Chapter 200 - Energy Bullet

"Sigh...."

In the midst of the battle.

I had momentarily trapped Stardust below with a snowstorm and chunks of ice, and had come up to catch my breath. I'd already positioned the camera down below to film Stardust so I could rest comfortably.

...Of course, all I'd really done was sit on the dragon's back trying not to fall off.

Anyway, this gave me a moment to chat with the spirit.

"Ah, Spirit. How are you doing? Is it manageable?"

"...Apart from feeling somewhat embarrassed, it's manageable. By the way, that girl..."

After manipulating the snowstorm once more with a glance, she paused to think before continuing.

"She's quite strong. Strong enough to match my abilities."

"Right?"

"...Indeed, it seems you were correct."

My claim that only Stardust could prevent destruction.

Remembering my words, the spirit muttered in agreement.

Yes, if she was saying this, Stardust must have truly grown stronger.

True. But it's still too early to relax.

As villains continue to power up, we need to help her grow even more from here.

"Well then, let's go again!"

"...Yes, alright. Ahem. Hmm."

Our spirit cleared her throat.

And right on cue, Stardust broke through the snowstorm and was flying fiercely toward us.

After clearing her throat, the spirit in dragon form squeezed her eyes shut and let out a dragon's roar.

"...GRAAAAAAAH!"

After roaring once more and seeming slightly mortified, she and I flew toward Stardust.

Right. We've done enough magical combat. Now it's time for physical battle.

Could Stardust handle fighting a dragon? That remained to be seen.

Still, we had to try. She might well be able to withstand it.

So I rode on the dragon's back through the cold wind, feeling like I was on a roller coaster as we plunged toward Stardust.

And as we got closer, I could see the outline of Stardust's face.

Though she looked tired from breaking through the snowstorm, she was still shining steadfastly toward me, and I grinned.

Yes, this is exactly what I wanted.

Alright, let's move to the highlight.

"Good! Ms. Stardust, excellent! This is exactly what I wanted to see!"

After saying that, I immediately pulled out the ice spears I had prepared and floated them in a circle behind me using psychokinesis.

It was the beginning of a new battle.

***

[Real-time situation in Seoul airspace LOLOLOLOL]

(GIF of Egostic riding a dragon fighting Stardust)

Mango Dragon vs Stardust epic event unfolding for dozens of minutes

Is this what a battle between the strongest of two worlds looks like? My heart is pounding....

=[Comments]=

[Everyone at our company came out to the roof to watch lolol It's exploding like fireworks, so fun lolol]

ㄴ[For real lol Feels like watching a fantasy movie lol It's a bit cold from the snow so everyone's drinking barley tea from the vending machine while watching]

[Egostic is truly legendary... Where did he get that dragon from? Every member of his lineup is legendary]

[Looking at Egostic's broadcast viewer count, seems like almost everyone is watching lol If you miss this live broadcast, who knows when the next one will be lol]

[Who do you think will win? The dragon is impressive but Stardust is surprisingly tough lol]

ㄴ[Actually, since it's a friendly battle between heroes, the outcome isn't important!]

ㄴ[True lol]

***

KWAAAANG.

"Oh my...."

High in the sky among the clouds.

After taking a hit from Stardust, we were momentarily pushed back.

"Are you okay, Spirit?"

The dragon's head nodded in response to my question, indicating there was no problem.

"That's good, achoo. sniff That's a relief."

I coughed slightly and answered. Ugh, it's cold...

We'd been fighting for several hours now.

It was about time both the spirit and I were getting tired. But why wasn't Stardust getting tired? It was amazing how she kept attacking despite fighting against two opponents.

"I think it's time we use our finishing move and end this. This should be enough."

I said to the spirit.

...We fought for a long time today. It feels like we gave Stardust plenty of flying training. Considering that many flying enemies will appear in the future, this was truly valuable time.

So now, let's launch one final attack and make our exit. It's best to leave when the applause is still going.

After our brief discussion.

And moments later, as Stardust emerged from the smoke screen of dark clouds and flew toward us again.

I shouted loudly from high in the sky.

Standing on the dragon's back and clapping my hands.

"Excellent, Ms. Stardust. Truly excellent. I didn't know you could fight this well. I underestimated you."

Clap, clap, clap.

The sound of applause echoed through the windy void as my cape fluttered.

Stardust stopped in front of me, tilting her head in confusion. She looked cute. Wait, that's not the point...

Anyway, while Stardust was puzzled by my sudden behavior.

I made my declaration like a game boss about to unleash their final attack.

"You've held up well, but it seems it's time to end this."

I said with a smirk.

And aware of the floating camera, I set the stage.

"Now, it's time to use my dragon's ultimate finishing move. If you withstand this, I'll acknowledge defeat and withdraw... Hahaha! But that's impossible!"

"...Ah, I see."

"Indeed. Now, Spirit. Let's go!"

The dragon's head nodded once more at my words.

Then, the dragon opened its mouth wide.

Inside, a sky-blue energy formed into a sphere and began rotating with tremendous force.

And just as Stardust seemed to notice something and covered her front with her arms.

I shouted to the spirit.

"Fire!"

And simultaneously.

-SWOOOOOOSH

KWAAAAAAAAAANG.

With tremendous energy, a blue beam of destruction erupted from the dragon's mouth.

And as it flew directly toward where Stardust was.

BOOM. It collided with her.

"Hnngh."

I held onto the dragon's back with one hand and my hat with the other, trying not to fall off from the tremendous wind.

The incredible energy felt from the front.

It was the spirit's pure ability fired as a beam of destruction, essentially her ultimate move from the original work.

And I had her fire it at Stardust in a slightly weakened state.

Why?

Because I believed she could withstand it.

And because she needed to.

"Urgh..."

I pressed myself against the dragon's back to avoid falling and looked ahead.

We had agreed to stop firing immediately if Stardust was blown away, so the fact that the dragon was still breathing fire meant Stardust was holding her ground.

Yes, that's it Stardust.

You can do it! Hold on!

...It's kind of funny that I'm cheering her on while attacking her, but anyway.

I silently encouraged her, though she couldn't possibly hear me.

And then.

KWAAAAAAANG.

Stardust did it.

After struggling for what felt like tens of minutes but was only a few, Stardust successfully blocked the energy beam and even managed to deflect it back at us.

I'm proud of you, Stardust. You've overcome another wall.

I believed in you...!

While this was a joyous moment, a small problem arose.

The energy beam that Stardust deflected came flying back and hit us.

"Ah."

And so we fell.

And of course, Stardust, having used all her strength, fell alongside us.

"...Well, this wasn't part of my plan-"

...That was the last thing I said on the broadcast before the camera was destroyed.

***

"...Ughh."

So we fell.

Fortunately, our spirit hadn't lost consciousness, so we managed a soft landing without injuries. Though my head was spinning like I'd been on a gyro drop.

Anyway, to celebrate our return to the ground, I felt the earth beneath my feet again. Ah, now I can breathe. Humans are indeed designed to live on land rather than in the sky.

And right as we landed in this forest clearing, I saw Stardust.

She must have just landed with a hero landing, as she looked relatively unharmed. Though she did look extremely tired.

Anyway, as she looked around and spotted me.

The moment she saw me, I spoke first.

"...You truly are amazing, Ms. Stardust. I didn't expect you to withstand that. In that case, haha, I admit defeat! We'll retreat this time, but next time will be different!"

I said with a laugh, then naturally stood beside the spirit in dragon form. Good, now I can teleport away anytime, so I'm at ease.

Standing beside her ready to teleport, I waited for Stardust's final words. As a Stardust expert, I figured she'd either curse at me or charge at me.

However, her words were unexpected.

She neither charged nor cursed. She just exhaled roughly and asked me:

"...When is 'next time'?"

"...Pardon?"

"When are you coming back? You always say that but you don't show up often."

She said with a slight smile, somewhat reproachfully.

...Why is she asking this? I don't understand her intention. But wait, aren't I actually quite frequent with my terrorism? I felt wronged.

Anyway, her question was when I'd be back. When would she see me again...

Ah, I just realized the next event is coming up.

With that thought, I smiled and said to her:

"...Well, you'll see me again quite soon."

I'll leave it at that for now.

It felt a bit strange, more like lovers setting up a date than a hero-villain conversation, but I suspected she was subtly trying to find out the date of my next attack to prepare in advance. As expected of Stardust, clever until the end.

After answering, I said "Well then," and teleported away, disappearing from in front of her.

Of course, there was a slight issue when I realized the spirit was still in dragon form and too bulky to teleport together, so I had to signal her to return to human form, which for some reason made Stardust's face stiffen... but anyway, we managed to return safely.

When I got home, South Korea was in an uproar over this latest attack. Well, we can relax for a while.

And so today's terrorism ended successfully.

...Except for the spirit who blushed and groaned "Ugh..." when she saw herself roaring as a dragon on TV, everyone ended happily.

Well done, well done indeed.