VS the Black Dragon King?

After pushing the Giant Doll at high speeds for some time, I finally detected a massive surge of Magic Power. It was coming from the edge of a precipitous cliff. However, the source didn't seem to be preparing an ambush.

It felt more like we had been lured here.

"What is this power...?" Luna whispered, her face pale with terror.

The sheer volume of Magic Power emanating from the cliffside was staggering.

So, this is the Black Dragon King, I thought. It possesses power beyond anything I imagined.

We hadn't even seen the creature yet, and the pressure was already this heavy. How crushing would it feel when we actually stood face-to-face? Still, I wasn't the type of person to rush headlong into a death trap.

"Luna, can you get us out of here immediately?"

"I’m okay," she replied, steadied by my voice.

"Then, I’ll rel—"

Before I could finish my request, a voice boomed from the cliffside.

"This presence... is it a loathsome human? One of those who planted a curse within me—"

It seemed the Black Dragon King was addressing us directly.

"Curse? I only came here because you were the one attacking us," I called back.

"Why would I waste my time attacking puny humans? Such a thing would be a pointless use of my existence."

What did that mean? The soldiers had definitely pointed us in this direction, claiming the Black Dragon King was the aggressor. Yet this creature claimed it hadn't attacked anyone. Under normal circumstances, taking an enemy's word at face value would be foolish, but in this specific instance, the dragon didn't seem to be lying.

If that's the case, I realized, it's more likely that someone wanted this creature out of the way and tricked us into attacking it.

"Fine. We’re leaving," I said.

"You think you can lay a hand on me and leave unscathed? Prepare yourself!"

Suddenly, the Magic Power near the cliff compressed into a dense point before erupting as a Breath attack. The white light was so dazzling I almost instinctively shut my eyes. However, taking a hit like that would be fatal. I hurriedly focused my own power, manifesting a Black Magic Barrier to intercept it.

"Ho... to think a mere human could block my Attack."

Tch. It’s even stronger than I thought. If I stay here alone, I’ll be stuck on the defensive.

The Black Dragon King didn't look like it was going to let me slip away to contact First and the others. I caught Fee’s eye and gave her a brief look. She nodded. My only chance of winning was to create an opening and have Fee fetch reinforcements.

Honestly, why is everyone I meet so ridiculously strong? I’ve had more than enough of these Losing Events.

Between the fight with First—which was a scripted Losing Event—and now this, I felt like I was constantly being forced into battles I was never meant to have.

I funneled Magic Power into my palms, firing a barrage of Dark Bullets to counter the Light Breath. Our magical outputs seemed to be evenly matched, which meant this wasn't going to be settled with spells alone. That presented a major problem. If it couldn't win with magic, it would eventually resort to brute physical force. That was why I’d wanted to fight alongside First and Fritz.

Wait... why hasn't it shown itself yet?

There had to be a reason the dragon was staying hidden. If I could figure it out, I might find a way to break the stalemate. But I couldn't move; if I stopped blocking, the attacks would tear right through Fee and the others behind me. I had to hold the line.

Just as I was bracing for the next blast, Luna stepped up beside me.

"I can take at least one hit."

"Fee can dodge," Fee added, her voice determined.

"I... I'll... I will endure it!" Elu stammered.

There’s no way Elu can survive a direct hit, I thought. Yet, the three of them were trying to give me a window of opportunity. I felt a surge of gratitude.

"Sorry. Just hold out for one shot. Leave the rest to me."

"Leave it to us," they replied.

The moment the words left their lips, I activated Flight Magic. I shot into the air, racing toward the cliffside. Another Breath attack streaked past me, but Luna managed to intercept it by layering multiple Giant Dolls into a makeshift wall.

Safe in the knowledge that they were okay for the moment, I accelerated toward the source of that massive Magic Power. When I arrived, I found a colossal, pure-white dragon sprawled on the ground, groaning in agony.

"...Wait. You're white? But you're the Black Dragon King."

"Who... who are you calling the Black Dragon King!?" the white dragon roared, its voice booming despite its obvious distress. "Don't you dare group me with that snake!"

It immediately winced, letting out a pained groan.

"Loathsome humans... to plant such a curse in me..."

This was my chance. I activated Appraisal.

"You! What are you doing?! Is that... a beam from your eyes!?"

The dragon tried to scramble away in a panic, but I ignored its flailing and focused on the results.

Name: Lumiere White Dragon
Gender: ♀ | Age: 215 | Race: White Dragon Race
Job: White Dragon God

Level: 100
HP: 7568/9213 (SS)
MP: 1242/9999 (SS)

Attack: 218 (SS)
Defense: 163 (S)
Agility: 142 (S)
Magic Power: 324 (SS)

[Skills]
Breath: 10 (S), Telepathy: 10 (S), Humanization: 10 (EX), Limit Break: 10 (EX), etc.
[Magic]
Fire: 11 (S), Light: 15 (SS)
[Status]
Overeating

I hadn't realized the system showed status ailments. Perhaps the display had upgraded itself because I'd been using it so frequently.

However, the word "curse" was nowhere to be found. The sole reason this "Black Dragon King" was suffering was because of Overeating.

"Wait, this is your own damn fault!?"

I couldn't help myself. I summoned a massive boulder and dropped it right on the dragon's head.