Ron did not feel the slightest bit fortunate about having broken through to Lv3.
Because next, what was heading toward the battlefield was a ferocious giant dragon whose wingspan was even larger than its body, its surface covered in thick, pale scales.
It seemed to have passed through long, ancient years.
This giant dragon was filled with an archaic, weathered aura. When it sensed that intruders had arrived, it slowly opened those crimson dragon eyes that had long been asleep.
Red lightning continuously danced across the ancient dragon's back.
It was like a Tesla coil running at full power. Before the battle had even truly begun, Ron had already sensed oppressive pressure from the enormous monster before him.
Especially its classic four-legged, four-winged appearance.
'Ancient Dragon.'
'Lansseax.'
He could not help but think of the dragon-girl Boss from Elden Ring. The enormous monster before him did have some differences, but that violent aura was practically about to overflow.
'Damn it!'
'So the Dungeon swapped out the rare Infant Dragon and put an Ancient Dragon in my way, huh?'
In Ron's impression, Ancient Dragon Lansseax could be said to be quite a troublesome Boss in Elden Ring. Its body was relatively slender, making it difficult to lock onto as a monster.
However, part of the reason it was troublesome also came from the limitations of a Soulslike.
Without showing it, he glanced behind him. The cave passage had already been completely sealed off. If they wanted to leave the arena, the only way was the path behind the Ancient Dragon.
Among the methods he currently had at his disposal, the only Character Save Slots with combat ability at this stage were the 'Tarnished' and 'Sekiro,' and the Combat Arts he currently possessed were all still extremely primitive.
Run?
The moment that thought arose, he completely snuffed it out.
Running away was not a means of solving the problem.
Ron could practically guess the nature of this damned Soulslike Dungeon already. If he wanted to head deeper, then he had to completely kill the 'Ancient Dragon' on the current Floor.
He had the number of revivals granted by 'Revival.'
There was absolutely no problem with him serving as the main offensive force in this battle, not to mention that there was also the magic 'Futsunomitama' mastered by Mikoto.
After determining the objective ahead, he did not make the team atmosphere especially grim. In a relaxed tone, he said, "Prepare for battle."
"..."
She had long since adapted to the daily routine of the Soulslike Dungeon.
And having also gone through the tempering of the Erdtree Burial Watchdog, Mikoto did not shrink back because of the giant dragon before her—which clearly looked extremely powerful.
She held her katana in both hands and quickly entered a combat-ready state.
On the other hand, Daphne and Cassandra—when they saw the enormous monster before them, the worldview that had already been overturned was now completely shattered.
A giant dragon...
That enormous body—compared to it, they were like something on the roadside that could be crushed to death at will.
"Is this right?"
Although she had mentally prepared herself,
for future Dungeon exploration to be extremely difficult, Daphne had never imagined that danger would be shoved right in front of them before they even reached the middle Floors.
That's right...
It was the existence of this Floor Boss being shoved directly in front of her!
Inside the Dungeon, the environment of each Floor was basically fixed and did not change. Yet just in those past moments, the ground had kept trembling.
The familiar cave passage had been completely changed... forming a broad environment like a 'death arena,' and even cutting off every route of retreat. The Floor Boss before them had not even begun fighting yet.
Yet the oppressive pressure crashing over them already brought Daphne an extremely dangerous feeling!
"Very right."
Hearing the girl's life-doubting murmur, no amount of verbal description about how dangerous the Dungeon environment was could compare to letting Daphne personally experience the characteristics of the Soulslike style.
The key was, this was only the beginning!
Having experienced quite a few special Floor Bosses, feeling nervous when facing this kind of monster was only natural, but what Ron felt more was a faint anticipation in his heart.
"For example—"
"Things like rolling-boulder traps in passages leading straight to a Floor Boss room are just part of the daily routine we need to adapt to. You'll get used to it little by little later."
"..."
There was still a later?
Of course Daphne would not say something like that out loud. Now was not the time to back down. Since there was no retreat at all, then they had to seek a chance of survival in this desperate situation.
To find that faint sliver of hope!
From the corner of her eye, she glanced at her close friend Cassandra behind her, gripping her staff with both hands. The fear of encountering a giant dragon had made even her pupils tremble.
She could even—hear her broken murmurs: "This is... the giant dragon that appeared in my dream last night. It... it's really strong... It'll wipe out our party in the Dungeon."
The girl's dispirited words were especially conspicuous in the empty, silent arena.
Saying such things in private was one thing, but right in front of Captain Ron, Daphne had just been about to stop her when she saw the upright boy beside her slowly turn around.
"Cassandra!"
"Sorry..."
She had just wanted to explain her close friend's slip of the tongue, yet she saw that on Ron's face, there was not the slightest trace of anger. Instead, his tone was gentler than ever before.
"Trust me."
"Trust that our team will win!"
As for her impression of Ron, it remained only at the image from before the War Game—his ruthless decisiveness in killing. Even the god Apollo, this guy had dared to attack directly.
This was the one side of him Daphne had never seen.
But before she could even marvel at that, before they had even had time to discuss a battle plan, she saw the boy silently remove the strange equipment he wore.
Leaving only that greatsword, Great Fortune.
And then, the figure of his back, charging fearlessly toward Ancient Dragon Lansseax.
As for the atmosphere within the Familia party, Cassandra was always gloomy and worried all day long, while Mikoto was like a combat machine, strictly carrying out battle orders.
As for the captain?
Ron's hands were already itching. He was desperately eager to fight the Ancient Dragon!
'Why is there even a reckless idiot here?' Daphne only felt utterly exhausted, but she still played her part in this battle of utterly unequal strength.
'Raumure.'
She chanted quickly.
Magic power surged continuously, and in the dim arena, a cold white glow rose up, applying defensive magic to Ron up ahead.
"Cassandra,"
"Don't just stand there!"
...
"It should be fine."
"Even if the rare Infant Dragon has been strengthened by the Dungeon, it probably can't be that strong. The key thing is its size—it's right there. Speed is my advantage."
As for a battle plan?
Ron's view was that a Souls veteran simply did not need one.
As long as his combat skills were good enough, he had a chance to conquer the 'Ancient Dragon' Floor Boss before him. At most, it was just a matter of how many lives it would cost.
Since things had come to this, then battle it was.
When his level rose to Lv3, the most obvious improvement was speed. Even holding a greatsword as heavy as a brass shield, his speed still did not decrease.
Each time he stepped forward, Ron's figure surged nearly ten meters ahead. As he advanced across the altered terrain, fine spiderweb cracks shattered outward beneath his steps.
It seemed to realize that an adventurer as tiny as an ant was approaching it. Lansseax lowered its slender neck, bowing the proud head of dragonkind.
Within those crimson eyes, there was only fury at being offended.
"ROAR!!"
That deep and heavy roar spread outward through the Ancient Dragon's unique vocal organs. The high-frequency sound waves reaching his ears produced a buzzing hum.
It brought an intensely uncomfortable stinging pain.
The enormous monster raised its claw and slammed it heavily toward the ground. The instant it touched the earth, the violent shockwave shattered the rocky floor in front of it.
It was like a seismic zone created with its bare hand.
The ruptured ground surged forward, carrying shattered rock fragments as it swept toward Ron.
"What the hell..."
"Even being conservative, this thing's at least Lv4, right?"
Keeping his mind in a state of extreme concentration, Ron naturally caught the Ancient Dragon's opening attack in his sight. Watching those cracks racing toward him, his movements did not pause in the slightest.
The Shinobi Prosthetic that had already been attached to his left arm—he decisively fired the claw, trailing a rope, toward the Floor Boss's leg in the distance.
Before the shockwave could sweep over him, the sharp hook successfully embedded itself into a gap between the giant dragon's scales. Ron shot forward, borrowing the pulling force like a long jump, rapidly closing in on the Floor Boss.
Only by clearly understanding one's own advantages could one win this hopelessly uneven battle!
And as if it had noticed that tiny reptile drawing near, the giant dragon Lansseax swung those incomparably sharp claws.
As though tearing through the air... to smack this hateful human adventurer to death right here.
"..."
This thing was definitely stronger than every Floor Boss he had encountered before!!
Faced with the Ancient Dragon's sweeping strike, the shock of those claws expanding from far to near was hard to describe. But there was no time for Ron to lose focus.
He decisively cut off the rope's pull.
Adjusting his posture, he lowered his body and rolled forward. After dodging the Ancient Dragon's claw strike, the violent wind that swept over him almost made his already adjusted footing stumble.
"You really think I'm easy to bully?"
"..."
This series of attacks from the Floor Boss
had stirred up Ron's temper. Although it had not inflicted any substantial damage, he gripped the greatsword with both hands and charged at Ancient Dragon Lansseax.
His figure was like a cannonball,
and borrowing the force brought by his dash, he swung the greatsword Great Fortune without hesitation, slashing viciously at the enormous monster's scaled hind leg.
Bang!
A sound like metal colliding rang out across the empty arena.
The sharp edge of the greatsword struck the Ancient Dragon's thick scales, leaving only a wound from which blood slowly seeped. It had indeed dealt damage, but it was a bit like scratching an itch through armor.
Meanwhile, the web between his thumb and index finger, gripping the greatsword, felt as though it had been torn apart.
Ron raised his head and looked at Ancient Dragon before him. Only now did he finally realize that today's Dungeon was not joking with him!
"This is bad..."
"I really am easy to bully!"
...
At that very moment, in the passage of the Floor guarded by the Ancient Dragon, sensing the intense trembling of the Dungeon, the Loki Familia—who had entered a state of vigilance under Captain Finn's warning—
arrived at the arena formed by the appearance of the Floor Boss.
They did not continue forward.
They all stopped in their tracks, because not far ahead stood the massive-bodied Ancient Dragon Lansseax, and currently challenging the Floor Boss... was that adventurer party!!
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