hundreds of ice arrows—sharp and freezing—toward the dragon's wings.
They hit.
The dragon roared.
Not from pain, but from annoyance.
It swung its tail upward like a whip, aiming to knock John out of the air.
John dodged backward in time, wind spinning around him to push him higher.
"Lightning Pierce!"
From both hands, long bolts of electricity shot forward, cracking through the air with a loud snap.
The dragon raised one of its claws to block.
The lightning exploded against the scales, making sparks fly.
It worked—but only a little.
John flew in a wide arc, circling the dragon from above.
"Flame Spiral!" he called.
A large ring of fire formed in front of him and spun toward the dragon.
The fire hit the beast's side, burning its scales—but not deeply.
Smoke rose from the impact point, but the dragon was still standing strong.
The dragon turned fast, opened its wings, and leapt upward.
'It could fly too. Well, the cavern was too big so no surprise there.'
John's eyes narrowed.
'It's coming up… this just got worse.'
The dragon's wings flapped, and it lifted off the ground, stones breaking beneath it. Its body rose toward John, faster than expected.
John shot backward.
He raised both hands again.
"Ice Wall!"
A thick wall of ice formed between them in midair.
The dragon crashed through it like it was nothing, but the delay gave John a second to gain distance.
He spun around, flying faster, climbing higher.
Then he turned midair, fire and wind gathering in both palms.
"Elemental Burst!"
He threw twin balls of fire and wind downward. They exploded just before hitting the dragon's chest, causing a cloud of smoke and bright light.
But through the smoke, the dragon's roar echoed again.
It didn't fall.
It flew through the smoke cloud—angrily.
Its mouth opened again.
Another dark beam formed, this one wider.
John flew fast to the side, dodging it just in time, but the edge of the blast grazed his shoulder. His skin burned instantly.
'Damn. That's strong.' John flinched for a while, but ignoring the pain, he kept flying, using wind to push faster.
Then he raised his left hand toward the ceiling.
"Rainstorm!"
Tiny points of water magic formed above the dragon, like a floating cloud.
Then they dropped—hundreds of small, sharp spears of water falling down like a storm.
The dragon roared again, wings wrapping around itself to block.
It worked—for now.
But John didn't stop.
He shot another Thunder Strike down while the wings were still closed.
BAM!
This time, the dragon jerked midair. Smoke came off its wing.
It looked hurt.
But not weak.
---
Tony and Eccaruss Watching from Below
Tony was pacing. "He's pushing too hard! He's going to run out of energy before that thing even slows down!"
Eccaruss didn't speak right away.
He was watching closely.
Ever since John came to this world, Eccaruss had been watching him. Trying to figure out the energy John is using, but until now he can't figure it out. It wasn't mana—that he was sure of—but what other energy it could be, he wasn't sure.
Even now, Eccaruss can't see through it, which made him even more depressed. So he didn't hear what Tony just said—or he just ignored him completely.
---
John's breathing was rough now.
He had been flying for minutes. Firing spells. Dodging attacks.
But the dragon was still going. Still flying.
Still watching him.
'It's not tired at all. And I can't afford to get hit again.' John thought grimly.
He flew higher—nearly hitting the top of the cavern.
Below him, the dragon hovered, wings wide, mouth glowing again.
They were both breathing hard.
The cavern was filled with heat, smoke, and floating stone dust.
Parts of the ground had collapsed. Crystals had fallen. Runes were flickering weakly now, as if even the ancient magic in this place was struggling to keep up.
John narrowed his eyes.
'Okay. Time to switch tactics.'
But before he could make a move, the dragon fired again—this time three smaller blasts in a row.
John dodged left—then down—then spiraled outward, trying to get above the beast again.
Each blast shook the air like thunder.
His shoulder was bleeding. His energy was dropping. But his eyes stayed sharp.
"I haven't lost yet," John shouted loudly.
He raised his hand again.
"Starlight Beam!"
A focused blast of fire and light energy shot straight down, bright like the sun.
It hit the dragon's back.
BOOM!
This time, the dragon growled loudly—hurt, but angrier than before.
John panted while looking down.
'Still not enough… huh.'
They stared at each other midair, both floating, both burned, both out of breath.
But suddenly John smirked at the dragon, which confused the dragon a little, making it vigilant.
"Recovery."
TO BE CONTINUED…