The 9th Class Swordmaster: Blade of Truth C.157: Bone Dragon

“Bo... Bone Dragon?! That monster is at least S-rank! Actually, it’s listed as an SS-rank monster in the bestiary...! How can something like that still exist on the continent?” Aidan yelled as he stared at the massive creature flying toward them.

The Bone Dragon, nearly as large as the Ghost Castle itself, would have been the largest living dragon out there.

“It’s not alive. In fact, it’s dead,” Gordon explained without a hint of concern.

“That’s not the point right now!” Aidan retorted.

“Holy Water would be great, but there’s no way we’d find that in this barren land. Hmm... Karyl, you can use fire magic, right?”

“Yes.”

"Miliana, you also have dragon mana like Karyl, so you should be able to use a bit of fire magic too.” Gordon pointed to the two of them. "Fire is effective against the undead. My earth element mana won’t do much, so I’ll be your shield. You two handle the attack."

Miliana looked at him, slightly surprised.

“What’s with that look? It’s well known that dragon mana allows the use of all elements and that pure mana can form a Mana Blade. Anyone who’s lived as long as me knows that.”

“That’s not what surprised me...”

It wasn’t the information itself but Gordon’s calm acknowledgment of Karyl’s mana that surprised Miliana.

He already knew?

Both Miliana and Karyl were taken aback.

Of course... The captain of the Guidance Mercenary Gang is experienced with dragon mana. Maybe I should have used Arcane mana instead.

Karyl looked at Gordon.

“I realized it when I saw his sword energy. Honestly, I first thought he was a descendant of Digon... but his power surpasses even the queen’s.”

“Then...”

Gordon cut off Miliana, who was struggling to find her words, “Enough. Everyone has their stories. Dragon mana isn’t an unknown force, right?”

With that, he looked at Karyl. It seemed that Gordon Fabian’s boldness was just as tremendous as his strength.

“Does your sword energy have a name?”

“Aura Blade.”

“Sounds good, but it needs some improving. Pure mana makes a strong blade, but it lacks sharpness.”

Gordon accurately assessed Karyl's sword energy.

Karyl gave a faint smile at his words, knowing it was true. That was why he had created the Arcane Blade infused with Arcane mana.

It would’ve been troublesome if I had revealed my Arcane mana. Karyl smiled bitterly.

Arcane mana no longer existed, which made Karyl’s ability unique. If Karyl had used the Arcane Blade during their fight, Gordon’s interest would have been far greater.

"But it’s quite interesting. Your fire element is so fierce, it feels like only a Sword Master could wield it. Such intense flames... I haven’t seen anything like it since Kuwell."

Not even Gordon Fabian could sense spirit power. That kind of power was so rare in this era that it was virtually unknown.

Gordon assumed Karyl’s fierce flames were just a high-level fire spell, oblivious to the power of the Blazing King dwelling within him.

“It’s better to use fire as a decoy. I don’t mind, but others might talk.”

“I’ll remember that,” Karyl replied with a bitter smile.

“A Sword Master with dragon mana... How old are you now?”

“Fourteen.”

“I’m curious how you’ll be three years from now. By then, your body will be fully developed.”

Miliana frowned slightly and asked Karyl, “You have three years until you’re an adult?”

“Yeah. Why?”

“Nothing... nevermind.”

She counted something on her fingers, then sighed.

Master's power is dragon mana...? No wonder... His inhuman strength makes sense now. Maybe... Is he really a dragon, as Dushala said?

Aidan also looked at Karyl. He was the only one consumed by such peculiar worries.

“RROOAAARRR!”

The roar of the dragon, which had echoed from afar, was gradually drawing closer.

At that, Gordon proceeded to sweep away the surrounding undead.

Boom...!!

As he kicked the ground, debris scattered everywhere, clearing all the undead in front of them.

“Seems like we’ve let our guard down in this forbidden area. Everyone, focus now!” Gordon urged.

Thud...!

Gordon took out the Martyr. Despite his warning, he remained composed.

“Is that the guardian of the barrier? We haven't even reached the Ghost Castle yet, so we can't waste time here."

Karyl felt the same. After clashing once, it seemed that the two of them could understand each other clearly, forming strategies without even speaking.

“Have you ever hunted a Bone Dragon?” Gordon asked.

“No, but I've dealt with something similar.”

Following the Oracle and the emergence of the Pharel Tower, Tarak in dragon forms appeared on the continent. Although Tarak and undead were different in many ways, both creatures shared an essence of darkness and death.

Besides, creatures with bones are easier to deal with compared to Tarak.

“Really? You've done quite a bit for a kid.”

Gordon didn't bother fishing for details. Instead, he turned to Miliana and Aidan and instructed, “Go for the head. If you don’t crush the head, it will keep regenerating. Got it?”

“Yes!” Aidan shouted in a tense voice, and Miliana slowly drew her saber and nodded.

Thud...!!

At that moment, the Bone Dragon, flapping its enormous wings, landed in front of the group, opening its massive jaws wide. There was a radiant green glow inside its skull, and smoke billowed from its eye sockets.

The massive creature, towering at roughly a hundred meters, looked down at Karyl.

Hiss... hiss...

As the dragon exhaled, a pungent stench filled the air, accompanied by poisonous fumes.

Seeing Aidan frozen in fear at the Bone Dragon’s overwhelming presence, Gordon patted him on the shoulder.

“Hey, kid. Don’t be scared. It's just a runt that couldn’t even make it into the castle. A leader among sheep is still just a sheep.”

“...Then what kind of monsters are inside the castle?”

“No idea. But they're likely stronger than this one.”

Aidan shook his head at Gordon’s nonchalance.

“That’s not reassuring at all.”

Gordon chuckled at his remark, rubbing his palms together before grabbing the massive Martyr he had placed on the ground.

Swoosh!!

Aidan's eyes widened. Despite his large frame, Gordon dashed forward with incredible speed, gathering his mana to his legs.

What the...?! Even with my swift steps, I can't move that fast...

Aidan prided himself on his speed technique learned from the Burning Darkness, but witnessing Gordon's speed made him realize the gap in their abilities.

"Huff...!"

Gordon Fabian inhaled deeply, pulling the Martyr back with all his strength. As his body twisted, the battle hammer swung horizontally with a thunderous noise.

The Bone Dragon tried to take flight, but it was too slow. Gordon’s hammer struck its leg with immense force.

Crack—!

The left leg of the massive Bone Dragon shattered, sending giant bone fragments tumbling at Aidan's feet.

“You see?” Gordon said, pointing at the fallen dragon that was struggling to keep its balance with one broken leg.

“Yeah, it's not surprising. Aidan, there are far more terrifying monsters in this world than a Bone Dragon. Like a real living dragon...” Karyl intervened.

“...!!”

Aidan was shocked to see Karyl, who had been next to him moments ago, now standing on the Bone Dragon’s head, looking down at him.

Whoosh...!!

Karyl, with flames rising from Agnel, pointed at Gordon Fabian.

“...Or this guy.”

“Hmph.” Gordon smirked at his comment.

But seeing Karyl standing confidently on the Bone Dragon's head, Aidan couldn't help but think, Master seems more like a monster!

"Roarrr...!!"

In response to the Bone Dragon's roar, Karyl thrust his dagger down hard onto the beast’s head.

Shing!

Unlike other undead, the Bone Dragon dodged by twisting its head, narrowly avoiding having its skull crushed by Karyl’s blade.

When Agnel pierced its shoulder, a foul smell filled the air as the green flames escaped the dragon’s body and mixed with the dagger’s fire, burning the creature.

"Khak! Khaaak!"

Shrieking in pain, the dragon spread its skeletal wings, generating a powerful wind.

“Ugh?!”

Karyl was momentarily lifted off the ground, and at the same time, the Bone Dragon’s broken leg regenerated, allowing the creature to swiftly take to the skies.

“Damn it... Fall back!”

Gordon Fabian clicked his tongue as he urged Karyl to retreat.

As Karyl landed next to them, he brushed the dust off his clothes and reassured, “I did that on purpose.”

“What?”

Karyl pointed to the Bone Dragon in the sky. Surprisingly, Miliana was riding on its back, using the Agnel embedded in its shoulder as a foothold to drive her two swords into the dragon’s neck with all her might.

Crash...!!

Crack...!

As flames burst from Miliana’s swords, the Bone Dragon's green eyes turned red. Its fierce roar turned into a groan, and it thrashed in pain without managing a single effective attack.

“Miliana is an exceptional warrior.”

“That girl...”

Gordon realized that Karyl had deliberately stepped back to showcase Miliana’s combat skills to him.

“You think that’s enough? If she can bring down a lich from the Ghost Castle, then I'll be impressed.”

"Roarrr...!!"

The Bone Dragon roared in agony and opened its maw, releasing a breath of toxic, icy mist in all directions.

“Watch out.”

Everything the breath touched turned white with frost. Gordon stepped back to avoid the mist, swinging his Martyr with all his might.

Whirr...!!

Like a spinning boomerang, the Martyr soared upward and struck the Bone Dragon's head directly.

Thunk!!

With a dull sound, half of the Bone Dragon's skull shattered.

“Hey, finish it off quickly.”

Miliana, summoning all her dragon mana, thrust her sword at the ethereal spirit in the dragon’s head. Karyl watched Gordon with a faint smile.

Boom...!!

Thud...!!

The massive Bone Dragon, unable to stay airborne, collapsed to the ground; its colossal body shattered completely, bones flying everywhere.

“Phew...”

Miliana emerged from the cloud of dust, looking slightly exhausted from using her mana to its full extent for the first time since her mana veins had been cleared.

“Wow... With this, you could probably take down a real dragon too,” Aidan marveled, kicking aside the remains of the Bone Dragon.

“Really? Then how about we go hunt one?”

“What...?”

Karyl chuckled at his reaction.

“Isn’t there a lair nearby, Miliana?”

“Yes, there is,” she answered in a low voice.

“The Platinum Dragon's lair.”