CHAPTER 49(QUEST)

[JENNA'S PERSPECTIVE]

The big day had finally arrived. Even though I was confident that I could defeat Draxus, I still practiced with Janet and asked her to point out any areas where I could improve. We arrived at the venue, and as I stepped out of the royal carriage, I separated from the rest of the group and headed towards the participants' area. Janet gave me a smile, and my first brother, the only other person who actually cared for me, nodded in my direction.

I walked away from the arena feeling confident in my victory. I was the strongest in my generation, and I knew that I could easily wipe the floor with Draxus. I decided to end the fight quickly so that I could investigate more about this place and what I was doing here. I smiled as I looked at something that had been flashing in my status screen for two weeks now.

[CHAIN QUEST]

[DRACONIC SUCCESSION]

[QUEST 1: DEFEAT FIRE DRAGON DRAXUS AND CHANGE EVERYONE'S OPINION OF YOU]

[REWARD: INT +200]

The notification continued flashing in my status screen, and I couldn't help but laugh out loud. Everyone around me gave me weird looks, but I ignored them. After all, I was about to get a huge boost to my powers! How hard could it be to defeat someone like Draxus? I was about to find out.

The first quest of the draconic succession chain had begun. I could feel the excitement building within me. This was my chance to prove myself, and I was determined to succeed. But first, I needed to prepare for the upcoming battle.

As soon as my name was called, I made my way to the stage. Draxus was already there, standing arrogantly with his sword already drawn. The referee signalled the beginning of our match, and we clashed. Unbeknownst to me, the quest information had updated while I was focused on the fight. But little did I know, this update would change everything.

[DIFFICULTY: HARD]

__________

I raised my chin arrogantly as I continuously spammed lightning spells everywhere. My laughter filled the entire arena as Draxus continued to dodge my attacks, with a few bolts occasionally landing on him from time to time. I reveled in the chants of the spectators calling my name, laughing out loud as I looked down on Draxus from above like a god observing mortals. Draxus looked at me, hatred blazing in his eyes, as I landed the finishing...

FUCK THAT!

I was getting my ass handed to me over here. What the hell? This wasn't the Draxus I saw fighting weeks ago. What's going on here? The only reason I was still in the match was my high defense stat and the fact that Draxus couldn't step too close to me after getting shocked twice by the lightning field around me.

Gasping for air, I re-evaluated my opponent. It had just hit me that Draxus was much stronger than I'd expected. I'd thought I'd easily win this fight, but the reality was far from that. Draxus was moving faster than I'd ever seen him move, and his attacks were much more powerful than I'd anticipated. Just barely managing to dodge a beam of light coming from his sword, I realized that I'd have to take this fight seriously if I wanted to win.

I looked at Draxus, pondering everything I knew about him. I knew he was a fire dragon, and he had the blade master class. That had been a surprise he revealed today - up until now, everyone had thought he was an assassin class, like Janet, since he'd always used a pair of daggers in combat. Even I felt the urge to applaud him. He had clearly mastered the sword to the point of being able to use sword qi, and had convincingly played the role of an assassin all this time.

As I considered my next move, Draxus took advantage of my hesitation. He rushed at me, his sword glowing with blade qi. I barely managed to raise my arms in time to block his attack, and even then, I was knocked back by the force of his strike. It was clear that I couldn't afford to underestimate him any longer. I had to fight with everything I had if I wanted to win.

Draxus kept up a relentless assault, swinging his sword with dizzying speed and precision. I had to use all my agility to avoid his attacks, rolling and dodging out of the way just in time. But even as I did, I could feel my stamina draining. I knew I couldn't keep this up for much longer. I needed to find an opening, a chance to catch my breath and turn the tide of the battle. But with each passing second, I felt my hope slipping away.

My eyes darted around the arena, searching for any sign of weakness in Draxus's defense. But no matter where I looked, I couldn't find a single chink in his armor. Then, in a moment of desperation, I remembered my high defense stat. Maybe I didn't need to find an opening in Draxus's defense - maybe I could create one myself. I steeled myself, preparing for my next move.

With a deep breath, I gathered all my strength and charged at Draxus. I saw the surprise in his eyes as I threw myself into the attack. My fists connected with his chest, and for a moment, I thought I might have actually made a breakthrough. But then, to my horror, I saw that my fists had made no dent in his armor. I'd only succeeded in exhausting myself further. Now, I was completely at Draxus's mercy.

Or so he thought.

!!!!

Draxus tried to jump back, but he was hit by a blast of lightning that erupted from my fist. The blast sent him flying across the arena, and bolts of lightning flew off my body as I disappeared and reappeared on the other side of the arena. Crackling with electricity, I threw a punch at the incoming Draxus, sending him flying in the opposite direction again.

BOOOOMM!

OOOOOOHHHHH!

The spectators erupted in cries of excitement and surprise as I kept launching Draxus back and forth across the stage. His armor now had several dents in different places, which was to be expected after all the repeated hits it had endured. Suddenly, Draxus shouted, "ENOUGH!" and stabbed his sword into the ground mid-flight, ending my chain of attacks.

"I see you've also been hiding your strength," Draxus said. "A sorcerer pretending to be a mage, good, good. But I'm afraid this is where it ends." As he spoke, blade qi erupted from his body.