To be honest, this news really caught Duanmu Huai off guard. He had worked so hard to storm the lair of the Evil Dragon, only to learn that it had already flown off to Manaria?
Good grief, really the master of tactical relocation.
Fortunately, according to that Dragonbeast, Fafnir had only left not too long ago. At least, he shouldn't have reached Manaria yet. If they could hurry back, there might still be time.
If they could make it in time.
"Anne, do you have any way to teleport us back to the royal city of Manaria?"
"O-of course I can…"
Hearing Duanmu Huai's question, Anne wiped the sweat off her forehead and nodded firmly.
"I'll do it right now…"
"Wait, you'd better rest a bit."
Seeing Anne's drenched face, Duanmu Huai quickly stopped her. She had already pushed herself once earlier, and right now she was basically exhausted. If she forced a teleport now, something could go wrong. Duanmu Huai still remembered how, during the End Times, the Eight Heroes had rushed a teleport, got scattered, and even one of them ended up sent straight in front of the final boss.
He wasn't about to repeat that farce.
"Miss Anne, I have holy water here…"
At that moment, Lorena hurriedly pulled a vial from her belt. It was holy water crafted by the Holy Church—able to restore stamina, heal wounds and illnesses. And of course, one could also chuck it at the undead if needed.
It had to be said, the Holy Church's holy water was indeed effective. After gulping down a bottle, Anne immediately looked like she had downed an energy drink—her spirit revived, no more aching waist, no more sore legs, even her kidneys felt fine again…
"Ready?"
"Ready, Sir Knight!"
"Good, let's go!!"
At Duanmu Huai's command, Anne raised her hand. A giant blue magic circle quickly formed beneath them. Everyone felt the ground drop away beneath their feet, and in the next instant, their surroundings shifted—from the dragon's lair straight into a splendid palace hall.
Their sudden appearance naturally startled everyone present. But when the onlookers recognized who had arrived, they cried out.
"It's Her Highness the Princess!"
"The Princess has returned!!"
Duanmu Huai rose and looked around. They were standing in the palace hall. On the thrones sat the King of Manaria and the Dragon King, flanked by their ministers and retainers. When they saw Anne and Guleya, both kings stood at once, staring in shock.
"Anne!"
"Guleya!"
"You're safe? Nothing happened to you?"
"We're fine, no problem… No, Father, this isn't the time for that! Fafnir is about to attack Manaria!!"
"What?!"
The crowd was thrown into chaos by the bomb Anne had just dropped.
"What's going on, Your Highness?"
"Fafnir is going to attack Manaria? Impossible…"
"Allow me to explain."
Seeing the confusion all around, Duanmu Huai coughed and stepped forward, explaining as quickly as he could the chain of events. When the two kings heard him out, they finally understood what had happened.
Even so, it was hard to believe…
"You actually stormed Fafnir's lair, and even wiped out the Evil Dragon Legion left behind to guard it?"
The King of Manaria stared at Duanmu Huai in disbelief. Honestly, he didn't believe a word of it, so he turned to his daughter.
"Anne? Is what he says true?"
"It is, Father."
Anne nodded.
"I understand your doubts. Honestly, with just us, fighting hundreds of Evil Dragons was nearly impossible. We were in great danger more than once. But Sir Knight used some sort of… I don't even know what to call it… in any case, all those dragons ended up dead. But that's not what matters now! Fafnir is about to strike the capital!"
"I see."
The king nodded. Indeed, there was no way to fully verify such claims right now. But regardless, he trusted his daughter not to make jokes about something like this. And besides, they had brought back the captured Dragonbeast from the lair—details could be extracted from interrogation later.
For now, the most important thing was stopping the Evil Dragon Legion's assault.
With that thought, the king turned sharply to his retainers.
"Sound the alarm! Place the entire capital under emergency status! Have the Royal Mage Corps activate the barrier! All troops prepare for battle!"
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
As the bells rang, the entire capital of Manaria burst into motion. Civilians were evacuated, soldiers in full armor rushed to the battlements. And soon after, a colossal shadow appeared before their eyes.
"That's Fafnir?"
Standing on the walls, Duanmu Huai and the others were stunned. The sheer size of the beast was… staggering. Compared to the other Evil Dragons they had fought, Fafnir was like a moving mountain. Just its approach kicked up a storm of dust that blotted out the sky. The endless horde of Evil Dragons surrounding it looked like attendants to the darkest, most terrifying being in the world.
"No way… it's that huge…"
Anne's face paled. Earlier, after destroying the Evil Dragon Legion, she had thought perhaps Fafnir wasn't so formidable. But now she saw its enormity—and realized the earlier dragons were like mere cats compared to a tiger.
How could anyone fight such a monster? Is there really no way…?
Even Guleya, Lorena, and the others wore expressions of near despair. Before such a behemoth, they felt utterly powerless. No spell could possibly deal enough damage, and whether their magic could even pierce those iron-hard scales was doubtful.
But then…
"Good. This makes it easier."
Unlike the panicked Anne and Guleya, Duanmu Huai actually exhaled in relief. He set down his Thunder Warhammer, and even his expression relaxed.
"If I'd known it was this big, I could've killed it alone."
"Huh? Sir Knight, are you out of your mind??"
Anne gawked at him, thinking the shock had made him lose his senses.
"This Evil Dragon is massive, there's no way we can fight it! It's bigger than the whole capital itself!"
"No. That just makes it easier."
As he spoke, Duanmu Huai put down his Thunder Warhammer, donned his helmet, and drew his Chainsword. A savage grin spread across his face as he stared at Fafnir.
"For things like this… I'm a professional."
By then, Fafnir had reached the walls of Manaria. Just standing there, its shadow covered the entire city. Soldiers and mages alike went pale before the monstrosity, unable to speak. Only Duanmu Huai stood firm, glaring up at the dragon and shouting.
"You stupid overgrown lizard! Ready to die?!"
His roar drew the attention of the Evil Dragon Legion. Fafnir lowered its head and soon spotted the lone human on the wall. Naturally, it sneered at such a tiny creature, gazing with utter disdain.
"Foolish mortal. You dare throw yourself to your death?"
"Not so fast, lizard."
Duanmu Huai sneered back.
"I suppose you don't know yet. Your lair has already been taken. The Evil Dragons you left behind? Now just piles of blackened ash."
"What did you say?"
Fafnir's eyes narrowed, locking onto him. Duanmu Huai reached into his chest pocket and pulled out a golden goblet.
"Didn't expect you to be so rich, old lizard. Thanks for the fortune. Really—thank you so much for gathering all that treasure for me. I'm so touched, I could cry…"
"Wretched human!!!"
Seeing the golden chalice, Fafnir flew into a rage. For dragons, even a single coin stolen from their hoard was unforgivable. But this was one of its most precious treasures! And now this filthy mortal, this thief, dared flaunt it before its eyes!
"You insolent wretch! You'll pay dearly for this!"
To Fafnir, Duanmu Huai was openly mocking him. It could not tolerate such provocation. To dare steal from its hoard and then boast about it in its presence… Unforgivable!
"I'll show you the terror of rousing my wrath! I'll burn you and these worms to ash! I'll reduce this human nest to ruins!!"
Roaring, Fafnir opened its jaws and drew in a massive breath.
But it didn't notice—at that same moment, Duanmu Huai raised his right hand, clad in a Gravity Gauntlet, and aimed it at… himself.
The next instant, he shrank into a black speck, leaping straight off the wall—
and hurled himself right into Fafnir's open mouth!!
(End of Chapter)