Outpost Battle: Demon vs. Storm and Thunder ①
‘Let me kill you!’
The body of the leopard-like dragon glowed, emitting a tense, crackling sound.
Instantly, the blade in hand—its form imbued with thunder—released its power.
Swinging the blade forward, the attack was unleashed simultaneously.
Thunder cracked across the sky.
A roar so loud it made the ears ring.
A flash so bright it seemed to crush the eyes.
Then, a scorching wind pressed against the skin.
‘Hah hah! Now there’s nothing left to mark the spot!’
Amidst the ringing in the ears, the voice of the triumphant leopard dragon echoed.
‘My eyes! My eyes—!?’
A second dragon screamed in agony.
It appeared the flash had blinded it.
Even dragons are vulnerable to dazzling attacks.
Analyzing the situation, the figure dashed forward.
The leopard dragon, having launched its attack, now seemed certain of victory—complacent beyond measure.
The second dragon, blinded by the flash, could not move properly.
No opportunity like this could be missed.
Clamping the lightning blade between teeth, the figure drew four throwing knives from the empty sheath.
Small in appearance, these knives possessed an explosive property upon impact—explosive blades.
Power was not diminished by size.
As the figure ran, the knives were thrown.
To the leopard dragon, utterly relaxed, it would seem as though knives suddenly emerged from the dust cloud raised by the previous attack, obscuring vision.
‘Noo!?’
A shout from the dragon, followed by an explosion.
Yet the shout carried more the weight of surprise than damage.
It had been startled, but not injured.
Expected.
Breaking through the dust cloud, the figure lunged forward.
The second blade held in hand—another enchanted blade imbued with fire—already crackled with flame.
Wrenched tightly in both hands, it was swung forward toward the leopard dragon.
“Ow!?”
The leopard dragon recoiled abruptly, startled.
Yet, while its main body responded predictably, the purple lightning lingering around it descended precisely toward the attacker.
“Kk!”
The lightning blade clenched in mouth was raised skyward, acting as a lightning rod.
The incoming purple lightning was drawn into the blade, triggering another burst of brilliance.
Shock surged through the jaws, teeth, and mouth holding the blade.
It was endured—literally—by gritting teeth. A step forward. The flaming blade swung again.
By then, however, the leopard dragon had already retreated beyond range.
“Ah, damn it!”
A frustrated voice from the leopard dragon.
By the time I took a step forward, the leopard dragon had already retreated ten meters away.
As expected, this one is significantly faster than me.
And from the exchange just now, I am certain—this one is a thunder dragon.
Troublesome...
A mental click of the tongue.
Thunder dragon.
Dragons of any element are troublesome, but thunder and darkness are particularly so, in my estimation.
Darkness is rare—encounters are nearly nonexistent, so it is manageable.
Thunder dragons are different.
They are as numerous as any other element.
More importantly, they have weak territorial instincts and frequently appear in human settlements.
The dragon species most likely to be engaged in combat with humans and demons is probably the thunder dragon.
Their nature is straightforward.
Thunder-based attacks and close combat utilizing their physical form.
That is all.
But precisely because it is straightforward, raw physical strength is tested directly.
What makes it difficult is the lightning attacks.
Lightning speed exceeds human reaction time.
Avoidance is nearly impossible.
Yet the damage output is high.
A moderate defense will be reduced to ash in a single strike.
Neither evasion nor defense is feasible.
MP consumption is severe in response, but the user will be defeated before MP is depleted.
Facing a Lightning Dragon requires, at minimum, the ability to withstand its lightning strikes.
That precondition I have, at least, met.
My affinity is lightning and fire.
Therefore, I frequently craft lightning-based magical blades and have acquired resistance.
As demonstrated earlier, a magical blade of the same attribute can endure and even nullify such attacks.
But being able to block is merely a prerequisite for combat.
Without this, one cannot even step onto the battlefield.
In other words, I have only just managed to stand on the same field.
Whether I can win remains unknown.
The greatest characteristic of the Thunder Dragon is its lightning strike—difficult to evade, impossible to block.
Other characteristics include, first and foremost, its speed.
Among all stats, the Thunder Dragon's speed is exceptionally high. It specializes in overwhelming enemies with lightning strikes through swift movement.
Its physical and magical attack power are both high.
Conversely, its defense—both physical and magical—is the lowest among dragonkind.
It possesses the dragon-specific skill of Dragon Scales, but since it rarely takes damage, the skill level is usually the minimum: one.
In essence, a fully attack-oriented type.
I, too, am a type specialized in attack—unconventional, yet specialized.
No notable defensive traits.
In terms of status, one might call it balanced—but the skills are entirely skewed toward offense.
This battle, then, will be a clash between two purely offensive types.
My magic sword versus the leopard dragon’s lightning strike.
Which will prove superior. Which will land the first decisive blow.
That is how this fight will unfold.
...If it were merely me versus the leopard dragon, one-on-one.
‘Finally, my vision’s clearing up. Still flickering, though.’
A dragon resembling a pterodactyl, shaking its head.
‘Hey, what the hell are you talking about so calmly!? That thing withstood my spark! This one’s trouble!’
‘You’re the one who made my eyes flicker, idiot!’
‘Just get moving and help me already!’
‘Ah, yes.’
Both dragons remain alert, poised for action.
From the exchange, the leopard dragon may hold a higher position than the pteranodon-like dragon, yet the casual manner in which they interact suggests near-equal standing.
Both will advance without lapse in vigilance from this point.
The perfect opportunity just moments ago—when they were still careless—was squandered. A single wound inflicted would have been ideal. Failure.
Yet despair is premature.
They are unharmed. So am I.
The battle has only just begun.
Sweat beads on my palm, slick against the hilt. I reposition my grip on the magic blade. I prepare once more.