“Do you have any ideas?”
Rhode turned to Erin and asked. If they didn’t break through the imprisonment forcefully, there was really nothing much he could do. It was always a huge problem whenever the attribute wasn’t right and they couldn’t restrain the enemy. Unless one was so powerful that one defied everything, none of the restraining would be meaningful. Of course, Rhode possessed such power. But… Sometimes, being too powerful might not necessarily be a good thing.
Upon hearing his question, Erin narrowed her eyes, sized up the two-headed shadow dragon, and replied.
“When I took on the trial, I received a certain extent of dragon soul authority. Even though I can’t fully restore my dragon form, I can still use my spirit to coalesce into the dragon form and summon moonlight for a certain period. Perhaps it won’t be as powerful as Icy Snow’s light arrows, but it shouldn’t be an issue as a source of light itself. It’s just that the range can’t be too huge. Besides, when I summon the moonlight, I can’t move.”
“I see…”
Rhode knitted his brows to Erin’s response. As a matter of fact, this wasn’t good news at all because the only forces the group had against the two-headed shadow dragon were Erin and Rhode. If Erin were to step down from the battle to summon moonlight, Rhode would be taking on the two-headed shadow dragon alone. He could give it a shot if he were up against an individual shadow dragon. But now, the two-headed shadow dragon was stronger, so much so that he couldn’t defeat it effortlessly. Moreover, the two-headed shadow dragon would also summon shadowy creatures from the shadows as soon as it was under attack. Not only that, but Icy Snow was also fatigued and defenses were only up to Anne and Angelina. Anne was fine and Angelina could also take on one or two shadowy creatures. But if there were too many of them, perhaps she would end up dismembered like when she was in the Spring of Light…
Rhode puckered his brows and went through his summoning cards once more, only to helplessly discover that he had a lack of cards with the light attribute. Most of them possessed either the darkness or water attribute. The only one who had the light attribute was Celia. As for the other holy sword cards… They were clearly ‘holy sword’ cards, but why were they ‘darker’ than ever? They were either demons or specters or undeads… That didn’t really make sense.
Apart from those who were related to the source of darkness, Karin was the only one with human attributes, so she wasn’t useful for this battle. On the other hand, Gracier and Madaras were in the Elf Forest right now and Rhode couldn’t contact them the slightest. Of course, even if he could… well, there wasn’t any use in thinking about that since they were so far away right now. In that case, there was only one person who he could rely upon.
“Cassidy, how are you doing?”
“I can’t hold on much longer, Your Majesty. I can only activate the power of contrast once more, provided the range isn’t too far apart.”
Upon hearing Rhode’s query, Cassidy who stood on the other side wiped the beads of sweat off her forehead and responded. As the Contrast Deity Warden, even though she was doing better than the rest, it was a pity that in a place like Shadow Ravine where darkness dominated, the power of contrast that she could utilize was also limited. Just like Erin’s moon rule, there could only be shadows with the presence of light. This was the meaning of contrast. But on the other hand, if shadows occupied 80 percent of space, while light took 20 percent, it couldn’t be considered a ‘contrast’ at all. For that reason, the amount of rule power that Cassidy could draw upon was also lessened drastically. Furthermore, she had expended a lot of strength earlier and was exhausted right now.
Rhode had initially decided to keep her as a trump card, but her power of contrast was a double-edged sword. Besides, according to her, she had a hard time manipulating the rule of the power of contrast. Moreover, the arena was lit up in brilliance earlier and if she were to activate the power of contrast, maybe the arena that Rhode and Icy Snow spent a whole lot of effort to illuminate would be darkened instantly. That was why he didn’t make her do it, but only let her pair up with Angelina to harass the shadow dragons instead. And now, it seemed like it was time for Cassidy to deal the critical blow.
“One time, huh… It’s enough.”
Upon hearing Cassidy’s answer, Rhode nodded, extended his arm, and swung abruptly. Shortly after, as a card flickered in his hand, a group of heavily-armored warriors appeared before the group with highly-raised shields. They encircled the arena wall, forming an incredibly strong barrier.
“Anne, Angelina, Icy Snow—stay back and protect yourselves. The BOSS will summon shadowy creatures whenever it is under attack. If the shadowy creatures attack you, you just have to defend yourselves—don’t attract their attention. There will be an endless amount of them; you girls don’t have the strength to go against them, so just do your best in holding them back.”
Rhode said, threw a meaningful look at Erin, and turned to Cassidy.
“Cassidy, follow me. Remember, listen to my orders. As soon as I give my command, no matter what situation you’re in, instantly activate the power of contrast on the two-headed shadow dragon.”
“Activate the power of contrast on the two-headed shadow dragon…”
Cassidy couldn’t help but twitch the corner of her eye.
“Are you sure it will be fine, Your Majesty? I can’t guarantee their safety if anything bad happens, alright?”
“We need to take a risk. If we continue to waste time, we will all be dead anyway.”
Rhode knew that Cassidy’s worries weren’t unreasonable. After all, no one was certain what would happen after activating the power of contrast on the two-headed shadow dragon. The situation would be as though when Cassidy activated the power of contrast on Rhode and his younger sister, where their genders switched. It would be for the best if the two-headed shadow dragon were annihilated directly. But if it turned into a two-headed light dragon or whatnot, the situation would become more challenging. But now, Rhode didn’t have any better ideas. Currently, the two-headed shadow dragon was healing its wounds. If he didn’t seize the opportunity and allowed it to recuperate fully, it would be too late!
“Erin, summon the moonlight!”
“Yes, Your Majesty Rhode!”
Upon hearing his command, Erin nodded swiftly and raised her sword high. Shortly after, the group noticed glimmers of bright, gentle, silver-whitish moonlight emanating from the young lady’s body. In the blink of an eye, the brilliance rushed toward the ceiling like surging flames, expanded, and coalesced, transforming into an enormous white dragon! Glaring at the two-headed shadow dragon, the white dragon widened its jaw, lifted its neck, and let out a deafening bellow.
“Roarrrr———!”
Along with snarls, a pure ray of moonlight descended from above like a spotlight on a stageplay, enfolding the two-headed shadow dragon entirely. The two-headed shadow dragon couldn’t help but howl in grief, while the shadows circulating its body melted away like snow under the blazing sun. Not only that, but the instant the two-headed shadow dragon was illuminated by the moonlight, its massive body also sank and crumbled onto the ground!
Moonlight works great!
Rhode was overjoyed at this thought. He brandished the sword instantly as he sprinted toward the two-headed shadow dragon.
“Cassidy, take the left. I’ll go from the right and we’ll attack their eyes!”
“Okay, Your Majesty!”
Upon hearing his command, Cassidy responded swiftly. Shortly after, the duo dashed toward the two-headed shadow dragon in two trails of afterimages from the left and right. The two-headed shadow dragon also seemed to notice the arrival of danger. It lifted its two heads high, glaring at the two humans flitting toward it. The moment Rhode and Cassidy entered its field of vision, the two dragon heads snapped their jaws open and bit down on the tiny prey!
Swish!
Facing the dragons’ mouths that bit down toward him, Rhode had no intention of evading. On the contrary, he picked up speed from the almost invisible string of afterimages. He made an upward leap at a 90-degree angle, dodging the devourment of the huge, menacing mouth. Not only that, but he also flashed by at the same time and landed above the dragon’s nose! After completing the series of challenging maneuvers, Rhode had no hesitation in the slightest. He turned his sword around and brandished it from above!
Blade rays glittered. The two-headed shadow dragon’s mouth was punctured and in an instant, its body composed of shadows collapsed, while the front of its mouth was also thinned.
“Roarrr———!”
Upon taking this deadly attack, the right head wailed and dangled on its neck. But at the same time, the left head turned over abruptly, widened its mouth, and pitch-black dragon flames coalesced within it. In just a few seconds, a deadly beam of darkness would enfold Rhode completely. But…
“Don’t look down upon me, you foolish dragon!”
Along with a furious snarl, Cassidy burst forward like a nimble elf. She flourished her sword, penetrating the eye of the left head ruthlessly. Shortly after, razor-sharp spiritual radiance erupted from her blade, ripping apart its right eye. The ambush left the two-headed shadow dragon in agony. It raised its head and the pitch-black dragon breath that was supposed to blast Rhode was released into the air instead, hurting no one. At that moment, Rhode also seized the opportunity and struck the left eye with his blade!
——!
This time, even though the two-headed shadow dragon was well prepared and closed its eye, Rhode’s all-out attack shouldn’t be belittled. Moreover, he aimed his attack at the target’s only weakness. Even if the two-headed shadow dragon closed its eyes, his sword punctured the eyelids mercilessly. Along with the eruption of spiritual brilliance, the left eye was demolished. Countless light blades shot out from the wound, tearing the perfect shadows into chunks. Despite that, Rhode didn’t feel proud of his achievement yet because he was clearly aware that elemental creatures were only simulated forms and not real living things. Even though he and Cassidy blinded the dragon’s eyes respectively, as long as the dragon had enough time, its eyes would recover completely. Apart from blinding the dragon by piercing its eyes, there weren’t any other useful benefits. Furthermore, Rhode wasn’t only aiming to temporarily blind the dragon, but looking to eradicate it instead!
“Roar——— Roar———!”
But at that moment, the two-headed shadow dragon that was constantly under attack blew its top. It struggled, rocking its heads, letting out deep, furious growls. Along with its fierce bellows, the surrounding darkness shook as shadowy creatures of all shapes and sizes crawled out one after another, swarming toward the two-headed shadow dragon.
I knew it!
Looking at this scene, Rhode’s chest tightened. He turned and swept a glance at Anne and the rest of the group immediately. But what assured him was that the shadowy creatures didn’t encircle them, perhaps because the young ladies were enveloped in the radiance of the torches, or maybe because they followed his order and didn’t attack the shadowy creatures. On the contrary, the shadowy creatures in the part of the arena that was shrouded in shadows darted toward the two-headed shadow dragon instead. What was more bothersome was that not only were there only land creatures, but there were also a dozen shadowy creatures that flew across the air!
That was going to be a problem. Not only would the shadowy creatures coordinate with the two-headed shadow dragon in their attacks on Rhode’s group, but the wounded two-headed shadow dragon could also replenish its lost strength by taking them in. When that happened, this battle would be endless!
“The other eye!”
Rhode arranged his frantic thoughts and yelled. He withdrew the sword that pierced the dragon’s left eye and rolled aside to dodge the razor-sharp claw that swung from above. He shuttled to the other side of the dragon and slashed his sword from above!
——!
“Roar!”
“Roar!”
The two heads howled almost at the same time. This time, even though the two-headed shadow dragon was an elemental creature, it couldn’t handle the pincer attack from Rhode and Cassidy. It rocked its heads frantically, lifted its body, and swung its claws around its heads, aimlessly swatting the annoying ‘flies’ of Rhode and Cassidy. But Rhode had already anticipated this move. After blinding two of the dragon’s eyes, he jumped off from its head. However, he didn’t land on the ground; the moment he leaped, he stared at the exposed neck of the dragon!
That was the weakness of the dragon race!
This was the main reason why Rhode penetrated the dragon’s eyes. The biggest weakness of all dragon races was their head and neck area, and one had to hit where it hurt. However, it wasn’t easy to target the weakest points. As dragons normally shrunk their heads, their weakness wasn’t exposed to players. And in order to make dragons reveal it, they had to raise their heads.
And now, the two-headed shadow dragon who rocked its heads finally exposed its weakness to Rhode.
This is the final chance!
“Cassidy, go all-out!”
Rhode yelled and gripped the holy sword. A dazzling, sacred brilliance erupted from the blade, enfolding him entirely. He zoomed ahead, metamorphosing into a glaring white ray that shot straight at the dragon’s neck! At the same time, Cassidy also went all-out. She aimed the sword at the other neck and slashed from above. The eye-catching radiance turned into a mighty blade that penetrated the neck.
Boom!
A brilliance that was a thousand times brighter erupted in the neck, blending with the moonlight as one. The two-headed shadow dragon’s heads shook, trembled, and were torn apart. Its enormous body crumpled onto the ground, seemingly to have reached the end of its life. But Rhode was aware that this was just an illusion. After all, it was an elemental creature! He could only weaken its strength temporarily by attacking its weakness and couldn’t eliminate it entirely. But to him, what he needed was this moment of opportunity.
“Cassidy: power of contrast!”
“Yes, Your Majesty!”
Upon hearing his command, Cassidy responded swiftly. She stared grimly at the two-headed shadow dragon, raised her sword, and pierced its body with force. Shortly after, an array of colorful brilliance flickered around her, flowing from her arms to the tip of the blade and onto the dragon.
“———!”
It only took an instant.
The pitch-black body of the two-headed shadow dragon emanated a dazzling, white radiance. The dim, deep blackness vanished, only to be replaced by an eye-catching whiteness that fused with the moonlight that shone from above. After a few moments, the trembling dragon stopped moving, before turning into spots of light and disappearing into thin air. At the same time, the moonlight that enfolded and imprisoned the dragon dimmed and vanished in the darkness.
“Phew…”
At that moment, Rhode stared at the battlefield and heaved a sigh of relief. The shadowy creatures returned to where they came from after their summoner vanished. Earlier on, Rhode took a chance to see whether the two-headed shadow dragon would be demolished after Cassidy activated the power of contrast. And now, it seemed… Rather successful.
Seems like the gamble worked.
At this thought, Rhode nodded at Cassidy in satisfaction. The latter also gazed at him, but didn’t say a word.
“Good job, Cassidy…”
But as Rhode decided to continue speaking, the earlier voice echoed all of a sudden again.
“Well done, brave challengers. You’ve completed the first test. Next, you will face more terrifying enemies!”
What the heck?!
Upon hearing the ridiculous announcement, Rhode cursed loudly…
