ATPnovel Chapter 4 - The Semi-Dragon
Chapter 4 - The Semi-Dragon
Chapter 4 - 4 - The Semi-DragonThe enormous creature that Noah watched, frozen behind the rock, was a gigantic serpent—the visible portion of its immense black body, striped with red, protruding from the cave's opening.
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[Alert! Danger!]
[Alert! Danger!]
[Hide immediately!]
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Upon hearing the system's warning, Noah quickly ducked completely behind the rock, breathless and with his heart pounding, for he had come perilously close to being seen by the creature.
When the serpent slithered out of the cave, it began to scan its surroundings with a blurred gaze,
[Wait!]
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"What now?" Noah asked, retreating behind the rock once more.
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[Enter the dragon's cave!]
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"What!? You must be kidding—this can't be possible! This system must be out of its mind—it's too good to be true. They sent me a faulty system right off the bat!"
[There could be many treasures inside!]
[Ponder this: what are you going to do in this world with nothing? With no money, what will you eat? Or where will you live? Entering that cave might be the solution to many of your problems!]
"...I hate to admit it, but you're right. I have nowhere to stay, nothing to eat, and no way to pay my bills in this world, yet still..." he said, glancing toward the dark entrance and feeling a chill run through his body. "No! That's too much! I'll think of another plan later. Maybe I could just hunt for my own food, right? Isn't that possible?"
`[If you wish... But this world is not as peaceful as your previous one. Here, even a wild boar can kill you with no chance to defend yourself!]`
`[Strength – that is the only rule in the world you now find yourself in!]`
"..."
The darkness frightened him, yet after the system's words, it also seemed to beckon him—as if hypnotizing him. Summoning all the courage he had (without even knowing where it came from), Noah staggered, his legs weak and trembling, toward the entrance of the cave.
`[Hurry, before the dragon sees you!]`
"Be quiet! Can't you see I'm coming?!" Noah exclaimed, straining to quicken his pace despite his trembling legs.
As he struggled to reach the cave, suddenly an enormous attack hurtled in his direction. His luck that moment was otherworldly—if he had taken one less step, he probably would have been obliterated along with the rock in which he was hiding.
Looking back, Noah saw the extent of the destruction: the rock he had been sheltering behind was gone, dozens of trees had simply vanished, yet the part of the cave struck by the impact remained intact. This made him wonder just how strong and resilient that semi-dragon must be to shatter that rock with sheer brute force.
And while he observed the cave and pondered what had just happened, without even realizing it, Noah was already walking normally toward the entrance. Just before stepping inside, a thought invaded his mind:
'How can something so enormous live in such a tiny space compared to its own size?'
It was a ridiculous comparison between the size of the serpent and that of the cave.
But upon entering the cave, the only thing Noah managed to utter was:
— Woooow!
as he marveled at the enormous hole in the floor.
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**A Little While Before**
"Raaaawww!" roared the semi-dragon, soaring toward the Demon Lion King.
When it got close enough to the king, the dragon simply attacked—spitting fire in his direction without any warning or apparent reason.
"Rooaaar!" roared the Demon Lion King as he winced from the pain of the attack.
That lion was truly majestic—it appeared as a true king, with an imposing stature that easily towered over the surrounding trees, a golden mane that shone as if its tips were ablaze; a beautiful red mane, resembling living flames more than mere fur; enormous paws aglow with fire; and last but not least, a flaming tail in a golden hue that gleamed so brilliantly it could blind anyone.
"How dare you! Who is the insolent one that dares attack this king?!" the lion bellowed, furious.
For some reason, the lion kept his eyes closed; even after absorbing the full force of the attack, he did not open them—as if he were unable to. Noticing this, the serpent grew rather confident of its victory—after all, what could a blind little lion do against her?
"No need to yell so much, little kitten—I'm not deaf," the serpent said, gliding over the trees as it contemplated how to strike him again.
The serpent circled the lion and, when it believed it saw even the tiniest gap in his defenses, it launched its attack without hesitation. Certain it would be easy to hit him, since the Demon Lion King's eyes were closed, she didn't even consider ways to dodge a potential counterattack, should her strike fail.
From the moment the lion heard the serpent's voice, he focused solely on his hearing, tracking her every movement. Noticing that she was not drawing near, he opened a small gap in his defense and waited for the perfect moment when she would charge.
At the moment the serpent attacked, the lion listened intently to everything around him. He simply waited until the creature was close enough, preparing to counter. Once he was sure the strike was about to hit, the lion unleashed a massive ball of golden fire straight from his mouth.
The serpent, which had charged the lion upon spotting the gap, never expected that opening to be a trap. By the time she realized it, it was too late—or, at least, it would have been if she were an ordinary beast.
Using her extraordinary speed, the serpent managed to evade the lion's attack virtually unscathed—her immense body left her little time to completely dodge the oncoming blow.
At the precise spots where the lion's attack hit, the wounds on the serpent were so severe that one could see nothing but bone and burning flesh. It was only several minutes later that the serpent began to feel the intense pain from all the damage to her body.
"Raaaaaawwww!" she howled, writhing in agony as her tail swung wildly from side to side, paying no heed to where the blow had struck her.
And as she thrashed her tail, the serpent—unaware—ended up colliding with the entrance of the cave, causing it to collapse.