The Dragon King made a swift judgment. Direct combat was suicide. With those eyes—those damnable, piercing eyes of hers—Rebecca was an invincible wall in close quarters. She could read movement, intent, even the rhythm of his mana. There was no winning that exchange.

    So he chose what dragons knew best: overwhelming force.

    "Freeze!" he bellowed in ancient dragon tongue, his voice echoing like a divine command.

    Time seemed to pause.

    Rebecca stopped in her tracks, her limbs locked in place, her breathing shallow, her gaze distant. To any observer, she looked ensnared—frozen by the binding authority of draconic language.

    A victorious grin split across the Dragon King''s face. Flames coiled around his arm like hungry serpents as he lunged forward. With a fist wreathed in inferno, he aimed straight for her sternum, planning to end it in a single, decisive blow.

    But just as his blazing knuckles closed in—Rebecca smiled.

    Barely shifting her weight, she twisted sideways, fluid and graceful, letting the punch pass harmlessly by her. In the same breath, her own fist shot forward, striking the Dragon King squarely in the chest. A shockwave tore through the air as he was launched backward, crashing on the pulsating darkness.

    He rolled to his feet, growling low in his throat, his claws curling in disbelief. His eyes burned with confusion and outrage.

    "How...?" he muttered.

    "You really thought that pathetic ''freeze'' command would work on me?" Rebecca said, her voice light, mocking. "Do I look like someone who''d bow to your lizard tongue?"

    His face darkened. She had played him—feigned helplessness to bait him in. The realization stung worse than her punch.

    But pride would not let him falter.

    "Fire Arrows!" he commanded.

    The air shimmered. The ground trembled. Thousands—no, tens of thousands—of blazing arrows formed above and around him, a curtain of pure destruction. Each arrow radiated unbearable heat, burning red like molten steel.

    With a wave of his clawed hand, the arrows surged forth in a storm of apocalyptic fire, turning the sky itself into a sea of flame.

    Rebecca didn''t flinch.

    Before the arrows could reach her, a swirling hole of darkness tore open in front of her like a gaping maw. The vortex devoured the onslaught, one arrow after another vanishing into the void like stones dropped into the ocean. Nothing touched her.

    But the Dragon King wasn''t done.

    In the instant the arrows were fired, he blurred forward, blending with the projectiles like a predator riding the stampede. The storm of fire wasn''t just an attack—it was camouflage for his true strike.

    A claw swiped toward her from within the torrent.

    Rebecca''s eyes narrowed, unamused.

    She could see through it all.

    The moment he appeared, another portal of darkness opened above his head. From it, the very same arrows he had launched came crashing down—his own magic turned against him with surgical precision.

    Caught off guard mid-motion, he had no time to dodge.

    The flames struck him. He roared, twisting through the air as pain laced his spine and limbs. Steam and smoke burst from his scales.

    Rebecca hovered still, calm and cold. Sёar?h the N?velFire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

    "You dragons really are full of yourselves," she murmured. "You think a bit of fire and muscle makes you gods."

    His pupils narrowed. Rage erupted like a volcano within him.

    "YOU DARE MOCK ME?!"

    With an earsplitting roar, his body glowed white-hot and swelled. Scales cracked and reformed, growing larger, harder. Wings exploded from his back, wide enough to cast shadows over mountains. His neck elongated, horns curled upward like jagged towers, and his eyes glowed with apocalyptic fury.

    He had entered his true form.

    The earth trembled beneath his feet. Even the air seemed to cry out as he lashed his massive tail at Rebecca.

    The blow came like a mountain falling.

    Rebecca raised her hand.

    Giant arms of darkness surged from the void, catching the tail mid-swing. The impact sent shockwaves outward, splitting nearby cliffs—but the arms held firm.

    With a single pull, the shadowy limbs slammed the Dragon King into the earth.

    "Without your dragon breath, your tongue, and that oversized body of yours, you''re not much, are you?" she said dryly.

    Rebecca extended her hand, and another portal opened beside her. A long blade began to emerge—black and silver, ancient and humming with power.

    It was her father''s sword.

    The ego weapon she had reclaimed from the dwarven king''s vault. The last vestige of a warrior who had fallen to the flames.

    "It''s only fair you die by my father''s weapon."

    The Dragon King staggered upright, his scales singed, his pride shredded.

    "You… wretch!"

    He raised his head to the sky and bellowed—

    "WILL MANIFESTATION!"

    The world shattered.

    Rebecca was dragged into the abyss.

    ---

    When her vision cleared, she was no longer in the origin world.

    She stood in a world of fire incarnate—an infinite domain forged from flame, heat, and violent pressure. It was a dimension that obeyed only one ruler''s law: his.

    The sky above was a swirling storm of gas and ash. Magma flowed like rivers of blood beneath her feet, and the atmosphere shimmered with temperatures that could melt the bones of gods. The throne before her was a living furnace—pure fire shaped into a colossal seat, and on it lounged the Dragon King, now larger than mountains, his expression smug.

    "Welcome," he said, voice calm, regal. "To your grave."

    The very heat of the realm was oppressive. Even gods would disintegrate here. This was no illusion—it was his inner world, born from his soul and sustained by his will.

    But Rebecca floated above the lava without concern. Her body was cloaked in shadows, the darkness clinging to her like an elegant gown, shielding her skin from the heat. Her hair fluttered softly as if in a breeze, her sword gripped firmly in her right hand.

    "This won''t save you," she said simply.

    She launched herself forward, blade aimed for the dragon''s heart.

    The Dragon King didn''t move.

    Instead, he willed into existence a legion of fire-beasts.

    They erupted from the ground, the sky, the very magma below. Serpents of flame, winged leviathans, demonic hounds with molten fangs, and towering titans of living fire. Some were no larger than insects. Others were larger than cities.

    Rebecca''s expression didn''t change.

    With graceful swings of her sword, she began cutting through them.

    One beast—a dolphin-like creature made of rolling plasma—soared at her, mouth open wide. She sliced it neatly in two. It screamed and fell—only to reassemble itself midair, unharmed, reborn.

    The Dragon King smiled from his throne, watching.

    "They''re immortal here," he said. "Born from my will. Physical damage, magic, even conceptual force… none of it matters. You can kill them ten thousand times. It won''t change a thing."

    Another wave of beasts swarmed her. Rebecca weaved through them like a dancer on a stage, her sword blurring into streaks of black light. She felled a dozen, a hundred, a thousand. Each time, they simply rose again.

    The Dragon King leaned forward.

    "You see, this is why no one survives once they''re here. Not the Flame Spirit King. Not the Titans of the Southern Star. All of them fell—consumed by the endless tide. And now you will too."

    Rebecca didn''t answer.

    Her eyes burned with unwavering calm.

    The beasts lunged again.