Translator: AnubisTL
A crescent moon hung in the sky above the Rock-Chewing Tribe, stretching the shadows of the low mountains into distorted shapes.
Garos's dragon eyes glowed with dark intensity in the night. He lowered his body, his crimson scales shimmering like obsidian.
"Let your deaths soothe the unease in my heart."
With a sweep of his tail, he sent the Goblin Warriors leaping behind him flying in a spray of bloody pulp. Their meticulously tanned and rune-fortified leather armor crumbled like wet paper at the slightest touch.
"Damn you, dragonkind!"
Firelight and the ravaged territory reflected in his eyes as Broken-Tooth Goruk roared in fury.
Whirrrrr!
The engine roared to life, black oil burning rapidly and transforming into energy.
Black oil—a viscous substance formed over eons from the remains of demonic beasts. This substance, similar to petroleum but far more potent, served as the primary fuel for many alchemy items.
The planet Bernardo was blessed with an abundance of resources like black oil, magic stones, and source crystals. This, more than anything, had fueled its advanced alchemical development.
As the engine's hum grew louder...
Steam billowed from the Giant-Arm Miner as alchemical runes etched into its steel plates lit up one by one. The massive machine stomped across the ground, charging toward the red iron young dragon.
If we were on the ground...
If we were on the ground...
Broken-Tooth Goruk, piloting the Giant-Arm Miner, was confident he could kill any young dragon.
Moreover, with the young dragons' arrogance and overconfidence, they might forget their advantage of flight and engage in a ground battle.
I'll tear off its wings first! By the time it tries to fly again, it'll be too late!
Goruk had already devised his battle strategy.
The Giant-Arm Miner wasn't a combat-oriented alchemy golem, but its massive arms possessed the strength to crush rocks into dust and bend steel. A direct confrontation with the young dragon should be no problem.
Meanwhile...
Shaman Groz of the Rock-Chewing Tribe hunched over, his spine contorted. At the apex of his back, the largest, hump-like boil burst open, spewing a foul-smelling fluid. From within sprang a massive, black-purple spider the size of a goblin's head, its compound eyes glowing crimson, its shell jet-black, and its legs bristling with fine, sharp hairs.
At first glance, it appeared lifelike, as if it were a living creature. In reality, it was a spirit cultivated by Groz, the Goblin Shaman's primary means of attack.
Spider Spirit Web!
Groz cast a spell. The Spider Spirits perched on his back opened their mouths and spat out a massive, sticky, and venomous web toward Garos.
On one side, a web formed by magic.
On the other, the menacing Giant-Arm Miner charged forward.
Garos crouched slightly, his muscles beneath his dragon scales tightening like steel wires. Then, with a sudden surge of power, he flapped his dragon wings.
Whoosh!
A gust of wind, thick with dust, swirled outward in a violent gust.
Before the web could fall, the red iron young dragon shot skyward.
Goruk, piloting the Giant-Arm Miner, looked up at the sky. He could only glare helplessly; the alchemy golem lacked any anti-air capabilities.
"Scared off like the last red young dragon?"
Having driven off two young dragons in a row, Goruk felt invincible. Perhaps he could even face a juvenile dragon without fear now.
"Cheer for me! The mighty Goruk has once again repelled a giant dragon!"
The goblin roared.
The other goblins, not understanding what was happening, instinctively echoed his cries, praising Goruk's strength and valor.
Only Groz knew this wasn't over.
"Be careful! It hasn't left!"
Garos soared high into the sky, gazing down at the tiny goblin tribe below. His wings tore through the air as he plummeted downward, the wind whistling through the feather-like scales on his wings.
When he was close enough, Garos folded his wings into a cone, the dark red patterns on his scales glowing faintly, as if flames were flowing across steel. The red iron young dragon descended like a small, black-red meteor, its massive presence crushing down on the conspicuous Giant-Arm Miner.
Broken-Tooth Goruk felt a flicker of fear.
But this fear was quickly shattered by his recent surge of confidence.
He maneuvered the Giant-Arm Miner to raise its colossal arms to meet the red iron young dragon, roaring, "Tribe! Witness this! Witness the moment the mighty Goruk slays a dragon!"
One by one, the goblins gazed at Broken-Tooth Goruk with worshipful eyes.
Its confident tone even infected Groz, making him think this creature might actually succeed.
Crash!
The red iron young dragon and the Giant-Arm Miner collided.
The ground cracked in a spiderweb pattern, and the shockwave sent all the surrounding goblins flying, crashing against the mountain walls or their companions' weapons, causing heavy casualties.
The eight-meter-tall alchemy golem was crushed like a tin can under a giant's foot, its riveted steel plates twisting and bursting, black oil gushing out like blood.
Broken-Tooth Goruk's scream was cut short mid-sentence as a broken metal pipe pierced his throat, impaling the goblin on the twisted control panel.
The last thing he saw was Garos rising from the flames and smoke.
"He's dead! Run!"
A goblin scrambled to its feet, screaming for escape, but it hadn't taken a few steps before its head flew off. Its terrified expression froze on its face as it watched its headless body twitch uselessly.
Garos's dragon wings unfurled like two giant scythes, sweeping low over the goblin tribe's camp.
Where the wing edges passed, goblins, tents, stone houses, and weapon racks were all sliced cleanly in two.
Whoosh!
A black shadow suddenly leaped from the side.
Garos swiped a claw, but felt no solid impact.
The Spider Spirit landed on Garos's back, its fangs sinking into the gaps between the dragon scales. The entire creature vanished, not by tearing through the scales and flesh, but as if melting directly into Garos's body.
A stinging sensation spread across his scales as the Spider Spirit bit him.
The Spider Spirit, formed from magic, ignored his hardened dragon scales to inflict damage. Though the damage was minor, it still made Garos frown.
"My resistance to magical attacks isn't high enough yet," he thought.
Dragonkind's magic resistance grows with age. Adult dragons can ignore many spells, but young dragons have very limited resistance.
"And pure physical attacks aren't effective against spirits, magic souls, and the like."
Quasi-spell skill: Small Fireball!
Whoosh! A tiny fireball materialized beside Garos and struck the Spider Spirit, obliterating it in an explosion of dust.
His claw strikes were far more powerful than the fireball, yet less effective against the Spider Spirit.
"I need to delve deeper into quasi-spell skills," Garos mused. "I only know a few."
He was dedicated to becoming defensively unparalleled, incredibly fast, and exceptionally durable, but this didn't mean he wanted to be a reckless brute who relied solely on brute force.
Dragons were born sorcerers, and he would not abandon this advantage.
However, adapting to magic evolved far slower than physical traits. Currently, Garos had only mastered a few quasi-spell skills ahead of other young dragons.
(End of the Chapter)
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