Whoosh!
Scorching flames instantly engulfed Levi completely, heating even the nearby stone walls until they glowed, their residual heat distorting the air like a furnace unleashed.
[Fire Resistance (8:00)]
Drawing his long sword and sweeping away the remaining flames, Levi felt the terrifying heat around him, sucked in a breath of hot air, and felt his heart skip a beat.
Fortunately, he had drunk the potion fast enough. Downing a fire resistance potion in one gulp. He had to admit, the thrust from that dragon's breath was truly powerful. If he hadn't reacted quickly, he would have been blown sky-high.
"Oh? A human who can withstand flames..."
From deep in the passage came massive movement, sweeping all the way to Levi's position with earth-shaking force.
Rumble.
A hurricane swept past, and in an instant, a mountain-like body blocked the other end of the passage. The enormous dragon head lowered, using one eye to stare intently at the tiny figure below. That pupil, larger than a human head, was filled with curiosity. So much so that it didn't even continue attacking.
"Is it you? The little worm the Dark Lord mentioned? Do you think you can face me with just the ability to resist flames?"
"Naive, hahahaha..."
The dragon's mouth split into an evil grin that revealed teeth like gleaming swords.
Levi roughly estimated this creature was at least over a hundred meters long.
This was the largest fire dragon of the Third Age and also the last fire dragon.
"You're Smaug?"
"Indeed I am, little worm. What brings you here? Is it for treasure, something in the mountain, or were you commissioned to be my snack?"
"I've been waiting for you..."
"However, I really can't see what makes you different from others, aside from being more fire-resistant, you whom the Dark Lord specifically mentioned."
"Maybe I'm not the person you're talking about. What Dark Lord? I've never heard of such a thing."
"Hehehe..."
Smaug raised his head, then lowered it again, switching to his other eye to stare at Levi with predatory focus.
"You're trying to extract information from the great Smaug. Don't think I don't know your plan."
"Who sent you? Was it yourself? No, that's unlikely. You must have some purpose. You blocked the entrance. Are you afraid I'll leave? Why would you fear me leaving?"
"Could it be you're worried about the human towns outside?"
Tsk.
This chatty dragon had really become cunning.
"Honestly, I thought you were sleeping, or maybe dead, since there hasn't been news of dragons for a long time."
Levi chatted casually with this talkative dragon while secretly crafting a pressure plate in his backpack.
"Hmm... I was indeed sleeping recently, but someone woke me up and offered me a very interesting deal. Can you guess what it was?"
"Not interested," Levi said deliberately.
But the more he didn't want to hear, the more Smaug wanted to continue: "He said darkness would eventually sweep across the land, and then I would be the King Under the Mountain ruling the entire North."
"I heard the King Under the Mountain was a dwarf."
Hearing this, Smaug immediately raised himself up, displaying his magnificent form with theatrical pride.
"Look carefully now. Who is more suited for this title?"
Levi looked up, but he wasn't really examining its body. His gaze swept around and finally settled on the heart area.
In the dim passage, among those fire-glowing fine scales, there appeared a small gap where a hard diamond was lodged, serving as a replacement scale to protect the skin beneath.
"I have to admit, you are indeed very tall."
"Hehehe... you have good taste. Say a few more nice things, and perhaps I'll spare your life."
"Don't think of resisting, puny human. Even the powerful warriors of ancient times were killed by me, and now the world can no longer find anyone like them."
"I was young and frail then, but now I am incredibly powerful. My scales are harder than ten layers of thick steel shields, my teeth are like steel swords, my claws are like spears, my tail sweeps like thunder, my wings beat like hurricanes, and my very breath brings death!"
"What is your name, human?"
While boasting, the dragon suddenly lowered its head again and asked Levi.
"You can call me Steve."
His real name was something he would never reveal.
Many creatures in Middle-earth were naturally gifted with magic, and dragons were among them.
Levi clearly knew this chatty dragon wasn't talking so much just because it was talkative. Its words carried magical power that could bewitch minds, making people unable to refuse its questions. The gaze of those dragon eyes was also a natural spell that could gradually make the observed submit to its will and obey its every command.
Anyone else talking this much with Smaug might already be dizzy and disoriented, but Levi just found it noisy.
However, while the above could still be resisted with strong will, there was one particularly special point. If the questioned person revealed their name, they would immediately be captured by the spell and become the dragon's slave.
"Steve? I've never heard of it. Do you have other titles?"
It was still trying to extract information.
"There are many. If I told you all of them, I'd worry you couldn't remember them."
"Interesting human."
Smaug narrowed his eyes.
His spells hadn't worked at all.
His belly began to glow faintly, and his mouth slightly opened. Just as Smaug was about to end the conversation and launch a sneak attack, he suddenly heard chewing and swallowing sounds nearby.
This human was eating something, and drinking too?
How audacious!
Dragon's breath nearly surged to his throat when Levi suddenly drew his long sword and swung it forcefully at the dragon's head!
CLANG!
The massive metallic collision echoed through the corridor, making ears ring. The enormous dragon head was directly knocked askew by this unexpected strike, causing the entire dragon to retreat several steps and crash into the wall with a thunderous "BOOM!"
The precious sword gleamed brilliantly. Its powerful dispersal ability meant that in the collision of tremendous forces, it was Smaug who was knocked back first, not Levi.
As long as the sword technique was correct, there would never be a blade rebound.
[-2]
[998/1000]
This armor and health are really thick.
Levi couldn't help but sigh. This was his first time experiencing what others felt when facing him. And this was still damage enhanced by a Strength II potion, hitting the relatively thin scales of the dragon's head.
Good news: it had a health bar.
Bad news: it was too tough.
"You! Worm!"
"You've angered me!"
His belly suddenly blazed blindingly bright, and a deep red dragon's breath spewed from Smaug's mouth again, enveloping everything around in flames. Everywhere he looked. Left, right, up, down. Was fire, with nowhere to hide.
This breath lasted a long time, continuing until the stones behind showed signs of melting before gradually stopping.
However, no matter how Smaug attacked, Levi simply walked calmly through the flames, his netherite armor remaining cool.
"What?"
This time Smaug was truly shocked. Not afraid of ordinary flames, and not even afraid of extremely high-temperature breath attacks with magical properties?
Even if he wasn't afraid of fire, the impact force should have caused some damage. In the past, one breath like this could collapse the stone houses of Lake-town!
"You are indeed somewhat surprising for a dragon."
[+1]
In just a few words, the dragon's health was full again.
"There's even more that will surprise you!"
Seeing that damage from his long sword was truly limited, Levi immediately placed down a pressure plate and stepped on it. Immediately, sounds of something being ignited came from below the floor.
The TNT he had buried in advance had been triggered.
"What is that?"
Smaug asked in confusion. Looking again, he saw Levi had already dug a small passage behind him and disappeared in the blink of an eye.
[Chapter Complete]
***
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