Weighing several tons, dragons were known for sluggish movements. Still, Farem kept his eyes trained on the Archdragon like a hawk. Phalena felt… different. No ordinary dragon would even have weapons, let alone wield them like a war general.

And he was right.

Winds blew. Phalena blurred across the battlefield, one spear thrusting at him uncannily fast. A resounding boom shattered the space. Shockwaves blasted in every direction. Farem had parried just in time, his Light Blade skidding against crystals. Golden sparks crackled like thunder. Unblinking, Phalena plunged the second spear at his side. Farem dashed back several feet to dodge, his movement amplified by [Speed Enhance].

“Not too shabby,” he grinned, stopping just a safe distance away.

The dragon whipped around, snapping her tail at Aria with the accuracy of a fencer’s lunge. The Dark Lord backflipped over the attack. Hovering in the air, she hurled her trident straight at the dragon’s right eye, streaks of shadows hissing behind the throw.

Phalena turned her head to the side, dodging the throw with minimal effort. She flapped her wings once, zipping away from the two. Once far enough, the dragon landed, her emerald eyes tracking both Farem and Aria.

The trident whirled back to Aria’s hand. “Farem,” she said, dashing over to him. “I sense no weak point. The dragon’s guarded, yet agile.”

“Agreed,” Farem replied curtly. “This is no beast, but a warrior.”

“She might fly and attack from above,” Aria whispered in his ear. “Go for the wings.”

Phalena raised one forearm, conjuring a giant sphere of foggy mist. A hundred smaller crystal spears protruded from the ball, their tips all trained on Farem and Aria. Phalena’s lips were moving, but neither of them could hear what the dragon was saying.

“[Lumaric Spear Stream],” the dragon muttered.

The army of spears shot at the pair. Farem sprinted around the relentless hailstorm, weaving through the projectiles and deflecting some that came too close. Aria rushed to the other side, dodging as she studied the mist-ball. Spears came out of it endlessly, shattering every surface to pierce the enemies at all costs.

“Muttering, huh? So she wants to conceal her abilities…” Aria mused. “Clever dragon.”

Farem’s [Speed Enhance] finally wore off after two minutes. With the buff active, his speed had increased by 90%. It cost about 100 mana points, which was efficient, but the buff didn’t last long. Dodging and parrying the infinite spears, the Hero needed a counterattack. He could use [Blooming Lily Cut] again, but the technique would leave him open if the cut didn’t hit. [Darkflame Tempest] might work, but it would cost more than half of his total mana, and he had already used it earlier today.

Farem smirked, gripping his Light Blade. The edge burst with radiant, golden light.

He was the Hero of Light for a reason.

“[Light Blade Arts: Lightrend X]."

He swung his sword twice, unleashing two monstrous waves of light shaped like an “X”. The waves tore the air apart, soaring toward Phalena like a torpedo, brilliant light screeching in their wake.

For a moment, Phalena’s eyes widened. But then, she scoffed.

The light hit her crystal scales. And they bounced off.

Reflecting back. Straight to Aria.

“What the—”

Aria instinctively thrust her trident at the waves of light. The crackling light wrestled with her weapon, pushing her back by two steps. Her muscles clenched as she smashed the attack into embers. “Farem! Don’t fire your light! Her scales can reflect light!”

“Roger that! Sorry, honey!” Farem gritted his teeth. He almost hit his wife. Damn it.

“Wait! Stay back for a sec!” Aria sprinted toward Phalena, rolling past the hail of spears like sharpened shadows. “I wanna try something!”

The Dark Lord roared and raised her fist, summoning a thousand [Void Tendrils] to wrap Phalena’s forearms together. The dragon grumbled in annoyance, struggling against the tight black bonds.

“[Abyssal Palace], drown her!” Aria yelled.

The black ocean materialized under Phalena. A thousand more [Void Tendrils] bloomed from the dark sea, enwreathing the Archdragon’s whole body and dragging her into the void.

“Impressive. So this is the strength of the greatest Voidborne…” Phalena huffed, her head nearly submerging in [Abyssal Palace].

Her four wings glowed brilliantly with starlight. Phalena ripped the tendrils apart with her claws at blinding speed. Then, she whooshed upward, massive wings undulating like a feral tornado. Her jaws opened widely, charging up glimmering energy.

“[Breath of the Crystal Wyrm].”

A river of sharp crystals rushed out from her maw, filling the entire arena floor with shining quartz. Aria’s brows furrowed—the Archdragon had nullified her ocean of void by crystallizing it completely.

But Phalena didn’t stop there. She swirled around and glided right above Aria, flooding the chamber with her otherworldly breath, determined to encase the Dark Lord forever.

Planting her trident on the ground, Aria raised both hands, casting a protective square cube of compressed shadows around herself.

“[Shadow Fortress]!”

The two forces met. Divine sparks split the heavens. The crystals shrieked, lashing at the abyssal fortification.

“Open!”

Aria heard Farem’s voice. She immediately formed a small hole in the box. He darted through.

“[Blessing of the Turtle Sage]!” Farem howled, thrusting his arms upward.

The large turtle shell enveloped Aria’s [Shadow Fortress]. Together, they held their barriers against Phalena’s onslaught. Crystalline winds whipped against the shell, rending the edges into fragments. Farem accidentally bit his tongue. Aria sweated shadows.

“So she can crystallize darkness!” Aria growled, her muscles straining to keep the barrier up.

“I saw that! And the dragon’s invincible against light! Darkflame spells might work, since they target the soul, but I don’t know for sure!” Farem said, his voice stretched taut with exertion. “Which means… we need a strike-damage type! To smash her crystal scales! Like a hammer, mace, or a greataxe!”

Aria glanced at her trident. “Will pierce-type weapons work?!”

“Maybe if you use it like a mace!” Farem replied.

“Or I can concentrate on throwing heavier thrusts!”

“That could work!” Farem coughed loudly, his arms faltering. “Can you condense Darkflame into the three prongs?! And make it a fusion of elemental and pierce damage?!”

“I was thinking the same!”

Aria bit her lips to think. If she was going to be the main damage dealer, Farem would have to play support. But what could he do?

“Farem! Show me your [Stat]!”

“[Stat Projection]!” Farem said, conjuring his glowing stat screen for Aria to see. A person’s [Stat] screen was only visible to themselves, but the user could show others their screen if there was enough trust.

Name: Farem Afari

Class: Hero of Light

Mana Power: 2/20,100

Level: 1050

ENDURANCE: 9,130

STRENGTH: 6,034

DEXTERITY: 5,196

MAGIC: 7,505
ARCANE: 14,985

“Holy void! You’re out of mana!” Aria gasped.

“[Blessing of the Turtle Sage] costs around 4,000 mana points!” Farem replied as his turtle shell started crumbling to fragments.

He couldn’t feel a trace of magical energy left in his body. As of right now, Farem couldn’t brute-force a single spell to cast until he regenerated mana through natural consumption or enchanted potions. They called it “mana-deprivation,” the death of spellcasters.

“…And I used it twice!” he continued. “[Darkflame Tempest] costs three times that amount, and I used it once! And a bunch of other spells and buffs! You do the math!”

“Damn!” Aria grunted. “Drink a [Mana-refill Potion]!”

Farem briefly glanced at his [Inventory] panel. “Darn! I forgot to stock some!”

A crack appeared in the shadow box.

“I can’t… keep this up… for long!” she groaned.

But in the depths of stressful tension, a torch lit up in her mind—an idea.

“Farem, your [ARCANE] stat is your highest, which… is probably blasphemy, because my [ARCANE] stat is much lower than yours,” she said, her knees threatening to snap. “So, can you support me with that bloody skill of yours?”

Farem flinched slightly.

“Are you sure?”

Meanwhile, high above, Phalena twitched in caution. The Archdragon had stopped casting [Breath of the Crystal Wyrm], but the enemies were still alive, protected by a strange turtle shell and a black box, and buried beneath a mountain of gleaming crystals. For now, she would watch. The dark rat and the blessed mouse had proved to be formidable adversaries.

Shadows flickered. Two figures shot out from underneath the mountain. One landed on the leftmost wall. The other landed on the rightmost wall.

A blood-red aura, tinged with violet light, thrashed and flailed around the Hero. Phalena turned to the right, her eyes narrowing. Something had changed—this purple energy… wasn’t mana. His breath now sounded like a beast let loose, his once-blue eyes flashing with purple radiance. He brandished two large black daggers, their edges serrated and crackling with sparks of violet and crimson. Both daggers had a dark-red blade guard, fashioned to resemble a demon’s mouth.

“So it has come to this…” he mumbled, his tone heavy, almost defeated.

Silence fell, then came a whisper.

“Duskfiend Twin Daggers: Unleashed.”