Online In Another World

Emilio Dragonheart had unknowingly evolved, pressed to his limits:

[Current Stage: 4/10 | Dragon Elite]

Time elapsed from crossbows loaded and Emilio's descent from above:

[0.00001 second(s)]

It felt like electricity was popping in his mind as his eyes darted from side-to-side, forcing himself to keep up with the ludicrous speed he set himself up with, managing to close in on War and empower a full-strength swing of his scarlet-jeweled sword in that moment between moments.

["Draconic Might"] and ["Dragon Strike"], enhanced by the speed and ferocity of wind, equaled–

SQUELCH

Flying by like a bullet, he unleashed a slice of his blade capable of obliterating the sturdiness of the archaic being; both of War's crossbow-inhabited arms were cleanly amputated.

Though he avoided being impaled by bolts, another possibility made itself reality as the result of his quick amputation of his enemy brought him face-to-face with that devastating sonic cannon.

Only for the slightest of moments did it register in his view before he could hear that deathly hum of air gathering before–

BOOOOOOOOOOOOM

Stronger, faster, and more nefarious than before, the skull-protruding cannon unleashed its sonic scream, hitting with such force that the shock rippled beneath the draconic armor, battering the young Dragonheart's flesh before he was rapidly blasted into the stone wall.

For a few seconds, he was seeing stars; the aftershock of the blast had rippled his internal organs, causing a troubling warmth that was unmistakably internal bleeding.

…Bad. I need to recover, he thought.

It was through the transcendent rate of his brain's operation through [The Zone] that he was able to become aware of his internal functions. While he was stuck in the wall, he did his best to focus through the acute pain to summon healing magic.

With such vicious injuries to his organs, he had to prioritize recovering his important pieces, putting aside his fractured bones for the moment.

Alright…I should be able to continue–he thought.

Just as he brought his gaze up, he saw the naturally-armored centaur, devoid of its arms, protruding crossbows from its amputated limbs and pointing them at him.

Plucking himself through the wall as he flexed his limbs, shattering the stone around him, he witnessed the crossbows fire with an ear-filling "click" and in an instant–the bolts vanished.

SQUELCH

"Ngah–?!"

–The projectiles reappeared, already piercing into his body the very millisecond they fired. One nicked his left cheek, scraping straight through his draconic armor to do so; another hit him directly in the stomach with such force it pumped the oxygen out of his lungs.

Two more hit with nefarious precision, nailing his hands to the wall to keep him stationed there.

…That confirms it! It has some sort of ability that makes its bolts hit instantly…is it teleportation? No…That doesn't feel right. Then what is it? He questioned.

What was more important in the moment was making sure he wasn't a sitting duck for the approaching monstrosity, though it was an arduous task while pinned to the wall.

There was nothing to do but suck in another breath of air, feeling the thin, yet colossal bolt tearing into his stomach with the draw of oxygen. As he held the air in his lungs, he clenched his fists, grasping the arrows lodged through his palms.

[Draconic Might]

In one, clean movement, he ripped the end of the projectiles from the thick barrier of stone they were lodged into, freeing his hands before snapping the length of the bolts with a squeeze of his hands.

"Nnngh…!"

The stomps of War's hooves approached whilst its stationary crossbows reloaded themselves, prompting him to act with haste as he plucked the remnants of the bolts from the gaping holes in his palms, causing blood to spew out in a blackened shade.

It wasn't over yet, even through the growls of pain, he used his inflicted hands to grab onto the foreing object piercing his guts, clenching his teeth as sweat left his pores before–SQUELCH.

He tore it out as a squirt of blood released from the rancid wound, just in time for him to throw himself to the side as War leapt up, nearly reaching the ceiling before stomping down with enough force to rumble the entirety of the dusty chamber.

Heal…! He thought, commanding his own thoughts.

As he rolled across the ground with debris pelting him in the aftermath of his enemy's landing, he poured his mana into recovery, focusing on his shredded stomach before realizing he was now declawed; the sword he wielded wasn't in his grip.

Swinging his gaze around frantically, having no time to spare, his eyes caught the jeweled sword, laying by the feet of War.

…Shit! I dropped it over there! He realized.

Sense of pain was almost entirely gone; even if he felt it, there was no focus on it–only victory, leading the young man to leap to his feet, allowing his draconic armor to naturally reforge itself across his body with an organic repair of scales.

Before he could rush over, he found himself losing the air in his lungs as a swift spin came from War, leading to its muscle-made tail slamming into his stomach–

"Gyuh-!"

As he spit air and blood from his mouth, he was flung back; amidst his uncontrollable fall, he felt his blood boiling. It was the blood of the dragon; that which lusted for victory; an avarice for triumph that bordered on insanity.

BA-DUMP. BA-DUMP. BA-DUMP.

In that moment, a scaled tail sprouted and his fingers turned to claws as he flipped himself around, catching his own momentum as he landed on the ground on all fours, digging his claws into the stone as if it were as doughy as dirt.

As he exhaled almost as a growl, his teeth had sharpened; the amethyst eyes he possessed had gone completely white as his veins bulged against his skin.

[System?//!@]

It was resurfacing; that bestial distortion within him, flooding through any semblance of control he had as destruction filled his mind. A hum filled his ears as everything seemed to go blank as if caught in a trance.

Control it…! If I lose control again, Blimpo will get caught in it…! He urged from the depths of his mind.

[//@%Draconis Monster?!)]

As the gargantuan centaur rushed towards him, attempting to slam its giant hooves down on the Dragonheart, the bestial-minded figure leapt with animalistic agility, sweeping by and leaving a set of slashes on War's chest with his own claws.

It was a continual metamorphosis; the scales cracked and replaced themselves, becoming thicker, harder, and more lively as his semblance to humanity lessened by the moment.

The agility of this bestial Dragonheart was unmatched; sprinting along the walls, he continuously leapt by War, leaving slashes upon slashes on the figure's body.

Control…! He urged.

It was as though his own mind wasn't listening to him as his heart beated like a thunderous drum.

The crossbows spawned by War's owns bones multiplied in number, all aiming at the distorted Dragonheart, but just as they clicked–

"Raaaaaa—!"

Parting his lips, the Dragonheart unleashed a storm of azure flames from the pit of his stomach, breathing it out and turning every bolt in front of him to ash.

The scales continued to crack and stretch, replacing themselves in an attempt to complete the transformation, however–Emilio Dragonheart rejected this chaotic path.

Enough…! He thought.

For that split-second, he regained himself; completely rejecting Draconic Monster immediately regressed all of the shifts to his body, but at the same time, the scale armor protecting him shattered, crumbling like broken glass.

It vanished in that instant; like a rug pulled out from underneath him, the draconic transformation left only the pale, blonde-and-black haired young man standing there.

"Ghh–!"

Blood spewed up from his throat as he fell to a knee, feeling as though his entire body was cramping up as the partial shift into the abnormal alternative into his system seemed to bear a heavy toll.

Shit…! My body! He thought.

Crimson fluid dripped down onto his chest, sliding down his bare skin as he was left defenseless in the face of the colossal embodiment of war.

With solely his magical abilities, suppressed at that as his entire body felt as if it was going haywire from his rejected state, he slapped his hands against the ground to conjure a multi-layered barrier of stone walls.

I need to buy time…! Seconds, anything, I don't care!...Any amount of time to recover my stamina! He decided.

The question was, how would one escape the aggression of the annihilation-loving entity without being obliterated?

Like a lightbulb shining with the radiance of a thousand suns, the sparkling mind of the young Dragonheart found that answer after pondering it for a few moments. It was so simple he couldn't help but laugh as he rose to his feet with his battered body.

"Ha…ha-ha-ha!" He laughed, "Victory is ours, War!"

With a single squeeze of his fist, he relinquished the stone walls just as the towering centaur of near-impervious flesh arrived before him, pointing its array of crossbows at him.

The smile he held, painted with blood, was unfearing of the certain death looming over him.

Whoever made up this twisted trial…You're sick, but not unfair; these rules were perfectly made! He thought.