kscans

Chapter 142 - Tyrant Dragon Subjugation

They had eliminated Pat the sniper and Od, who had been casting Meteor Swarm.

All that remained were Agres and Randa.

Ren was about to deal with Randa using Curse Magic, but there was no reason to stand by and watch until she was finished. The members who were able to fight all rushed toward Agres at once. The strategy was to fix Agres's position.

Agres was using its own body to block attacks aimed at Randa. However, it couldn't block attacks from all directions. By launching a close-range assault from the front, they were making it easier for Ren to take down Randa on Agres's back with her Curse Magic.

"Maris-san! Get a little closer, please!"

"Roger!"

The voice chat from Ren and Maris came through.

Maris and Ren were riding Lancelot together. Lancelot, skillfully controlled by Maris, flew nimbly through the air and approached the area near Agres's back.

For the time being, Agres couldn't attack Ren and the others in the air. If it tried to attack them now, it would have to turn its back on the members engaged in close-range combat, putting Randa in even more danger. Besides, if it were to attack, it would use Dragon Breath, which had too long of a motion.

The knockback from its wing flap or the stun from its Dragon Roar would have been effective, but those were nullified by the rings and bracelets that Hayato had made.

While this was happening, Ren's Curse Magic caught Randa. Randa was targeted and became the subject of the Curse Magic.

Ren immediately cast her curse.

"I did it! Maris-san! You can pull back for now... ah."

Randa immediately used the dispel magic "Dispel" to cure the curse on herself. Normally, once a curse took hold, it would gradually deplete the target's HP over time. But since she had dispelled the curse magic itself, the effect was nullified.

"Ren-kun, it is dangerous, but I need you to use Curse Magic more. Dispel has a high MP cost. It is not a spell that can be used repeatedly in quick succession."

Diite's advice came through the voice chat.

As if to prove her advice correct, Randa frantically began to drink a juice. It could be inferred that her MP was running low.

Ren cheerfully replied, "Understood!" and began to use Curse Magic on Randa.

This continued for a few more rounds, until with the words, "I can't take it anymore-ssu!" Randa fell from Agres's back. Her HP had been slowly chipped away by the Curse Magic, and she could no longer keep up with her own healing.

"We've defeated Randa-san!"

A cheer went up at Ren's words. And then, the all-out attack on the remaining Agres began.

However, it could also be said that Agres no longer had to worry about its back.

"Here I come, you bastards! The real fight starts now!"

With those words, Agres flew high up into the sky, far out of reach of any attacks. A few seconds later, it smashed its body into the ground at high speed.

It was Agres's technique, "Meteor Strike," in which it became a meteor itself.

The impact traveled through the ground, shaking it like an earthquake. Those who were nearby couldn't withstand the tremors and fell to the ground. It wasn't a stun or a knockback, just a physical phenomenon, but its effect was immense.

While they were unable to move properly, Agres unleashed a Dragon Breath. Several people who were in the path of the Dragon Breath were defeated.

"I have no business with you guys!"

And then, Agres fixed its gaze on Ash.

"I'll settle this, Ash!"

Ash, who had been brought to his knees by Agres's Meteor Strike, reacted to those words by standing up and readying his sword.

"Come, Agres. Let's finish this."

"Hah! A good look on your face! But I've never liked that face of yours! Good-looking guys should perish!"

"We agree on something. I never liked you either, being favored by our father."

Agres charged straight at Ash.

In its dragon form, it was on all fours, but its speed was fast. To meet the charge, Ash raised his Dragon Eater overhead.

"Destroy."

"Nngh!"

An attack that completely ignored the mood was fired from right next to Hayato. Esha's Destroy scored a direct hit on Agres as it was charging toward Ash.

Agres took the hit and went tumbling across the ground.

Everyone present had a "Huh?" expression on their face. But the culprit, Esha, was completely unconcerned.

"What are you getting so heated about? There is no way Ash-sama's attack alone could have defeated it. Yes, everyone, deliver the final blow to Agres Berion."

"You kind of ruined the moment, but it can't be helped. We'll have them do that later. Ash, you attack too, quickly."

"...Yeah, let's just win first. Sorry, Agres. The duel is postponed. Next time."

"...I haven't lost yet!"

Agres said this, managed to get its body up, and fired a Dragon Breath at its surroundings.

It probably didn't think it could win, but it was likely a show of its will not to give up until the very end.

However, when the Hero and the Demon Lord began their attack, no matter how tough the enemy, a comeback was impossible.

Agres held on until the very end, but was ultimately defeated.

"You have successfully subjugated the Tyrant Dragon Agres Berion. The stolen fragment of the Dragon Soul will be awarded to the participants. I repeat..."

Cheers erupted from the members.

Since it wasn't a Stampede, they didn't receive contribution points, but they were able to obtain the artifact fragment. And with this announcement, the other players would now know that Agres Berion held a fragment.

The fighting here might get intense starting tomorrow.

Agres Berion would respawn here after a few hours. It was likely fated to be defeated over and over. Hayato felt a certain amount of sympathy, but he changed his mindset, telling himself that it would only last until the Stampede event was over.

As everyone was basking in the afterglow of victory, Ney, Jolth, and Adrian approached.

"We managed to win somehow. Though it was mostly thanks to the NPCs. I was barely useful at all."

"I didn't get to stand out at all either. That's the Hero and Demon Lord for you, I guess. Still, I expect you to keep your promise. The method for making the replicas, I'm counting on you."

"I wonder if we were of some help."

The players had fought too, of course, but their abilities likely paled in comparison to the Hero and the Demon Lord. The characters' basic performance aside, the performance of their equipment was different.

"By the way, Hayato, we've gathered all four artifact fragments. Do you know what to do with them?"

"I do, actually. You can combine the four fragments into one with the Crafting Skill. Apparently, you can do it even with a Crafting Skill of zero. Let's give it a try."

Hayato took out his crafting kit and checked the menu.

There, he could select an item called "Dragon Soul Artifact."

Hayato selected it. A rainbow-colored light overflowed, and immediately after, the Dragon Soul Artifact appeared.

Its form was that of a necklace. It had only a slightly dull-colored gem, but its equipment effect was to increase maximum HP by 20%.

Ney and the others looked at the necklace Hayato had made in surprise.

"It increases max HP? And it's a necklace. This is extremely valuable for melee players!"

"I'm more interested in where you got that information."

"Unfortunately, it's not very effective for us. It's probably a good collector's item, though."

They each had their own thoughts on the matter, but this item had another use. It was also a key to get to the Dragon's Grave. Putting together what Diite and Hypnos had said, if one used the teleportation device in the Royal Capital while holding this, they could go to the Dragon's Grave.

There, they would fight Veru. If they defeated Veru, the Dragon Soul Artifact would release its true power.

Hayato was a bit hesitant to reveal that much information. It was something he had heard from those who managed this world, after all.

Then again, he wondered if it was something they could figure out without a hint.

The teleportation device in the Royal Capital was used often, so if they simply had it equipped, they would probably find out right away. But a clan like Adrian's, which had no warrior types, wouldn't equip it and thus wouldn't get the information.

As Hayato was wondering what to do, Diite approached him.

"Hayato-kun, it seems the Monster Encyclopedia has been updated quite a bit. It looks like it has information on the artifact too."

"Huh?"

The Monster Encyclopedia was a game system that recorded information on monsters that were defeated. Hayato knew this, but he felt a sense of incongruity at Diite suddenly bringing it up.

"Whoa, amazing. It's true, there's information about the artifact under the Fire Dragon and Illusion Dragon entries. This is amazing, Hayato, it seems if you have the artifact, you can go to a new field from the teleportation device in the Royal Capital!"

At Ney's words, Jolth and Adrian also looked at their Monster Encyclopedias with surprised expressions.

Right beside them, Diite whispered to Hayato.

"It would be inconvenient for you to know so much information, would it not?"

Diite had told them about the encyclopedia so that the three of them could hear, as a way to cover for Hayato knowing so much.

"We need to get ready and go right away. A field no one has ever entered. This is the real thrill of playing a game. We're going to go check it out, so we'll be heading back first. Thanks for today. See you later."

"We can't let the Bandit clan get ahead of us! Let's get ready right now!"

"We cannot go right away. We are running low on herbs for demon summoning, so we have to procure those first. Well then, let's fight together again if we have the chance."

Jolth, Ney, and Adrian said this as they returned to their respective clan members.

Hayato thought to himself that everyone was so energetic, and then looked at Diite. He had a question.

"What happens if other people defeat Veru-san?"

"Nothing special would happen, I imagine. The Dragon Soul Artifact would just take its true form and its performance would increase. Unless Ash-kun or Ren-kun go, nothing special will happen."

"I see. Hypnos also said it was a quest exclusive to Ash and the others, so that must be right."

Diite folded her arms and her face became serious. She looked at Hayato.

"Hayato-kun, I would like you to fight Veru-kun sooner rather than later, if possible."

"I don't plan on dragging it out, but why?"

"We have defeated all of the hardline dragons, so the only one who can fight in the Dragon's Grave right now is probably Veru-kun. There might be a trap from Hypnos, but I think now is the best time to defeat Veru-kun."

He didn't know specifically what would happen, but Hypnos was trying to make Veru win. There was a high probability that Ash and Ren's memories would return, but that was still a better outcome than Veru winning. Hayato believed that.

"What will happen to Ash and the others if they regain their memories... If they wish for it, will you erase their memories again?"

"...Yes. But only if that is what they wish for. Even now, I do not fully understand why they decided to stay in this world. Nor why Veru-kun retained his memories. So, I plan to follow their wishes completely. They might say they want to stay as they are, like Esha-kun."

"I see."

To lose one's real-world memories and live in virtual reality. He didn't know if that was right or wrong, but Ash and the others had wished for it. Hayato didn't know which was better.

As Hayato was thinking such things, Ash approached him. And Ren, riding with Maris on Lancelot, was also approaching.

"Hayato, are we having a victory celebration tonight? Ren says she wants to eat pudding."

"A bucket! The bucket one, please!"

At that, Esha, who was nearby, raised her hand.

"Then I would like a Bucket Chocolate Parfait, please."

"That dish doesn't exist. Well, let's have a victory celebration. I can't prepare it right away, but if I have the maids and the Black Rose members help me again, it should be fine."

Hayato said this, and then used voice chat to announce that they would be having a victory celebration.