How can a living person die from holding in pee?
Many strong and confident people, when faced with adversity, let out a defiant roar and then exhaust every option, overcoming countless obstacles to finally achieve success.
That's how it goes in the movies, and sometimes, life imitates art.
But holding your urine damages the kidneys. In his past life, Rey had read an article about the most absurd ways people died. One story was about a man who entered a high-stakes water-drinking contest. He won the prize money, but his kidneys failed from holding it in, and he died.
So apparently, a living person can die from holding in pee. Setting aside real-life examples, the idiom "a penny beats a hero" perfectly captures the essence of a great person brought low by a mundane, urgent need.
Right now, Rey was a prime example of someone about to die from a full bladder.
His legs were trembling because the pressure was unbearable. If he moved too suddenly, he might leak a few drops.
As an adult (mentally, at least), wetting his pants was absolutely unacceptable. So, it was a test of willpower against his own bladder.
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Those in power, especially those with absolute power, often enjoy seeing the undignified struggles of those beneath them. It's a common vice.
Many rulers throughout history were like this. Since they held the power of life and death, why not let the lowly struggle and perform a bit before the end?
The dragon was the one in power right now. It was much like Smaug from The Hobbit—enjoying the flattery of a hobbit, watching the little clown perform in its eyes.
Rey's predicament was far more entertaining than a clown's act. A living person forced out of a Disillusionment Charm by a full bladder was comedy gold.
The dragon looked at him with utter disdain. Seizing the opportunity, Rey shuffled from the right corner all the way to the far left, his movement accompanied by the constant clatter of gold coins.
Then, he openly unfastened his trousers, aimed at the rock wall, and began the great task of relieving himself, wearing an expression of pure bliss.
During this walk, Rey had been fighting the urge to go, looking completely ridiculous, while the sound of shifting gold coins never ceased.
Although the dragon didn't move much, its attention followed Rey. If Helena, still hidden under the cloak, wasn't an idiot, she would seize this rare opportunity to escape.
After emptying his bladder, Rey relaxed completely, feeling incredibly comfortable. Only then did he adjust his clothes and slowly turn around.
Helena had already escaped. Rey could deduce this from the mixed sounds of movement earlier.
Only the person involved could distinguish the subtle differences in the noise. No matter how intelligent the dragon was, it wouldn't guess Rey's secret plan.
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Rey didn't want to die. But facing a dragon, he was no different from an ant.
If this ant wanted to survive in front of the dragon, he had to prove his worth.
The world of intelligent beings isn't much different from the animal kingdom. The useless are eliminated; the useful survive and thrive.
This truth holds in any world.
Perhaps the desire to live unlocked Rey's potential. So, despite never being much of a sycophant, he began to flatter the dragon shamelessly.
He used every word, every phrase he could think of. Anything to make the dragon feel surprised, magnificent, and uniquely unparalleled in the world.
Anything went!
Rey was acting just like the hobbit trying to survive Smaug.
However, after flattering the beast for a good while, just when Rey thought he might have a chance to leave, the dragon suddenly slammed its claw onto the pile of gold coins in front of him.
Coins flew up and hit him in the face. It hurt.
"Do you think I'm stupid, little wizard?"
The dragon roared, interrupting Rey's flow of compliments.
The volume of the roar was deafening. The foul-smelling wind that hit him blew Rey's hair back violently.
Standing beneath a dragon's maw meant being ready for a storm at any moment.
Wiping the spittle from his face, Rey looked helplessly at the ferocious dragon. He couldn't help but sigh internally: This dragon's IQ is seriously high. It's like dealing with a smart adult. Smaug is several levels below this guy in intelligence.
Rey's attempt to bluff his way out had failed completely.
Before Rey could say another word—Whoosh!—the dragon raised its right claw and swung at Rey, who was standing against the wall.
BANG!
A massive crash.
The dragon's strike wasn't as fast as before, but it packed significantly more power.
The claw slammed into the rock wall, shaking the entire cave. Dust and small rocks rained down.
The rock wall acted like soft clay, squeezing out between the dragon's claws. The dragon was quite satisfied with the power of this strike.
However, no blood flowed from beneath its claws, and it didn't feel the sensation of squashing a fly.
It was surprised and confused. It hadn't seen the little wizard escape from under its paw.
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There probably isn't a being alive that could tank a direct hit from a dragon.
The force of this strike was extraordinary. Presumably, because the previous victim hadn't been smashed thoroughly enough, the dragon had put more muscle into this one.
Rey saw the massive claw coming down, but seeing it and dodging it were two different things. Even if it was slower than before, it was still too fast.
In that critical moment, a spark of inspiration hit Rey. He whipped out his wand and cast a Transfiguration spell.
True Dragons, like this Black Dragon, were basically immune to magic. Rey's spell wasn't aimed at the dragon, but at the rock wall behind him.
The moment the spell hit, a deep groove appeared in the wall, with displaced rock bulging out on either side. So, when the dragon struck, it smashed into the bulging rock, while Rey ducked into the magically created recess.
It was a brilliant move. No matter how strong the dragon was, it couldn't flatten the recess in one or two hits.
Moreover, Rey's Transfiguration wasn't weak; the recess was a meter deep.
While the dragon raised its hand to strike, Rey cast the spell. As the claw descended, Rey retreated rapidly into the hole.
The time frame was incredibly short; everything happened in a split second. It created the illusion that Rey had been smashed into the wall.
Rey had intended to use Transfiguration repeatedly to tunnel away before the dragon retracted its claw. If time allowed, escaping that way wasn't impossible.
However, while the rock wall withstood the dragon's claw, it couldn't block the thunderous noise of the impact.
The deafening crash at close range made Rey's ears ache and his head buzz as if a high-yield bomb had detonated next to him.
After the crash, Rey shook his head, trying to clear the dizziness.
But shaking his head didn't help.
Worse, the impact seemed to have drained all strength from his body. He couldn't even lift his wand.
He hadn't completely dodged the strike. As he retreated, the fast-moving dragon claw had clipped him. The retreat and the impact had dissipated much of the force, which was the only reason he was still alive.
The dragon retracted its right claw from the wall and saw a dazed, pale Rey.
Astonishing!
The dragon hadn't expected the little wizard to survive the strike, let alone end up embedded in the wall instead of smeared across it.
It brought its large eye close to Rey in the wall, examining the surprising little wizard. After a long moment, it pulled its head back, and its chest and abdomen began to glow red.
This time, it intended to reduce Rey to ashes with fire.
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Dragon Fire!
Just as Rey was about to be incinerated, the cute little ghost dragon that had followed him from the Valley of Evil Spirits suddenly burst out from the pile of gold coins at Rey's feet. It positioned itself between Rey and the Great Dragon.
The little dragon flapped its wings with all its might and barked twice at the Great Dragon.
The sound was childish and squeaky, but the Great Dragon heard it. And saw it.
The Dragon Fire building up in its body was forcibly halted in its throat.
You could clearly see small bursts of solid flame escaping from the corners of its mouth as it slammed on the brakes.
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