Lucian moved as fast as he could.
He didn't use his brain. He ran faster than he had ever run in either of his lives.
He felt like he was flying because he was so much more agile with his new power now, and his feet barely touched the ground. He ran fifty meters in seconds and threw himself between Glacielle and the dragon's claw as it was coming down.
He instinctively raised his sword and poured ice magic into the blade. As he swung with all his might, the weapon became covered in frost that was as sharp as a knife.
Steel and scale met with a sound like a bell ringing. The dragon's claw hit the ice-covered blade and slid off.
CLAANNGGGG!
Lucian felt the blow shake his whole body. His arms went numb, but he didn't move.
The dragon's eyes got bigger, which could have been a sign of surprise.
"Master," Glacielle said behind him, her voice flat as usual but with a hint of shock. "You... you can fight now...?"
"Apparently so!" Lucian said with a gasp. "How do you feel now?"
"Better... the shared synchronization is speeding up my regeneration." She stood next to him, ready with her fans.
"Y-You know about that...?" Lucian felt embarrassed knowing that he knows how to fight just because of the system's feature.
"Yes... but I'm glad you can access it this fast because now... we can attack that dragon together with more effective strikes that are planned." Glacielle smiled.
The smile she gave him struck Lucian right in the heart; it was the first genuine smile he had ever seen from her.
He couldn't help but think, "Oh my fucking god...!"
"SHE LOOKS LIKE AN ANGEL~! FOR REAAAALLL!!!" Lucian screams in his mind.
The dragon roared and lunged again, its mouth wide enough to eat them both, making Lucian come back to his senses.
"Left!" Glacielle yelled.
They dove in opposite directions and moved in perfect sync. Glacielle threw her fans at the dragon's eyes, and Lucian slid under its belly and cut it up.
His blade, which was covered in frost, found a gap in the scales and cut deep, leaving a line of blood.
"Holy fuck! Since when can I fight smoothly like this?!" Lucian was surprised with his own performance. "Maybe all those gaming sessions were worth it after all because I can copy many moves in every gacha game I've played!"
The dragon roared in pain and tried to stomp on him. Lucian rolled away just in time, and the ground where he had been standing cracked when he hit it.
"Ice spikes!" Glacielle's voice rang out.
Huge ice spikes shot up from the ground around the dragon's legs, going through its scales and drawing more blood. The creature thrashed around and broke free, but it was clear that it was favoring its right hind leg now.
Lucian's thoughts raced. They were hurting it, but not quickly enough.
The dragon was too strong and tough. They needed a weak spot.
Lucian then uses his gaming intelligence. "Glacielle! The wings!"
"We have a better chance if we can ground it permanently!"
"Got it!
They attacked at the same time. Glacielle made ice platforms in the air and jumped from one to another to get higher.
Lucian ran around on the ground, keeping the dragon's attention divided while avoiding its attempts to crush or burn him.
The drake tried to fly by spreading its wings, and that's when Glacielle hit.
She threw both fans as hard as she could, and they flew through the air like ice buzz saws. The weapons ripped through the thin skin on the dragon's left wing, leaving huge cuts that would make it impossible for the dragon to fly.
The creature roared in anger and pain. It spun around Glacielle, moving faster than something that big should be able to, and it hit her with a backhand swipe.
Lucian felt the impact through the synchronization link, as if it had hit him too. He gasped and stumbled as pain shot through his chest.
[Shared Damage Detected! Master HP: 75%]
[Glacielle HP: 55%]
Glacielle fell to the ground hard and didn't get up right away. The dragon moved closer to her, its yellow eyes full of murder.
"NOOO!" Lucian yelled and instinctively said. "DON'T TRY TO FUCK WITH MY BIKINI WARRIOR...!!!"
He didn't have time to plan or think about how to win. He just ran, putting all of his energy into his legs with full anger and desperation.
The dragon stood up on its hind legs, ready to crush Glacielle with its claws.
Lucian got to her half a second before the blow hit. He grabbed Glacielle and pulled her to the side, but not quickly enough.
The dragon's claw hit him in the back, ripping through his frost armor and into his flesh. He was in so much pain that he couldn't even describe it. It was like white-hot pain that made him see stars.
[Critical Damage! Master HP: 40%]
But he at least had done it. Glacielle was safe.
"Master!" Her eyes were wide, and for the first time, real emotion broke through her stoic mask. "Why would you do that for me...?!"
Lucian gritted his teeth through the pain and said, "Because you're my warrior... and I'm not letting you die on my watch."
Glacielle's face changed in some way. Her ice-blue eyes locked onto his, and for a moment, the battle's chaos went away.
[Bond Increase Detected!]
[Glacielle witnessed Master's willingness to sacrifice himself for her protection]
[Current Bond: 1.0 → 2.5 Hearts]
[Significant bond increase! Glacielle's power temporarily boosted by 15%!]
The frost armor on Glacielle started to glow more. The cracks closed up, and the temperature around her dropped by a lot.
There was something different about her when she stood up. She appeared more focused and determined.
"I won't let you die," she said, and for once, there was warmth in her cold voice. "Not when you kept me safe like that..."
She helped Lucian get up, and then they both faced the dragon. The dragon knew that something was different.
It hesitated, and its eyes showed that it wasn't sure.
"One more push," Lucian said. "Let's finish this, Glacielle!"
Glacielle nodded. "Together, Master!"
They all charged at once.
The dragon let out a huge stream of fire, but Glacielle made a huge wall of ice that stopped the flames. The wall blew up into steam, which made a thick fog that covered the battlefield.
They split up while using the cover. Lucian went down, and Glacielle went up.
The dragon couldn't find either of them. It swung its head around in a panic, looking for them in the fog.
Lucian came out of the fog and stabbed the dragon's front leg with his sword, right where the joint met. Ice spread from the wound, making the limb freeze solid.
The dragon roared and tried to fight back, but Glacielle fell from above like a missile. She pushed both fans into the back of the dragon's neck, right where the skull met the spine.
The roar of the creature stopped suddenly. It staggered until its legs gave out.
"Now, Master!"
Lucian didn't need to hear it again. He climbed up the dragon's neck, which was bent down, and raised his sword high.
The blade was full of ice magic, making it more ice than steel. Lucian used all of his strength to bring the sword down right between the dragon's eyes.
"THIS IS WHAT YOU FUCKING GET FOR HURTING MY WARRIOR!!!" Lucian shouted loudly.
STAABBB!
The blade went deep. Ice spread out from the point of impact and quickly covered the dragon's head. The beast thrashed once, twice, and then stopped.
[Crimson Drake Defeated!]
[Quest Complete: Village Under Siege]
[Rewards Distributed!]
[Level Up! Lucian: Lv. 1 → Lv. 8]
[Level Up! Glacielle: Lv. 3 → Lv. 12]
[Additional Bond Increase for cooperative combat!]
[Current Bond Level: 3.0 Hearts!]
Suddenly, the synchronization ceased, and Lucian returned to his normal self. He felt like someone had taken out his bones and replaced them with jelly when all the extra stats went away.
He fell on the dragon's head, completely worn out.
Glacielle showed up next to him right away, her bikini armor still on and glowing softly. "Are you hurt, Master?"
"Urghhh... agghhh..." Lucian groaned, "Everything hurts, but at least we won, didn't we?"
Glacielle nodded. "Yes... we won."
The villagers who were still alive cheered. People came out of hiding and stared in awe at the huge dragon body and the two warriors who had killed it.
"They killed it!"
"The dragon is dead!"
"We are safe!"
"That woman in the bikini armor is so cool!"
"And that boy! He fought with her!"
Lucian was able to sit up, but his back hurt. Although the system was aiding in the healing of the wound, the pain remained intense.
He looked at Glacielle, who was looking at him with an expression he couldn't quite figure out. Her usual stoic mask was cracking, showing signs of something warmer underneath.
"Thank you," she said softly. "For keeping me safe..."
"No need to thank me. That's what partners do," Lucian said with a worn smile.
For a moment, Glacielle didn't say anything. Then, to his complete surprise, she smiled for the second time now. It was small, almost nothing, but it was real.
"Yes," she said. "Partners."
[Bond Milestone Reached: 3 Hearts!]
[Glacielle's loyalty and affection have increased significantly!]
[New abilities unlocked! Check status screen for details!]
[Warning: Higher bond levels will require more intimate interactions to progress further.]
Lucian chose to deal with that problem later. He was just glad to be alive and have finished his first real quest for now.
He was having a wonderful time in his second life. And he had a feeling that things were only going to get crazier from here.