Serie hated traveling in the rain.
Even though her mana was more than enough to keep the water off her, she always felt that this kind of weather was better suited for sitting by a window and sipping black tea, rather than stomping through mud toward the mountains.
Today, however, was an exception.
Her Dragon-Slaying Magic was preliminarily complete.
Without a moment’s delay, she set out directly for the Dragon Fort in the Schwer Mountains where Link resided.
And blocking her way was a human woman holding a broom.
Serie recognized her; it was the same woman who had charged at her last time.
“It’s you.” Her eyes narrowed slightly.
Chris, of course, recognized Serie as well.
According to Lord Link, she had lived for an unknowable length of time, yet her petite frame still resembled that of a child.
But she was undeniably a little creature who would pick a fight at the slightest provocation.
Seeing that Chris still dared to stand in her path even when facing a visitor like herself, Serie’s interest was piqued.
Serie asked the maid for her name.
Chris looked at Serie, her expression showing little emotion, offering only a slight bow.
“I am Chris, Lord Link’s exclusive Gatekeeper.”
“Very well, Chris. You may announce me now.”
The battlefield between Link and Serie was set on the open ground outside the castle—for no other reason than the fact that Link’s Dragon Fort couldn’t withstand any more destruction.
The rain continued to fall, and the wind blew incessantly.
Link lazily raised his head, preparing himself for the beating.
Casually glancing over at Serie, Link realized to his surprise that she was actually wearing shoes today!
“Where’s the trust between dragons and elves?”
Serie didn’t catch his drift.
“What?”
Before Link could mouth off any further, Serie had already raised her hand, golden mana coalescing at her fingertips.
“Hey, Link. I actually took your advice from last time.”
The corners of her lips curled up slightly.
“This time, I’ve brought an even more powerful offensive spell.”
“Allow me to smash that mouth of yours.”
Link’s wings snapped wide open.
He could tell—this old hag really held a grudge.
Just for that single comment back then, she must have spent the last few decades reviewing the battle at home, all to come back for revenge today.
In the next instant, Link greased his soles and flapped his wings, taking off at high speed.
A black dragon silhouette soared into the rain-slicked sky, his wings fanning out a spray of mist.
Yet before he could fly very far, Serie’s voice drifted up from below.
“Although I don’t mind you acting as my umbrella, standing directly above my head is a bit too rude, don’t you think?”
Link hovered in midair and looked down at Serie.
The petite elf tilted her chin and raised her face, the rain dispersing automatically above her head, her eyes locked dead on him.
“I really despise looking up at others.”
She raised a hand and clenched her fist.
A massive magic circle unfolded out of thin air, as though the entire sky had been seized by an invisible hand.
Sky-Sealing Magic.
Link’s wings suddenly felt heavy, and he was hurled back down toward the ground by an unknown repulsive force.
To properly punish Link this time, Serie had clearly done her homework.
With this single move, Serie instantly turned Link from a noble flying unit into a crawling ground unit.
In all his years of being a dragon, what he took the most pride in was his ability to fly.
Now that even this advantage was stripped away, he was forced to remain on the same level as Serie.
Upon landing, Link didn’t rush into his next move.
Instead, he began incanting a spell.
“Breath of the Stars, radiant torrent of stars.”
“[Nine Ropes] [Polarized Light] [Crow and Declaration] [Between the Surface and the Interior]”
“[Dragon Scales] [Repulsion] [Paired Meteors]”
As everyone knew, incantations used vocal sounds to produce standardized magic formulas that resonated with mana, amplifying the spell’s power.
The longer the incantation, the greater the power—yet casting time was hardly an invincible frame, making it the perfect opportunity for an opponent to interrupt.
Serie did not interrupt him.
The incantation Link chanted was something she had never heard of before; it sounded almost like his own creation.
Could he truly be a genius?
Serie decided to taste the waters for herself.
After a long, agonizing minute, Link finished his incantation.
He focused his gaze on his claw, slowly clenching it as flames gradually enveloped his fist.
This was a move he had originally intended to keep as a hidden trump card.
But there was no other choice!
His hind legs suddenly burst with strength, and his entire dragon frame charged straight toward Serie.
He unleashed Fire Punch at Serie!
Serie instinctively prepared her defenses.
Yet when that ball of fire crashed into the mana barrier before her, it didn’t even stir a single ripple.
“Huh? It didn’t even melt her clothes???” Link was utterly shocked.
Magic is such an inconvenient thing!
Serie was almost angered into laughter.
But she held it together.
What on earth was I actually expecting?!
She reignited the golden mana in her palm.
“Forget it. If this is all you’re capable of, then die.”
“Dragon-Slaying Magic.”
Dragon-Slaying Magic—a spell specifically tailored by Serie to eradicate the thick-skinned Link.
A overwhelming wave of black-and-white mana swept over him; Link had nowhere left to dodge.
However, with years of accumulation from Adaptive Defense, Link had already become immune to most magical damage, so he decided to take the hit head-on.
[Magic Damage Resistance +1]
The system prompt ruthlessly shattered Link’s confidence.
Serie’s magical damage was still scaling!
Now he was truly in for a pure beating.
Even with his thick hide, Link could only wail continuously and scramble to dodge under Serie’s relentless barrage.
This battle lasted considerably longer than their previous one.
The wind died down and blew again; the rain stopped and fell once more, repeating through several cycles.
[Magic Damage Resistance +Max]
As expected of Mahoraga—With this treasure, I summon…—he adapted even to Serie’s newly developed Dragon-Slaying Magic.
The howling on the battlefield finally ceased.
The dragon and the elf were both exhausted from fighting, lying utterly devoid of composure upon the scarred and devastated earth.
After this battle, the relationship between the two had clearly deepened quite a bit.
Just like two pieces of steel grinding against each other, after the friction, they shared the exact same scratches.
For Serie, this brief fight was thoroughly entertaining—enough to give her something to reminisce about throughout her long lifespan.
“Link, I suppose I will remember your name.”
“Such a ridiculously beat-resistant fellow.”
Beside Serie, Link’s features twisted into a ferocious scowl as he glared at her fiercely.
It reminded her of the very first time they met, when Link had glared at her in the exact same manner.
“What are you looking at? You still want to fight?” Serie raised an eyebrow, her tone turning sharp.
“Huh?” Link squinted and leaned in a bit closer.
“I’m just nearsighted. I was just trying to see what you look like.”
“So that was it. It seems I misunderstood you back then. I didn’t expect you to be such a pitiable dragon.”
“What does that matter? When the Goddess closes a door, she opens a window for me.”
“Oh? What window?”
“I have a great sense of smell. How about I perform another epic drag for you?”
Serie was genuinely terrified of Link’s antics and hurriedly cut him off, bringing up their previous bet instead.
“Link, what magic do you want this time?”
Of course, this wasn’t entirely to shut his mouth; she also needed a justification to return next time.
Link pretended to ponder for a moment before blurting out, “Magic for Eternal Life.”
“It seems your appetite is as massive as your body.”
“Eternal life is the exclusive privilege of the Goddess; it belongs to the domain of the divine. How could I possibly possess such a spell?”
“Lately, there have indeed been rumors about the Wine of Immortality and the Demon King’s Sword. I have no idea which bored fool came up with them.”
“Ahem…” Link awkwardly shifted the topic.
“Then what about Magic to Remove Reproductive Isolation?”
“Huh? What would that kind of magic even be used for?”
“Have you ever heard of a dragon-elf?”
Seeing that Link was now not only eyeing her magic, but even targeting her as an elf, Serie’s fist slowly began to tighten.
This Great Mage from the Mythical Era possessed commendable self-restraint, managing to hold herself back from snapping on the spot.
“You don’t have that either? And you dare call yourself a ‘Living Grimoire’?”
“I wonder, Lord Serie, if you have ever heard of the recently popular Introduction to Magical Theory (Part I)?”
Link cheekily brought up his masterwork.
Serie ultimately couldn’t hold back and slammed a punch down on him.
She had a strong premonition that the book this dragon spoke of was just like him—nothing good.
However, she didn’t put much force into the punch, and instead, the impact made her own hand throb with pain.
“Magic to Extend Lifespan,” Link said, no longer beating around the bush.
Serie looked at him.
“The lifespan of the dragon race is already extremely long.”
“You didn’t reject it outright, which means you have it.”
“There is no magic that directly extends lifespan. It can only enhance physical health, which indirectly allows one to live a bit longer.”
“However, is there really any point in gaining just over a decade more of life?”
Link did not answer.
Though his eyes could not see clearly, his sense of smell was extraordinarily sharp.
Today, from Chris’s body, he had distinctly caught the scent of death.