The masked man's attack came like, or perhaps truly was, a streak of light, moving with a speed too fast for the naked eye to catch as it hurtled toward Mira.

  Though Mira could react, her body was incapable of keeping pace. No matter how she attempted to force herself to move, there was no escaping the oncoming strike.

  In that crucial moment, a massive figure appeared before her, blocking the blow.

  A fountain of blood followed, spilling across the ground in a quantity greater than that of Mira herself.

  "...I never expected that in human form, you look like a child, but after returning to your true form, you are so massive."

  At this point, the injuries on the masked man had vanished, leaving only the tattered remnants of his clothing as evidence of his past wounds. This, however, meant that the attacks they had worked so hard to deliver had been insignificant to him.

  On their side, Mira's magical energy was exhausted. Even keeping herself standing had drained all of her strength. As for Veridith, she now stood protectively in front of Mira.

  Before them was a dragon nearly ninety meters long, its body covered in green scales. Compared to the time they had spent in the Abyssal Dragon’s Vale, Veridith' dragon form was slightly smaller, yet her power had increased since then. Her muscles were well-proportioned, not bulky, and yet contained a graceful elegance.

  If one were to compare her dragon form to that of Farkonia’s, it would become apparent that Veridith had grown less massive and strong than before. Now, she was developing more in the direction of condensing her power, like Farkonia’s form.

  However, as she had absorbed the masked man's attack, Veridith' left forecw had been severed, and the highly toxic dragon blood, characteristic of the Green Dragon, flowed from the wound.

  "Truly brave, aren’t you? You’d risk returning to your true form to make up for your ck of speed, all to protect your friend..."

  Originally, Veridith' speed would not have been enough to reach Mira in time to intercept the attack, but by transforming back into her dragon form, she had forced herself across that distance.

  "But now, you’re down a cw, and your ally has no magic left to heal you. How do you pn to handle what’s coming next?"

  The masked man drew a spare sword. While it was not as high quality as his original weapon, it was still formidable enough to deal with Veridith and Mira, given his own strength.

  "Don’t worry. You won’t die so quickly. The injuries and humiliation you caused me earlier, I’ll repay them several times!"

  No sooner had he finished speaking than the masked man vanished from their sight. A moment ter, the sound of metal cshing rang out.

  Veridith, using her remaining right cw, managed to block the masked man’s sword. Despite her overwhelming size, she was clearly outmatched by him, especially now that he was fighting with full intent. Even as she tried to resist, she was gradually pushed back.

  Dragons were naturally powerful and magical creatures, but that strength only mattered when the enemy was close in power. Veridith was two tiers below the masked man, no, three tiers, and the fact that she could even hold her ground was nothing short of miraculous.

  "Roar… ROAR!!"

  Veridith bellowed, bolstering her strength with the force of her roar. Channeling her magic, she concentrated a ball of magical energy within her mouth.

  The green energy, compressed to its limit, erupted at a distance of less than ten metres. The dragon’s breath, ced with intense toxicity and corrosive power, struck the masked man directly, even causing the ground behind him to melt from the heat and corrosiveness.

  "Be quiet."

  The masked man absorbed the full brunt of the close-range dragon’s breath, yet he seemed scarcely injured. In the same instant, he turned his sword and pierced through Veridith’ lower jaw.

  But Veridith did not stop. If anything, she increased the intensity of her breath, unwilling to hold back even if it meant harming her own innards and throat.

  The breath began to change. Originally green like her scales, it became brighter, with the very centre of it shifting to a blinding white.

  This time, the masked man was slightly shaken. He had not expected that the one he considered an easy target would unleash such an attack. He was using all of his strength, and yet the defence he had built, once easily pierced by a single water serpent, was now insufficient.

  This dangerous existence could no longer be trifled with. He had to deal with it, and quickly.

  "Veridith! Watch out!"

  Mira, sensing something, could no longer afford to conserve her magical energy. She called out desperately.

  Whether by luck or misfortune, Veridith heard Mira’s voice and reflexively turned her head just in time to avoid the fatal blow. However, a beam of light struck her right ear instead.

  Had she not turned, the attack would have struck her head. Yet even with the ear hit, the injury was not insignificant. The beam, brimming with immense energy, scorched her right ear and the surrounding area, with dragon blood spraying from the unhealed wounds.

  "You didn’t die? Is it possible that even the gods are protecting you?"

  The masked man, surprised by Veridith' narrow escape, looked momentarily stunned. But his expression quickly hardened again.

  "...Hmph! Whether it’s divine protection or not, you’re going to die here today!"

  He quickly distanced himself and began gathering his magic.

  "...Since you managed to avoid it, how about this!?"

  In an instant, his direction shifted, and the beam was now aimed at Yuriyas and Aeroxia, who were still behind Veridith, struggling to retreat.

  Another streak of light shot forth, but this time, Veridith could not use her shapeshifting to close the gap. She could only watch helplessly as the lethal beam sped towards Yuriyas and Aeroxia.

  At that moment, Veridith’ mind raced with thoughts. She imagined Yuriyas and Aeroxia being sin on the spot. She wondered if there was anything more she could have done, or if she could have prevented them from joining the battlefield in the first pce.

  Suddenly, Veridith felt something. It was a sensation, faint but rooted deep in her soul, as though she had grasped something unexpinable.

  She followed that feeling, turning towards the space between the light and Yuriyas and the others, activating her inherent skill—a power originally meant only to conceal her form.

  To everyone’s shock, the unstoppable beam of light bent in mid-air, its trajectory altered by Veridith' influence, and it curved harmlessly around Yuriyas and the others.

  "What... What is this!?"

  The masked man stood frozen in disbelief. He had used his strongest attack, not once, but four times in quick succession, and yet in this 'tier gap' encounter, he had failed to kill even one person.

  "You... damn it! This won’t stand... I won’t believe there's another 'miracle' this time!"

  "ARE THE GODS TRYING TO PROTECT YOU! DAMN YOU!!!"

  Enraged, the masked man prepared for yet another strike—but his words abruptly cut off mid-sentence.