The End

Smoke and dust filled the air.

Lightning flashed.

Countless elemental fluctuations twisted together in a chaotic mess.

Even space itself seemed to warp.

Faintly, there came the sound of something shattering.

“Is it over?”

Rudolf gasped heavily for air.

To end the battle quickly, he had recklessly burned through his mana, leaving him with almost nothing.

His mental strength had also withered.

At this moment, the entire battlefield fell silent.

Humans, beastkin, and half-beastkin who had been locked in a bloody struggle all froze in their tracks.

It was as if a pause button had been pressed on this entire space.

They all looked up toward the sky.

The cold wind still howled.

The first ray of dawn appeared on the horizon.

The long night was broken by this single beam of light, and warmth slowly returned to the freezing earth.

The crisp sound of shattering was exceptionally jarring in this silent world where only the wind blew.

Time seemed to resume its flow.

“Hehehe... Kill!!!”

A pig-headed dragonborn was the first to move.

Seizing the opportunity, he slashed his sword at the human warrior in front of him. As blood sprayed, chaos returned to the battlefield.

Only Rudolf remained frozen in place, like an ancient stone statue.

As the darkness faded, the morning light gradually illuminated the entire sky.

The chaotic elemental turbulence crackling with lightning in the sky also began to dissipate.

Illumined by the dawn, a massive dark silhouette appeared somewhat blurry amidst the dispersing smoke and dust.

Rudolf's hand gripping his staff trembled slightly.

At this moment, the sense of unease in his heart seemed to reach its peak.

It exploded with a bang!

“Is this the combat power of a Gold Rank? Real combat is indeed different from theoretical deductions.”

An abrupt voice echoed from the dissipating smoke and dust.

Rudolf snapped back to his senses, only to see the front of the massive black beast.

Another figure had appeared there at some point.

Three shattered magic shields, with only their outer edges remaining, blocked the space in front of her.

The shattering sounds from earlier were the wails of these overloaded shields.

Beneath the shields were wing membranes crackling with electricity, covered in wounds, and dripping thick blood.

With the crackle of exploding electricity, the dragon wings snapped open, revealing... a half-dragon.

“Fall back for now. Leave the rest to me.”

Irene, in her half-dragon, half-human form, spoke to Daviel without turning her head, her cold eyes fixed on the old mage not far away.

A trace of wariness rose in her heart.

This was the second time she had seen a Gold Rank powerhouse; the last time was Mother Dragon years ago.

Although this old mage wasn't as terrifying as Mother Dragon, his combat power was still not to be underestimated.

Having Daviel test the waters first had indeed been a wise choice.

Now, she had not only gauged the approximate combat power of a Gold Rank mage but had also heavily depleted the opponent's mana.

If they had attacked together just now, the old mage would likely have fled decisively.

Or he might have slowly kited them and used other methods to stall, which would never have achieved the current outcome.

Now, the opponent was at the end of his rope.

Even if he wanted to escape, the Black Knights lying in ambush outside could completely drain his remaining mana.

Thus, Irene made no attempt to hide her intent as she delivered her final judgment to the man before her.

“You have nowhere left to run.”

The moment those words fell, the delayed magic she had prepared beforehand burst forth from the little dragon girl's body.

Countless radiant glows of mana flickered across her body, as if she were enveloped in a multicolored holy light.

Even the dawn on the horizon paled in comparison at this moment.

The old mage's heart pounded wildly, his face filled with nothing but shock.

In an instant, the black figure flashed right before his eyes.

Years of experience as a mage allowed Rudolf to defend instinctively, while the names of the spells active on her body simultaneously popped into his head.

【Iron Skin】

【Dragon Strength】

【Enhanced Vision】

【Cat's Grace】

【Agility Boost】

...

And, the next spell that was about to be cast from her gleaming, razor-sharp dragon claws.

“Flash!”

Instantly, Rudolf felt as if his vision was engulfed in blinding white, and then...

The dragon claws sliced through his newly formed mana shield like a knife through butter, sending ripples of magical energy surging outward.

Immediately after, the figure flipped in midair with the incredible flexibility of an agile black cat.

Her tail whipped through the air with a sharp, whistling sound, slamming heavily onto the shield like a meteorite.

Crack! Crack...

The shield fractured under the immense strain, webbed with cracks.

Sensing danger, Rudolf hastily used Blink to distance himself by over ten meters, hovering in the sky.

He then cast a spell to dispel the blindness.

Seeing this, Irene looked up, a cold light flashing in her golden eyes. She opened her mouth and spat out a thick stream of acid breath!

At the same time, an intense sense of crisis washed over Rudolf from behind.

He whipped his head around and saw twelve blood-red magic circles revealing themselves in the sky behind him, illuminated by the dawn.

They were delayed spells set up in advance while his attention had been occupied by Daviel.

“Pyroblast x12!”

The old mage's pupils dilated.

“Boom!!!”

The acid collided with the twelve massive fireballs.

Heaven and earth changed color.

The grey sky beneath the dawn was instantly dyed crimson.

Countless droplets of acid and flames rained down.

This was an indiscriminate attack.

At this moment, almost everyone stopped fighting.

The half-beastkin and beastkin fled in panic.

Some of the humans wailed.

Another group of humans, led by Captain of the Guard Moses, quickly rushed in one direction.

They wanted to catch the elderly figure falling from the sky like a withered leaf.

It was as if the heavens themselves were weeping blood for him, a dirge composed of fire and acid.

Moses's armor groaned under the strain.

With a flying dive, he caught the weakened old mage.

The other soldiers quickly formed a defensive perimeter centered around the two of them.

The spellcasters quickly erected shield after shield.

The shield guards raised their iron shields, warily watching the...

humanoid dragon not far away!

Wiping the residual acid from the corner of her mouth, Irene tilted her head.

Her cold golden eyes met the gaze of the wary humans.

She knew very well that the series of attacks just now hadn't directly taken the old mage's life.

At the critical moment, bursts of magical radiance had erupted from his body one after another.

The precious magical items he carried on his person had saved the old mage's life.

But he was also close to his limit.

Moses held Rudolf, who had lost consciousness due to excessive mental exhaustion, in his arms. He bit his lip so hard his gums almost bled.

His armor was already battered and blood-stained; it was clear he had also just been through a bitter struggle.

The middle-aged man looked up, his body tense.

He stared intently through the gaps in the iron shields, scrutinizing the dangerous figure.

“Are we really going to be left here?”

Moses muttered to himself. Though filled with immense reluctance, he could only grit his teeth and hold the old mage in his arms even tighter.

Time seemed to make a sound at this moment.

Daviel crashed heavily onto the ground beside Irene.

The rain of acid and fire dripped onto his unhealed scales, sending up wisps of white smoke.

Yet, as if oblivious to it, he pointed a claw at the remaining humans and shouted loudly:

“Big Sis, go! Go! Go! Kill them all!”

“These guys are awful! I almost went to see Auntie Tiamat just now!”

“...”

Irene said nothing, but Daviel frowned slightly, sensing that the surrounding temperature had dropped.

He quickly covered his mouth.

And carefully took a step back.

Irene took a step forward.

Whoosh... The wind picked up.

Dawn had arrived, and the horizon was painted a fiery red.

The wind rustled the little dragon girl's black hair, coating her dragon horns in a crimson hue.

It was the color of blood.

In the next second.

She bumped into an invisible barrier.

Before Irene could react, an incredibly powerful elemental fluctuation suddenly erupted from not far away.

It was Rudolf, who had woken up at some point.

A strange, unnatural flush had appeared on his aged face.

After standing up, he shook his slightly dizzy head.

Under Moses's hopeful gaze, the dim magic staff in Rudolf's hand flashed with light once more.

Irene immediately grew alert.

The soldiers shielding Rudolf were pushed aside by an invisible mental force.

As if he had regained his youth, the old mage stepped out of the crowd with light, brisk strides.

His snow-white beard whipped wildly in the wind.

The mana throughout his body surged continuously.

Terrifying fluctuations disrupted the surrounding elements.

Irene's eyes narrowed.

His aura was steadily climbing.

As a spellcaster, she recognized instantly that the old mage was forcibly replenishing his mana reserves at the cost of burning his life force.

If burning his mana tide permanently reduced his maximum mana capacity...

Rudolf was now burning his very life.

Permanently reducing his maximum health.

“Is he going for a final, desperate struggle?”

Irene clicked her tongue, though she wasn't surprised.

This state wouldn't last long.

With the old mage's current condition, it wouldn't take long to drain him completely.

The little dragon girl's gaze grew even colder.

It was nothing but a deathbed struggle.

But in the next second, Rudolf's aura suddenly withered.

He collapsed onto the ground, his face full of smiles.

“Old friend, remember to say sorry to the Duke for me.”