Duel

Nice, good thing I picked out a large field. It was a pain in the ass leaving the city and coming out here, but at least I won't have to worry about this crazy fucker breaking anything. Plus, I don't really wish to attract any attention.

Lysandra, leaning against a tree with an annoyed face, snorts, "Dammit! Let's start already! Once I beat your ass, you better cook something good, alright!?"

I rub my temples, already worn out from her endless chatter. I hope this will shut her up for good. When she fought me at Darius's, she used pure brute force. It's gonna get hard once she starts using magic.

I sigh and reply, "Alright, remember you decided not to grab a weapon, so you better not complain afterward. Before we start, are you sure you won't use any sort of weapon or armor?"

Lysandra gives out a pissed-off "tsk" and snaps back, "I told you I don't need a weapon to beat your ass! A weapon would be useless; I'm a dragon, you're a human. You should know you stand no chance. Just start this shit, and I'll beat your ass. It won't be the same as last time."

I cover my mouth and sigh, a wicked grin forming. Hmhmhmhm, her ego is going to be her downfall. No matter the opponent, one should never let their guard down. Or something like that. I should try listening to Ilka some more but she can get so damn annoying.

"Hey Ilka," I grumble, addressing her, "what do you think? Do you think I can beat her?"

Ilka, who is sitting on my head, just grins and giggles, "Hehehehe." She doesn't even respond; the idea of me getting beat up is making her giggle. Tsk, Why does she enjoy my pain?

"You could at least pretend to have some faith in me" I snap at her, feeling my frustration building.

"What? And lie to myself?" Ilka replies, still giggling. "You've got your work cut out for you with that dragon. Hmmm, I didn't expect such a young dragon out and about without a guardian. Although she has no techniques she does have her dragon innate abilities. Whether you win or not depends on how much control she has over them and whether she can use them properly."

Feeling the weight of my own decision, I glance at Lysandra, who's impatiently tapping her foot. "Enough chit-chat! I'm tired of hearing you talk to yourself like a crazy fucker!" she yells. "Let's just fight already!"

"Fine," I say, Ugh, let's get this over with. "Prepare yourself, lizard. I'll beat your ass just like last time."

She rolls her eyes, obviously unconvinced. "We'll see about that, you arrogant human."

I can't help but let a chuckle slip out. "You're calling me arrogant? That's rich coming from you."

I sigh, looking at Lysandra, who's standing about 15 meters away. I better stop procrastinating and get this shit over with. Once I'm done with her, I'll get some rest, and we'll head to the Academy.

"Oi, where are your weapons? I don't know why you think having a higher quantity would beat me, but you better take them out now," Lysandra says, grinning.

Tsk, this bitch is acting like she's giving me a handicap.

"Don't worry, I'll take them out when needed. For now, I'll use this," I say, showing her my gloves. I can see her already pissed off face contort even more with irritation. Heh, the sight of that alone is worth the aggravation.

Eira gave me some underclothes. According to her, they won't block any magic or aura damage, but they should be able to absorb kinetic energy. If what she says is right, when Lysandra punches me with her brute force, a certain percentage will be absorbed and redistributed to some empty energy crystals. Tsk, although I want to hate her for using me as a lab rat, she is still helping me out. Besides, it's better than getting my ass handed to me in a most undignified way.

"Oi, you bastard! You're looking down on me, aren't you!? Since you're ready, don't blame me for beating your ass!" Lysandra yells, her teeth grinding as she charges at me with a face more akin to a rabid animal than a majestic dragon.

I sigh, my body quickly covering itself in mana. She won't catch me off guard again. She's still using brute force, thankfully. I can almost hear the gears turning in my mind. Is she really not hiding some technique up her scaly sleeve?

The first strike is the same as last time; she attempts to hit me in the face, and I dodge, feeling a sense of déjà vu. But then, a sudden upward kick comes my way, connecting with my side, and I grunt. Damn, that shit hurts! She's still fast, the cunning reptile. Last time I was using both aura and mana. However, I can't do the same play here. Shit, it fucking hurts. But thankfully, some of that damage was redistributed, or I would've been thrown way further.

Lysandra rushes at me with full speed, not giving me much of a chance to recover. A series of punches fly my way, her fists blurring, and I can see her trying to follow up with a hook, then a kick. Ha ha, she's so easy to read.

With a flick of my wrist, I redirect her punch using some strength, clenching my muscles. She loses her balance, her leg sticking out awkwardly, and almost falls. She grits her teeth even more, her eyes filled with fire. Her pride must be hurting, but her pride is also responsible for her lack of power. She needs to start using whatever magic she has. She clicks her tongue and continues to assault, and I do my best to dodge and redirect attacks since blocking will take more energy.

"Oi, you fucker! Fight back! You're not doing anything!" she spits, her breaths ragged.

My own breaths start getting heavier, and a sinking feeling settles in my gut. I need to provoke her into using her power; I can't let this be a long-term fight. How do I trigger her?

A wicked idea forms, and I can't help but let out a cackling laugh. "Hmhmhmhahahahah! Is this all a dragon amounts to?" I say with a sadistic grin. My acting is top-notch. If I had a mirror, I'd admire myself right now.

Her face turns a shade redder, her eyes practically glowing with rage. Her movements become more frantic, and I know I've struck a nerve.

"You miserable piece of shit!" she screams, throwing a wild punch.

"Stop acting so high and mighty, you arrogant Fucker!" she yells, continuing her assault.

I grit my teeth as Lysandra's fist strikes me right on the shoulder, slightly messing up my balance. The impact sends a jolt of pain through my arm. Damn, what a fucking punch!

Her grin grows wider, eyes narrowed in triumph, and she's about to hit me in the face. Acting on instinct, I transform my glove into a shield, barely blocking the attack. Fuck, that shit hurt my hand! It feels numb. The force of her punch sends shockwaves down my arm, and I focus some mana into my legs, using that power to jump back quite a distance.

As I'm leaping back, I take out a little toy from my pocket and throw it at her as she charges towards me with a look of pure fury. Fuck that shit hurt! Dammit, I was this close to passing out! Hehe, let's see how you like this little toy Eira made.

This all happens in an instant. The second I throw the toy, I block the view, and a bright flash fills the area. I hear Lysandra curse loudly, "Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! You fucking rat-like bastard! Fuck this! I don't care anymore, I'm beating your ass!"

Hehe, dragons obviously have naturally sensitive eyes. If she were more cautious, she wouldn't have fallen for that. Now that she's triggered it won't be long until she stops holding back. I chuckle to myself, feeling momentarily triumphant.

Then, in the next second, a small glowing red-orange horn suddenly grows out of the top of her head. Oh, shit. It's time. Ugh, I wish we fought somewhere dark. It would've been way better.

Lysandra starts emitting a slightly red energy that looks similar to aura, but it's not...its definitely some type of mana. She grins and says, "You cheeky human, today you'll learn who stands at the top. You brought this upon yourself. You should've just lost earlier."

I can't help but grin back and say, "Oh~ I'm so scared~ What a terrifying sight~ I-" but before I can finish, she instantly covers nearly 50 meters and attacks, nearly punching me in the face.

I was expecting this. In fact, while I was talking, I was already transforming my shield to a bigger size to block the attack. I also covered myself in aura, readying myself. But her speed is ridiculous! My shield does little to soften the blow, and I'm sent flying back, hitting a boulder and nearly breaking it.

I cough up some blood, feeling as if a freight train just hit me. Haha, fuck! I knew she was going to be fast, but damn, that shit hurt. Ugh, thank God I have some decent bones now. This still doesn't hurt as much as the time I was on the island.

I groan as I get up, my body feeling like it's been through a meat grinder. Lysandra starts walking closer, and the distance between us closes rapidly, but damn, those eyes. Those eyes give me chills. They're completely mad, and I can almost hear her thoughts: 'This human, he's weak, pathetic. I have yet to mature, I haven't developed most of my power, and yet my father let that old madman kidnap me from my home just to follow him around? I won't accept this; once I beat him, I'll head back to Father. Although humans are interesting, I have no desire to befriend them.'

Her cold, arrogant eyes narrow as she stops and grins with malice, saying, "Oi you. You can't beat me, you're weak, you're a human. We stand at different heights, get on your knees and apologize. Accept your loss."

Oh boy, what an annoying speech! She talks big, but let's see how she handles my mouth.

I sigh, turning my shield back into my glove and rubbing my still trembling hand through my hair, then bursting into a laugh. "Hmhmhahaha!" I say, looking her straight in the eyes. "Hmhmhm, you are so full of yourself. Do you truly believe dragons are at the top? You have no idea what's at the top! Hmhmhmhm, seriously, you're a joke. Do you think I'm stupid? I'm sure you do."

My grin widens, and I reach into my pocket, taking out my gun. I don't know why she got serious all of a sudden but I can't have that!

"Let me enlighten you," I taunt, still grinning. "No matter how strong you think you are... you are weak, you are pathetic. I'd say you're the most pathetic person I've met. You have no control over your power. Every single movement you make is predictable. Every single attack is uncoordinated; I've seen children with better techniques than you."

I pause, watching her face turn bright red with anger. Right before she is about to retort, I interrupt her, saying with a wicked grin, "You are weaker than a brainless golem. If you had even a simple fighting technique you wouldn't need to use any magic to beat me"

Her eyes widen, and she goes from red to an unbelievable shade of red. "You...you fucking...you little piece of shit! How dare you!" she screams.

"You keep disrespecting me and all dragons! I didn't plan on killing someone but I can't let this slide!" Lysandra grits her teeth, her voice firm, yet her eyes slightly shaking. Ah, I get it. She's hesitating. This must be her first time attempting to kill someone. Heh, I can't blame her reaction, though; I wasn't so different. Yet her pride is pushing her for the kill.

Lysandra's hand starts to glow as she gathers energy. The amount of mana is crazy, but it's all rampant, she's not circulating it; she's forcing it. I sigh, the situation getting on my nerves.

"Oi, you have a solution, right?" Ilka asks from atop my head, her tone a mix of amusement and genuine curiosity.

Solution? I look down at the gun in my hand, feeling a strange blend of confidence and dread. Eira said its runic attack is way stronger than my baby. Well, here's to hoping she's right. I ignore Ilka, keeping my focus on Lysandra.

With a battle cry that would put banshees to shame, Lysandra charges at me, her hand aflame with wild, untamed energy. Her face is twisted with rage, her eyes burning with a mixture of fury and uncertainty. Shit, shit, shit, here goes nothing. I really don't want to die yet.

The gun feels heavy in my hand as I pull the trigger. It takes a second to charge, a heartbeat where time seems to stand still, and then it fires. The recoil is like a mule kick, sending me staggering back a few steps.

"What the hell, Eira! A warning would've been nice!" I mutter under my breath, rubbing my shoulder where the gun's kick had bruised it.

The shot collides with Lysandra's energy ball, creating a shockwave that rattles the entire area. The ground trembles, trees sway, and a mushroom cloud of dust and debris shoots into the sky.

Lysandra's forced to use all her gathered energy to block the shot, her face a picture of shock and disbelief. The collision sends her skidding back, her feet carving furrows in the earth.

"Holy crap!" I exclaim, staring at the destruction. "What in the fuck was that?!"

"You've done it now," Ilka says, sounding oddly proud. "You've really pissed her off."

I glance at Ilka, my eyes wide. "You think?"