Chapter 21. Master of Magic

 

Levelis was a dragon.

 

Although her nature was gentle and kind, her inherent essence never vanished. Her parents were Red Dragons. When enraged, they were an unstoppable force, feared by all other dragons.

 

And now.

 

Levelis was genuinely furious.

 

[……]

 

The once peaceful forest was no more.

 

Flames roared everywhere, consuming the forest and sending countless animals fleeing in terror.

 

She moved a squirrel at her feet to a safe place and then fixed her cold gaze on her opponent.

 

Hair as red as blood.

 

Eyes glistening with a fiery, uncontrolled excitement that was utterly repulsive.

 

Humans were always like this.

 

Driven by their own greed, they never considered the well-being of other creatures.

 

She knew not all humans were like that.

 

But at least all the humans she had encountered were invariably greedy and filled with desire, causing harm to others.

 

And Levelis.

 

She was not weak enough to simply let go of those who harmed her.

 

[Die.]

 

In an instant, the flames gathered in her mouth swept through the forest. Since the place was already a wasteland of debris left by him, there was no hesitation in using fire.

 

“Haha.”

 

Deltian smiled, twisting his body to avoid the flames.

 

At the same time, he stepped on a tree and charged towards the dragon. Levelis’ crimson eyes focused on him. Predator’s eyes with vertical slits.

 

Deltian felt his blood boil even more as he swung his sword.

 

Boom!

 

The sword, imbued with a bloody aura, clashed against the dragon’s tail.

 

But it was within his expectation.

 

He immediately retrieved his sword and grabbed her tail, climbing up.

 

Balancing quickly, he ran along her tail, like performing acrobatics, aiming his sword at her nape.

 

[Barrier.]

 

“Ugh?”

 

A blue shield appeared at that moment.

 

It forcefully pushed Deltian away.

 

His body hit a tree, shattering the forest around him.

 

Yet, undeterred, he wiped the blood from his mouth and stood up. The more intense the situation, the more his blood surged.

 

As he looked up at Levelis.

 

She was already soaring in the sky, gathering her breath.

 

Dark red flames swirled, gathering in her mouth. At a glance, it was an overwhelming force.

 

However.

 

“Is she advertising her attack?”

 

An attack that blatantly visible like that.

 

Only a fool would get hit.

 

Deltian immediately launched himself towards the dragon, springing like a coil.

 

His body catapulted unnaturally high, reaching Levelis’ eye level in the air.

 

Just as he was about to rise above her breath’s reach.

 

[Foolish creature.]

 

Boom——!

 

A tremendous gravity pulled Deltian’s body down.

 

He plummeted to the ground.

 

He tried to get up quickly, but it was too late.

 

In that moment of halted movement.

 

Her breath was already aimed at him.

 

Too late to avoid.

 

Deltian intensified the bloody aura and swung his greatsword towards the breath.

 

Boom!!

 

The massive energy exploded, sweeping the surroundings.

 

Levelis floated serenely in the sky, watching the dust settle.

 

It was a formidable destructive force.

 

Enough to obliterate a small village.

 

She thought he couldn’t possibly be fine after taking that head-on.

 

And as if to prove it, a red slash shot out from the dust.

 

Levelis evaded it gracefully like an acrobat, immediately casting her next spell.

 

A red magic circle formed in the air with complex formulas, and as all the lines connected.

 

[Hellfire.]

 

Boom!

 

Once again, a massive spell was unleashed at him. A crimson pillar of fire swept across the land in an instant. Even though his form was still unseen, Levelis remained vigilant.

 

As she expanded her senses to search the surroundings.

 

“Looking for me?”

 

[……!!]

 

A voice from behind.

 

She swung her tail towards it.

 

“No, no.”

 

Deltian stomped on the incoming tail.

 

Despite the immense force, twisting his ankle, he focused all his aura on his ankle to endure and twisted his body.

 

His body spun gracefully in the air, sending out numerous slashes.

 

Unconcerned about allies or enemies, the slashes were relentless.

 

Levelis recognized their intent.

 

Aimed solely at destroying the forest.

 

Rather than attacking him, she gathered mana to protect the forest.

 

A massive barrier enveloped the forest, blocking all the red slashes.

 

“Heh.”

 

Deltian revealed his fangs.

 

He grinned, propelling himself through the air.

 

He shot towards Levelis like a red meteor.

 

In a fleeting moment, he slashed through her like lightning, creating some distance.

 

Slash!

 

It was not a significant wound.

 

Her scales were so tough that it only left a slight scratch.

 

“But I’ve won, haven’t I?”

 

Levelis raised the corners of her mouth in a grotesque smile.

 

His sword was a cursed sword.

 

One that voraciously consumed blood.

 

And the blood it consumed would continue to gnaw away at the target until the sword itself crumbled.

 

[…….]

 

Levelis looked at her wound.

 

Indeed, it was a small wound.

 

Barely enough to shed a drop of blood.

 

But the moment it touched his sword, Levelis sensed something was wrong.

 

Her entire blood was in turmoil.

 

Blood that should have coagulated long ago continued to flow.

 

The wound widened.

 

Now it was a small wound, but over time, it was bound to grow.

 

And as if to prove it, the blood flow increased.

 

But.

 

[Did you think a dragon would succumb to a mere cursed sword?]

 

Her scales twisted. In an instant, the rearranged scales forcibly sealed her wound. The scales, stronger than steel, pressed the wound like stitching, stopping the continuous bleeding.

 

However, it was only a temporary measure.

 

Her blood was still rampaging under the influence of the cursed sword.

 

‘About an hour….’

 

She had to finish him within that time.

 

Levelis’s eyes gleamed as she gathered mana.

 

The strongest spell she knew.

 

Meteor materialized in her grasp.

 

“I won’t let you complete it.”

 

Deltian charged at the sight of the magic circle.

 

He launched himself at Levelis again, but he wouldn’t be caught by the same trick twice.

 

“Ugh?”

 

Gravity intensified, pulling Deltian’s body down. The overwhelming gravity crushed his entire body. It felt like his very existence would be obliterated.

 

But he was familiar with it.

 

Simple manipulation of gravity wasn’t enough to stop him.

 

Thud!

 

He drove the cursed sword into his leg.

 

The blood-red sword craved its master’s blood.

 

And it fundamentally altered the blood.

 

A bit more corrupt, a bit more sinister.

 

Transforming him into a being closer to a demon than a human.

 

One of the demon’s characteristics.

 

Less affected by magic.

 

With that, Deltian freed himself from the gravity’s influence and swung his sword.

 

All within a second.

 

All these events transpired in a very short time.

 

Deltian was sure she couldn’t complete such a complex spell in that short time.

 

But he didn’t know.

 

The dragon’s majesty, who was the master of magic and the world’s harmonizer.

 

[Meteor.]

 

The sky turned dark.

 

A red-flaming meteor was falling towards the earth.

 

Seeing that, Deltian laughed.

 

This dragon.

 

There was no way she would actually drop a meteor.

 

She had been so determined to protect the forest.

 

Yet, dropping such a meteor in the middle of it?

 

At the very least, the surrounding terrain would be completely destroyed.

 

But.

 

‘She wouldn’t use it without a reason.’

 

Seeing the meteor, Deltian was already running towards the forest.

 

He ran endlessly through the dense forest, heading towards the area where injured animals lay.

 

If he was there.

 

That foolish dragon wouldn’t be able to unleash the meteor.

 

As he thought this.

 

[Gravity, application.]

 

A low murmur.

 

In that moment.

 

“…Huh?”

 

Deltian wondered if the world had tilted.

 

Otherwise, it made no sense.

 

His body was being pulled back to where he originally was, defying gravity.

 

He tried to resist with demonic blood, but it was futile.

 

The difference was overwhelming.

 

Deltian shivered at the immense gravity that enveloped his body.

 

Could she really manipulate magic?

 

Originally, magic was manifested by channeling mana through established rules. No matter what methods were used, if the formula changed, magic wouldn’t activate. Though many had attempted to re-interpret magic over the years, none succeeded.

 

But this dragon.

 

She did it effortlessly.

 

Deltian stared blankly at the sky.

 

The massive meteor, now close, blocked the sun as it fell towards him.

 

He glanced around and let out a hollow laugh.

 

“Crazy bastard.”

 

The entire forest, immensely vast, was protected by a gigantic barrier.

 

A barrier so strong, even his all-out attacks couldn’t breach it.

 

As he raised his sword.

 

Boom!!

 

The overwhelming mass struck the ground.