"Would you like to keep this skill?" the System asked.

"Yes," I responded. White glowing letters appeared in front of my face.

[System error. You cannot utilize this skill. Please select an option.]

[Give the skill to a member of you Party:]

- Shun Renxandt [Incompatible]

[Convert the skill into EXP and Skill Points.]

I selected Ariel's name.

[Passing the skill to Ariel]

"Guys!" I shouted. "I took its [Impervious Scales] Skill! We can damage it with magic now!"

"Nice," Juden said. He summoned a ball of magic energy in his right palm and chucked it at the dragon. It flew through the air and smashed against the tough silver scales of the dragon. It exploded, causing its considerable pool of HP to take a hit.

[Sallymtimous]

HP: [15,440/15,600]

"So, magic works against it now?" Rayne asked hopefully.

"Yep!" I responded.

"Alright!" he shouted. "Time to use my Special Ability!" He suddenly shot forward, leaving a small crater in his place. He moved like a bullet, shooting through the air straight at the dragon. He stopped abruptly right in front of it and punched the air.

A chunk of the world was gone. A sphere of nothing had replaced the area in front of Rayne's fist, with a massive shockwave hitting the dragon with enough force to knock it backward slightly. It roared in fury and pain.

[Sallymtimous]

HP: [10,440/15,600]

"How the hell. . ." Shun said.

"Five thousand damage!?" Kanata shouted. "What the fuck!"

"Crazy," I said. "In just one hit. . ."

The dragon swiped a claw at Rayne. It bounced right off of him, causing the dragon to strike again and again and again. Nothing connected. The dragon stopped and seemed to stare at the tiny human in front of it. Then it turned its body and curled its tail before swinging out. The tail didn't bounce off. It thwacked Rayne, sending him flying through the air. He collided with a chunk of the school's wall and fell to the ground.

The dragon roared its triumph. Then it inhaled deeply and sent a fireball streaming out of its mouth. It flew down and smashed into the ground, exploding. Chuncks of rock and earth were launched high into the air, landing near and far.

"Get back!" Kanata shouted suddenly. She pointed into the sky. I looked up to see a flaming chunk of rock flying through the air. I dove to the side as it impacted, shaking the earth. The rock exploded, sending more chunks of smaller rocks all around.

I stood up cautiously. Then I saw Kanata. She was lying on her back, and the whole left side of her body was bleeding.

"Kanata!"