Amid the trees of Yavan, in a spot rarely touched by others, the silence was eerie. A few undead wandered the area, snadras swam beneath the ponds, and wyverns soared above the dense canopy. But amid all that silence, the sound of a single person's footsteps echoed. Someone was stepping slowly over the grass… and finally, he appeared from between the trees.
A white-haired young man walked through the calm of Yavan, clad in his leather armor, weapons in place, his green eyes alert for any sudden event. Laos, or the Wyvern Slayer—there he was, walking between the trees, the green-glowing light filling the area, heading toward the lair of Slytha, the strongest dragon in the kingdom.
"How do you feel, Thalesa? I mean, we're on our way to face the strongest creature in the kingdom," said Laos, wearing a smile that probably wasn't appropriate.
"You idiot, it's the strongest monster, not a creature. And also, you can't really call it a monster—dragons are actually a race, one of the world's native races. They don't use nemesis for reproduction or fighting, but people still call them monsters because they don't talk," replied the spirit.
"They don't use nemesis?" Laos asked.
"Yes."
What the fuck! I'm cooked. How the hell am I supposed to fight a monster that doesn't use nemesis?! No, no—this is impossible. Could she be wrong? If what she said is true, I should turn back. Sorry, but I won't even be able to scratch it. I've only come this far because the Astral Sword has great power and I'm immune to nemesis power. But what am I supposed to do against an attack Astral can't block? I'm done.
"Yo, are you sure dragons don't use nemesis?!" I asked, starting to panic.
"Yes, why?"
"Thalesa, I got some information from Rose a while back about the spirit power system. One of the things I learned was that nemesis power doesn't affect spirit weapons. I clung to that, thinking I was invincible because of it. But... dragons don't use nemesis. I'm going to die!!"
"See? I told you there's nothing you can do. Let's go back before some tier 7 boss shows up and kills you."
I thought dragons were just monsters like everything else in this world. This is insane... But what's crazier is that… I don't feel like going back. I think dying would be better than returning without even trying. I need to stay brave. Maybe I'll run into Etomi and Ralce, and we can team up and defeat it together—no, no!!
You dumbass, your whole reason for doing this was to surpass them, not team up. And yet I can't even imagine myself winning. I've lost the one thing that kept me going—the fantasy of victory. I can't see myself coming out on top anymore... I'm standing at the edge and realizing just how terrifying the abyss really is. I won't survive if fear of death takes over me…
Yeah, the NPC lost his courage. Fake courage. Even if it was fake, it still pushed me like a maniac who didn't care. But now I'm back to my real self. What do I do? If I go back, I'll be a disgrace. I'll lose everything, and Rose and the others will never see me as a hero again. Either Ralce or Etomi will win the rivalry, and while one of them climbs to the top, I'll be stuck below.
If all free adventurers are strong, then I'll be the weak one. That's not unique—it's pathetic. I'll be back to square one. Fuck, I might not even find someone to buy my wyverns once they know I'm a cowardly failure. This is starting to feel like a visual novel, where you're sitting in front of a screen with two choices, and each leads to a different ending—the true end and the bad end.
But you don't know which one to pick or where either will take you. That's exactly what's happening to me. No, worse. At least in a visual novel you can restart. But here, if I die, that's it. My only choices now are: retreat or move forward.
"Laos? Haven't you decided yet?"
Shut the fuck up, bitch. What do I do now? Which option should I pick? Dragons don't use nemesis, so I won't be able to block its fire. But that doesn't necessarily mean I'll die. I could dodge and launch a few abilities to evaporate the flames. Yeah, that might work. Maybe spamming them could help me win.
So what, then? Ugh… I'm still lost. I don't think I have the final answer yet. I have to do it. Yes. I have to face that dragon. I'll risk everything, but at least there's a chance I can win. Like I said—if the Astral Sword beats nemesis power, then water beats fire. So… I'm going for it!
"Are you sure about that? I think the Astral Sword is only fire-resistant," Thalesa replied.
"You dumb, what about our fight with the shamon?"
"Oh… but… wait… why don't I know that???"
"Ho ho ho! Look at this dummy. Doesn't even know basic info about herself. Hilarious."
"That's not funny! How do I not know?!"
"Okay, okay. Actually, it's something the goddess who created you did. She restricted you from knowing everything so you wouldn't spill it all to the user and make the spirit power system overpowered. Still, some users discovered this stuff and wrote books about it that spread over time. That just proves the gods are dumb."
"But why would she do that?"
"Oh, because the other gods didn't want it to be like that. They wanted to nerf the system."
"That's actually amazing. Do you have any more info?" She asked eagerly.
"Yeah, I've got the most important fact of all… but I'm not telling you until it surprises you when it happens."
"Screw you."
"Wait—didn't Gaziel tell you? I heard he figured it out."
"No… or maybe… I don't remember. I don't remember anything he told me about myself…"
"So that's how it is. Fine, just wait until I achieve it."
"If you don't tell me, I won't use my full strength."
"I'll be happy to see you do that… because it would mean your death."
"Screw you... Alright, we've talked enough, but I haven't heard your decision yet. What are you going to do? Withdraw or continue?"
"You know, I was going to choose to withdraw… but it looks like the NPC class has a special kind of magic. Magic that gives you sudden courage. Maybe that's its unique skill. So… we continue!"
◆ ◆ ◆
We kept moving forward, and a faint mist spread through the area, making it a bit hard to see. But beyond that, the place gave off a strange feeling, like I was sick. A truly unpleasant sensation. At that moment, as we went deeper, a bright blue light flowed from the Astral Sword. That light wrapped around my body, and suddenly, I didn't feel that sensation anymore... Amazing.
"What is this?"
"You're right. It seems this place is filled with nemesis power, which gives off a bad feeling. So I automatically formed a barrier to block it from reaching you. That's honestly unbelievable," Thalesa explained.
Suddenly, while we were still shocked, hands started to rise from the ground. They kept emerging, revealing a group of zombies. What the hell… They kept slowly advancing—some crawling, others walking with arms raised. It was like a scene from a zombie movie, but the forest atmosphere made it feel more like an RPG… or a VRMMORPG.
"Undead. Tier 3 monsters," Thalesa murmured.
Alright, since the best way to achieve harmony is to fight without abilities, I have to do it against these undead. I rushed forward, sword in hand, and stabbed one of them—but it kept moving. It tried to punch me quickly, but I dodged it. Oh… I have to cut off its head.
I quickly pulled back and kicked one that was getting too close. There were three of them, but the fight wasn't too hard—especially since they were incredibly slow. I rushed forward and sliced off one of their heads. At that point, the other two had already approached. I stabbed one in the head, then retreated. They kept coming. Suddenly, the stabbed one started running. That freaked me out, so I moved fast and ran away like a coward.
What the fuck am I doing?! I waited for it to get closer, then at the right moment, I used the fourth form and managed to slice its head from a distance. Now only one was left. I ran up and easily cut off its head. That's when they all began to fade, turning into nemesis power—but suddenly, I heard something I never expected.
"We won't forgive you… Why didn't you save us...?" one of them said.
"What the..." I muttered, shocked.
"They can talk??!!"
"That's why no one wants to kill the undead. There are no quests for it either. Laos, these were once adventurers… or just regular people. But they died in this area filled with nemesis power. If you die in a place like this, your corpse fuses with the power and you become undead," Thalesa explained.
"Oh… so some of them were adventurers… and others just people who died here. That's sad."
Alright, let's keep moving. The depths of Yavan were an absolutely horrible place. With every step, I became more certain of it—awful smells, mist everywhere. I moved forward, glowing with a blue aura flowing from me. But I hadn't reached it yet. Rose said I needed to go deeper until I saw trees without leaves. And… oh, there they are!
"The dead trees! We've arrived!" I suddenly shouted as I ran.
For a moment, I felt a rush of excitement. I kept running and running, my heart pounding fast. I felt a chill, and a slight pain in my stomach. I began taking deep breaths—bravery mixed with fear. A feeling I've felt before… but this time, it was stronger. I was getting close to the final boss. I was alone. No party, no anything. Just me… on my way to slay a dragon.
After a while, I finally arrived. The place was massive, filled with mist—what they call fog. So much fog I couldn't see anything. And yet, I could hear its breathing. I didn't see it, but I was sure it was close—very close. It was terrifying. I moved in further but still saw nothing. Suddenly, the fog cleared all at once, revealing a sight… a terrifying sight.
There was a massive dragon. Its scales were spiked, its wings enormous, and its tail coiled around itself. Its belly rose and fell with its breathing. With every slight movement, a skeleton would fall. Beneath this dragon was an endless pile of bones. Massive skeletons of all shapes. Truly terrifying. Its black skin looked invincible, and its head was the size of two wyverns.
"You got here before me," came a voice from behind.
When I turned around, I saw a face I hadn't seen in a long time—it was Etomi. Her black hair swayed as she stepped forward, holding a white orb. It seemed the orb was the one that cleared the fog. As she approached, she placed the orb on the ground, then drew her two swords. She stretched out her arms—she was getting ready to fight… That's awesome. She's going to help me.
"Watch and don't interfere," she said as she stretched her arms.
"What? No way. My goal is to kill this dragon."
"Fine… have it your way," she muttered, sheathing her swords.
Then she stepped back, picked up the orb, and leaned against one of the trees. No, no, don't tell me she's going to leave me to fight alone. Fuck! But it doesn't matter. My goal is to surpass her, so I have to do this. I have to kill this dragon alone. That's the decision I made long ago. No backing out. I must keep going, and move forward even more.
"I'll sit here and watch. I won't interfere even if I see you dying. You said you'd surpass me. So show me what you've got," she said coldly.
I stepped toward the dragon. My heart started pounding hard. Fear overwhelmed me. My enemy was asleep right in front of me. One strike could wake it—or even just a loud noise. And that's what I needed to do. Etomi had challenged me now, and my desire to surpass her burned stronger than ever. So I had to keep going. Alright… it's a one v one fight. Me versus a dragon. Let's see where this decision takes me.