The air shifted. The knights held their breath as the massive shadow spread over the carriage. When it landed, the ground quaked. Trees bent. The horses panicked.
The Drake stood tall, wings folding like black iron sheets. Its scales gleamed obsidian, and on its forehead pulsed a sinister crimson orb.
Liora's smile dropped for once. "…Crap."
Izaru frowned. "What? It's just a lizard with wings."
"That," Liora pointed at the orb, "is the Demon King's control orb. He sent this one himself."
The knights gasped. Prince Cain staggered back. "T-The Demon King?! Then this thing must be—"
"Way above your pay grade," Izaru finished dryly.
The Drake roared, the blast of its voice sending dust and knights flying. Izaru raised his arm, bracing. His gauntlets cracked further. "Tch. This thing's tougher than me."
"Stronger, too," Liora muttered, sliding her new mythril daggers into her hands. "If it weren't for that orb, maybe we'd stand a chance. But controlled like this…? It's basically the Demon King's arm."
"Great," Izaru muttered, deadpan. "So we're fighting his arm. Lovely."
The Drake lunged, wings slicing through the air like blades. Izaru pushed Cain back into the carriage with one hand, meeting the attack with the other. His gauntlets sparked, metal screaming against scales, before the sheer force launched him backward into a tree.
"Izaru!" Cain shouted.
From the dirt, Izaru coughed, blood on his lip. "Yeah. Definitely stronger."
The knights trembled, shields raised but legs shaking. "Wh-what do we do?! If even he can't—"
"Shut up," Liora snapped, her usual cheer gone. Her daggers twirled in her hands as she faced the monster. "If Izaru can't handle it head-on… then I'll just carve off that orb myself."
"Don't," Izaru said while stretching, getting ready for battle. "I'll take care of this thing myself."
Izaru dashed in a different direction. The Drake launched itself into the air and flew after him.
"He's using himself as bait!" Cain said. "What should we do?"
"He said he can handle it. Let's just watch." Liora said as she ate an apple.(Brat.)
When Izaru was far enough, he jumped into the air, meeting the Drake and giving it an uppercut. It did absolutely nothing.
Instead, the drake tried to eat Izaru. Izaru twisted himself in the air. He narrowly escaped it and fell to the ground.
"Tch. This thing's a problem."
Right then, a window flashed before Izaru.
Skill Gained: Shockwave (Active.)
Create a shockwave that destroys everything in it's way. No cooldown.
"Where the hell did this come from?" Izaru muttered. "Well, whatever. At least it can help."
Somewhere in the other dimension, the guy who sent Izaru in this world, muttered. "Not gonna appreciate my gift? Ungrateful kid. Well, it's gonna be fun."