Having landed her strike, the dragon girl remained expressionless, floating silently in the sky. She looked down with a cold gaze at the ground below, which had almost turned into a sea of fire and a devastating dust storm, as if she were waiting for something.
“Boom!!!”
Suddenly, another even more explosive and scorching pillar of fire surged out from the thick smoke and dust. However, the young woman seemed to have anticipated this.
She slashed her claw-like right hand through the air, splitting the terrifying attack, which had a diameter of at least several dozen meters, in two. The flames shattered and passed by her.
“Is that all you’ve got?”
【What manner of creature are you!? There is no dragon this powerful among the Demon God’s subordinates! Why do you obstruct me!!!】
The flame giant, battered with holes like a beehive, slowly rose from the burning ground. The raging flames transformed into a body more solid than rock. His thunderous, furious roar almost set the sky on fire.
But the dragon girl only glanced indifferently at the mountainous figure below, disdainfully saying,
“Demon God? Such a being dares to command me? I am merely following my master’s orders, here to eliminate those who try to escape. I did not target you specifically, so don’t overestimate yourself. You’re nothing but an oversized fool with no substance.”
【You are courting death, puny dragon! I am the God of Blazing Heat and Explosions, Flam...!】
“Sky—Shatter!”
Before Flam could finish his name, the dragon girl, who always despised idle chatter during battle, raised her claw again and slashed down forcefully!
“Crack...crack, crack, crack, crack, crack...”
The already tormented sky and earth finally shattered completely.
From the tip of the dragon girl’s claw, a truly terrifying black fissure ripped through the space of the Land of Gateways. The flame giant, who had just managed to rise, was violently hurled back into the ground once more.
As if some terrible invisible force had crushed the ground, the entire Land of Gateways sank nearly a hundred meters. Flam’s rocky body, which bore the brunt of the attack, was almost torn in half, with the boiling flames rising from him immediately being absorbed by the black fissures.
【Ohhhhh!!!! Damn it, damn it, damn it!!! If my divine realm weren’t suppressed by this cursed place, a mere dragon...!!!】
Struggling desperately against the terrifying power of the “Sky Shatter,” Flam roared with thunderous anger and unwillingness. However, the dragon girl paid no heed to him, merely watching the battle coldly.
The radiant white-gold sheen of her scales flickered lightly, and she occasionally swiped her claws to strike him, maintaining her absolute dominance. She also kept part of her attention on the expanding black fissure in the distance, from which the fiery giant had emerged.
Sensing the combat fluctuations from the other end of the contract, the young dragon couldn’t help but show some concern.
“Master...”
...........................
Demon Suppression City.
This chapter is updated by freēwēbnovel.com.
Fire rain continued to fall from the sky.
The enemy’s arrival was sudden, their method of appearance was bizarre, and their power was extraordinarily terrifying. The city’s defending forces quickly fell into disarray, especially as more fireballs rained down, sparking fierce battles and fires throughout the city.
Fortunately, thanks to the foresight of the royal family and government, most civilians had already been evacuated, and elite forces were on high alert and ready for battle. They withstood the first and most intense wave of attacks, preventing the defensive lines from collapsing immediately.
Inwardly praising the wisdom of Queen Her Majesty and Princess Menna, Ashborn’s thoughts mirrored those of most in Demon Suppression City at that moment.
Even so, the situation remained grim. The Adventurers’ Guild, the Internal Guard Bureau, and the army—all major combat forces had been deployed, but the enemies raining down from the sky seemed endless.
These flame stone giants possess at least the strength equivalent to Tier 3 or higher demons.
Although they are low in intelligence and seem to rely solely on brute force, it typically takes several elite gold-tier warriors to surround and kill them without sustaining injuries. Among them, there have been reports of at least four or five legendary-level targets appearing.
For ordinary creatures, legendary-level strength represents the pinnacle of combat prowess. Within Demon Suppression City, the only individuals with such power are Ashborn of the “Sword of Heroes,” the four members of the “Reaper’s Scythe” squad, and possibly Miss Ran who wields “Clear Skies.”
Although factors such as equipment, ranged support from mages, and potions are considered in assessing actual combat strength beyond mere levels, the same principle applies—any normal creature is bound to get injured and exhausted.
“Ah!!!”
Another soldier was sent flying by a Tier 4 flame stone giant’s punch. His body transformed into a flaming ball mid-air, his cries quickly fading as he plummeted from the city wall.
Despite new soldiers immediately rushing to fill the gap, Ashborn knew well that they were merely sacrificing themselves to buy time, waiting for the bombardment of long-range magic.
These flame stone giants boasted high defense and lacked obvious weaknesses. Enemies of Tier 4 and above could no longer be defeated simply by sheer numbers, even magical weapons struggled to inflict substantial damage.
“Hah!”
Another sword swung down with force from above, but the colossal figure of fire, towering and almost entirely composed of flames, crossed its arms to block the full-force blow. Flames even surged back along the giant sword, forcing “Sword of Heroes” to immediately withdraw.
“Tsk...”
This was a peak-level legendary fire giant, standing at least seven to eight meters tall. In terms of raw power, it even surpassed Ashborn.
If not for the latter’s efforts to delay it, allowing it to rampage unchecked within the army would likely have caused the defensive line to collapse long ago.
Therefore, although Ashborn was willing to help, he was also stretched thin.
Standing on the city wall, the man glanced again at the city now engulfed in flames. Since the enemies descended from the sky and attacked indiscriminately, the significance of the city walls had diminished.
If there were any unarmed civilians left inside the city now, they were practically doomed. The battle had been going on for so long, and both the “Reaper’s Scythe” and the skilled fighters within the city, who were also legendary-level, had yet to come to support. They must have encountered formidable opponents themselves.
To be honest, he was a bit worried about Princess Menna who was still in the city, but at this moment, all Ashborn could do was try his best to maintain the current battle situation in front of him. Although it was just a lingering thought in his mind, pure defense like this probably wouldn’t suffice.
While fending off the relentless counterattacks from the fire giants, Ashborn diverted some of his attention to the massive crack in the sky above that seemed to ignite the heavens.
Human effort had its limits, and if they couldn’t eliminate the source of these enemies soon, their defeat was only a matter of time. Princess Menna, still within the city, shouldn’t fail to grasp this, but it seemed she hadn’t made any attempt... why?
Did she think it was impossible? Or perhaps...
“Hey, you old man, you’ve been having a rough time lately, huh? Every time I see you, you’re getting beaten up! Hahaha! Look, whether it’s a sword or a knife, this is how you use them!”
Sharp swordlight accompanied by a somewhat familiar and annoying voice sounded in his ears. The fire giant, who moments ago had been fiercely battling Ashborn, suddenly froze in place. Its stone head abruptly fell off and turned into a blazing fireball crashing towards the ground, its body collapsing limply.
Turning in astonishment, Ashborn saw a rugged man with a fierce broadsword slung over his shoulder, a horn protruding from his head, striding along the city wall towards him with a grin.
“Hey, looks like I’ve got the upper hand this time. What, not satisfied?”
“Southblade... Walter?”