Lucile was a ghost, cursed to death by that fiend, her soul bound to this mansion alone. Even as a specter, she could still take damage, and it was not as though she was immune to pain. In fact, an excruciating agony was coursing through her entire body at this very moment, as if she were being torn limb from limb.
Gritting her teeth, she somehow managed to push her upper body up. Watching the Flame Dragon raging uncontrollably, she whispered faintly from the depths of her throat:
"This is the absolute worst..."
The words captured their predicament perfectly.
Yet the worst part was not merely that the Flame Snake had evolved into a dragon.
It was that the bobbed-hair boy had been abducted by Kernel. In all likelihood, the boy would be fed to the monstrous entity that ruled this estate.
Nine times out of ten, that bobbed-hair boy was the reason the Flame Snake had evolved in the first place. The youth named Okame had blurted out words suggesting the fulfillment of a pact, making it almost certainly a Soul Servant Contract. A Soul Servant Contract was merely a spell formula that allowed a summoner to command a spirit by offering a sacrificial price; it had no intrinsic power to evolve another being. In other words, because the soul offered as payment was so extraordinary, the Flame Dragon had transformed simply by absorbing a portion of it. There was no other explanation.
If even the Flame Snake had evolved into an unmanageable dragon just from consuming that boy's vitality, the consequences of the resident monster absorbing his soul were blindingly obvious. The situation would spiral beyond all reason. The creature was already a calamity no human could oppose, kept somewhat manageable only because it remained confined within these walls.
However, that boy was special. If the monster absorbed him and evolved, it was as clear as day that the mansion would no longer hold it. And if that horror were unleashed upon the world, everything would be doomed.
Even so, there was nothing Lucile could do about it now. She could only leave the fate of the world in the hands of heaven. But even if the world were to perish, there was still something she had to protect.
Amogi! Gather everyone in the first-floor storeroom immediately!
She projected her voice telepathically to Head Butler Amogi, one of her loyal retainers. A special spell formula had been woven into the storeroom just in case. Even if that monster ran amok, the barrier might buy them a little time. Furthermore, if the creature broke free into the outside world, Lucile and her companions would hold little value to it. There was a chance they might survive. She had to gamble on that possibility.
Understood, my lady.
Amogi accepted her command without asking a single question.
Damn it all! Where did you hide that brat?!
In a towering fury, bloodshot eyes glaring down at Lucile, the Flame Dragon spat out a question it had no answer to, accompanied by surging pillars of fire.
Lady Lucile, I will buy us time! Hurry, take them and run!
Guria urged her, half of his ghostly body badly scorched.
B-But—
If you perish here, there'll be no one left to cast a Territory for the others! You can't die here!
Faced with Guria's unassailable logic,
"..."
Lucile hesitated, paralyzed with indecision.
Hurry up!
Guria bellowed at her.
Please, make sure you return safely!
Rushing over to the boys trembling on the floor, she cried out:
We are escaping! Get on your feet, quickly!
...
Despite her urgent command, they only shook with terror, tears welling at the corners of their eyes.
Move! Do you want to die?!
At her sharp shout, they nodded through their tears and scrambled up.
Run for that door! Carry your unconscious friend. I will take this one! Run!
Spurred by Lucile's command, the boys dashed frantically toward the exit, carrying the unconscious Mime on their backs. Lucile hoisted the boy named Okame onto hers.
"Y-You?"
Just be quiet!
Snapping at Okame, who seemed to want to say something, she bolted forward.
However, as if to cut off their escape, numerous pillars of fire rained down from above, shaping themselves into small dragons that blocked their path.
Did you bastards truly believe you could leave this place alive?!
The Flame Dragon roared, spewing fire from its maw.
Hah! We died a long damn time ago!
Spitting a curse, Guria sank into a low stance, raised his greatsword, and charged in a straight line to slash at one of the smaller dragons. But the moment his blade struck the creature's scorching scales, it melted into slag.
Shit!
Before Guria could recover, the small flame dragon whipped its tail, sending him hurtling through the air to crash violently against the wall.
I shall ask you once more. Where is that boy?
Dissolving into flame, the Flame Snake Duke's true body materialized before Lucile and the others in an instant. He towered over them, demanding an answer in a low, threatening rumble.
Well, who knows?
The Flame Snake Duke narrowed his eyes, studying Lucile for a brief moment before clicking his tongue in irritation.
So, you truly do not know. A waste of my time. Very well, die.
He unhinged his massive jaws toward Lucile. Plumes of fire erupted from his throat, and an instant later, he unleashed a breath of scorching flame.
(Is this the end...?)
Just as her vision was engulfed in blinding crimson and Lucile braced for death, a dark figure suddenly stepped in front of her. By the time she realized it was a black-haired human youth, the raging inferno spat from the Flame Snake Duke's maw was already swirling around the young man's extraordinarily long sword.
"Returning to sender."
With a single horizontal sweep of his blade, the flames reversed course as if rewinding time, plunging straight back down the Flame Snake Duke's throat and detonating in a massive explosion.
Ggaaaahhh!
The stench of scorched flesh and the agonized shrieks of the Flame Snake Duke reverberated throughout the hall.
"Hey now. You hold the fire affinity, yet you're taking damage from your own flames?"
At the black-haired youth's exasperated remark, the Flame Snake Duke gasped out a question:
B-Brat... What did you do to me?! I have evolved into a flame dragon!
"I simply gave your fire back to you. I did mix in a bit of magic power to boost the punch, of course. But you could've easily brushed it off if you had fire nullification or absolute resistance."
To the black-haired youth casually making such an absurd claim, Lucile cried out despite herself:
Flame nullification and absolute resistance are purely stuff of myth!
The youth glanced back at her over his shoulder with an annoyed look.
"That's just a matter of perspective. Regardless, taking care of this piece of deadwood comes first. We can save the details for later."
With nothing more than a sweeping glare from the young man, the smaller flame dragons shrank back several paces.
You dare call me deadwood?! Insolent wretch! Kill him!
The Flame Snake Duke bellowed the command, but the smaller dragons remained frozen, unable to twitch a muscle.
What are you doing?! I ordered you to kill him!
"Scream all you like, it won't help. They're already dead."
With a single flick of the youth's longsword, the smaller flame dragons shattered into dust.
Y-You bastard... H-How did you do that?!
As the Flame Snake Duke cried out in shock, the black-haired youth shot him a look of utter disgust, and vanished. An instant later, he was standing right under the dragon's snout.
—?!
The Flame Snake Duke panicked and tried to pull away, but the youth's left hand clamped down on the fiery scales of his flank with an iron grip.
W-Why doesn't my fire burn you?! How can you touch me unscathed?!
"You're ruining the mood. Keep your mouth shut."
His voice was bone-chillingly cold. Sheathing the longsword with his right hand, the black-haired youth locked his sharp, hawkish eyes onto the Flame Snake Duke.
I-I can't move! To think that I, who have ascended to the dragon species, am being overpowered by a mere human?! Worse, by a brat as frail as an insect! Impossible! This cannot be happening!
Watching the Flame Snake Duke retreat into pathetic denial, the black-haired youth's lips twisted into a dark smirk.
Eep...?!
A single glimpse of that expression drew a tiny shriek from the Flame Snake Duke's throat. In that split second, the youth drove his right fist deep into the dragon's midsection. The colossal body bent backward at an unnatural angle.
Guh! What in the world—?!
Groaning in agony, the Flame Snake Duke met the young man's eyes. In that instant, every ounce of color drained from the dragon's face.
Aaaahhh...
A cracked, hollow wail of pure terror echoed through the room.
The black-haired youth drew back his right elbow once more.
"Even if I were a human, I am hardly weak enough to be bested by a third-rate fire lizard like you. You're not even worth drawing a blade for. I'm going to beat you with my bare hands. Naturally, I'll hold back—but don't make the mistake of thinking that will save you."
The youth's icy gaze bored straight through the creature.
P-Pwease spware me!
As the Flame Snake Duke desperately begged for his life, the corners of the young man's mouth curled into an impossibly cruel grin.
"Do I look like such a soft touch to you? I don't, do I? You'd best grit your teeth."
With the terrifying visage of a demon passing judgment, the black-haired youth began pummeling the Flame Snake Duke with his right fist.