*BOOM!*
Both of his feet sank deep into the cement rooftop, and after a loud noise created a massive hole, Naoki apologized to the building's owner. Then, Mana exploded beneath his feet, propelling him into the air. In an instant, he leapt to another rooftop.
Seeing the giant dragon flying in the sky and estimating its straight-line distance, Naoki couldn't help but purse his lips: "Flying more than a hundred meters above the ground... at that height, even if I were a Heroic Spirit, I wouldn't be able to jump there, right? There has to be a way to bring it down."
Even so, with Naoki's current abilities, bringing down a giant dragon was as difficult as climbing the sky. The dragon species itself was a high-level mystery; Age of the Gods Magecraft had little effect on them, and their physical strength alone could rival mid-tier Magecraft. Even a Magus from the Age of the Gods would struggle to kill a giant dragon—just look at the surviving myths: how many Dragon Slayers were actually Magus?
Therefore, the most effective method for dealing with dragons was physical attacks.
Pressing his chest to calm his racing heart, Naoki tried to steady himself: "What's important now is to lure it out of the city first. If we fight inside the city, Waver's blood pressure will definitely spike."
Naoki didn't want some overzealous fool saying afterward, Damn it, what exactly have you been protecting?!
*BOOM!*
His feet once again shattered a wall. He looked around, then nodded: "This is the tallest spot nearby. I wanted to go to the Eiffel Tower, but it's a bit far. Here… this should do."
"So next is… eh?"
Just as Naoki activated a series of Magecraft spells, preparing to deliver a powerful blow to the dragon, it suddenly flapped its wings and dove toward the city. From his angle, when the dragon lowered its body, he clearly saw the figure of a human standing on its back.
"A human? That person is standing on the dragon's body?"
No, that wasn't the most important thing. What mattered was that the dragon was about to land in the city.
Without hesitation, Naoki kicked through the wall with one powerful blow, using the recoil to leap toward the dragon.
'That direction… eh? Isn't that the place I just left?'
Although he hadn't fully memorized the layout of Paris, coincidentally, the dragon's landing spot turned out to be the place Naoki had just left. He still remembered the location.
Taking out his phone and calling Gray, without waiting for her to speak, Naoki immediately said: "Gray! Is Miss Archelot with you?"
[Is big brother okay?]
"I haven't met the dragon yet—I'm chasing it. More importantly, can you try to temporarily close off District Ten? Use any excuse, like terrorists hiding or a bomb being found. The dragon is about to land in District Ten!"
[Don't force others… alright, I'll try. Big brother, don't push yourself too hard—it's a dragon species.]
"I never push myself too hard. Take care of Gray and yourself. I'm hanging up."
*KRUKKKKKKKKKK!*
The sound of a collapsing building echoed as one of the unlucky structures in District Ten became the dragon's landing point. The upper three floors were instantly crushed, and large chunks of debris rained down.
The cries of residents and pedestrians spread instantly!
"Damn it… though I'm grateful for helping clear District Ten, I hate this method!"
Naoki immediately accelerated his movements to move forward, but the distance was too great. By the time he arrived, all the rubble had already fallen.
However…
*DORRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!*
Suddenly, without warning, the falling rubble shattered into small fragments. Among the debris, several silver streaks pierced through the stones and attacked the dragon!
'Eh? Someone else?'
The sudden turn of events made Naoki pause for a moment. And because the silver streaks struck them, Aleister, who was riding the dragon, also turned his gaze downward.
"So, church dogs…"
Seeing Ciel standing on a rooftop opposite Naoki, clad in church attire, Aleister's aged face showed a look of disdain.
"This makes sense. No wonder that trash suddenly disappeared—it was killed by a church dog."
Trash?
Ciel thought for a moment: "Ah, the vampire that somehow got stabbed full of holes? Was that your subordinate? Though I'd like to say you've got the wrong person, but—"
*CINGGGGG!*
Six Black Keys appeared in her hands, and Ciel smiled coldly: "Anyway, everything dies in the end. Consider it my handiwork—I killed it. Any problems?"
"GAAAAAA!"
It wasn't Aleister who responded to Ciel, but the dragon's angry roar and its claws attacking swiftly!
*BOOM!*
The rooftop was instantly obliterated by the dragon's claws!
After seeing the completely destroyed building, Aleister snorted coldly: "Hmph! This is the level they're at. Even though it's a fake dragon, ordinary humans—"
"So it's a fake dragon, huh? Then this should be easy to deal with."
Before Aleister could feel satisfied, Ciel's voice suddenly rang out behind him, and something quickly approached his body.
*CINGGGGGGGGGG!*
Just as the Black Key was about to strike Aleister, a blue barrier suddenly appeared without warning. Before Ciel could stab him, a strange shockwave immediately threw her away!
Calmly turning around, Aleister smirked: "Cocytus always has a protective barrier around it. Neither physical attacks nor Magecraft can harm it, including me as its master."
"Absolute defense?"
Tossing aside the damaged Black Key and pulling out a new one from beneath her clothes, Ciel pursed her lips: "In this day and age, people still talk about absolute defense."
She had broken such things several times before, but considering the sensation she felt earlier, she needed to think of a way to deal with the barrier.
'From that feeling earlier, the barrier's ability seems to involve reflection. Physical attacks that don't reach a certain threshold won't be able to penetrate it. As for Magecraft… ah, I really don't want to use it!'
'Another way would be… eh?'
Just as Ciel was thinking, a rapidly growing presence in her field of vision caught her attention. Aleister also seemed to sense it, turning toward the sky behind him.
At that moment—
*BOOMKRAKKKKKKKKKKKKK!*
A fist enveloped in blue energy directly shattered the barrier into pieces!
"What—!"
Aleister's scream didn't even have time to leave his lips before his face was crushed by the punch! His entire body was sent flying like a ball toward a distant building!
After landing on the dragon's back, Naoki shook his fist and clenched it: "Weird, it felt like I punched through something? Eh, you there, are you okay?"
Ciel: "...."