"Finn, do you think Ouranos' private mercenaries could counter this ability?" Riveria asked, hoping.
Finn shook his head slowly. "I don't know. We've only recently had contact with them, so I can't say. We'll have to ask."
"Let's do that when we return."
"Leon's immune to it. Maybe he has insights we lack."
"By the way, no new monsters have appeared during the retreat."
"Looks like the dungeon's taking a break for now. No new spawn in the near term."
"Well, even dungeons get tired sometimes." Someone joked weakly.
The conversation drifted off, all eyes returning to the battlefield below.
Ais stood on the cliff's edge, golden eyes locked on the swirling black and white lights of the duel. She was determined to witness every moment, preparing herself for the inevitable confrontation with the One-Eyed Black Dragon in the future.
The black dragon before them was clearly its kin, sharing abilities and origins. Studying it was key to uncovering the One-Eyed Black Dragon's weaknesses.
A faint light glimmered from the small crystal orb hanging at Ais's waist.
Far beneath, in the underground altar beneath the guild headquarters, Ouranos and Fels stood silently, their eyes fixed on the same scene through a similar crystal sphere.
No words were spoken for long moments. Finally, Fels broke the heavy silence. "Ouranos, what do you make of this?"
Ouranos' voice was blunt, his face grim. "I don't know."
He hadn't expected another black dragon to be born inside the dungeon.
The One-Eyed Black Dragon had caused devastation across the land, plowing fields like a natural disaster before retreating to the ends of the world to sleep.
And now…
Another one was born.
What did this mean for the dungeon?
A surge of divine power radiated from Ouranos. The dungeon trembled beneath his strength.
From the darkness, a faint, mournful wail echoed, chilling the bones of all who heard it.
'Ouranos? Did he notice it?'
Leon, still locked in fierce combat on the 59th floor, suddenly sensed a subtle but unmistakable fluctuation of divine power reverberating through the dungeon. The feeling stirred a hint of surprise within him.
Under normal circumstances, such fluctuations simply did not occur inside the dungeon.
Ouranos' divine power was known for its steady, unwavering intensity, always maintained at a constant level. Now, however, to feel the slightest wavering of that divine presence here meant one thing. Ouranos' emotions were stirred, unsettled.
At this moment, with Ouranos' emotions in flux, Leon's mind immediately jumped to one logical conclusion. It had to be about the black dragon.
Was it some kind of remote sensing magic from Fels?
Did someone on their side possess a monitoring magic prop tied to Fels?
Though unexpected, Leon didn't dwell too long on the thought. With a sharp movement, the force at his waist spun him around, and he kicked hard against the black dragon's razor-sharp claw.
The next instant, under the powerful impact, the black dragon twisted into a spinning gyroscope and shot outward at lightning speed. Yet, Leon didn't feel entirely at ease.
Just before it flew away, the black dragon unleashed a deafening roar aimed straight at him. That roar was close, and fierce, even Natsu couldn't react fast enough to ignite the Sky Flame and petrify the attack.
Only Leon's quick defensive magic stood between him and total disaster.
Bang!!!
A muffled boom exploded, followed by a shattering crack. Leon's magical shield shattered violently under the force of the dragon's roar.
The tremendous impact threw him backward. Even he, standing as strong as he was, could not ignore such a powerful blow.
Without igniting his Dying Will Flame, he couldn't steady himself, his body was thrown off balance, nearly bursting apart midair.
But in the very next second, he transformed into a streak of light and shot forward again.
The black dragon he'd just kicked away also swiftly changed course, hurtling back toward him. In an instant, they collided once more.
Two streams of light, one black, one white, wove through the 59th floor like raging comets, crashing and swirling endlessly.
The entire 59th floor had become a battleground for just them.
Bang!!! Bang!!! Bang!!! Bang!!!
Deafening explosions erupted one after another, the shockwaves rolling outward in unstoppable circles, tearing through the very fabric of the dungeon's space.
Each wave caused the spatial boundaries to ripple and tremble, threatening to rupture entirely.
It was clear beyond doubt. The clash between this man and dragon was so immense that even the dungeon's spatial integrity was struggling to contain their power.
In truth, their battlefield hovered high in the air. Had it taken place on solid ground, the destructive force unleashed here would have birthed another catastrophic destroyer like Juggernaut within the dungeon.
Despite fighting in midair, the devastation on the ground was still catastrophic. There was no patch of good earth left on the 59th floor, only craters and ruined terrain scattered everywhere.
From the distant edge of a cliff, Finn and the others had steadily retreated, putting thousands of meters between themselves and the clash. Eventually, they reached the entrance to the passage connecting the 58th and 59th floors.
"The 59th floor has become their playground." Finn muttered, gripping his spear tightly as he stared at the distant streams of light locked in combat.
The 59th floor was enormous, at least several times the size of Orario itself. Yet here, on the 59th floor, the battle between Leon and the black dragon consumed every inch of space.
One moment, the combatants would be sparring near the western edge. The next, they'd flash to the northern wall or the very center of the floor. The sheer speed and range of their movements left everyone present utterly stunned.
Finn and his comrades could scarcely fathom how Leon and the black dragon could traverse such vast distances in the blink of an eye.
If it were them, simply changing position within seconds would be a miraculous feat, covering a few hundred meters in a dash would already be impressive.
Among the group, only Ais was fast enough to somewhat keep pace, thanks to her spatial abilities. But even then, Ais' space transfer was limited to about a thousand meters at a time.
Leon and the black dragon didn't rely on teleportation, they simply moved with overwhelming physical speed, covering thousands of meters in a single second. It was a feat that bordered on the impossible.
Watching this, everyone felt like they weren't even in the same dimension as Leon. Even if they themselves reached Ievel 8, they wouldn't be able to replicate such speed or power.
"I feel a little desperate... I can't catch up at all."
Standing next to Finn, Alise rested one hand on her hip, her lips twitching slightly.
Though she'd heard endless tales of Leon from Ryuu's mouth after her resurrection, how he was a monster even among monsters, nothing had prepared her for this level of absurd strength.
She doubted she'd ever match that kind of power in her lifetime.
When the others heard this, they all nodded unconsciously. In truth, none of them could truly imagine what it would be like to reach that level.
"Speaking of which, are we just going to sit here and watch?" Gareth's voice broke the silence, directing a question to everyone.
Finn looked back, a trace of helplessness in his eyes. "What else can we do?"
At this moment, there really was no alternative but to stay put.
Could they retreat back to the 58th floor?
***
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