The Magic Princess Returns to Death and Defeats the Demon Lord Before the Hero - Chapter 25

Chapter 25: The Fight Against the Dragon

Anastasia instinctively raises a barrier.

The dragon immediately exhales a torrent of breath from its wide-open mouth.

The impact is like a raging blade, damaging the pillars and walls around it.

Anastasia and Brandt were safe behind the barrier, but they would have been shredded all over the place otherwise.

However, Anastasia observes calmly that, while the blades are sharp, they do not appear to be powerful enough to kill you with a single blow.

“… Thank you; if it had been just me, I would have been killed; I have no idea how to deal with dragons…”

“… [White Fire] will also harm dragons, but it is not preferred to use if you want clean materials.”

Anastasia has previously battled dragons. Dragons have magic stones as well, so [White Fire] works well against them.

A dragon’s fangs and scales, as well as its flesh and blood, are all valuable materials. The material will be damaged if you damage it with [White Fire].

If you want the materials to be as clean as possible, you can either quickly kill them with a powerful forbidden magic spell or attack them with overwhelming force.

“Oh, [White Fire] will make it… Dragon materials are appealing, but I doubt I’d risk my life for them—it’s just that magical spells can’t get past the barrier.”

The dragon finished spitting its breath and attacked with its long tail while Brandt was saying this, but it was stopped by a barrier.

If it hits you, you will undoubtedly shatter every bone in your body.

This barrier blocks the enemy’s attack, but it has one disadvantage: You cannot attack from within.

To attack, you must first disable the barrier.

But the dragon repeats the attack with its claws in rapid succession, as if trying to break the barrier.

If you disable the barrier, you will lose your life.

The barrier will also weaken as it takes damage, so you must continue to consume magic power to keep it up; If you run out of magic power, the barrier will be breached.

“May I ask Brandt-senpai to attack? —I’ll remove the barrier for a brief moment, then immediately recast it.”

“…Okay…”

Brandt looks like he wants to ask something, but he just gulps and nods.

It will take time to recast the barrier after disabling it, so if you are attacked, you will be unable to defend yourself.

Perhaps Brandt was concerned and wanted to know if everything was okay, but he trusted Anastasia and said nothing.

Anastasia’s magic formula composition is lightning fast, allowing her to disable the barrier, attack herself, and then re-erect it.

But this wouldn’t be very effective and would require a lot of maneuvering. It would be better to split the job with Brandt, who can launch more powerful attacks.

Brandt began to focus his efforts on using [White Fire].

Rather than composing it in an instant, as he did when defeating the monster wolf, he takes the time to absorb the magical elements and increase its power.

Brandt’s hands become buzzing with a high concentration of condensed magical power.

“…I’m going to release it!”

As the dragon retracts its claws, Anastasia screams.

The barrier vanishes, and Brandt unleashes [White Fire] with increased power.

The dragon’s entire body erupted in white flames in an instant, lashing out at them, but it was quickly blocked by Anastasia’s barriers, preventing it from reaching them.

“GRAAaaaa! GRAaaaaah…! “

The dragon let out a desperate roar, and then he stopped moving.

The scales are charred on the surface, and the only thing that appears to be salvageable are the fangs.

The power of the magic spell that has brought it to this level in a single blow, however, is even more terrifying to Anastasia than the state of the material.

It’s probably more powerful than Anastasia was at the height of her last life.

“…Haah,haa… That was a lot easier than I expected…”

Brandt, who has used up all of his magical power at once, collapses on the spot.

However, because he is still conscious and has a healthy complexion, it appears to be mental fatigue rather than a loss of magical power.

“Brandt-senpai… are you truly human…? “

“Right back at you—you’re the one who’s so quick with that magic formula composition, Anastasia-san—to be honest, I doubt I could compete with you in that department.”

They have a hazy argument with each other.

After a brief pause, Anastasia cautiously approaches the charred dragon carcass.

Relieved to discover no further signs of movement, she reached out to pick up the fangs.

The dragon’s carcass began to crumble, leaving Anastasia’s fangs in her hand and falling to the ground in ashes.

Its fangs and a jet-black magic stone on the floor were all that remained.

“A black magic stone…?”

Brandt was taken aback by the black magic stone.

The color of magic stones varies from monster to monster, but the stronger the monster, the darker the color tends to be.

Anastasia has only seen black magic stones a few times in her previous life, when she defeated powerful monsters.

Anastasia picks up the black magic stone, but it still seems to emit an ominous power even after it has been transformed into a magical stone.

“…Are you all right, Anastasia-san? —When I see that, I’m afraid I’ll lose myself…”

Brandt inquires, his gaze drawn away from the black magic stone.

Anastasia feels something like the residue of a resentment as she looks more closely at the black magic stone in her hand, as if she’s being drawn into it.

Although it is unpleasant, it is not so unpleasant that you lose yourself, as when holding a dead insect.

“It feels foreboding, but I’m not feeling that bad… Do you want to throw it away?”

“No… I don’t think leaving it here is a good idea—putting it in an interdimensional bag is probably safe…”

For reassurance, Anastasia wraps the black magic stone in a cloth and hands it to Brandt along with the dragon’s fangs.

Brandt places them in his interdimensional bag and exhales deeply.

“… The dragon carcass is gone too—let’s check this place out and get back.”

Thud!

There was a bang when Brandt said this.

Anastasia looked back into the hall to see what was going on and noticed that a section of the wall was open.

Behind it she saw a staircase leading up.