Second World

"Dragon…?" Jack stopped a beat.

"You can recognize it from its roar?" Wilted Tree asked.

"I can feel the pressure from the roar. A dragon's roar carries a distinctive power," Peniel explained. "Furthermore, I don't think the one below is any normal dragon."

Now that Peniel mentioned it, he could understand the feeling he got from the roar. He also felt a certain amount of pressure from down there. It was getting heavier as they descent.

"I don't think there is any dragon that can be considered normal," Jack said. "If even that half-dragon Grim Sand Drake is already so powerful. I can't imagine how strong a full-fledged dragon is… Hey, Wilted! Your mission is not having us fight the dragon now, are you?"

"Do you think I can take on a dragon by myself? I never plan to come down here with you, don't you remember? No, we are not fighting the dragon. We are rescuing it."

"Rescue…? Are you saying it is imprisoned by Master down there?" Jack asked.

"Yes, the dragon is an important part of his plan to dominate this country," Wilted Tree answered.

Jack could hardly believe what he heard. How resourceful was this Master? He was able to capture even a dragon? As they reached the base of the stairs, the pressure he felt was greater. He felt truly uneasy with that feeling. Jack saw that Peniel was the same. Wilted Tree, however, didn't show any expression.

Jack said to Wilted Tree, "You are really tough. You can act as if nothing with all that pressure."

"What pressure?" She asked.

Jack was confused at first before Peniel said, "she can't sense mana yet."

"Oh…" Jack came to a realization.

"Sense what mana?" Wilted Tree asked.

"Heh, you always act high and mighty. Looks like there are also things that you don't know. It is a martial art technique that allows you to sense the energy around you."

"Martial art…?" Wilted Tree seemed to ponder about it for a bit, before she dismissed it and said, "We better stop speaking from here. The people that I mentioned are close. This orb concealed our presences, it will not be funny if they still notice us because we make noises."

Jack then received a friend request. He checked it and found it to be from Wilted Tree. Jack accepted the friend request. He soon received a message from her, 'we will communicate using this chat message from here.'

With this message, Jack could be one hundred percent sure the girl in front of him was Wilted Tree. Wilted Tree, which was still using Motherboard disguise, started walking slowly towards where Jack felt the pressure. Unlike Wilted, Jack didn't have Silent Step skill yet, so he walked even more carefully.

While proceeding, Jack also received Wilted Tree's party invite which he accepted.

They soon came to a huge chamber. Five people were standing in formation circling a device. Some cords came out of this device into the ceiling of the chamber. Magic lights were seen circulating the five and the device. The way the five were moving was strange, it appeared as if they were moving in a fast-forward motion.

The most eye-catching thing in the room, however, was a gigantic gold-colored dragon at one side of the chamber. Its body alone occupied almost one-quarter of the chamber. It had four thick and powerful limbs with a pair of bat-like wings and a long tail. Its body was fully covered with glistening golden scales that seemed as hard as steel. It had a long neck that ended with a reptilian head. Two large horns decorated its crown. Its elongated mouth was filled with sharp teeth. Each breath from its nose burnt the air in front of it.

The dragon was struggling to move but an energy field was enveloping its body, keeping it immobile. There were countless rune diagrams around the dragon. It gave another of the earth-shaking roar. Being so close now, Jack almost fell from the roar. The five players inside the chamber, however, were unaffected. A forcefield appeared that protected them from the roar.

The cords that came up to the ceiling spread above where the dragon is. These cords came down and stuck around the dragon's body. Some sort of energy flow could be seen flowing from the dragon's body through these cords and into the device surrounded by the players. Jack used Inspect and found out the five were all level 35 with various advanced classes.

'Are they sucking energy from the dragon?' Jack sent Wilted Tree a message.

'Yes, Master is trying to extract her blood essence,' Wilted Tree replied.

'Her? You even know the dragon's gender. Is that the reason Master captured this dragon? What does he need her blood essence for?' Jack asked while using Inspect on the dragon.

Syndrillis (Mythical Dragon, Draconic), level 70

HP: 1,700,000

Status: Weakened

Jack gulped. This was the first he saw a being with HP over a million. How long did one need to fight against such a being?

Wilted Tree answered Jack's question, 'To become even stronger. However, extracting her blood essence is only ancillary. Master's primary objective is to suppress this dragon. She is the divine guardian of the Liguritudum Realm. If the safety of this realm is at stake, the ruler of the realm can evoke her to come to his aid. With her out of the picture, Master and his allies are free to subdue this country.'

'How the hell did that Master subdue such a powerful guardian anyway? Level 70 Mythical Dragon, her status said weakened. Does it mean she was originally even stronger?'

'Yes, she is originally level 90 Eternal creature.'

Jack didn't comment. It was futile to estimate the power of such a creature.

'As to how he subdue this guardian. Master used a trick, he posed himself as an ally to the royal family to locate Syndrillis' lair. Then he approached her using the same disguise of being the royal family's ally before he used a legendary tool to weaken the dragon. With the aid of Cult of Phobos' heavy hitters and several other unique tools, he managed to capture her and brought her here.'

'Cult of Phobos? Did God of Fear help him in this endeavor as well?'

'Not directly. If that God intervened, Master didn't need to use any trick or tool. He couldn't ask for God of Fear's help because the other Gods or Goddesses will interfere, it will instead complicate matters even further. I heard you have experienced that similar event.'

'Yeah, not a pleasant experience actually,' Jack said. "By the way, how come they seemed to be moving at a very high speed. It was truly unnatural.'

'See the shining pearl above the device?' Wilted Tree asked.

Jack paid more attention to the device and he did see a glowing round object floating above it.

'That is a Time Pearl. It could manipulate the time in a certain radius around it. Master must have given it to them to increase the pace of extracting the dragon's essence. It will take a very long time, otherwise.'

'Wow! He even has that kind of thing?' Jack said as his eyes wandered to the dragon again, he was surprised to find out that the dragon was now staring straight at where he and Wilted Tree were hiding. Should be a coincidence, he thought. They were behind a stack of crates, they were peering out from small gaps between the crate. No way they could be spotted.

'Actually, she was already aware of your presence ever since you used Inspect on her,' Peniel informed in Jack's mind.

'What?'

At this time, another voice entered his mind. When it did, he thought that his brain was vibrating. It caused him small migraine. 'Puny human. You don't seem to be with this group of wretched creatures. What is your purpose here?'

She could talk? Jack was surprised by the dragon's sudden intrusion into his mind. 'Uh… We are here to save you!' Jack said as he projected his thought to the dragon in the distance. He was not sure if his thought could be heard by her.

It did. The dragon responded, 'Save me?' The dragon's voice was more gentle now. It didn't give Jack's head a migraine as before. 'You will have to take care of these five first then.'

'Yes, ma'am!' Jack replied. Then he thought of something, he projected his thought at Syndrillis again, 'ma'am, can you help distract the five? It should help us deal with them faster.'

'Distract? How?' Syndrillis asked.

'Make some commotion, use your roar again and again or something like that,' Jack said. He was originally planning to ask Wilted Tree for the role since those men should consider her as one of them. But the dragon should serve better in drawing their attention.

'All right. I will try something.'

Jack then nudged at Wilted Tree who was still observing the situation, trying to find a way to approach.

'Prepare to act,' Jack sent her a message. 'Syndrillis will distract them.'

'Syndrillis? The dragon? How do you know?'

'I talked with her just now.'

Wilted Tree gave him a skeptical look, before Peniel nodded her head at her, supporting Jack's claim.

Jack didn't bother to convince her, he asked instead, 'What is the tool you use to keep their rebirth at the same spots? Make sure to not use it late. It should take only a short time killing them.'

'You are pretty confident. They might not be experts in fighting, but there are still five of them.'

Jack didn't reply. He took out his Storm Breaker and Rapid Dazing Staff. He cast Magic Weapon spell and his staff transformed into Whirlwind Falchion.

'You have imprinted a weapon into your Magic Weapon spell? I am impressed you know about it,' Wilted Tree commented.

'Peniel informed me about that feature,' Jack replied.

Wilted Tree gave Peniel a look. The fairy was displaying a proud look.. Wilted Tree again wore a complicated expression like the first time when she found out about Peniel.

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