The necromancer’s grotesque form was not a blessing or even a curse—it was merely food for the dragon.
Diz felt no pity at this realization. What crossed her mind were her two companions. The black-purple core stone she had tasked with destruction was here. That meant Ur and the others had failed.
Had they been defeated, or had they died?
Diz naturally assumed the worst and was disappointed—not in them, but in herself for entrusting them with the task.
This was her mistake for not forcing them to retreat when she had the chance.
But regret would come later. Everything would wait until she dealt with the situation before her.
[GYAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!]
Carrying its emergency food, the dragon laughed. But Diz, facing it, felt no fear.
Unwavering, she held her crimson sword straight, not taking a single step back.
“——Lady Diz!!”
As long as there was someone behind her to protect, she would not falter.
She, the Seven Heavens, the Hero—that was the kind of being she was, the kind of life she had lived.
Even if it meant committing the barbarity of shattering a clan’s heirloom into pieces, even if it meant tearing apart the bonds between close siblings, if it was necessary to protect all who lived on the land of Islaria, she would do it.
So why would she hesitate to risk her life or tear her own body apart?
[GAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!]
“————”
The dragon and Diz moved almost simultaneously——
“DAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!”
Just before that, from the hole where the Core Magic Stone had returned, Ur leaped in. Even Diz, who was usually unshakable, widened her eyes in surprise.
“Ur!?”
The shock of him arriving in the worst possible place outweighed the joy of seeing him unharmed. This place, that dragon—it was beyond Ur’s current strength to handle. Even the slightest mistake would reduce him to mere dust. This was a hellish cauldron where death was inevitable.
“Ur!! It’s dangerous! Get back────!!”
Drawing from her experience as one of the Seven Heavens and a hero, Diz quickly urged Ur to retreat.
“──No way.”
“Eh?”
Ur’s immediate refusal made Diz let out a strange sound.
“──What the…!?”
The moment Ur jumped into the command tower, his vision plunged into complete darkness.
A piercing chill and a sense of revulsion that made his entire body shrivel up stabbed through his skin.
The place had transformed into an even more concentrated version of the twisted realm outside.
But what was truly terrifying, what was most horrifying, wasn’t this place.
It was what lay at the destination of the black-purple Core Magic Stone that Ur had been chasing. Something black, twisted, and monstrous—a small dragon. The moment Ur saw it, he understood everything. That thing was the root of all evil.
[G U G E]
The moment he heard that strange cry, his body froze. He didn’t want to get closer. He didn’t want to stay in the same place as that thing for even a second. He wanted to turn his back and run away immediately. That’s what he felt from the bottom of his heart.
“Ur!?”
Perhaps it was because she had fought that monstrosity. Covered in wounds and bleeding, yet still standing resolutely, dazzlingly, to protect the girl, Rose. Seeing the golden Diz in that moment, Ur clenched his teeth, biting back the fear that threatened to overflow from his throat.
“…………!!”
As he landed, he forcefully suppressed his trembling hands, gripped the Dragon Fang Spear, and faced forward.
Ahead, the black-purple Core Magic Stone was cradled by the dragon’s wings, and on the opposite side stood the golden hero, Diz, with the girl on her back.
“Ur!! It’s dangerous! Get back────!!”
“No way.”
Ur immediately rejected Diz’s command and twisted the handle of the Dragon Fang Spear.
──The Dragon Fang Spear, you see, is a pretty ridiculous weapon. Combining a cannon and a spear? Who even thinks of that?
──Because it’s such an absurd weapon, it constantly consumes a small amount of mana for self-preservation.
──In an emergency, if you lock the spear and redirect that preservation mana to attack, you can still fight even if your mana runs dry.
──……Well, using up all your mana to the point where you can’t even use Howl is pretty stupid, huh? Ahaha.
“【Transformation Mechanism Seal – Magical Core Overdrive】”
Recalling the mocking laughter of Magica, the evil puppeteer who had modified the Dragon Fang Spear, Ur activated the magical core.
“Ur!? What are you doing!?”
Seeing Ur’s obvious preparation, Diz, standing opposite the monstrous dragon, raised her voice in surprise. Even now, she was keeping the dragon in check, trying to prevent it from getting closer to Ur.
“Getting ready to fight……!”
Ur spoke, savoring the fact that she was still protecting him.
“Are you kidding!?”
“You’re the one kidding.”
Yes, Ur wasn’t joking. He had always been serious, and now he was completely serious.
The one who was joking, the one who was being ridiculous, was Diz.
“I’ve been thinking this for a while now, but……!”
The debt collector who had taken his sister away from him, the woman who had declared she would dismantle her if necessary.
For Ur, Diz was undoubtedly a trial to face, an enemy to overcome.
But even with that premise, there was something he wanted to say to her.
“You’re a terrible villain!!!!!!”
She threatened to kill Akane, yet she cared for her, raised her, and respected her will. She pushed Ur away, yet listened to his selfish demands, compromised, and gave advice. She even gave him work.
“And now, when things get dangerous, you’re like, ‘You’re in the way? Get back? Run away?’”
As if responding to Ur’s fury, the Dragon Fang Spear trembled. In front of the black-purple Core Magic Stone, the magical core’s abnormal reaction reached its peak. At the same time, the mana that should have been depleted was dragged out. Like a starved beast baring its fangs at its prey, the heat of the magical light enveloped the spear.
“And then, you’re protecting a girl while your arm’s about to get torn off? How cool, Hero-sama!!”
[Ah, Niitan’s pissed.]
His sister’s dumbfounded words didn’t reach Ur now. The heat of the overflowing mana spread to the spear’s handle. Gripping the spear, now wrapped in scorching power, he leaned forward deeply.
“Ur!!”
“If you’re here for fun, don’t just stand there!”
Cutting off Diz’s warning that sounded almost like a scream, Ur charged forward.
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT LOCALIZERMEERKAT.GITHUB.IO
His target was one point: the black-purple Core Magic Stone cradled by the dragon.
Originally, fulfilling the role Diz had assigned him was the only contribution Ur could make in this situation.
But that, of course, also meant heading straight toward the small dragon at the center of it all.
He understood the meaning of Diz’s warning. If he approached that monster, the moment it turned its malice toward him, he would die.
He knew that. But Ur was calm.
──If you don’t want to die, don’t avert your eyes. Don’t turn away from the threat of death.
The survival instincts honed from living as a nameless person for so long and tempered in the training facility didn’t let his eyes glaze over with excitement or fear. He didn’t look away from the terrifying monster.
And then, he saw his chance.
[G──]
“You’re not… at full strength either, are you!?”
The monstrous dragon didn’t even glance at Ur, who had suddenly appeared.
Of course, it was likely because the dragon saw Ur as no threat at all. That was true.
But even so, it was Ur and his companions who had driven that dragon to the brink of destroying the Core Magic Stone. The dragon should know that, yet it was focusing all its killing intent on Diz.
If it had the luxury, if it had the advantage, it should eliminate any danger, no matter how small.
Yet it wasn’t doing that. It couldn’t. It couldn’t take its eyes off Diz. If it did, it would die.
“Then, there’s an opening… to strike!!”
Ur ran through the deep, bottomless darkness. Lowering his stance like a beast, he held the spear straight and charged toward the black-purple glow.
[G──!]
No matter how insignificant Ur might be, if he came charging with a weapon, even the small dragon couldn’t ignore him.
A counterattack came—the dragon’s abnormally long tail swung down, aiming to decapitate Ur.
But, as Ur had anticipated, it was careless. The dragon didn’t even look at him, swatting at him like he was a bothersome insect.
On the other hand, Ur was showing the utmost, extreme concentration he had ever mustered in this fight. That difference in focus slightly bridged the seemingly insurmountable gap in their strength.
“……!!”
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