Rain poured down in torrents. The black-haired boy laughed maniacally in the middle of the desolate graveyard. He summoned his four-legged earth dragon from his bag and immediately strapped the Cursed Dragon Bracelet onto himself.
The instant he did, it felt as though thousands of invisible blades stabbed into his flesh. Karua clutched his head and screamed, trembling from the cold and the pain, yet laughing all the while.
The three Pandora cultists sneered. In their minds, if they could tame this boy, then one day they might use him to kill Witzany with his pure dragon blood.
"How is it, boy? You can feel the power now, can't you, little Pandora?"
"Aaah… yes, yes… that's right."
"Good. When the chance comes, kill the Phoenix user and take it for us. Understand, boy?" another ordered.
"Aaah, of course… hehehe… hahahahaha. Kill, you say? You want me to kill Ray, right?" His eyes widened, staring at all three of them, and he slowly raised a finger to give his own cold command.
"Dragon Claw…"
Shluk! Shluk! Shluk!
The three figures collapsed one after another under the sweeping claws of Draeger, too fast to even follow. In the blink of an eye, silence fell over the graveyard, broken only by the pounding rain.
Karua's twisted grin vanished. His face returned to its usual icy stillness. The stench of blood clung to his clothes and face as he looked down at the unmoving corpses. With a nudge of his foot, he confirmed they were gone.
Slowly, he brushed aside the wet strands of hair covering his face, tilted his head back to feel the rain, and muttered quietly:
"Ray… this is all I can do to protect you. I won't let them kill you. I've repaid you now."
With that, Karua walked back to retrieve his umbrella, stained red, and raised it over his head. From his pocket he drew out a steaming cup of coffee, sipping it calmly as the rain poured down, steam rising from the cup.
"Let's go, Draeger."
He turned and walked away with heavy, steady steps, his dragon companion following. The earth trembled as they departed, leaving the Pandora cultists to lie drowned in the rain.
Plop… plop… plop…
"They'll be chasing me instead of Ray for a while…"
Meanwhile, Ray, Aria, and Jason were sitting in their final class of the day—Beast Care—held in the Academy's creature farm.
Ray had no focus on Professor Kegel, the elderly instructor, demonstrating how to use enchanted shears to trim the wool of a Balloon Sheep. His mind was elsewhere. He knew full well what Karua intended today. Karua hadn't shown up at all, despite never once missing a class.
Ray had even discussed skipping class with Aria to go watch Karua's fight against Victor the King.
Her reply was logical as always: even if they went, they couldn't help him—it was a one-on-one duel. Besides, she reminded Ray that he had already done everything possible for Karua. That day Karua ran away might not have been out of anger at Ray.
So there was nothing to regret. Don't think too much, she told him.
Jason yawned, the first to raise his hand and ask to go to the bathroom. He never returned. Aria sighed, realizing Jason found cheering Karua far more fun than sitting through a dull lecture.
Truthfully, Jason only enjoyed Beast Care when the kind-hearted Witzany taught it. Today, Witzany was away on business abroad, leaving Professor Kegel in charge.
If something big happened today, Aria could only hope the other professors could handle it in Witzany's absence.
Ray grinned and decided to copy his troublemaking friend's tactic. He raised his hand, asking for permission. The old professor sighed—Ray was a terrible liar—but allowed him to leave anyway.
Before going, Ray turned to Aria. "Want to come with me, Aria?" he asked with a bright, innocent smile.
She exhaled and shook her head. "Go on, Ray. I'll take notes for you—and the homework too. You can just copy it later. Now hurry up."
"Whoa, Aria, you're the best! If you ever need anything from me, just ask, okay?" Ray gave a thumbs-up.
Aria remained calm, expression bored as ever, squinting in annoyance. She turned back to her notes, jotting down details about the uses of Balloon Sheep wool. Without looking at him, she added casually:
"Then… take me out for ice cream this weekend. That shop I told you about."
"Deal! I'll tell Jason to treat you too. Sunday it is, Aria."
She nodded. "Mm. Sunday." Resting her chin on her hand, she kept writing. "Now go. Karua's match will be over by the time you get there. Cheer for him for me."
"Got it!"
And Ray dashed out, skipping class after Jason.
Ray hurried to Black Dragon House.
The crowd was even larger than yesterday, the cheers and shouts deafening. He squeezed through the throng, trying to get a clear view. Jason was nowhere in sight—probably cheering somewhere deeper in the mob.
On the stage, under thunderous roars, Karua's duel against Victor the One-Eyed King raged on. The atmosphere was electric, the crowd frenzied as the beasts clashed with explosive force.
At Karua's side was a wyvern, dragon-like but smaller and fireless. At Victor's side towered his legendary beast, a Minotaur—an enormous bull standing upright, wielding a colossal iron hammer.
"Excuse me, how many beasts do they each have left?" Ray asked the person beside him.
"Two apiece now. It's brutal. Just earlier, Karua nearly lost—but he forced his Salamander to self-destruct against the King's golem. Both went down. Now it's the Minotaur versus his wyvern. From experience… that kid won't last."
Victor swept aside his black cloak and commanded the massive bull: "Crush that trash. Mino, Destructive Wave Hammer!"
The Minotaur raised its weapon high and slammed it into the arena floor. BOOM! A cone-shaped shockwave blasted forward.
Karua grit his teeth. He had planned to exploit the Minotaur's weakness to flight, but the enemy had trained long-range counters.
"Counter it with the Wings of Resolve… Wine!" Karua shouted.
Ray quickly checked the skill's description: a kamikaze technique for flying beasts. It channeled all mana into the body, transforming it into a blade, diving at maximum speed to pierce the foe.
"You trash… so you'll throw your life away, huh?" Victor sneered.
In Ray's eyes, Karua fought like a rabid dog. Strategy meant nothing to him. What mattered was sheer power. If it meant trading blows—even to the death—Karua would take it. His goal was simple: kill before being killed.
The wyvern cloaked itself in blue mana, glowing with fierce aura, and hurled itself into the Minotaur at blazing speed. It pierced through, leaving a gaping wound.
But the Minotaur did not fall.
Even impaled, it stood, alive thanks to its Berserker passive—granting one minute of immortality after hitting zero HP.
Victor ordered again: "Roar!"
The Minotaur bellowed. Every window in the academy shook; without protective wards they would have shattered. Students covered their ears in pain. The wyvern, closest, was stunned, collapsing helplessly.
"Smash it flat."
The massive hammer came down. The wyvern was crushed.
"Wine…" Karua bowed his head in frustration.
He hadn't expected the King's beast to withstand his most desperate assault. Worse, the Minotaur (Level 49) activated Adrenaline Heal, restoring itself to full health—but only after killing an enemy at under 10% HP.
Now Karua had only Draeger left. Victor still had the Minotaur—and another beast in reserve.
It was dire. Ray knew it too. He screamed encouragement, cheering with all his heart. Karua turned, smiling faintly, and nodded respectfully toward Ray.
Then he summoned his final beast.
"Let's go insane together, Draeger… Dragon Unleash!"
At his words, the cursed bracelet around Draeger's ankle activated. Purple energy lanced through Karua's chest, dropping him to his knees.
He screamed in agony but forced himself back up alongside his dragon.
Draeger's body shifted. Its rocky green scales thickened, covering even its belly. Its front legs grew massive, like a gorilla's arms. It raised its head proudly, tail whipping like a spiked club.
"Stonefang Blade!" Karua called. Draeger conjured an enormous, ornate claymore in its jaws. Gripping it with its gorilla-like claws, it crouched like an athlete poised to sprint.
Then Karua unleashed all his cursed power, breaking past his limits.
"Dragonblade Dance…"
Fwoooosh…