By noon, the air had changed.
Stonehelm was long behind them, replaced by broken hills, jagged black rock, and winding trails that cut through the Blackroot Mountains.
The carts creaked as they climbed. Wheels slipped on gravel. Horses snorted and sweated. Even the wind felt sharper here—thin, cold, and carrying the faint smell of ash that never fully left these mountains.
The campaign reached the site just as the sun began to tilt toward afternoon.
They didn't stop at the cave. Not directly. Instead, the guildmaster chose a wide valley near it—an open basin surrounded by cliffs and jagged ridgelines.
Kyle stepped off the cart and immediately felt the difference.
The valley floor was cracked stone and black soil. Patches of grass were near the edges, but most of the ground looked like it had been scorched too many times to ever fully heal.
The dragon's cave entrance was visible on the far side of the valley—high up on a rock face.
Mira stared at it. "That's… huge."
Leo squinted. "Good. Means we can see it coming."
"No," Alara said, eyes narrowed. "Means it can see us too."
Kyle watched the guildmaster's party move with purpose.
Men rolled heavy equipment from the carts—thick metal stakes, winches, and two large ballista-like launchers fitted with barbed spears attached to chains.
The purple-robed mage stood near the center of the valley, pressing his staff into the ground while others placed rune-etched anchors in a wide circle.
The guildmaster raised a hand.
"Listen." His voice carried across the valley without strain. "We won't fight it in the cave."
He pointed toward the black opening in the cliff.
"A dragon breathes fire. Inside a confined space, that fire becomes a furnace. Heat rebounds, smoke traps, stone cracks. If we go in there, we will die before we even touch it."
He swept his gaze across the assembled teams.
"So we'll pull it out. Here."
He pointed toward the wide valley floor and the rune anchors.
"Open ground. Clear angles. Chains and rune anchors to limit flight. Secondary teams hold the perimeter and prevent interference. Primary team kills it."
He paused.
"And nobody breaks formation."
Everyone nodded, and so the plan began.
Celestia raised her hands slightly.
A soft glow spread outward from her, touching the primary team first... then rippling across the rest.
Kyle felt an increase in his strength and energy—he knew immediately that this was a blessing.
The secondary assault team then headed to places where monsters were expected to come from, such as surrounding caves.
While the primary assault team placed pair of ox carcasses near the runic circle, they hid behind rocks and cavities.
The purple-robed mage lifted his staff and spoke a low phrase.
A flare of light immediately shot toward the dragon's cave. The beam did not appear to be harmful—rather, its purpose was to attract the dragon's attention and lure it out into the rune circle.
Kyle's breath steadied as he crouched behind a boulder, four fingers resting loosely on Fear Blade's hilt.
The air felt... different. Tense. Like the world itself was holding still, waiting.
Above, the purple-robed mage's spell lit up the valley in a brilliant beam, shooting toward the cave entrance like a lance of solid light. It struck the stone near the opening and spread across it.
Kyle watched the cave mouth.
Nothing happened. Ten seconds passed. Twenty. Then—
A low rumble came out of the dark cave, and loose pebbles skittered down the cliff.
Kyle's eyes locked onto the cave entrance. The darkness inside moved. Then, something massive shifted behind it.
The dragon emerged.
Kyle gasped the moment he saw it.
It was huge. Huge enough to carry two elephants at the same time. Covered in deep, red scales that looked ancient.
Horns curved back from its skull, jagged and uneven like stone. Its wings unfolded slowly—wide enough to cast a shadow across half the cliff face.
Its eyes were molten gold.
And when it looked down at the valley, Kyle felt it.
The pressure. Not magical lightning or glowing aura. Just pure dominance.
Like the mountain belonged to it... and everything else was trespassing.
The dragon opened its mouth full of sharp teeth, each one as big as Kyle's arm.
Then—it roared.