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The Corrupted Dragon Fafnir had entered its second phase. By casting off all of the defensive scales protecting its body, it unleashed all the magic power contained within.

The players knew something bad was about to happen, so they continued attacking with everything they had, but the dragon continued to glow with an ominous light that only turned brighter.

And then, it finally happened. An incredibly large indicator for an AoE attack appeared. Even the players in the rear lines using ranged attacks were within the bright red indicator, so they all started to run away.

But those who were too close to the dragon and could not escape on time, those who were too slow, and those who chose to remain attacking until the very end, were all caught up in the AoE attack.

That attack was called Ultimate Wake of Destruction.

A powerful wave of scorching energy spread out from the dragon, swallowing all the players within 200 meters, and turning the trees and workable land there into a dilapidated landscape.

Countless players were caught by it, and except for tanks who had high resistances, were all turned to ashes instantly. Everyone outside watched in a daze at that hellish scene. There was nothing the tanks could do to protect the rest.

However, there was one amongst them, coming back to life from the ashes as if it was playing in reverse. Once complete, it became clear that it was Suzaku, his hair bright red again.

“I really didn’t want to use Dragonblood Hero so soon!!”

I knew it would feel awful to use it too!

Having his body turn to ash and then be reassembled was an extremely unpleasant feeling, almost to a traumatic level. But he was still alive. His HP that had been depleted had also increased back to 1. And he still had a boss to defeat.

There’s only one thing to do!

“Raaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!” Firmly grasping the black demonic sword, he leapt high into the air and used gravity to aid him when swinging it down, not caring about how he would land afterward.

He felt the blade go deep into the dragon’s upper arm, slicing so deep that the dragon’s bone would be exposed if this was real life. But the fall was so long and his stance so unprepared that he fell flat on the ground, exhausting his HP bar once again.

A moment later, it returned to 1. His limbs that had broken from the fall regenerated, and all the wounds on his body let out a glowing effect as he stood up. Seeing that, the players began to mumble amongst themselves.

“I only have forty seconds left! I’ll keep him busy during that time, so just hit him with everything you got!!” As Suzaku once again stood alone in front of the enormous dragon, he shouted at the remaining players. They took a moment to process what he said, but then realized this was their best time to attack.

The alchemists and healers rushed to use all their abilities to heal the tanks who had survived the attack. Meanwhile, the surviving frontline was charging at the dragon again, and the rear lines used all their attacks, ready to deplete their MP if it was necessary.

Amongst them was also the small girl with a sniper rifle, Lycoris.

“…EX Drive!!” Lycoris announced that with a loud voice. There was a burst of light behind her.

“Unfurl your wings, heavenly seraph, and rain your endless light here, Seraph Flügel!!” After shouting that, three sets of wings of light appeared on her back, raising her small body into the air.

At the same time, many concentric magic circles appeared around her weapon, and she reached out for its rail grip to hold it securely with both hands. Then, her three auxiliary fire units, called Support Devices, also gathered to channel their power into her gun.

“Setting coordinates, extending barrel, commencing charge..!” Multiple geometric glyphs appeared behind the top pair of wings, seemingly extending their size and making them appear larger.

But she still did not fire. Keeping her sights trained on the dragon, she continued to float in mid-air as more power gathered in her gun. Then the same glyphs appeared in the middle set of wings.

By then, everyone realized that by the time the last two wings grew, she would finally shoot, and so they waited with bated breath.

However, they were not the only ones watching. The dragon had also taken notice of her preparations, and would not allow them to complete. Looking away from Suzaku, the dragon raised its head and opened its jaws, pointing them at the girl.

“Lycoris, move!!”
“…?!”

Suzaku tried to warn her that the dragon was aiming for her now, but Lycoris had already started charging up so she could not move, her face straining. But then, a figure appeared between them.

It was Hinagiku, who had run up a tall rock to jump high into the air, breaking into the line of fire of the dragon.

“EX Drive!!” Shouting that, Hinagiku twisted her body in mid-air, sheathing her tachi for some reason, and then joining her palms with a loud clap.

“Inquisitive magic, gather here as an azure blade, and deliver your judgment, Divine Azure Fireblade!!” Blue flames spurted out from between Hinagiku’s small hands. Then she moved her hands like she was unsheathing a katana, revealing what looked like a long blade made of dense blue flames of purification.

Meanwhile, on the other side, the dragon also shot out its breath like a beam of light, wanting to stop both girls from doing anything. Hinagiku, however, swung her sword of blue flames, ready to fight back against that beam of destructive light.

“Hyahhhhhhhhh!!” She swung down with all her might.

The blade of flames seemed to extend tens of meters in an instant, cutting through the dragon’s breath with the flames’ purifying properties. The blade even reached the dragon’s left wing, severing it entirely.

GHRHAAAAHHHHHHH?!!

Fafnir roared with agony and rage mixed, its eye glaring at the small girl who had just cut off one of its wings.

“Thank you Hinagiku!” Lycoris looked relieved as she shouted that, thanking Hinagiku who was falling back to the ground now that her job was complete.

Hinagiku had used up all her strength, so she could only hold her thumb up as she fell, but a group of players rushed in and caught her, letting her land safely.

“It’s my turn next!! This is my full power… Take this, Ain Soph Aur Bullet!!!” A prismatic beam like an aurora shot out from Lycoris’ rifle, illuminating the entire battlefield.

The large wing-shaped magic circles behind the young girl supported her as the powerful beam was shot out, flying like a spear that pierced through the right half of Fafnir’s body, and created a tall pillar of light once it hit the ground. A moment later, Fafnir’s right foreleg, right wing, and right hindleg all flew up into the air.

The dragon let out another agonizing roar, this time knowing its end was near.

Amidst that blinding light, the dragon’s body tipped on one side, having lost half its limbs. And nearby…

“Ghuh…ugh…”

The duration of Dragonblood Hero (approximation) had run out, so Suzaku’s body stiffened into an incurable stun status, making him crumble to his knees, with the black demonic sword being his only support.

Well, at least I did my best.

In the distance, he could see the tanks rushing in, having healed fully. This time, he knew he would need to step back and let the rest finish the job.

Fafnir was also in bad shape and struggling to stand up again, letting out painful cries as the lack of half of its limbs impeded its movements too much. It was no longer locking onto any specific player to attack, and the only ones taking damage were those with bad luck who were hit randomly by the dragon’s desperate movements.

…Or those who could not move out the way due a debuff stunning them in position.

Suzaku saw Fafnir’s tail start to swing down to his position, and he could only force a wry smile as he watched that.

His HP was down to 1, so he knew he would not survive the hit, and once he respawned, he would be afflicted by Grievous Wounds for one hour. He had no recourse but to accept his death at this point.

“Not so fast. We can’t let the hero die just like that!” A cheerful voice that seemed out of place there rang in his ears before his body was pulled back, and the dragon’s tail just barely missed him, sparing his life.

Suzaku’s body was hoisted up and carried away from the dragon, and he understood there were multiple people carrying him.

“We made it this time.”
“U-Umm…thank you for saving us earlier. We finally got to repay the favor a bit!”

There was a cool and pretty red haired lady and a young girl with greenish hair, who Suzaku felt like he had seen before, carrying him to safety.

“…Somehow I’m not really sure how to feel about this…”
“Hahahah, well, having to roleplay as a hero in a game sometimes ends like this!”

The same blue haired alchemist from earlier was there too, and she spoke to him with a cheerful voice. Realizing he was being hastily carried away by a bunch of girls, Suzaku began to wonder if dying in battle would have been a more dignified way to end the fight.

Some minutes later, the fight which had lasted for around three hours against the Corrupted Dragon Fafnir came to an end, with its maimed body falling heavily to the ground…