Chapter 315: Submission
"Among wizards, there were pathetic specimens like Lockhart, and supremely powerful beings like Dumbledore who seemed to command magic at its very source."
Dragons followed the same pattern.
The strength differences between individuals proved extremely vast. Among the six dragons in Sean's competition arena, the Swedish Short-Snout ranked as the weakest, while the Crimson Fireball was undoubtedly the strongest, its power far exceeding the other five dragons combined.
Watching the Crimson Fireball move at extreme speed like a golden-red afterimage, Sean nodded with grudging appreciation. He had heard tales of individuals called Dragon Kings among dragon populations – not only did they grow extremely fast, but their physical strength and the flames they breathed surpassed other dragons by enormous margins.
Dragon Kings appeared randomly in dragon populations across generations. This Crimson Fireball still fell short of true Dragon King status, but it definitely possessed that potential, with strength several levels above its companions.
Sean had originally thought he wouldn't need to act personally. Four against two should surely result in victory. But now it seemed that, far from winning, his four dragons would soon face defeat in their two-on-two battle.
"Leave the Crimson Fireball to me; you deal with the Hungarian Horntail!" Sean called out.
The Hungarian Horntail was also formidable, but within the range of normal dragon power, unlike this absurdly powerful Crimson Fireball.
Whoosh...
Sean leaped down from the Australian Opaleye's head, charging directly toward the Crimson Fireball with supernatural speed.
Seeing Sean abandon his mount, the Crimson Fireball transformed into an afterimage once more, pouncing at him with deadly intent. The dragon had already deduced that this human wizard served as the mastermind controlling these other dragons. Eliminate the human, and the dragons would naturally scatter without leadership.
The Crimson Fireball's tactical thinking proved remarkably clear.
When it saw Sean jump from the Australian Opaleye, the Crimson Fireball assumed the human was committing suicide, and naturally wouldn't miss such an excellent opportunity.
Dragon scales and hide contained ancient magic, granting them magical resistance among the highest of all magical creatures. This explained why the Conjunctivitis Curse represented the optimal method for battling dragons. First, dragons became much easier to handle when blinded. Second, without the protection of scales and hide, dragon eyes possessed minimal magical resistance.
However, this Crimson Fireball moved with extraordinary speed. When dragon handlers had originally captured it, numerous wizards working together had required massive Transfiguration spells to succeed. Rather than relying on magic, Sean knew physical methods would prove more effective.
Bang!
The Crimson Fireball collided with the falling Sean, causing the outside audience to cry out in alarm.
However, the five judges didn't halt the competition, because through Sean's number 2 mark they could monitor his condition, which registered as completely normal with no immediate danger. Though they remained surprised that Sean could maintain such a healthy status under these extreme circumstances.
Bang bang bang...
Sean clung to the Crimson Fireball like a determined gecko, one hand gripping the dragon's surface scales while the other delivered continuous punches, striking the creature's chest and belly repeatedly. The dragon attempted to claw Sean from its body, but found itself helpless. Sean moved like an extremely troublesome parasite, constantly shifting positions across the Crimson Fireball's hide while delivering punch after devastating punch, making it roar continuously in frustration.
Whoosh...
Seeing it couldn't tear Sean from its body, the Crimson Fireball suddenly dived toward the ground. Before Sean could react, the dragon scraped past a barren mountain below, slamming Sean against the rocky peak and knocking him loose.
But Sean's reflexes proved lightning-quick. He immediately grabbed the Crimson Fireball's tail and rose with the dragon again. Gripping the appendage, he vaulted onto the creature's back, seizing the spikes along its spine before resuming his relentless assault, targeting the sensitive wing joints with calculated precision.
"Roar..."
Crying out in pain, the Crimson Fireball ignored everything else and breathed massive torrents of fire, spreading the flames rapidly around its entire body like bathing in an inferno, attempting to wash Sean away with pure heat.
Seeing the spreading flames, Sean reached for his wand with practised efficiency.
"Frost Domain!"
Extreme cold spread instantly across the battlefield.
The flames dissipated quickly under the intense magical cold, and the Crimson Fireball's body, especially its wings, became rapidly frozen, unable to continue flying. The dragon plummeted straight down like a stone.
Fortunately, because the Crimson Fireball had wanted to repeat its earlier low-altitude tactic of knocking Sean against the mountainside, it hadn't been flying at great height. Otherwise, this fall alone would have killed the dragon completely.
Boom!
The Crimson Fireball crashed through a small mountain peak, then struck the mountainside, rolling continuously until it reached the valley floor in a cascade of broken stone and displaced earth.
Sean landed on nearby solid ground, having leapt clear when the dragon first struck the peak.
Dust from the Fireball's devastating crash gradually settled across the landscape.
The dragon climbed up from the debris once more, but compared to its earlier majesty, the Crimson Fireball now sported a broken wing that dragged uselessly beside its body, completely unable to support flight.
Seeing the Crimson Fireball could no longer take to the air, Sean showed no mercy and charged forward again.
Both combatants collided in ground combat, fists and claws striking each other continuously. But dragons were naturally large, while Sean remained smaller, and his agility and speed, inherited from werewolf abilities proved considerably higher than draconic reflexes. Now fighting on solid ground rather than in aerial combat, Sean had sufficient footing, allowing him to quickly suppress the Crimson Fireball and dominate the brutal melee.
"Submit! Submit! Submit..." Sean demanded between powerful blows.
"Roar..." The Crimson Fireball's response carried defiant fury.
This dragon possessed willpower stronger than its physical might and absolutely refused to submit to Sean's dominance.
Dragons could understand human speech. Sean didn't know if dragons in his remembered magical world possessed such intelligence, but in this world, this reality he now inhabited, the dragons here definitely could comprehend spoken language.
So the Crimson Fireball before him had no problem understanding Sean's words. It truly preferred death to submission, displaying the proud spirit that made dragons legendary.
Seeing this unyielding defiance, Sean looked at the Crimson Fireball with genuine regret. The dragon's abnormal strength had naturally put him on alert and made him suspect the meaning behind its placement in his specific competition arena.
Taking a step forward, Sean prepared to eliminate this magnificent but dangerous opponent completely.
But just then, as Sean raised his fist for the killing blow, something changed in the dragon's expression. The Crimson Fireball's eyes widened as it seemed to truly perceive Sean for the first time, seeing past the human exterior to the deeper magical nature beneath. The aura of the White Serpent King, the predatory essence of an apex magical creature that had conquered death itself, finally penetrated the dragon's pain and fury.
Recognition blazed in those ancient eyes. This was no mere wizard wielding borrowed power, but something far more primal and dangerous.
With a sound like distant thunder, the Crimson Fireball suddenly prostrated itself completely on the ground, expressing absolute submission to Sean's undeniable dominance.
The most powerful dragon in the arena had finally acknowledged its master.