A scene of total chaos. Searing flames burned the earth. The ground, once covered in ice and snow, was now nothing but a broken, ruined mess.
After Shirou arrived at the scene with the speed of Sword God Style, and met up with Paul, Rudeus and the people of Buena Village also arrived. They immediately saw the huge red dragon breathing out fire, the fiery heat covering everything, distorting the view.
"This... this is..."
Seeing the giant creature standing on the ground like the embodiment of death, everyone felt an unspeakable terror and despair. They had to control their trembling legs as much as possible to avoid collapsing from fear and being unable to stand.
Rudeus's pupils shrank when he saw this. He suppressed the fear and confusion in his heart and immediately looked around, trying to find the familiar red-haired boy.
But he didn't find him. Instead, the figure of Paul, looking lost, appeared before him.
"Father!"
Seeing that Paul was still alive, Rudeus was relieved. Like the other members of the Greyrat family, he had been very worried about Paul, who hadn't returned from the forest.
Seeing him alive now, he felt genuinely happy and went to his side.
"..."
However, Rudeus quickly realized that although Paul was alive, he seemed very silent, as if he had witnessed something unacceptable. He had completely lost his soul, his body stiff and numb as he stood there, unable to move.
"Father? What's wrong?"
Looking at Paul like this, a strong sense of unease suddenly surged into Rudeus's heart, and he immediately asked, "Where's Shirou? He rushed over here alone earlier? Where is he now?"
"..."
In response to Rudeus's question, Paul stiffly opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but he couldn't get the words out.
His reaction practically said it all.
Rudeus's expression became incredibly horrified. He immediately looked at the fiery ruins, wanting to find a familiar figure, or at least a body. But the flames and smoke completely blocked his view.
At the same time, the red dragon in the distance clearly didn't want to give these ant-like humans a chance to escape.
It suddenly spread its wings and began to circle in the air, watching the group as if admiring a meal on a plate.
"!!"
Witnessing all of this, Rudeus immediately took out his staff, but he didn't even have the courage to cast a spell.
The fear that spread from the bottom of his heart at the moment the dragon looked at him threatened to swallow him whole, destroying his soul.
The twisted madness crushed Rudeus's will, making him unable to make any move to resist.
Rudeus was still doing pretty well. The villagers of Buena who had come with him, upon seeing the terrifying red dragon, were either at a loss, dropping their weapons and armor to flee, or kneeling on the ground in despair, without even a trace of will to fight it.
After all, the red dragon was the overlord of the sky and the earth.
It not only had strong limbs but was also born with the ability to use powerful magic. Whether in the sky or on the ground, dragons were creatures too strong for humans to fight against.
Although the villagers of Buena who had come along generally had experience hunting monsters with Paul, facing this monster that was beyond ordinary understanding and essentially the embodiment of the extraordinary, they couldn't possibly have any courage to resist!
"I'll hold off the red dragon. You guys run!"
Paul took a deep breath.
After snapping out of it from Shirou's death, he immediately realized what he had to do. Whether as a man or as a lord, he had to fight the monster before him to the very end with his sword!
"I, I'll help..."
Rudeus spoke in a voice so faint it was almost inaudible. He tried his best to speak bravely, but the fear made his teeth chatter and his limbs go numb.
"Go!"
Seeing this, Paul didn't blame him. He just pushed Rudeus, sending him stumbling in the opposite direction, while he gripped his long sword, using his remaining strength to face the red dragon.
Seeing this scene, the villagers of Buena had mixed emotions. They also wanted to help Paul, but their instinctive fear prevented them from doing anything. They could only be driven away by the boundless sense of despair.
So, the crowd began to flee along the way they had come.
"Roar!"
The red dragon was a creature with keen observation skills. It had clearly noticed these ants who had suddenly arrived earlier. Now, a clear trace of mockery appeared in its eyes, as it didn't want anyone to escape.
"Boom!"
The red dragon spread its wings, creating a storm as it flapped them. The howling winds tore through everything, whipping up countless piles of snow and dust. The huge magical beast once again dominated the sky, rushing towards the fleeing people of Buena Village!
Clearly, the red dragon didn't want to let any humans leave this place. It wanted to wipe out all these ants here!
"...Damn it!"
Seeing this, Paul completely panicked!
He had already lost Shirou and didn't want to lose Rudeus too. As a father, he couldn't accept losing two sons in one day!
That would be an indescribable pain for him!
However, no matter how agile Paul's movements were, he couldn't keep up with the red dragon's speed. What's more, Paul's strength had already reached its limit after a whole day of fierce fighting.
He staggered as he ran, almost falling several times.
And the huge beast in the sky had already rushed into the midst of the people of Buena Village. The mouth of the red dragon once again gathered terrifying magical power, igniting a raging flame!
"Bang!"
In an instant, the breath of fire erupted once more.
If anyone was hit directly, they would be burned to ashes.
In this desperate situation, Rudeus was finally pushed to the brink. He couldn't make any other reaction, only remembering to gather all his magical power to create a huge water wall!
"Waterfall!!!"
In an instant, Rudeus pushed his Water Saint-level mage abilities to the limit.
Amazing water droplets rose into the sky, colliding with the red dragon's fiery breath, finally canceling each other out!
"Haha..."
Rudeus collapsed to the ground, exhausted. Although that moment of magic hadn't depleted all of his magic, it had pushed his physical and mental strength to their limits.
After long training, Rudeus's total magic power far exceeded that of ordinary mages. Even if he used magic continuously for a whole day, his magic wouldn't run out.
But in the end, he was just a seven-year-old boy. Even if his magic didn't run dry, his physical strength still had its limits, and he couldn't possibly use magic for a long time.
The red dragon was a creature with intelligence. After noticing that its breath had been blocked, it immediately focused its attention on Rudeus.
"Roar!"
It circled in the sky, its huge figure like a stream of light, rushing straight towards Rudeus!
Even if it couldn't use its breath continuously for a short time, the red dragon's huge body alone was comparable to a speeding train.
No one could possibly withstand the red dragon's impact head-on; they would be turned into mincemeat in an instant!
"Rudy!!!"
Seeing this, Paul completely panicked. But there was no way he could keep up with the red dragon's speed. He could only let out a desperate scream, feeling the pain of his pupils tearing apart.
Rudeus himself, however, just stood there blankly.
The scene before him instinctively reminded him of the truck that had killed him in his previous life. It was so despairing, so filled with a sense of destiny, as if mocking his efforts as meaningless.
No matter how much he gave, his life would only be empty.
No matter how many times he started over, he would reach the same end.
"..."
For a moment, Rudeus even gave up struggling.
He had accepted reality, accepted the fact that a weakling like him was destined not to be able to start over and create miracles. Fate held only endless punishment for him, never granting any grace.
But why?
He had clearly vowed to change himself!
He had clearly worked hard to change everything!
Why did it still end up like this?
If there was a god in this world, then he asked the god, what exactly had he done wrong?
Rudeus questioned the cruel and senseless god in his heart, while his body, because of the dragon's high-speed approach, felt a familiar tearing sensation.
In his previous life, when the speeding truck was about to smash his body, he had felt something similar.
And the final result was that he had welcomed a crushing end with his own death, making a final summary of his wasted thirty-odd years of life.
Now, he had traveled to a new world, and from birth until now, he had been constantly working hard, overcoming all his shortcomings, and trying to be a good person.
But even so, why would he still welcome the same result?
Rudeus lamented in his heart, despairingly closing his eyes.
He didn't know if his death this time would be the end, whether there would be another new life. But even if there was another life, with such a bleak ending, he probably wouldn't be able to muster any energy. He wouldn't work as hard as he had this time, living with all his might, right?
After all, no matter what he did, the ending would be the same.
Then what was the point of trying?
"!!"
His constantly scattering thoughts were about to be interrupted, and the approach of death was close at hand.
But in the next instant, Rudeus didn't feel the familiar pain of being crushed.
On the contrary, a familiar warmth was coming from his body.
"Giving up now is too early, Rudy."
Shirou's voice, like a dream, rang in his ears, "I told you before, right? No need to be scared anymore, because I'm here!"
"Sh, Shirou?!"
Rudeus turned his head in shock, seeing the familiar red-haired boy.
Compared to the past, his current condition was extremely strange. Blue patterns were constantly spreading from his right hand, like streaks of colored glass, covering the area above his neck.
But it was clear that this power didn't come without a cost. The life force being drained from him was visible, causing a corner of his hair to begin turning gray-white!
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