The rays of morning light passed through the canopy of leaves up above in the sky, illuminating the forest in vibrant green. The trees were tall, stretching to the heavens, as they stood firmly in place, creating an image of an ancient greenery that remained undisturbed for thousands of years. Accompanied by the occasional chirps of tiny critters, the forest exuded a peaceful atmosphere that seemed almost sacred to the eyes.
That was how it should have been. However, the tranquility of the place was replaced with chaos as spells of varying attributes flew everywhere. The lush woodland reminiscent of fairytale was gone, only the vestiges of its former glory and beauty remained.
It had already been a month since Yuki started training and studying magic. With his potential, he quickly learned under the guidance of the Dragon God and her elegant subordinate. Thus, after various tests, it was decided the he was already fit for combat against monsters. He was made to fight creatures one after another without pause to further his battle experience.
Looking at the havoc that he had caused, Yuki remained unbothered. A sigh left his mouth as he rubbed his tired looking eyes. At his feet was a carcass of a gigantic boar that exuded a sense of danger. However, the drifter remained composed knowing that it could no longer pose a threat. The wounds all over its body reminded him that the monster that almost took his life a couple of times in battle was already gone, slain by the multitude of spells that he had rained upon it.
Yuki's chest heaved up and down rapidly. He was dead tired but felt accomplished somewhere in his heart after managing to kill a beast more powerful than he was. However, in this place, it seemed like he was the only one moved at the feat that he had accomplished.
"Hmm… I guess it was passable."
"Passable? I think I did well."
"Hmph. It almost killed you just now. This monarch clearly saw it."
"But I killed it, okay?"
"Barely." The Dragon God snorted in disdain. "Ereben, release the next one."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Wait! Stop! Let me rest for a bit, ancestor!"
Not caring about his feelings one bit, the subordinate dragon quickly went to work. A magic circle emerged a moment later, illuminating the already brightly lit forest. The drifter could only stare ahead slack-jawed as he looked at the creature that had appeared after the light abated. It was a humanoid creature with a goat head and muscular body. It was a minotaur… or at the very least, a creature that looked like one. And he could tell that it was stronger than the boar that he had just killed moments ago.
What kind of treatment was this? Would it kill them to let him rest for a bit? He was already worn out due to the battles that he had to do prior to this one. And since the Dragon God wanted to push him past his limits and experience real combat, he did not receive heals either. They could at least let him breath for a few minutes for his peace of mind, but unfortunately for him, these spartan dragons clearly knew no mercy!
Yuki quickly went in combat mode knowing that he would not receive his much-awaited reprieve. He lowered his stance, fixing his center of gravity, as his mana circulated around his body once more. He definitely could not afford to lower his guard against this enemy. Since the last one almost killed him, this monster was surely something just as dangerous if not more.
As soon as the minotaur spotted Yuki, it released a loud roar that shook the surrounding air. The mana around it billowed, creating gusts of wind that surged towards the drifter.
"What the hell!" Yuki shouted in surprise.
Drips of crimson liquids came out of his ear canals, depriving him of his hearing. His sense of balance immediately became muddled, halting his thoughts for a split second. As someone who had the dragon bloodline, just this much damage was not a big matter. His wounds would just heal after some time had passed with the regeneration speed that the dragons possessed. However, the shock that the minotaur's war cry subjected him to was enough to put him in a predicament.
A gust of wind blew at his sides before he knew it. His skin tingled, warning him of the incoming danger approaching his body. It was fortunate that he possessed terrifying intuition which gave him some time to twist his body, or else, he might have been seriously injured without having the chance to fight back. His arm became limp from the strike, twisted in the wrong direction, but he did not regret it. He did not feel dismayed at all with his arm taking the brunt of the minotaur's punch.
"Guh!"
It was painful, but he did not lose his mind, however. He was already numb to this degree of pain and feeling more would not make him flinch at this point. Compared to what he had suffered during that damned bloodline bestowal ritual, crippling an arm seemed nothing. And so without delay, he was able to weave two spells in quick succession, creating space for himself.
"Fire Wall!"
"Dust Bomb!"
A wall made out of flames rose in between Yuki and the minotaur. The creature backed off in reflex after feeling the searing heat from the spell, separating the two. Following that, the ever-present soil beneath their feet broke down into tinier pieces, turning into dust that exploded forth to create a smoke screen.
The drifter took this chance to flee, causing both dragons watching from the sidelines to raise their brows. Upon receiving an injury, he knew that he could no longer hope to face his opponent head on. He quickly ran away under the cover of the clouds of dust and found a hiding spot, waiting for the minotaur to expose an opening he could exploit.
"This blockhead finally used his brain." Mirelia muttered.
Ereben could not help but smile wryly hearing his liege's comment. He knew that Yuki did not have prior combat experience after hearing stories about his home world. He could not help but think that the Dragon God was being slightly unreasonable this time.
"What? Do you think that this monarch is too harsh?"
"I-I do not dare, Your Majesty!"
She cackled in response before nodding. "This monarch knows that this monarch is being unreasonable, too. After all, just a few weeks ago, he was still a normal human. However, we only have few years to work with. We have to make him strong enough and get him to the Mortal Continent as soon as possible."
"Yuki... this person, is probably going to suffer in the future."
"That is true. He will be facing people much stronger than himself."
Despite knowing that such future awaited her servant, Mirelia did not feel worried as a smile found itself on her face. She could not help but be excited. Although she did not know much about otherworlders, she knew enough of the potential that drifters possessed after observing Yuki for a period of time.
"With his absurd talent, he would only grow even more if I throw him off in that place sooner. And he probably would not die with the dragon bloodline that I had bestowed upon him."
"Your Majesty is that confident?"
"Of course. After all, the blood that this monarch had used in the ritual was my own."
"What?!"
Ereben could not believe it. Although he had a hunch, he refused to believe it, tossing the ridiculous assumption at the back of his mind. But hearing it from the person herself, everything ridiculous about the drifter now made sense. The reason why Yuki's potential reached such an unbelievable height and could even multicast with just his intuition, it was because of this! He thought that no matter how absurd drifters must be, it should not have been that exaggerated. What was even more surprising was that his liege was willing to give him her blood.
"Do not tell him about it, though, or it might get to his head. This monarch is still one of the most powerful beings at the end of the day."
"B-By your will!"
The conversation entered a lull, their eyes back on Yuki. The minotaur looked around in confusion as it tried to find the target that it had locked on. It failed as the dust still had not settled, covering his traces. Still, it remained alert to the drifter's chagrin.
If there were no openings, then he would make one! Yuki pointed his hand on the ground, sweating bullets as he chanted a spell. "Earth beneath mine feet, heed my call. I beseech thee to make a hole for mine opponent to fall. Spikes of soil, I command thee to form. Earth Trap!"
A magic circle appeared in front of his hiding spot, consisting of geometric patterns and complicated symbols. Contrary to natural magic, it did not activate immediately. The spell's trigger remained in the hands of the drifter who looked on his creation in satisfaction.
"Good…"
The reason why he used this type of magic as opposed to the natural magic that he had always been using was because this could be prepared ahead of time and activated on his will. He did want to risk failing to manifest the spell that he needed when the minotaur charges at him. With everything set up, he casted a wind spell to clear the dust in the vicinity, revealing himself to his opponent. He even casted a small flame spell, provoking the goat headed monster towards him.
"Grgh!"
Without thinking much, the creature dashed towards the Yuki. The drifter did not get ready to dodge this time and just waited for the monster to close the distance.
20 meters.
10 meters.
5 meters.
3 meters.
Once the minotaur made it to the designated spot, Yuki activated the magic circle immediately. After a moment, a hole large enough to contain it manifested followed by the spikes that sprung out of it a second later. The creature could not react at all, turning into a sieve as it bled without stop. It could only let out weak groans to express its lamentations before life left its body.
"Got it!"