"AAAAAHHH!!! YOU SON OF A BITCH!"
Dredge's agonized scream echoed across the sky as the relentless dragon fire scorched his face, burning deep into the layers of flesh and circuitry beneath.
The searing pain clouded his thoughts, but he managed to regain his senses, gripping his sword tightly before swinging it toward Erend with all his might. A crescent-shaped energy blast erupted from the blade, racing toward the Dragonborn.
Erend saw the attack coming but had no intention of dodging. Instead, he swung both hands forward and caught the energy crescent, wrestling against its force for a few monts without stopping his fire breath. Then, with a powerful motion, he hurled it downward.
The energy blast crashed into the battlefield below, scattering ogres and daemons in every direction.
Dredge didn't see the destruction below—he only knew that his attack had failed to drive Erend away, and the flas continued to consu him. Desperate, he shot backward, escaping the fire's reach, though another wave of heat singed his body as he fled.
"Where are you going, bastard?!" Erend roared, his expression wild, eyes blazing with rage.
Dredge imdiately focused his energy on regenerating. His once-reinforced skin had burned away, leaving only a black, tallic skull where his face had been.
Confused by what had just happened, he halted in midair, staring at Erend, who was also hovering in place as if waiting for him to return.
That fire… It was terrifying. Dragonborn flas shouldn't have been able to burn through his defenses. He had calculated the beast's strength based on their last encounter—when Erend had fought Lord Laston while rescuing the elves.
But now, it seed his power had grown even further. That shouldn't be possible. Had Dredge miscalculated? Or had Erend been holding back this entire ti? Did he still have even greater strength hidden away?
A mont later, Veyna's voice rang inside his head. Dredge answered the call.
"What happened to you? Why did you scream like that?"
So she had heard his cry of pain. He hadn't even realized he had scread so loudly.
"Nothing," Dredge grumbled.
"Are you sure? Do you need help?"
"I said no!" he snapped.
"Damn. Sounds like you're struggling. Have you gone soft, Dredge? I'm fighting another Dragonborn over here—he looks weak and keeps running away," Veyna said.
Another Dragonborn?
"There are two of them? Lord Laston never ntioned that," Dredge asked, his tone almost shocked.
"Yes. I don't think Lord Laston knows everything happening here."
Dredge exhaled sharply. The presence of another Dragonborn was a serious problem. If just one of them was this powerful, then the other was likely just as dangerous.
"Veyna, you need to be careful. That Dragonborn isn't weak! He just hasn't shown his full strength yet. Don't let your guard down," Dredge warned.
"Haha. You worry too much. I got this. This beast is no threat."
Before Dredge could say anything else, Veyna cut the connection. He sighed in frustration.
"That bitch… She'll regret underestimating him soon enough."
Before Dredge could process anything further, a sudden flash of fire appeared before him. His instincts scread at him, Erend was already lunging straight at him with terrifying speed.
Panic surged through Dredge. He hadn't finished healing. His exposed half-lted face still throbbed in agony, and his regeneration wasn't fast enough to restore it fully. Desperation took over.
Without a second thought, he reached into his coat pocket and yanked out a small cube— one of his ergency weapons. With a sharp flick of his hand, he hurled it toward the incoming Dragonborn.
The cube wasn't just any device. It was a bomb infused with an imnse amount of stored energy, one of the deadliest weapons Dredge carried.
The mont it left his fingers, he didn't wait to see the impact. He shot backward, putting as much distance as possible between himself and the impending detonation.
The cube struck Erend just as he closed in.
BOOM!
A deafening explosion erupted. The sheer force of the blast tore through the sky, creating a shockwave so powerful it pushed the surrounding clouds back nearly a hundred ters.
The battlefield below and around trembled under the impact.
Erend was engulfed in the massive energy eruption, vanishing within the blinding light.
Dredge was also caught in the blast, the sheer force throwing him back like a ragdoll through the sky.
The energy seared his already damaged body, and his circuits sparked violently from the overload. But compared to what Erend must have suffered his own wounds were minor.
The explosion had disrupted his healing further, but he gritted his teeth. It was still manageable.
Steadying himself in midair, he turned his gaze back toward the lingering sphere of destruction. The swirling energy crackled and burned, its aftershocks still distorting the air. A smirk ford on his lips.
That had to kill him. Or at the very least, cripple him.
Maybe the Dragonborn had lost an arm. Maybe even a leg. There was no way he ca out of that unscathed.
Then, a flicker of orange caught Dredge's eye. Fire.
His smirk faltered. The flas still burned. The Dragonborn was still there.
But was he in any condition to fight like before?
"I don't think so," Dredge told himself.
Wasting no more ti, he channeled more energy into his damaged body from his core, accelerating the regeneration of his lted flesh and circuits. His systems rapidly repaired themselves, the energy coursing through him like flood.
But he could feel it, his reserves were draining faster than expected. Faster than he had planned.
The fire—the Dragonborn—was hurtling toward him at incredible speed. Dredge tightened his grip on his sword, bracing himself. He just needed to hold out a little longer, and then he would be able to kill the Dragonborn.
"Now, he'll get close and—"
Before he could finish his thought, a blazing projectile shot toward him at blinding speed. It struck his left arm with imnse force, tearing it clean off his body.
The sheer heat and power of the fire attack were so intense that his arm was severed instantly.
Dredge's eyes widened in shock.
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