<h4>Chapter 36: Nuke Dragon - Part 2</h4>


    Without hesitation, Tamaramanded her puma to dive, slicing through the clouds with incredible speed.


    Soon, the dragon loomed directly below them. A targeting reticle appeared in her vision, helping her adjust their trajectory. "We''ll reach our target in fifteen seconds!"


    "Roger that," Benjamin responded, extending his right hand to summon his weapon. "Calling Forth—<i>Groothylde, The Sapping Sword."</i>


    Tamara nced at the ymore emerging from its dimensional pocket. <i>Could this be one of the Titan Hunters guild''s prized relics?</i>


    "NOW!" Benjamin shouted, startling her.


    The Puma stretched out its wings to break their fall, and Benjamin leapt from it, making Tamara gasp.


    <i>Is he going to be okay? That''s a 700-foot drop!</i>


    "DEATH FROM ABOVE!" Benjamin''s voice boomed, using gravity and mana to enhance his strike. He pierced the dragon''s thick scales and flesh.


    <i>Okay, that was impressive,</i> Tamara admitted to herself, smiling despite the tension. She then noticed the gas emanating from the dragon''s body.


    <i>Focus, Tam!</i>


    She pped her cheeks and ordered her mount tond on the dragon''s back. "I''ming, Benjamin!" she shouted, deactivating her mount with a wave of her hand and sprinting toward her ally while channeling mana. "Greater Light Crafting, <i>Overshield!"</i>


    A golden, translucent dome-shaped shield enveloped them just as the dragon''s toxic gas closed in.


    "Nice timing, Ms. Morin."


    "How''s it going, sir?" Tamara asked, peering at the purple gas swirling around their shield. The interior quickly darkened. "Lesser Fire Crafting, <i>relight,"</i> she whispered, conjuring a small, floating orb of light that illuminated Benjamin''s broad shoulders.


    "Not well," he murmured, his voice strained. "It''s taking longer than I thought. I can''t get through the muscleyers yet. Here, let me show you..."


    He tapped his User Interface, bringing up a video feed showing what appeared to be roots expanding through pink tissue, searching for something.


    "Is that...?"


    "It''s Groothylde in action," Benjamin exined.


    Tamara peeked over his shoulder at the sword. Its wooden de was entwined with vines that slowly crept up Benjamin''s arms.


    "I hear two heartbeats," Benjamin muttered. "Makes sense."


    "Will that be a problem?"


    "Not at all. Watch." He pointed to the video feed, which split as the sentient roots forked into two paths. "You know, Ms. Morin, this sword is practically useless 99% of the time. It requires its wielder to be still and vulnerable... But I''ve stubbornly kept it for two years, knowing its moment woulde. After this, it''s going back in my inventory."


    Tamara listened intently, but her concern grew as she noticed his HP bar depleting steadily.


    "Sir! Your—Is that thing draining your life?"


    "Oh, right. Forgot to mention that. It''s the price of wielding Groothylde..."


    "How could you forget such a crucial detail? Let me heal you! Lesser Light Conjure, <i>Quick Fix!"</i> Tamara''s hands glowed with a warm, golden light as she tried to heal him, but his condition barely improved. "It''s no use! You should''ve brought a Healer, you reckless—"


    "NO! I needed you, and no one else. Aren''t you known for your Mana Shields?"


    <i>Famous?</i> Tamara''s confusion vanished as something heavy mmed against their shield, dispersing the gas momentarily. She looked up to see the dragon''s tail poised for another strike.


    "I won''t ask if this shield will hold, but a reassurance would be nice..." Benjamin said, catching his breath.


    "It''ll hold! Definitely! It could even withstand whatever Astrid Bradford throws at it after a bad day!"


    "That''s oddly specific!" Benjaminughed. "But reassuring!"


    A third tail whip cracked the mana shield, which Tamara reinforced with more mana. "Just focus on your task, please!"


    "I am, Ms. Morin. And I have good news... I''ve reached its hearts."


    Tamara watched the video feed as the roots slowly enveloped both pulsating organs.


    And then, a chilling cry tore through the air.


    <strong><i>KRYAAAAAAAAAEEEEGH!</i></strong>


    Every guilder within earshot mped their hands over their ears.


    "Isn''t it beautiful?!" Benjamin shouted over the dragon''sment. "The sound of a titan realizing it''s doomed!"


    The dragon spewed fire in desperation, striking the shield with itsser beam for three agonizing seconds.


    Above them, guild members flying bymented on the dragon''s distress.


    <i>(Jeezus! Feels like my head''s gonna explode!)</i>


    <i>(Romina just passed out!)</i>


    <i>(We''re done here! Retreat!)</i>


    <i>(Ben! Finish it now!)</i>


    "I''m—trying..." Benjamin grunted, his expression pained.


    Tamara noticed that vines now encased half his body.


    "Benjamin, your HP is at 10%!"


    "Yeah... Let''s drop the formalities... Call me Ben. Deal?"


    "Quick Fix! Quick Fix!" she cried, her hands shing with light as she attempted to heal him.


    "It''s no use... Groothylde prevents healing... And at this rate... My HP will run out before we can finish—"


    "We''re a team, right?!" Tamara cut in, rushing to grasp the sword''s hilt.


    Instantly, dizziness and numbness overwhelmed her.


    <i>I bet even my real body is feeling this...</i>


    "Ms. Morin!" Benjamin eximed, seeing her falter.


    "Tam... Call me Tam..."


    "Are you sure about this, Tam?!"


    "Yes... Let''s finish this together..." she murmured faintly.


    "Alright! Can I leave the right heart to you?"


    "Sure... What should I do?"


    "Just close your eyes and focus on telling Groothylde to crush it! Let''s target one heart each."


    "Got it..."


    <i>Concentrate... Concentrate...</i>


    <i>(Ben! What''s taking so long?!)</i>


    <i>(The dragon''s losing it! It''s going berserk!)</i>


    <i>Focus, Tamara... Focus...</i>


    <i>(There goes my favorite tea shop...)</i>


    Groothylde''s vines tightened around Tamara''s slender arms, painfully squeezing.


    <i>(Look at its HP! It''s dropping!)</i>


    <i>(Keep it up, Benjamin, Tamara!)</i>


    <i>(Hmm... It''s heading towards the Big Beth. So... Let''s bet! What will happen first? Will the dragon die, or will it smash the clock to—?)</i>


    "NOT ON MY WATCH!" Tamara shouted, her grip on the sword''s hilt tightening as if she were directly crushing the dragon''s heart.


    The video feed disyed the right heart being pulverized by the constricting roots. Tamara then focused on the left, achieving the same result soon after. The dragon emitted a final whimper and plummeted at the base of Londorus'' clock tower.


    As the toxic gas dispersed along with the mana shield, and the curse that had drawn the stormy clouds, Tamara gasped for air, her face flushed and sweaty.


    "We did it..."


    "Good job, Shooting Star''s First Officer."


    "We couldn''t have done it without your special weapon, Titan Hunter''s Guild Master."


    "It did the job, huh? This old relic actually saved Londorus'' most cherished monument."


    "Thank God..." Tamara breathed a sigh of relief.


    "Would you... like to have a drinkter tonight?" Benjamin blurted out, his cheeks reddening. Realizing what he''d just suggested, he quickly looked away, clearing his throat. "The Titan Hunters have been saving a special brew... We could enjoy it while celebrating, so... <i>Ahem.</i>.. Tell Astrid Bradford your whole guild is invited."


    "Homebrew beer?" Tamara asked, her voice raspy as she ced a hand on his shoulder. <strong>"WE''D LOVE TO..."</strong>


    "Alright..." he said, his smile nervous. "Let me add you to my friend list then."


    "Sure!" Tamara squealed, opening her Social Tab.


    A notification with an exmation mark icon immediately caught her attention.


    <i>What''s this?</i>


    From Oscar: They want n.


    <i>Huh? n? And who are ''they''? Damn it, Oscar, why are you being so cryptic—?</i>


    The memory of Astrid''s order from the day before struck Tamara like a hammer.


    <i>"I''ll leave you in charge of protecting him... I don''t want a repeat ofst night... or EVER."</i>


    With a shock running down her spine, she realized she hadpletely forgotten about him. <i>And what does this disaster have to do with him?!</i>


    "Do you hear that?" Benjamin inquired, scanning their surroundings with narrowed eyes.


    "What now?!" she eximed, then heard it too.


    A faint thump, growing louder.


    A slight rumble, emanating from something below them.


    <i>No... It can''t be...</i>


    The skin on the dragon''s back split open, revealing a giant, oval eye underneath.


    "We have to get out of here!" Tamara thought desperately, realizing she had lost her voice as her body became paralyzed. She struggled to look at Benjamin, who seemed to be experiencing the same paralysis. <i>Please, no...</i>


    <i>(What the hell is happening?!)</i> a guilder shouted over the Party Chat. <i>(Don''t tell me that thing has a Second Phase?!)</i>


    <i>(Look! The sky is going crazy!)</i>


    <i>(Is it just me, or does this look apocalyptic?)</i>


    <i>(Benjamin and Tamara are still down there! We have to rescue—)</i>


    A system message suddenly appeared in Tamara''s field of vision.


    NO SIGNAL


    <i>That''s not good...</i>


    Tamara mustered all her strength to look up, witnessing a blood-colored sky and strange, halo-like loops floating above the dragon''s corpse. Then, a third dragon head, purple in hue, emerged from the giant eye, throwing Tamara and Benjamin aside.


    The new head directed its snout towards the bizarre phenomena in the sky and emitted a melodious, almost singing cry.


    Unable to move, Tamara stared at the sky, her expression bittersweet. <i>Damn it... I have to inform Astrid about Oscar''s message... I have to warn n... I have to...</i> She sighed. <i>How can something so terrifying produce such a beautiful sound?</i>


    She took a deep breath and closed her eyes.


    <i>I''m going to need a full barrel of beer after this...</i>


    The dragon''s body glowed briefly before exploding in a bright, dome-shaped st that rapidly enveloped the city block, and then the next, and the next.


    The few hundred users watching the event via the Nav began flooding the chat.


    ----------------------------------------------------


    Bromoment: Duuuude! Did that thing just explode?!!!


    Monstaconnoisseur: Twin-Dragon uses Explosion.


    Bernilda: It''s the Nuke Dragon! It was true!


    Risdu: No way that happened in the middle of the city!


    Nikolee: That mushroom cloud looks sick...


    Rastafaar: Seriously, developers, why would you program such a thing?


    Akakaka: Guys, is it normal that I''m shaking right now? Seriously, it won''t stop.


    Elnene: That''s because that hit too close to home.


    Elnene: Did it happen in your home country too?


    Thetruhtishr: Where DIDN''T it happen?


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