The enormous creature that Noah watched, frozen behind the rock, was a gigantic serpent—the visible portion of its immense black body, striped with red, protruding from the cave's opening.
```
[Alert! Danger!]
[Alert! Danger!]
[Hide immediately!]
```
Upon hearing the system's warning, Noah quickly ducked completely behind the rock, breathless and with his heart pounding, for he had come perilously close to being seen by the creature.
When the serpent slithered out of the cave, it began to scan its surroundings with a blurred gaze, searching for the one responsible for rousing it. Its yellow eyes roamed about until they fixed on an enormous, flaming lion coming toward it.
Upon spotting the approaching devastation, the serpent roared—
"Raaawww!"
As it lunged in the direction of the source of the destruction.
"What on earth is that...?!" Noah murmured, perplexed, as he watched the serpent's body still emerge from the opening—even as it advanced several meters ahead.
"...Is it really a dragon?"
```
[This is a semi-dragon!]
```
"Semi-dragon? What does that even mean?" Noah inquired, crawling on his trembling little legs to the other side of the rock.
[A semi-dragon is a serpentine monster that carries a bit of dragon blood which either didn't prevail—or hasn't yet evolved—into becoming a legendary dragon!]
Swallowing hard, he poked his head out from the meager shelter of the rock and watched as the serpent drew near the cloud of smoke, asking,
"...And how do these semi-dragons evolve?"
[They can evolve by accumulating Qi in their bodies, just like humans—although that method is the slowest; or by consuming the flesh, blood, and energy core of sufficiently powerful beasts, which is considered faster than the first method; or by combining both—accumulating Qi while devouring other beasts—which is the fastest and most complete method of all!]
"...So that monster back there is already dead, right?" Noah said more calmly as he rose to get a better look at the unfolding scene—though his body still trembled.
[Not exactly!]
[That monster is the Demon Lion King—a legendary demonic beast that appears only thousands, or even millions, of years after its predecessor!]
"Hmm? And what does that mean? That serpent isn't a huge semi-dragon? Aren't dragons supposed to be the most powerful?"
[It doesn't work that way!]
[There is a huge difference between a semi-dragon and a full dragon—the difference is like that between the sky and the earth. There's no comparison!]
[If that creature were truly a legendary dragon, then the Demon Lion King would stand no chance. But since it's only a semi-dragon, the outcome is uncertain!]
The creatures drew closer and began to size each other up. Noah watched as they prepared their attacks, yet he feared what might be unleashed upon him—even though he was far away.
"...Staying here now is madness," he murmured as he carefully moved behind the nearest trees. "What is the safest way to get out of here? I'd best leave while I still can."
```
[Wait!]
```
"What now?" Noah asked, retreating behind the rock once more.
```
[Enter the dragon's cave!]
```
"What!? You must be kidding—this can't be possible! This system must be out of its mind—it's too good to be true. They sent me a faulty system right off the bat!"
[There could be many treasures inside!]
[Ponder this: what are you going to do in this world with nothing? With no money, what will you eat? Or where will you live? Entering that cave might be the solution to many of your problems!]
"...I hate to admit it, but you're right. I have nowhere to stay, nothing to eat, and no way to pay my bills in this world, yet still..." he said, glancing toward the dark entrance and feeling a chill run through his body. "No! That's too much! I'll think of another plan later. Maybe I could just hunt for my own food, right? Isn't that possible?"
`[If you wish... But this world is not as peaceful as your previous one. Here, even a wild boar can kill you with no chance to defend yourself!]`
`[Strength – that is the only rule in the world you now find yourself in!]`
"..."
The darkness frightened him, yet after the system's words, it also seemed to beckon him—as if hypnotizing him. Summoning all the courage he had (without even knowing where it came from), Noah staggered, his legs weak and trembling, toward the entrance of the cave.
`[Hurry, before the dragon sees you!]`
"Be quiet! Can't you see I'm coming?!" Noah exclaimed, straining to quicken his pace despite his trembling legs.
As he struggled to reach the cave, suddenly an enormous attack hurtled in his direction. His luck that moment was otherworldly—if he had taken one less step, he probably would have been obliterated along with the rock in which he was hiding.
Looking back, Noah saw the extent of the destruction: the rock he had been sheltering behind was gone, dozens of trees had simply vanished, yet the part of the cave struck by the impact remained intact. This made him wonder just how strong and resilient that semi-dragon must be to shatter that rock with sheer brute force.
And while he observed the cave and pondered what had just happened, without even realizing it, Noah was already walking normally toward the entrance. Just before stepping inside, a thought invaded his mind:
'How can something so enormous live in such a tiny space compared to its own size?'
It was a ridiculous comparison between the size of the serpent and that of the cave.
But upon entering the cave, the only thing Noah managed to utter was:
— Woooow! as he marveled at the enormous hole in the floor.
**A Little While Before**
"Raaaawww!" roared the semi-dragon, soaring toward the Demon Lion King.
When it got close enough to the king, the dragon simply attacked—spitting fire in his direction without any warning or apparent reason.
"Rooaaar!" roared the Demon Lion King as he winced from the pain of the attack.
That lion was truly majestic—it appeared as a true king, with an imposing stature that easily towered over the surrounding trees, a golden mane that shone as if its tips were ablaze; a beautiful red mane, resembling living flames more than mere fur; enormous paws aglow with fire; and last but not least, a flaming tail in a golden hue that gleamed so brilliantly it could blind anyone.
"How dare you! Who is the insolent one that dares attack this king?!" the lion bellowed, furious.
For some reason, the lion kept his eyes closed; even after absorbing the full force of the attack, he did not open them—as if he were unable to. Noticing this, the serpent grew rather confident of its victory—after all, what could a blind little lion do against her?
"No need to yell so much, little kitten—I'm not deaf," the serpent said, gliding over the trees as it contemplated how to strike him again.
The serpent circled the lion and, when it believed it saw even the tiniest gap in his defenses, it launched its attack without hesitation. Certain it would be easy to hit him, since the Demon Lion King's eyes were closed, she didn't even consider ways to dodge a potential counterattack, should her strike fail.
From the moment the lion heard the serpent's voice, he focused solely on his hearing, tracking her every movement. Noticing that she was not drawing near, he opened a small gap in his defense and waited for the perfect moment when she would charge.
At the moment the serpent attacked, the lion listened intently to everything around him. He simply waited until the creature was close enough, preparing to counter. Once he was sure the strike was about to hit, the lion unleashed a massive ball of golden fire straight from his mouth.
The serpent, which had charged the lion upon spotting the gap, never expected that opening to be a trap. By the time she realized it, it was too late—or, at least, it would have been if she were an ordinary beast.
Using her extraordinary speed, the serpent managed to evade the lion's attack virtually unscathed—her immense body left her little time to completely dodge the oncoming blow.
At the precise spots where the lion's attack hit, the wounds on the serpent were so severe that one could see nothing but bone and burning flesh. It was only several minutes later that the serpent began to feel the intense pain from all the damage to her body.
"Raaaaaawwww!" she howled, writhing in agony as her tail swung wildly from side to side, paying no heed to where the blow had struck her.
And as she thrashed her tail, the serpent—unaware—ended up colliding with the entrance of the cave, causing it to collapse.