Chapter 36 – The Rotom Mountains (２)

That was when it happened.

“Fall back!”

The Special Task Force Captain shouted.

“This isn’t something we can handle!”

The Captain’s judgment was sound.

One wrong move and everyone here could be wiped out.

Gijun was a Player, so he could just respawn, but for them—their lives were on the line.

But Gijun couldn’t give up.

The Quest gets canceled.

If they retreated here,

it would blow this whole Quest for sure.

That was absolutely unacceptable.

…Right.

Gijun thought.

I’ve got the authority to break from the unit anyway.

He’d received the Seal granting permission for Special Maneuvers as a reward from the qualification exam.

That meant he had the right to refuse the Captain’s orders now.

“I’ll stay.”

Gijun said.

“What?”

“I’ll fight it.”

“….”

The Special Task Force Captain couldn’t say anything.

Because he already knew.

Gijun had the authority to disobey his orders on his own judgment at any time.

“You don’t have to help. In fact, please stay out of it.”

“…Are you sure?”

“es.”

Gijun said.

They wouldn’t be of much help anyway.

That thing was a monster encased in full plate mail.

There was no chance the Special Task Force members’ attacks would even pierce it.

The only one who could deal significant damage to that monster right now was Gijun, with his magic.

“Damn it, pull back!”

The Special Task Force Captain knew that too.

And so, they hastily retreated.

In that instant,

KRUMPH!

the giant began charging down the snow-covered mountain.

Each step made the mountain itself seem to tremble.

This is the worst situation for me too.

In this world blanketed in snow, Gijun’s flame magic was inevitably weakened.

There’s a way.

Full plate mail.

It looked impenetrable, but it wasn’t invincible Equipment.

Besides, Libre had said it clearly.

‘Something like that.’

Even if it wasn’t easy, Libre was saying that Gijun could take it on.

That was when it happened.

The creature took a step forward.

Gijun put some distance between them.

The creature closed in again, and Gijun took another step back.

Then—

Kraah!

To close the distance that refused to shrink easily, the beast took a huge stride forward.

In that instant, Gijun’s eyes flashed.

Now.

Gijun moved to the creature’s right flank and launched a Fireball.

The Fireball didn’t fly straight—it arced through the air.

One aimed for the inside of the raised leg.

The other two shots streaked toward the creature’s head and chest.

Right then—

Boom! Crack-crack-BOOM!

The Fireballs struck exactly where Gijun intended, erupting on impact.

In that moment, the creature’s body tilted.

Got him.

Gijun clenched his fist.

Those three Fireballs had scattered the beast’s center of gravity perfectly.

Now, unable to bear its own weight on the slick snow, it started to slip.

THUD! CRASH!

The creature tumbled across the ground.

The snow-covered slope gave it no purchase—its body kept rolling, unable to stop.

CRASH-CRASH-CRASH-BOOM!

It finally came to a halt only after a long, brutal tumble.

The beast frantically tensed its muscles, trying to rise—

Think you can get up?

Gijun wasn’t about to let that happen.

His magic was already fully cast.

First, Strong Wind.

A gust heavy with snow wrapped around the creature.

Crack!

The wind wormed its way between the gaps in its Armor, shredding the inside.

At the same time, it drove shards of ice deep into the wounds.

KRAAAH!

The beast roared in agony.

Snow and ice crystals burrowing into already torn flesh—no wonder.

Now again…

Gijun began casting another spell.

This time, Fireball.

BOOM! CRASH-CRASH-CRASH-BOOM!

Fireball after Fireball detonated in relentless succession.

Despite the freezing air, the ceaseless torrent of flames was more than enough to heat the creature’s Armor red-hot.

Kraah! Kraah! KRAAAH!

Another roar rang out—

KRAAAH!

The beast scrambled upright and began charging straight at Gijun.

Watching this, Gijun smiled.

I can take him.

In that moment, certainty filled him—he could win against this thing.

*

Time kept flowing, and Gijun kept pressing the assault.

Using Strong Wind judiciously, he moved freely across the slippery snowfield, launching attacks without any hindrance.

And then, finally—

CRACK-RIP—BOOM!

At last, the Armor covering the creature’s upper body shattered and fell to the ground.

Good.

It had taken just over thirty minutes to get this far.

It meant he’d poured over thirty minutes into the fight without even landing any real Damage.

But that’s fine.

Because now he could actually start dealing meaningful Damage to the bastard.

Stripped of its thick Armor, the creature’s body was finally exposed.

“Still, doesn’t look human.”

It was exactly that.

The flesh revealed beneath the Armor didn’t resemble human skin at all.

The entire surface was stained pitch-black, covered in strange, unreadable patterns.

[Of course not. It’s a Guardian.]

“…A Guardian?”

It was Libre who spoke.

Libre said the thing was a Guardian.

Gijun had no idea what that meant.

[It’s a Guardian. The Guardian of the Dragon at this mountain’s peak.]

‘…?!’

Gijun’s eyes went wide at Libre’s words.

He never could have imagined this.

A Dragon.

This was even more shocking than he’d thought.

‘No way? A Dragon?’

Against a Dragon, he wouldn’t stand a chance.

Even Gijun knew about Dragons.

Dragons existed in the real world, too.

They were strong.

Frighteningly so.

The monsters that appeared in currently existing Level-8 Dungeons were precisely Dragons.

And now a Dragon was showing up here?

No matter how capable Gijun was, this was something he could never face.

‘…This is insane.’

He’d just thought he was finally gaining the upper hand in the fight.

But the moment he heard the word “Dragon,” the horizon seemed to blur before his eyes.

Yet Libre spoke.

[First, defeat this one, Master. Trust me.]

‘…’

Did she suspect something he didn’t?

“Alright.”

But just as Libre said,

taking down this Guardian had to come first.

From everything he’d experienced so far, Libre knew far more than she let on…

“Here I go again.”

Gijun decided to completely push his worries about the Dragon out of his mind.

He would face that Dragon soon enough, but for now, defeating this thing took priority.

Shwaaaaak—!

Wind surged once more, whipping around the Guardian’s body.

Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!

‘It’s landing.’

This time, the hits were definitely sinking in.

Wounds appeared on its upper body, and black blood began to flow.

Another barrage of Fireballs followed.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Crash!

The creature swayed.

Back when it wore Armor, even Fireballs couldn’t harm it, but now it was different.

Each Fireball was clearly dealing significant Damage.

Grrraaah—!

Then, the Guardian started to charge.

Without its Armor, its movements were swift.

A flash of light!

Its Spear glinted as it shot forward in an instant.

The creature closed the nearly twenty-meter gap in a blink.

The Guardian’s Spear surged toward Gijun, rippling with violent force.

Kwaaang!

The moment its Spear stopped, a fierce explosion erupted from where Gijun had been standing just moments before.

Snowflakes whipped through the air like a blizzard, and where he had stood, a massive crater yawned open.

‘….’

A moment later, the snow vanished.

A low, grating groan escaped the Guardian.

Its eyes went wide.

Because Gijun wasn’t there.

He had already wrapped Strong Wind around his feet and sidestepped the creature’s attack path.

And now—

Boom! Crack-crack-crack-boom!

An explosion erupted from beneath the spot where the Guardian stood.

The blast didn’t let up for a full ten seconds.

Kyaaaah!

The Guardian roared.

Caught in the explosion, it tumbled backward into the crater it had made.

Crash!

The moment it fell into the pit—

‘Let’s finish this.’

Gijun began casting Fireball again.

He sent a Fireball straight into that crater.

He didn’t stop.

Again, again, again.

Boom! Thud! Thud! Thud!

Even then, the creature reached an arm up, trying to claw its way out of the hole.

It thrashed.

‘No way!’

Of course, Gijun wasn’t about to let it climb free.

He bombarded the Guardian without pause, pushing so hard that even his normally deep MP pool drained fast.

He knew.

If he let this chance slip, the next one wouldn’t come easy.

And so, after more than ten straight minutes of Fireballs—

[You have defeated the Red Dragon’s Guardian!]

[You have achieved the Impossible Achievement!]

[All Stats increased by 10!]

[Attack Power increased by 10%!]

[Defense increased by 10%!]

[Magic Attack Power increased by 10%!]

[Magic Defense increased by 10%!]

[Level Up!]

[Level Up!]

[Level Up!]

[Level Up!]

[Level Up!]

An endless cascade of reward messages.

“It’s done. It’s done.”

Gijun gasped for breath.

But there was no time to celebrate.

Thud!

In that instant, a heavy footstep rang out.

The sound came from the cave at the summit of the ridge.

“Dra—Dragon! It’s a dragon!”

A shout from the Special Task Force members over there.

Gijun, too, scowled and looked toward the cave.

‘….’

It was exactly what they said.

Now, from the cave mouth atop that ridge, a colossal dragon covered in crimson scales revealed itself.

Even meeting its eyes sent a wave of crushing pressure through him.

‘Here it comes….’

But then, something astonishing happened.

-Are you truly the Flame Monarch?

The same voice as before echoed inside his head.

‘Huh?’

The dragon had clearly spoken.

“So you are the Flame Monarch.”

Which meant it knew Libre.

Libre answered.

[Yes. I am Libre, the Flame Monarch. It’s been a long time, Reflaim.]

“…!”

Jun could only stare, his eyes darting between Libre and the red dragon in disbelief.

Then—

A long, searing hiss rose into the air.

A vast barrier unfolded around them.

And then Gijun stood in an entirely different space.

The snowy mountain was gone, vanished without a trace.

It was a pitch-black expanse where up, down, left, and right held no meaning.

In that place stood only Gijun, the Dragon, and Libre.

This wasn’t the Libre of everyday life.

At least for this moment, she was in her full, true form.

Libre, as she had been on the day they first met.

Barely over 160 centimeters, with a face that commanded attention.

Red hair, a crimson Robe, and eyes like burning coals.

Skin white as snow.

But this was nothing like that first encounter.

Around her body, Mana so dense it stole the breath churned in the air, and a blaze so fierce it could have set the whole world alight roared without restraint.

It was like a sun.

It wasn’t threatening.

If anything, it felt warm.

Libre smiled as she looked at Gijun and spoke.

[Do not be startled, my master.]

“…I was startled, but I’ll try.”

As he answered, Gijun’s gaze shifted.

Toward the Red Dragon.

The Red Dragon was enormous.

But it looked exhausted somehow.

Its pupils were hollow, and its scales were torn off in patches.

‘…Doesn’t seem like it’s in a normal state.’

As Gijun was watching the Red Dragon, Libre’s voice reached him.

[You look a mess.]

Libre gave a bitter smile and continued.

[What in the world happened? Speak, Reflaim.]

“….”

Then the Red Dragon bared its chest.

The moment they saw it, both Gijun and Libre’s faces stiffened at once.