Chapter 196: The Fiery Invasion

With a successful strike, the Dragon Girl showed no change in expression. She simply hovered silently in the sky, her gaze indifferent as she looked down upon the land below, which had almost turned into a sea of fire, kicking up a violent sandstorm-like chaos. It seemed she was waiting for something.

“Boom!!!”

Suddenly, an even more explosive and scorching pillar of fire surged forth from the thick smoke and dust, yet the girl seemed to have anticipated it. With a diagonal slash of her claw-like right hand, she split the terrifying blast, which was at least several dozen meters in diameter, down the middle, parts exploding around her.

“Is this all you’ve got?”

【What on earth are you!? There are no dragons as powerful as you among the God’s minions! Why do you obstruct me!!!】

The fiery giant, riddled with wounds like a hornet’s nest, slowly crawled up from the burning ground. The raging flames coiled around it, transforming its body into something even more solid than rock, roaring with thunderous fury that could almost ignite the sky.

But the Dragon Girl merely cast a disinterested glance at the mountain-like figure below her, scoffing.

“A God? Did that kind of thing dare to order me around? I’m just following my master’s orders to take out the small fry trying to escape. I’m not specifically targeting you, so don’t be so full of yourself. You’re just a big silly brute with no brains.”

【You’re asking for death, you insignificant dragon!!! I am the embodiment of blazing…】

“The Sky—Shattered!”

Before Frim could finish his monotonous self-introduction, the Dragon Girl, who hated meaningless chatter in battle, raised her claw again and struck down ferociously!

“Crack… crack crack crack crack crack crack…”

The already tortured sky and earth finally shattered beyond recognition.

Starting from the tip of the Dragon Girl’s claw, the space of the portal was instantaneously ripped apart, revealing a truly terrifying dark fissure. The fiery giant, who had just risen, was once again forcefully smashed back into the ground.

It was as if some invisible terror crushed the earth, and the entire portal area sank nearly a hundred meters. The stone-like body of Frim bore the brunt of the impact, nearly torn in two, and the boiling flames that had just arisen were instantly absorbed by the dark crack.

【Ohhhhh! Damn it, damn it, damn it!!! If it weren’t for this cursed place suppressing my divine country, a mere dragon like you…!!!】

While struggling desperately against the terrifying power of 【Sky Shatter】, Frim continuously roared with rage and resentment, but the Dragon Girl paid him no mind, merely watching the battle with cold eyes. The brilliant platinum light on her scales flickered slightly as she occasionally swiped at him, maintaining an absolute dominance, while keeping part of her attention on the expanding black crack in the distance.

After all, the fiery thing that had engulfed itself in flames came out of there.

Sensing the fluctuations from her master on the other end of the contract, who was also in battle, the Little Dragon Daughter couldn’t help but reveal a hint of worry.

“Master…”

……

Demon Town.

The fire rain from the sky continued to fall.

The enemy appeared too suddenly, in an extremely bizarre manner, and their power was exceptionally terrifying. The defending troops quickly fell into despair, especially as more fireballs crashed into the city, inciting fierce battles and igniting large fires throughout.

Fortunately, due to the royal family and government preparing well in advance, they had evacuated most civilians and assembled elite troops, maintaining the best state for combat readiness. They managed to withstand the first wave of the most ferocious onslaught, preventing the defense line from collapsing immediately.

As he marveled at the wisdom and insight of Her Majesty the Queen and Princess Mona, Ahybern’s thoughts had already become a consensus among most people in Demon Town.

Even so, the situation remained grim. The Adventurer Guild, Internal Guard, and military—all of the main fighting forces had been thrown into the battle, yet the enemies falling from the sky were still endless.

These flaming stone beings were at least as strong as magical beasts of the third tier or above. Although they were low in intelligence and seemed to rely solely on brute force, it typically took several elite warriors to encircle and kill them without injury. Among them, there were already four or five reports of legendary-level targets appearing.

For ordinary beings, legendary level was already the highest combat capability. Inside Demon Town, those who held such power were only Ahybern himself, the four members of the 【Grim Reaper’s Scythe】 team, plus possibly Miss Lan with her【Sunny Storm】.

While factors like equipment, a mage’s long-range support, and potions were taken into account, actual combat strength couldn’t be solely judged by level. But the same reasoning applied—any normal being would inevitably get injured and become exhausted.

“Ahhhhh!!!!”

Another soldier was sent flying by the fourth-tier flaming stone being they were battling. His body transformed into a burning fireball mid-air, and his cries quickly faded as he fell from the city wall.

Although a new warrior immediately rushed in to fill the gap, Ahybern knew very well that this was merely a delay, sacrificing lives to buy time for ranged magic attacks.

These flaming stone beings had high defense and no obvious weak points. Enemies of the fourth tier and above could no longer be overwhelmed simply by numbers; blades against their magical defenses could hardly inflict any substantial damage.

“Haah!”

Another sword came down from the sky with all his might, but the fire giant that stood considerably taller than the others merely crossed its arms and took the full brunt of the attack. The flames even rolled back down the giant sword, forcing the 【Great Sword】 to immediately retreat.

“Tsk…”

This was a legendary peak-level fire giant, towering at least seven or eight meters tall. In terms of raw power, it even surpassed Ahybern. If the latter hadn’t exerted effort to delay it, allowing it to rampage among the troops, the barely maintained front line would have long since collapsed.

Thus, Ahybern wished to help, but couldn’t spread himself too thin.

Standing on the city wall, the man cast another glance at the inferno below.

Since the enemy fell from the sky and attacked indiscriminately, the significance of the city wall had diminished significantly. If there were still any defenseless civilians inside the city, they were basically as good as dead. It had been so long since the battle began, and the legendary 【Grim Reaper’s Scythe】 and the other strong ones in the city had still not come to provide support, indicating they must have encountered formidable foes.

To be honest, he was a bit worried about Princess Mona still inside the city, but at this moment, all Ahybern could do was try his best to maintain the current situation.

Though it was merely a thought lingering in his mind, simple defensive tactics might not be enough.

As he defended against the mad counterattacks from the fiery beings, Ahybern turned part of his attention to the massive fissure above that nearly ignited the sky.

Human strength has its limits. If they couldn’t destroy the source of the enemy’s appearances, their defeat was just a matter of time. Princess Mona, still in the city, shouldn’t have failed to realize this, but it seemed she wasn’t attempting anything… why?

Did she think it was impossible? Or perhaps…

“Hey, you old man! You’ve been looking weak lately. Why is it every time I see you, you’re getting pounded on, huh? Ha ha ha! Watch closely, whether it’s a knife or a sword, this is how it’s done!!!”

A sharp flash of a blade, accompanied by a familiar yet annoying voice, echoed in his ears. The fiery giant that had just been engaged in fierce combat with Ahybern suddenly stiffened, its stone head abruptly falling off, crashing to the ground as a burning fireball.

He turned in shock, only to see a burly man with a massive wicked-looking blade slung over his shoulder and a horn protruding from his head striding along the city wall, grinning widely at him.

“Hey, looks like I’ve got the upper hand this time! What, not convinced?”

“Nan Dao… Walter?”

   

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