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Countless magic bullets assaulted Tio and Uranus from all over the grotesque dragon's body. The two dragons, without slowing down, weaved through the curtain of projectiles that threatened to obscure their vision.
"Leave the small fry around here to me! You strike that one!!"
"Understood!"
As the distance to the horde of dragons closed to about 500 meters, Uranus sharply accelerated, cutting across the horde's path. Drawn by this, the smaller dragons that had been surrounding the grotesque dragon focused their attacks on Uranus, chasing after him and spewing breath attacks at his back. However, Uranus deftly dodged them with erratic aerial maneuvers.
"What pathetic breath attacks. Uranus, show them what a true 'dragon's' breath looks like."
"ROOOAAAR!!"
Uranus, changing his posture with a sharp turn, unleashed a breath of aurora from his maw. It easily swallowed the breath attacks of the smaller dragons and then swept through their ranks.
"We don't have time to waste on such weaklings. Let's finish this quickly, Uranus!!"
"KRROOOAAAAAH!!"
(Hmm, I can't get close.)
Tio circled the grotesque dragon, muttering to herself. All the while, an incessant storm of magic bullets assailed her. The closer she got, the clearer its immense size became. It must have been over 100 meters long. The grotesque sight of the creature, with eyeballs scattered across its body, constantly fixating on Tio no matter where she flew, evoked clear disgust and a hint of fear. The main body's movements were sluggish, but the magic bullets continuously fired from its gigantic form made close approach difficult.
(And while its main body is moving slightly, it doesn't feel very much like a living creature.)
Tio, who had been flying around the enormous body and had fired a breath attack at its back as a feint, noticed that while the hit area convulsed violently, the head didn't twitch at all. When she aimed for the face, it let out a faint cry, but conversely, no other parts of its body moved. If it were an undead or something similar, it wouldn't react to pain at all. This meant...
(At first, I thought it was some kind of synthetic dragon chimera made from human bodies, but it's just a collection of parts.)
A synthetic dragon chimera was typically created by incorporating various creatures' genes into a single organism, but this was different. Tio had initially thought it was a single dragon's body as a core, forcibly combined with human genes, but that wasn't the case. No dragon genes were used in that thing. It was merely a combination of apostle bodies and genes, formed into the shape of a dragon. In essence, it was a fleshy mass shaped like a dragon. That's why damage inflicted on one part didn't transmit to others. Because each component was a separate, independent living being, merely assembled together.
(This Spassfellow truly has a pleasant personality. To so thoroughly provoke us dragonkin...!)
Tio's dragonized face visibly contorted into a frown. She was, by her own and others' admission, an extreme masochist, but this was undeniably beyond her tolerance.
"Then I shall carve it off from the edges!!"
Tio threw her head back, and black flames swelled within her maw. Flames accumulated, threatening to spill, but Tio continued to intensify their heat.
(A half-hearted attack is meaningless against this body. Just breathing fire won't do. Condense it. Make it thin, long, with the image of a blade...!)
"GAAAH!"
What was unleashed then was a jet-black blade. A minuscule laser, about 50mm in diameter, pierced the sky. For a moment, it looked like a miss, but it wasn't. Because a blade is meant to be swung to cut down enemies. She then brought the jet-black blade straight down from its head. It cleanly sliced through the grotesque dragon's body from head to tail, burning it in two without any resistance. Tio was about to unleash a second attack with the returning blade, but suddenly felt a pain as if her throat had been slit, and her breath attack ceased.
"Ugh, I tried it on the spur of the moment, but it's really taxing on my throat."
Her proud breath attack, which had been utterly ineffective against Aldias in the battle at the royal capital. It was the dragonkin's specialty, with overwhelming power and range, but if it couldn't break the enemy's defense, it would only reveal a large opening. This technique was developed from that experience. Instead of firing radially, it concentrated the flame into a single point to cut the target. In principle, it was similar to a gas burner.
"However, with this... what!?"
The grotesque dragon, cut in two, should have plummeted. With that enormous body, it should have been unable to move properly once it hit the ground... But a sight that vastly betrayed Tio's expectations flashed before her eyes. It was flying. Even with its body split in two, it soared as if it didn't care. Furthermore, flesh bulged from the cut surfaces, and each new half body formed into a grotesque new entity.
"They multiplied!?"
The two halves of the grotesque dragon, instead of repairing their severed wounds, each formed a new body, regenerating as two distinct individuals.
"Self-regeneration... No, in this case, it would be more accurate to call it self-proliferation."
"!! Freed-dono? Are you finished over there?"
"Yes, it was just small fry. No match for us. But this one's troublesome. Half-hearted attacks are meaningless, and if we try to cut it down, we just end up increasing their numbers."
"Hmm, is there any good plan... No!?"
A barrage of magic bullets once again assailed Tio and Freed, who were racking their brains. The attack density was double what it had been moments ago.
"So, doubling in size means doubling the bullet hell!!"
"What should we do?! It's difficult to even get a breath attack through now?! Is there no magic that can just blow everything away at once?!"
"Don't be unreasonable!? I can't use magic to blow away such a massive body! It's likely that unless we completely obliterate them, this will just keep repeating itself!? Aldias-sama could do it, but he's currently occupied!!"
"That's true, but...!"
Aldias was, at this very moment, locked in battle with Spass. Tio had witnessed a glimpse of his power. Considering that, he wouldn't have time to help others.
"Guh!?"
"KRRRRAHH!?"
"Tio Klarus! Uranus! Are you alright!?"
Meanwhile, the intensity of the barrage continued to increase. Tio and Uranus sustained not insignificant wounds, forced into a retreat.
"This is bad! If those things get into the middle of the battlefield, it'll be a disaster!"
"......"
"Freed-dono, why are you silent?! I know others are busy, but at this rate, we need reinforcements...!"
"...It can't be helped, I suppose."
"Freed-dono?"
Freed, who had been glaring at the two grotesque dragons from Uranus's back, let out a deep breath, then looked at Tio as if he had made up his mind.
"There is only one way to break through this situation."
"Truly!?"
"Yes, do you know about 'Transmutation Magic'?"
"'Transmutation Magic'? No, I haven't heard of it..."
"It's one of the ancient magics left by the Liberator, Vandeur Schnee. You seem to have been progressing through the Great Dungeon, but 'Transmutation Magic' can be found in the Schnee Snowfield near the demon nation of Garland. It's understandable that you wouldn't know of it."
"Transmutation Magic"âits essence was "magic that interferes with organic matter." With this power, one could subjugate monsters or enhance monsters that had been brought under their control.
"With this magic, I will enhance Uranus to his limit. With that one blow, it should be possible to obliterate that thing without leaving a single cell."
"Ohh! What, why were you holding out?! If you had such magic, you should have used it from the start!"
"The backlash is considerable. While it's fine for delivering a single blow, maintaining that state constantly is inefficient in terms of magical power."
"I see. Then, you should use it quickly."
"..."
The war wouldn't end just by defeating the enemy in front of them. Managing stamina was crucial in prolonged battles. Especially for key figures in the military like Freed and Uranus, it wasn't advisable to recklessly push the front lines. Their mere presence on the front lines instilled a sense of mental security in their subordinates. However, even with that in mind, leaving the enemy before them unchecked would undoubtedly cause greater damage. In that case, there should be no hesitation in using their trump card, yet Tio tilted her head, seeing Freed's grim expression. Was there some other drawback beyond magical consumption? As Tio pondered this, Freed finally spoke.
"If it were one, Uranus alone might have handled it, but obliterating two such massive bodies is impossible. So lend me your power, Tio Klarus."
"...Huh?"
"Like Uranus, I will use 'Transmutation Magic' on you as well."
"......"
Tio recalled Freed's brief explanation of the use of "Transmutation Magic." That one sentence.
ââIt can be used to subjugate monsters or enhance monsters brought under one's control.
"W-wait a minute?! Does that mean I'll become Freed-dono's familiar!?"
"It might be possible to enhance without subjugation... but I've never tried it. If we want certainty, that would be better, wouldn't it?"
Freed had enhanced many monsters, but, naturally, he only used that power on subjugated monsters. He had never tried it on enemy monsters not under his control. If it weren't for this situation, he might have experimented, but a sudden weakening would be intolerable. Tio, trembling, opened her mouth.
"Y-you!! What do you intend to do with me as your familiar?! Are you going to do that and that!?"
"It's obviously to enhance your abilities, you fool!? If it weren't for this situation, who would ever think of making a pervert like you their familiar!?"
"Guh, it can't be helped to defeat them! But remember this! My all is already dedicated to my master! Even if you can do as you please with this body, you won't take my heart!!"
"Do you want to be killed by me!?"
Freed unleashed a rather serious killing intent at Tio, whose breathing had grown a bit ragged. In the first place, Freed didn't treat subjugated monsters like slaves, nor did he intend to. More than anything, if one subjugated a monster, they would feel a connection to the target, whether big or small. In other words, Freed's reluctance stemmed from the fact that he absolutely did not want to make Tio his familiar, even for a short time.
"Alright, hurry and get closer! Let's finish this quickly and I'll release the subjugation immediately! Don't let yourself be shot down during the incantation; that would be disgraceful!!"
Even so, suppressing the disgust overflowing from his entire body, Freed steeled his resolve to do what he had to do. If he couldn't defeat the enemy here, it would endanger the other soldiers fighting on the ground. That was not what Freed wanted.
"This is for Aldias-sama's sake, this is for Aldias-sama's sake, this is for Aldias-sama's sake, this is for Aldias-sama's sake, this is for Aldias-sama's sake, this is for Aldias-sama's sake, this is for Aldias-sama's sake, this is for Aldias-sama's sake..."
"Being disliked that much actually hurts..."
Tio flinched slightly at Freed's muttering, as if talking to himself. Ignoring the thought "I am a dragonkin princess, after all," Freed now resolved to punch Nagumo Hajime once. It was completely taking out his frustration... and sadly, that wasn't an exaggeration. Then, he quietly closed his eyes and began to chant.
[I, a supporting gauntletâ]
During a long incantation, the caster becomes vulnerable, but Uranus allowed no one to touch Freed, and Freed, trusting Uranus, showed no concern for the outside. Tio also flew close to Uranus, ready for the magic to activate at any moment.
[âMy destined fate, to bestow blessing through truth.]
[There is no hope, no salvation, despair approaches.]
[Open the realm. Shatter the rhino's horn. Reveal the white demon.]
[The price is here. The offered jewel pierces the heavens.]
And the incantation was complete.
'Haishou Makoku' (Gray Conqueror Demonic Nation)
Black smoke erupted around Freed, enveloping Uranus and Tio's massive bodies entirely. At that moment, the grotesque dragon, which had merely been swimming through the air, clearly reacted. The emotions of the creatures forming its body coalesced, and its vigilance focused on the beings above.
"Have you finally recognized us?"
Two flashes of light blinked, and what had been shrouded in black smoke appeared. Pure white scales shimmered silver, and a radiant blue flame extending from its heart wrapped around its limbsââUranus. Jet-black scales generated purple lightning, and a purple flame extending from its heart likewise wrapped around its limbsââTio. To name them, they would be the Silver Dragon and the Black-Violet Dragon. Though smaller than the grotesque dragon, they had grown to a massive 30 meters in length, and their oppressive aura made all who saw them tremble.
"GRROOOAAARRRRRRRRRR!!"
The grotesque dragon, having caught sight of them, let out its first roar from its entire body, as if to intimidate. However, to those who heard it, the cry sounded like the howl of a weakling, a sound meant to ward off fear. The barrage of magic bullets intensified and struck the two dragons, but they couldn't even scratch their scales. Uranus even had enough room to cover Freed with his wing.
Uranus and Tio opened their maws wide. Within their mouths, a tiny jewel, the size of a human fist, formed. Unbecoming of their colossal size, it dropped, following gravity, like a dewdrop from an eave, falling onto the grotesque dragon.
The moment the droplet touched it... the grotesque dragon was obliterated.
No explosion was born. No shockwave was scattered. Even sound was blown away. The super-compressed breath attack completely annihilated the target from the world, leaving not a single trace.
Freed, having confirmed the enemy's annihilation... no, their disappearance, dispelled the magic he had cast on Uranus and Tio. Black smoke billowed from the gaps in the two dragons' scales as if air was escaping, and when it cleared, Uranus and Tio reappeared in their original forms.
"Hah, hah, hah... T-this is tough..."
"It's impressive you can even speak. If I use it on anyone other than Uranus, they wouldn't even be able to move properly for several hours."
"U-Uranus seems to have plenty of energy left..."
"Don't compare Uranus to a pervert like you."
"KRRAAH!"
Uranus roared as if to say, "I can still go!" at Freed's words, but in reality, there wasn't that much difference in Uranus's and Tio's physical specs; it was likely a difference in experience, whether they had received Freed's magic or not. As if to prove it, Uranus was also breathing heavily.
"Phew... As expected, it's dangerous to act alone like this. I'll rejoin Grandfather's group."
"I'll head that way too. I believe the mounted dragon unit was supposed to link up with the dragonkin unit."
They had means to recover stamina and magical power, but exhausted spirits couldn't be easily restored. Tio and Freed were not so young as to not understand such things. To ensure their utmost readiness, the two dragons took flight towards the main camp.
============
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