The night was too quiet.
No wind.
No insects.
Just silence.
Alias shifted slightly on his bed.
His arm throbbed beneath the bandage.
"…Tch…"
Sleep didn't come easily.
Something felt… off.
Then—
A sound.
Low.
Deep.
Not thunder.
Not the wind.
Something else.
Alias' eyes opened slowly.
"…What…?"
The sound came again.
Heavier this time.
The wooden walls creaked faintly.
Outside—
A faint glow.
Red.
"…Fire…?"
Voices.
Confused.
"What is that light?!"
"Why is the sky—"
Alias pushed himself up.
Pain shot through his arm.
But he ignored it.
He stepped outside.
And looked up.
The sky—
Burned.
A deep crimson glow spread across the darkness.
Then—
Something moved.
Massive.
Wings.
Cutting through the sky.
Blocking the moon.
Alias froze.
"…What… is that…?"
The air shifted.
Wind.
At first—
Light.
Then stronger.
And stronger.
The trees bent.
Roofs trembled.
Dust began to rise from the ground.
Villagers stumbled out of their homes.
Fear spreading.
"…It's coming down!"
The shadow grew larger.
Closer.
Closer—
Then—
BOOM.
The world shook.
The impact shattered the silence.
The ground cracked beneath the force.
A violent shockwave burst outward—
Throwing villagers off their feet.
Alias was slammed back—
Rolling across the dirt.
"…Ghk—!"
Dust exploded into the air.
Blinding.
Choking.
The village trembled—
As if it might collapse.
Silence followed.
Heavy.
Suffocating.
Slowly—
The dust began to settle.
And then—
It stood.
A dragon.
Massive.
Its body towered over the village.
Crimson scales—
Cracked with glowing lines beneath them—
Like molten lava trapped inside.
Black spines ran along its back—
Jagged.
Uneven.
Its wings—
Torn.
Burned.
Its eyes—
Glowed.
Molten gold.
A low breath escaped its mouth—
Heat spread instantly.
The air warped.
"…A… monster…?" someone whispered.
No one moved.
No one breathed.
Then—
On its back—
A figure.
Standing.
Still.
Watching.
A dark cloak flowed behind him.
Untouched by the chaos.
Calm.
Cold.
His gaze swept across the village.
Uninterested.
Unmoved.
"…Another one."
His voice was quiet.
Yet it carried.
Clear.
Alias felt it.
Something—
Heavy.
Different.
"…This isn't…"
Not like the wolf.
Not like anything.
A villager screamed—
"RUN!!"
The spell broke.
Chaos erupted.
People scattered—
Screaming—
Falling—
Tripping over one another.
Haruki grabbed Alias immediately.
"Move!"
Emi rushed beside them.
"Stay close!"
Alias stumbled—
Still staring at the dragon.
"…What is that…?!"
No answer.
Only—
A single word.
From above.
"…Burn."
The dragon moved.
Its head lowered slightly—
Then—
Fire.
A torrent of blazing crimson flames erupted from its mouth—
Engulfing the nearest houses.
Instantly.
Gone.
Wood turned to ash.
Flames spread—
Clinging—
Refusing to die.
Screams filled the air.
"…AHHH—!"
People were caught—
Consumed—
Vanishing in the inferno.
Alias froze.
"…No…"
The heat hit him next—
Overwhelming.
Burning his skin.
"…This… isn't… real…"
Another blast—
Fire rained across the village—
Explosions of flame tearing through everything.
Men tried to fight—
Spears—
Axes—
They didn't even reach it.
A single sweep of its claws—
Gone.
Crushed.
Effortless.
The dragon didn't roar.
Didn't rage.
It simply—
Destroyed.
Because it was told to.
Haruki pulled Alias harder.
"Don't look back!"
Emi followed—
But the flames spread faster.
Blocking paths.
Cutting escape.
"…This way!" Haruki shouted.
They turned—
But the ground shook again.
Another impact.
Closer.
The dragon had moved.
Landing deeper into the village—
Crushing buildings beneath it.
Fire erupted around them.
Alias coughed—
Smoke filling his lungs.
"…I can't—"
His legs weakened.
His body—
Too slow.
Too injured.
"…Move!"
Haruki shoved him forward.
Emi stayed close—
Protecting him.
Everything blurred.
Fire.
Screams.
Collapse.
Alias' thoughts scattered.
"…What is happening…?"
"…Why…?"
"…Why here…?"
He didn't understand.
He couldn't.
Another shadow passed overhead.
The dragon rose slightly—
Wings spreading—
Blocking what little sky remained.
And above—
That man.
Looking down.
At all of it.
Without emotion.
Without hesitation.
As if—
This meant nothing.
Alias' chest tightened.
"…We can't win…"
The thought came—
Cold.
Real.
The sky burned.
The village crumbled.
And the night—
Became ash.