novelnext Chapter 260 : Experience
Chapter 260 : Experience
Even if he had once been human, Aaron never believed that Dragon's way of thinking would still be human.After all, hadn't he experienced the horror of Synchronization himself?
He had overwritten the data inside his brain to avoid Synchronization.
Whether the self that existed before that process was truly the same person as the current him—
Or whether he had merely killed his original self and become nothing more than a replicated personality occupying its place...
He would never know the answer.
Nor did he particularly wish to.
No matter which answer proved true, it was certain to leave him dissatisfied.
So all he could do was faithfully live as the role—
As the character—
Known as Aaron Stingray.
In any case—
That experience kept him from losing his composure.
The Dragon's declaration that he would destroy this world he loved so dearly and return to his original world...
Did not sit well with Aaron.
Perhaps...
The desire to "return to the original world" was the very last fragment of humanity the Dragon still possessed.
Perhaps, just like the other Transmigrators, he had curled up trembling in his nest, terrified as his identity slowly disappeared—
Aaron simply had never witnessed it.
So he did not become angry.
What filled his heart instead was cold reason...
And pity.
“Phew......”
Aaron took a slow breath.
Then tightened his grip around the sword's hilt.
Screeeeeech-!
A grating metallic sound echoed from the hilt embedded in the Dragon's neck.
The sound of the blade grinding against the Dragon's bones.
The plasma flames burning at the tip of the blade shone even brighter, as though determined to incinerate everything.
[System Warning!]
[Internal Energy: 23%]
[Mana Levels Rising Rapidly!]
[Warning: Otherworld Transformation Detected]
An enormous amount of energy was being consumed in real time from Aaron's body as he maintained the plasma state.
The energy drain far exceeded even recklessly spamming True Techblade.
The only reason he could sustain it at all was thanks to the Mana Battery Module he had fortunately acquired.
[Combat Module: Mana Battery Activated]
[Beginning Mana Conversion]
[Recharging Internal Energy... 99%]
Craaaak-!
The roar of heavy machinery operating echoed continuously from Aaron's body and the tip of his blade.
It was proof that his mechanical body—one that barely qualified as "human" under the City Government Act—was being pushed several times beyond its normal limits.
In truth—
Even cutting off the Dragon's head here would not drastically alter the course of the battle.
According to the setting of Cyber-Module's Necromancer, a Dragon could never truly be killed unless its Dragon Heart—
Its heart—
Was completely destroyed.
At best, severing its head would only weaken it slightly.
Judging from the regenerative speed it had shown so far, even a severed head would regenerate within roughly ten seconds.
It was little more than creating a tiny crack in an enormous boulder.
Yet both men understood.
Whoever won this initial contest of strength—
Would seize the momentum.
For Aaron—
To bring down the enormous boulder known as the Dragon—
He first needed a crack.
Likewise, the Dragon understood that the slightest opening would allow Aaron to sink his fangs in mercilessly, widening that crack bit by bit.
Whoooooosh-!
The immense heat radiating from Aaron's sword and body collided with the overwhelming mana pouring from the Dragon, forming a violent vortex.
Wherever the Dragon's mana reached, Otherworld Transformation occurred, causing unknown flowers and plants to bloom.
Moments later, those same flowers withered beneath the heat radiating from Aaron.
The Level 5 Anti-Rain, now falling in earnest, was swept through the air by the violent currents.
Thanks to that, the Otherworld Transformation remained confined within roughly a twenty-meter radius around the two of them.
Otherwise, the destruction would have spread far farther.
At least there was that much to be thankful for.
How long did their struggle continue?
Creak.
Craaack.
Creak.
Sinister sounds echoed from Aaron's arm.
Then—
Craaaaaack!
Aaron's arm—
And his sword—
Shattered.
The Dragon had won the contest of strength.
【Kuhahahahaha!】
Overjoyed at winning their direct clash, the Dragon immediately launched his next attack.
A Dragon Claw materialized in an instant as it slashed toward Aaron.
“Tch.”
Module Offline, [Techblade].
Module Offline, [Cloud Spider].
Module Overclock, [Regenerator].
The instant he released the sword, Aaron retreated, deactivating every unnecessary module.
He redirected all remaining resources into recovery.
Shhhk!
His shattered arm regenerated almost instantly.
Once the regeneration was complete, Aaron immediately redistributed his resources.
Module Online, [Cloud Spider].
Module Online, [Techblade].
Lv.6 and Lv.5 modules—
Simultaneously deployed.
Aaron extended his threads and connected them to his back.
Thousands of threads anchored themselves to nearby buildings, the ground, streetlights, and every surrounding structure.
At the same time, he swung his sword with both hands to intercept the Dragon's foreleg.
Boooooom-!
The resulting shockwave swept through the surroundings.
For an instant, it appeared as though Aaron was being pushed back by the Dragon's charge.
But the thousands of threads supporting his back held him firmly in place.
No—
Instead, they pushed the Dragon backward as Aaron launched his counterattack.
The threads that had been stretched to their absolute limit recoiled with tremendous elasticity, propelling Aaron forward.
Not to be outdone, the Dragon dug its legs into the ground, resisting Aaron's advance.
【Trying another contest of strength? How laughable!】
“No.”
Aaron sneered as though asking what kind of nonsense that was.
He temporarily deactivated Techblade.
The solid, razor-sharp blade dissolved into the air.
【...What!?】
The Dragon's foreleg, which had been locked in a deadlock against the blade, suddenly swung uselessly through empty air.
Aaron twisted his body, slipped past the Dragon's flank—
And reactivated the module.
Module Online, [Techblade].
The half-vanished blade instantly reappeared.
Aaron sliced through the Dragon's side before slipping past.
【Guh!?】
Trick Sword.
An attack that exploited Techblade's ability to freely materialize and dismiss its blade.
A technique perfectly suited for catching an opponent off guard.
Unable to produce scales quickly enough against the unexpected movement, the Dragon took the attack directly.
Naturally, it was still far from a fatal wound.
But that alone was enough.
Shhhhk!
Maintaining his momentum, Aaron reconfigured the threads connected to his body.
With a snap of his fingers, the threads writhed like living creatures, rapidly shifting into new positions.
In the blink of an eye—
Tens of thousands of threads dominated the surrounding area.
Normally too thin to be seen, they scattered the light as the falling Anti-Rain struck them.
The refracted light created the illusion of an enormous spider's web.
Then—
Aaron vanished.
【...!?】
Just moments ago, he had been flying behind the Dragon.
Yet in less than a second—
He disappeared completely.
【To move faster than even a Dragon's dynamic vision... that's imposs— Ugh!?】
Without warning—
A massive steel H-beam came flying from somewhere and slammed into the Dragon's head.
The impact of several dozen tons of steel was enough to numb even a Dragon's senses for an instant.
【What...?】
What just happened?
Why was a steel beam suddenly falling from the sky?
Before he could even process that question—
A twenty-ton trailer truck flew at him from an angle.
【Damn it! How troublesome!】
Fortunately—
This time he reacted in time.
Swinging his foreleg, the Dragon split the truck clean in half.
The two halves streaked past him before crashing into the ground and exploding.
Boooooom-!
The truck exploded upon impact.
But that single explosion was not the end of the bizarre assault.
Steel beams.
Trailer trucks.
Cars.
Streetlights.
Even an entire building collapsed toward the Dragon.
Unable to comprehend what was happening, the Dragon roared furiously.
【What the hell are you trying to do!?】
“...Just as I thought.”
The instant the Dragon shouted—
Aaron appeared directly behind him.
The razor-sharp blade of Techblade sliced across the back of the Dragon's neck.
【Ow! You bastard!】
The Dragon twisted around to grab Aaron behind him.
But before his claws could reach—
Aaron had already moved again.
【Stop running!】
The Dragon instantly predicted Aaron's path of movement and cast a spell.
The advanced spell Hell Fire—
Constructed in only half a second—
Precisely intercepted Aaron's trajectory.
But just before the flames, burning at thousands of degrees, could consume him—
Aaron made a movement that seemed to defy the laws of physics.
He casually avoided the enormous fireball.
【What!?】
The Dragon froze in surprise.
Aaron came to a stop in midair.
Floating roughly five meters above the ground, he looked down at the Dragon.
“You don't seem very experienced at fighting.”
【Don't look down on me, you mere mortal!】
“It looks like you've never fought since becoming a Transmigrator. Or rather... at least in this human form, you're remarkably clumsy.”
【Silence!】
The Dragon roared.
But Aaron's words had struck the mark.
The Dragon's body was, in every sense—
A cheat.
With a mere snap of his fingers, he could burst the head of even a highly trained Adaptee soldier.
Bullets costing tens of millions of Credits each could not even scratch his scales.
Even fatal injuries healed after resting for only a few seconds.
He did not even need to sleep—
Nor eat.
An invincible body.
He had made a few preparations in case he ever fought another Dragon.
But he had never imagined fighting a human like this.
With a body even more overpowered than Aaron Stingray—
Why would he ever bother mastering techniques?
“You don't understand how humans fight. Yet you're insisting on fighting in human form. That's why you keep leaving openings for me. Until now, every opponent you've faced has simply collapsed after you casually swung a claw or fired off a spell.”
【You dare...!】
“I'm not like them.”
The next instant—
Aaron disappeared from sight once again.
Almost simultaneously—
A large section of the Dragon's side was torn away.
His heart remained untouched, so it was nowhere near fatal.
For a Dragon, it was no more serious than a paper cut.
Even so—
The psychological pressure was steadily mounting.
Never before had any human inflicted this much damage upon a Dragon.
‘How...?’
How could he move faster than even a Dragon's dynamic vision?
Why couldn't I perceive him even the instant he attacked?
I don't understand.
What exactly is happening?
As those questions filled his mind—
The Dragon finally noticed the countless threads spread throughout the battlefield.
The raindrops striking those threads scattered into a fine artificial mist, obscuring his vision.
Only then did he understand.
‘I see......!’
He had said it himself.
This was a human body.
Human eyes faced forward, granting roughly 160 degrees of vision.
Since he was imitating that form, his own field of vision was similarly limited.
Aaron thoroughly understood the structure of the human body.
He knew exactly how to kill an opponent.
And exactly how to stay outside their field of view.
‘So that's it... He's exploiting blind spots.’
Everything had been a feint.
Using his threads, Aaron had woven an enormous spider's web.
The countless threads served as footholds—
And ropes.
He accelerated using the tension of the threads.
Stopped instantly.
Changed direction midair.
Constantly slipping outside the Dragon's vision through dazzling movements.
Then he hurled objects attached to the threads—
Either to inflict damage or divert attention.
The steel beam.
The truck.
They had all served that purpose.
All the while, Aaron had continued moving, gradually wearing him down bit by bit.
‘Remarkable.’
The Dragon knew exactly what kind of human Aaron Stingray was.
After all—
He, too, had once been a Transmigrator.
He possessed knowledge of the novel.
Aaron Stingray was a man worthy of being called humanity's strongest.
From birth, he had been raised as a human weapon.
The Stingray Group's ultimate weapon.
In some ways, he resembled the Dragon himself.
The difference was—
Aaron Stingray had spent his entire life honing his combat techniques through Combat Action Chips, relentless training, and Combat Modules.
The Dragon had never needed to.
In terms of pure specs—
The Dragon still surpassed Aaron.
Aaron simply compensated for that gap with skill and technique.
【...Very well. I'll admit it.】
The Dragon muttered, almost reproaching himself.
【As you said... I am not accustomed to fighting in this form. Continuing to insist upon it merely gives you unnecessary opportunities.】
Then he shouted,
【Behold! My true fo—!】
“I'd rather not.”
At that very instant—
Aaron snapped his fingers as though he had been waiting for exactly that.
The threads spread throughout the battlefield instantly converged, wrapping tightly around the Dragon's body.
As the Dragon's body rapidly began growing larger, Aaron continued winding more and more threads around it.
Layer upon layer.
Until it became an enormous cocoon.
Perhaps because he had been attacked before completing his transformation—
His skeleton, joints, and muscles were compressed beneath the thick cocoon of threads, preventing them from expanding properly.
Of course, portions escaped containment.
Scales occasionally burst through gaps in the threads.
But Aaron simply reinforced those areas with more threads, making the cocoon even larger.
“I once happened to watch a magical girl anime with Evangeline. While I was watching it, though, I found myself wondering something.”
【Mmph! Mmmmmmph!】
“Why do the villains always wait until the transformation is complete before attacking?”
“That's when they're at their most vulnerable.”