There was a hierarchy amongst dragonslayers. In Pinkie’s mind, the worst of the worst was the ones that had [Dragonslayer] in their class names. Those who hadn’t done enough to be given any other Epic class in their offerings. Their classes would quite literally be called something like [Dragonslayer Warrior] or something just as generic.

  She preferred calling them [Dragonfodder]. You could send multiple squads of those her way and she would welcome them into her stomach.

  Unfortunately, they weren’t the only ones that were watching the tournament live.

  A dwarven [Lancer of the Ages] stabbed forward, slamming into her side and breaking all of her spell circles at once. Time and decay tipping the concepts of his lance. Pinkie swept her soultrident, sweeping the lance away and breathed lightning on the dwarf. The [Lancer] screamed at the same time he activated an art.

  [Lance Art: Realization of Sid’hara]

  The lance snaked around her parrying trident to stab into her scales. Even as the [Lancer] was getting electrocuted she could hear him chuckle.

  “[Aging Touch]”

  Time accelerated around her pierced scale. The concentrated entropy causing the scales around the wound to start graying and cracking. Pinkie’s tail swept at an errant spear thrown her way. That movement gave the dwarf more leverage to pierce deeper.

  Her scale cracked faster and started to turn to dust… revealing another thicker, more vibrant scale. One that was tougher and stronger than the scale that had been worn away.

  Pinkie stopped breathing lightning on the dwarf just so he could see his handiwork. The [Lancer] dwarf wasn’t laughing anymore.

  She grinned.

  “Dragons are timeless. They get stronger with age, fool.”

  Then her maw came biting down, neck showing far more flexibility and speed than she had shown before. The [Lancer] barely spun out of the way. Her teeth chomped down on his lance and arm. Her teeth ground down everything–armor and bones alike. Taking in the magic in her mouth. She crunched down, the magical enchantments snapping and shattering, creating a volatile mess in her mouth.

  The dwarf’s eyes grew wide as he started blurring away.

  [Arcane Dragonbreath]

  The penetrating power was far more than her standard electrified dragonbreath. It shot out like a blue laser. Piercing the dwarf’s heart.

  “No!”

  She ignored the arrogant [Rogue’s] shout from beneath her. The dwarf wasn’t dead. Dragonslayers didn’t die that easily. Plus–

  The dwarf’s heart started to reknit itself in record time. Skin, sinew, blood all replaced in the blink of an eye. His arm repaired itself like it was an afterthought. Her eyes flickered down to a group of three. Two [Dragonslayer Warriors] and a [Grand Healer].

  [Flash Heal]

  This fight was not like the initial fight with Indigo. The Witch Tyrant wasn’t here to stop all the healing and the potions.

  Pinkie did the obvious and went straight for the [Healer].

  [Blinked] on top of her. His daggers coming down right for her spine. She slammed the [Rogue] with a flick of her tail. Her tailspikes cutting him in half as the electrical charge stored in the tailspines electrified the fool.

  It should have been enough to kill most dragonslayers instantly.

  Yet it did not. Something was wrong with that one as he fell to the ground, both halves of his body coming together. The bisected [Rogue] was still electrified, but he used to stop it from spreading.

  That was what her instincts told her of him. Whoever that was had wanted to be taken out of commission, though perhaps he did not expect to be electrified.

  Pinkie decided to stop and take a moment to reasses. There were eight dragonslayers here and more would arrive by the portal. Everyone other than the [Lancer of the Ages] was mediocre, and he was hard countered by her draconic form.

  Though Pinkie had been sure of that fact before too.

  The moment Pinkie finished her assessment, she threw herself towards the [Grand Healer] once more. They flew backwards, into the city barrier. She roared in fury then blew another round of dragonbreath onto the barrier.

  No longer were dragonslayers daring to come close in a melee. They were trying to bombard her from afar, as she tried to find a way to drain the city’s barriers. Normally a storm dragon’s breath was quite competent at it. Though this one had changed.

  Pinkie raised her soultrident high above her–then brought it down. She used all of her immense strength to barely inch the sharp prongs of her weapon into the barrier.

  Gamielle’s voice pierced into her ears.

  

  Weapons, skills, magic. They all pinged off of her scales doing no damage. Someone tried to use a [Dragonslayer Imbue] skill on a spear and all it did was leave a scratch.

  Pinkie breathed into her weapon. This time her storm dragonbreath was focused onto a singular point. The trident that was sticking out of the barrier acted as a lightning rod and focused the thunder to spread within the layers. A great electrical surge spread across the entire barrier. Making everyone scream and fear for their lives.

  Any other city barrier, and it would have long shattered. Gamielle was reinforcing it real time with multiple layers. The [Mage] stopped trying to refit the city’s defensive weapons and had to focus fully on making sure the barrier didn’t fall.

  The dragonslayers inside the barrier looked on in fear, then turned around to the Witch Tyrant.

  Her expression was one of apathy.

  “While I am supporting the city barriers. This one is not of my own making. I fear that I am not capable of supporting the barriers, and fighting that one at the same time. If you wish to keep the city alive, I suggest you go out there and fight.”

  The many expletives from Gamielle hadn’t been caught by anyone on camera. Instead, half of the projections were suddenly focused on the dragonslayers’ faces. Displaying them across both worlds to stand as witness. The other half was of an enormous dragon, hammering away at a barrier that protected millions. The ultimatum was given.

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  But these were dragonslayers, with much of their lives ahead of them. Some of them, like that [Grand Healer] had become comfortable with their lives. Too comfortable to throw themselves at an unknown monster that exceeded anything they’d ever faced.

  As if defying that thought, a spinning axe went flying at the dragon’s head. It made the loudest of pinging noises, but did little else.

  “Crikey! Now ain’t ya the crankiest croc I’ve ever bloody seen?”

  The sudden very strongly accented taunt made Pinkie look up. There, outside of the barrier, were two dragonslayers she’d dismissed. A [Dragonslayer Rogue] and a [Dragonslayer Warrior].

  The wife turned to her husband.

  “I don’t know, love. Pretty sure we’ve spotted meaner ones in Sector Twelve.”

  Pinkie came face to face with the Kellys. The dragon sneered.

  –

  

  The two Kellys were in the alley, watching the [Lancer of the Ages] duke it out with the draconic monster overhead. They still hadn’t decided whether they wanted to join in on the whole shebang.

  “All of this goin’ on and our boy doesn’t rock up–and there’s the bastard who killed him.”

  “Now, now. That dish can wait. Looks like the Witch has him boxed in anyway.”

  “I don’t trust her to kill him. This is definitely somethin’.”

  The draconic monster started shattering the barrier.

  “Ah, the Witch really isn’t going to do anything. It really is something”

  “Trap or not, we can’t let things go by like this. I think the Witch’s playing for keeps.”

  “Watch out for that tail darlin.”

  “‘Course luv.”

  And Zedarts parents stood up. They were nothing special, Pinkie would call them dragonfodder. Gamielle would call them passable for dragonslayers.

  Neil Kelly teleported to the axe that pinged off Pinkie’s head. The dragon snapped back, about to launch a wave of stormy dragonbreath before she ducked. A spear of pure melted mithril blitzed past where her eye had just been, thrown by Donna Kelly.

  Neil Kelly brought his axe down.

  [Gigant’s Might]

  The axe smashed into Pinkie’s shoulder. The echoing thud audible on top of the city barrier.

  Neil’s eyes grew wide when he realized he hadn’t done damage.

  “You’re kidding me…”

  Pinkie’s arm went to snatch him in midair. Neil teleported to the axe that his wife was holding.

  “Bloody hell, that was close. Don’t reckon I can teleport if she gets her mitts on me. The circulatory system’s Qi is tied to a mana core, both in perfect sync.”

  Donna Kelly didn’t flinch. She just turned to the adventurers hiding below.

  “Oi! You lot hear that? We need backup! You call yourselves dragonslayers? Well come on! Come here and help slay this dragon.”

  The Kellys didn't really have a plan to pierce the scales–or to deal with Pinkie’s speed. They were outmatched and had no real plan other than to stall. Inferior, yet still rose to fight the monster in front of them. The Witch Tyrant had other words to describe the Kellys.

  The kind that took a methodical approach to fighting monsters and challenging the Trials. Those that got lucky somewhere in their journey to help snowball themselves forward. This duo had completed the Tenth Trial with thorough preparation and planning.

  Somehow, despite their status, the duo were still very relatable to the world around them. Beloved by everyone when they had climbed the lower realms.

  The other dragonslayers began to rise, emboldened by the two adventurers taking the front.

  Pinkie just licked her teeth.

  –

  An axe went careening off her head, she tried to bite down on it before a spear smashed into her chest. It did no damage–yet the force was enough for her to miss biting down on the axe.

  Neil Kelly teleported to the axe and threw a vial over her, Pinkie blurred in a dodge at the suspicious liquid, showing more of her actual speed than she intended. A [Blink Mage] began teleporting around the field, putting down spectral lines laced with a [Dragonbane] skill.

  That was a ritual spell. Something that she needed to get rid of.

  They had managed to drag her off the city barrier as they fought. She faster stronger than they were, but all of the dragonslayers were treating her like a proper raid boss. Keeping their distance, and covering for each other when they needed to. She only had one real killer ranged move herself, and she’d already shown it.

  She grabbed an artifact from her pouch and bit down on it.

  ‘Careful! Everyone, ready to dodge!’

  Then she used [Blink].

  Pinkie the enormous dragon teleported from their very eyes–and reappeared behind the [Grand Healer]. Her teeth coming to crunch down.

  They were so used to treating her like a monster that they had forgotten about her true self. That she was just like them.

  Her teeth bit down on a relic grade barrier. The golden shimmer lasting just long enough for the Healer to teleport away–but not the two guards that were with him. Pinkie’s trident went spinning and they barely got their shields up in time.

  Neil Kelly had thrown his axe as she had bitten down. He appeared right behind the [Dragonslayer Warrior] and teleported him away. The [Blink Mage] teleporting behind the other.

  She launched her [Arcane Dragonbreath]. It went through the [Warrior’s] shield and hit the man in the head as they teleported away. The [Warrior] screamed in pain, half of his head gone before the [Healer] managed to get him topped up.

  This was the difficulty of fighting against squads at high realms. Miraculous [Healers], teleporting bastards playing defense and artifacts. Bodies that could survive with even half a head left.

  But most of all, it was the experience. Once these dragonslayers started to get into a flow and a tempo they began analyzing through shared telepathy.

  Pinkie reactively dodged a [Volatile Antimagic Throw] with a specialized alchemical mixture in the middle. The [Blink Mage] took that time to throw another circle into the ritual. The interconnected ritual started belting up, enhancing the threat on her instincts.

  She [Blinked] herself onto one of the circles and chomped down on the magic.

  –only to have the spell circle teleport the previously thrown alchemical mixture right into her mouth. She bit down, happy to have another source of magic–only for her to start coughing like mad. Foul green smoke started pouring out of her mouth as an Olympic swimming pool’s worth of kraken poison poured down her throat and out of her mouth.

  The [Lancer of the Ages] laughed at her.

  “If you didn’t know how to swallow, you should’ve spit instead!”

  ‘

  Pinkie spread her wings, four eleventh tier circles appearing underneath her wings. They tried to attack the wider and thinner target of the wing membranes. They still could not pierce her. The [Lancer of the Ages] sped up his own destination and broke through everything and slammed into her side. His lance piercing through her tough scales.

  . She should have been stronger, faster, and smarter. Was it the poison? No… it had started before that. When the Kellys had stood up. Something had changed in the battle when average dragonslayers stepped up to challenge a foe they knew they could not defeat.

  An axe went flying and pinged off one of her horns.

  Neil Kelly teleported to it.

  [Gigant’s Might]

  Neil teleported away to his other axe and looked at Pinkie’s shattered scales in surprise, then at his own hands.

  “Huh, so that’s what class concepts feel like. Hey luv, it seems our classes ain’t totally worthless after all.” Neil turned to the dragon, “Guess we just hadn’t found the right monsters to slay.”

  This should have been the battle where she declared her dominance, where she terrorized the dragonfodder and ate them like they were appetizers. Then truly attempted to assault the city below. The real battle was supposed to happen afterwards.

  Instead she was getting beaten back by prey.

  She didn’t even know this was a possibility. Every class with [Dragonslayer] in it was weighing her down, making the concept of dragonslaying more inevitable. Like a noose tightening around her long neck.

  The [Mystical Shapeshifter] no longer cared about scaring off the backup. Pinkie no longer cared about waiting for stronger dragonslayers to arrive.

  She would eat every single one of the dragonslayers here. Then kill everyone in the city of Defiance, and that would have to be enough.

  [Mystical Shapeshifting] + [Monstrous Shapeshifting] + [A Dragon’s Circulatory Intuition]

  —

  Ryan stood on top of a bound Cerul, watching a true life and death battle between the highest realms of adventurers. The city of millions below lay shuddering in fear at the outcome. But his arm took none of it, for he did not want it,

  He had been played, and

  The Witch Tyrant appeared next to him sitting by her tea table, sipping a cup of tea. Watching over the cacophony above with only a modicum of interest.

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