The Regression Of A Grand Mercenary

‘Those clothes…Why is he there?!’ thought Desmond as he looked to the open field with sweat pouring from his face. Despite the fact that Thill had hidden his face with a helmet, he was still recognizable simply because of his attire.

“Desmond, is what I’m looking at right now, real?” asked Evelyn as she could not comprehend the truth in front of her.

A boy her age was facing off against a dragon.

Nothing about that was real to any front of perspective. Sure she can say that Thill was a strong person, but to face a dragon was nothing but a mad man’s dream.

Was he being a fool for taking it on all by himself?

Or did he had a plan?

They could not do anything but watch as the battle unfolded before them.

As they gaze upon such a sight, not long after, the other mercenaries joined in on the viewing.

“What’s going on?”

“Is that a dragon?”

“What do we do? We should really run away from this place!”

“Andel, what should we do?” asked one of the merc members. But as he turned to their leader, he could see that Andel was set in simply watching.

“…” his eyes were fixed on one person alone. His teacher.

***

Diving down with it’s claws and talons open to rip his body clean, Thill raised his only weapon and looked to the dragon with a contented expression.

To show such an expression was nothing but maddening.

But nonetheless, Thill showed confidence that was close to arrogance.

As the Dragon came close with its claws, he jumped at the right exact moment and dived down to cut one of the dragon’s wings.

The wings were one of the most worrying natures of a dragon’s capability to fly. If he could dispose that ability, he can easily take on the dragon on land instead of sky.

As he dived down, he slashed the left wing, but to his attempt, the dragon intelligently diverted it’s body in an uncommon way, turning Thill’s attempt to a failed execution. The wings instead of being cut were turned to Thill, hitting him hard right on his upper torso.

“Kgh!” he was sent flying that way all across the flat field, but as he started to crash, he immediately recovered his standing by rolling with the force of the dragon’s attack. As he landed, he quickly took action yet again.

And this time, he dashed forward with no show of fear even after such a clear divergence from the dragon.

As he got close, the dragon used its tail like a whip, spinnning and dragging it across the field all up to a point where it reached Thill, but before it could strike him, Thill’s insight in the dragon’s nature in using it’s tail was so easily predicted that he made use of the force of the dragon’s power.

As the tail got close, Thill leaped over it enough that his foot caught landing on the surface of it’s scale. And once he did, he stabbed his sword down on it, creating an anchor for him to settle in as the dragon swung it’s tail.

As he stabbed his sword to the dragon’s tail, the dragon felt the pain of being stabbed by a needle-like weapon, causing it to feel enraged. By the flaws of its pain, the dragon naturally pulled it’s tail away, but with Thill being anchored on the tail, he was dragged along.

As he was pulled in on the tail, he used the momentum of the dragon’s action to leap over it’s head.

“Hup!” at the perfect moment, he pulled his sword away and escaped into the air.

From there, he could see that he was over the dragon’s head. And looking down, this was the perfect spot to strike the dragon on its most vital weakness.

The neck.

Using his affinity for the wind, he gathered a force of power on his palm and pushed himself down like he was a cannon. And at the same time, he gathered the energy of his own control in using his pure core down into his blade, causing it to turn sharper and more powerful.

The force of his fall was multiplied and calculated accurately enough to strike the dragon’s neck.

His fall was so fast, barely a second has even passed when he attacked the neck.

And on his quick fall, he gathered his strength and slashed down on the dragon’s neck.

“Haa!”

*Shwing—!*

All but in a sudden move, the dragon felt pain not from his tail, but on his neck.

It was all so sudden.

“!!?” the dragon could not comprehend just how it was possible that a human would act this fast.

And not before long, blood came gushing from it’s neck.

*Roooaaaar!!*

It screamed in pain as blood came gushing about, but Thill wasn’t finished.

“Fuck, I thought I could have finished it there.” to his expectations, he thought he could have cut down the dragon’s neck in just one fell swoop. But he overestimated his skill and power.

Although the cut was deep on the dragon’s neck, it wasn’t enough to fully end the dragon’s life.

Feeling enraged, the dragon turned to Thill with bloodshot eyes.

The dragon with it’s intelligence, knew he underestimated the human. So to survive, the dragon unleashed a terrifying skill.

Feeling its injury, It stood on it’s two hind legs and pointed to the skies with such a ravenous presence.

“..?” Thill was curious about what the dragon might do, so his guard was up.

and just as his curiosity brought in the right action, the dragon greatly produced a sudden change of presence.

[Dragon’s Dreadful Rage!]

Like a king that rules a kingdom, the dragon showed its over all might and nature as a fierce dragon.

What came about this skill was a sudden dominating presence that swallowed the field.

Although it was invicible to the naked eye, Thill can easily tell what was happening.

With the dragon’s dreadful rage, it can overpower an enemy’s will and defeat them simply by it’s presence alone. If one is in the domain of its range, one can feel the weight of such a skill. The weaker the will, the easier one is conquered by fear of a dragon’s true presence.

But Thill was not so weak of a will to even bow down to such a beast.

The skill reflected the fierce spirit of the dragon, and if a simple man were to face off against this, then all to easily, they would have lowered their entire body to appease the skill and worship the dragon. Even Desmond himself who was watching from afar felt fear of the dragon’s presence. He wanted to run away out of fear, but Evelyn however stood her ground and watched the fight. She had a braver spirit than Desmond could have.

But Thill on the other hand simply stood there unaffected by such a skill.

“.…Is this all you have?” he asked the dragon as it stood over at such a tall height.

The dragon looked to him with such a bewildered reaction. For how was it possible that a human could withstand his dreadful presence?

Standing like a champion; unfazed and ever so confident, Thill showed his own spirit in battle.

But before the dragon could gain an understanding, Thill showed a fierce gaze in return.

Remembering back to when his life was nothing but a path to a bloody end, he had obtained many experiences that befits a warrior at the highest peak. And one particular show of strength he had once gained, was a scream that resembled a warrior’s might.

Inhaling deep as if he was taking in air for the entirety of his life, he ignited his core to it’s maximum output and let out the vicious skill known as the [Warrior’s Domination!]

“OOOOOAAAAAAHHHH!!!!!”

His war cry reached far and wide.

For even Andel himself heard it and felt truly afraid.

‘This skill….it’s just like what the first leader used to use…as I thought, he isn’t just some blacksmith. He’s a true warrior!’ to this realization, Andel grips his own fist tightly in the nervous reaction of feeling the Warrior’s Domination from where he was standing.

The Warrior’s Domination was a skill that showed level of how strong a warrior’s spirit was. It represents the raw, unyielding spirit of a battle-hardened warrior and It embodies both the strength and resilience Thill has built over countless struggles, as well as the immense willpower that propels him forward, even when facing impossible odds.

Not only does it inflict fear upon an opponent, it also increases the fighting spirit of the warrior himself and possibly even those who recognized his strength as a comrade.

And through his warrior’s shout, it simply overwhelmed the beast before him

“!!!??” not only was his spirit much more fierce than that of the dragon’s, it could have easily crushed the dragon’s will to fight all to its end.

But he didn’t let it go that far.

It has been a while since he had faced a proper enemy, so it was only natural that he would savor this moment to it’s end.

In the effect of his warrior’s cry, the dragon was seen shaking in fear, and seeing the effect, Thill looked to the dragon with a smirk on his face.

“Come on now, don’t be like that…” he said as he was holding himself back from taking the cowardly reaction of the dragon’s head from how helpless it stood there.

“Although I didn’t expect for you to come here, I can’t just waste this opportunity by ending the fight so early…let me enjoy it…let me see the peak of your strength!”

“!?” feeling the resolve of his tone, the dragon knew what the human was implying.

“Fight….me…death…” said the dragon with such a coarse voice.

“…That’s right. A fight to the death.” said Thill as he responded kindly to the dragon’s intelligent invitation through human language.

As he replied in kind, he raised his sword out and let out such a powerful force of his own pure core.

‘…’ the dragon could see just how overwhelmingly powerful that sword was right now.

If done right, Thill could easily cut down the dragon. So to respond in kindly, the dragon raised both arms into the air and showed it’s own form of weapon similar to a sword.

[Cinder Claws]

Both claws were enveloped with a flaming scourge of an element where if one were to be hit by such an attack, they would only be left in ashes. No blood or flesh or even bones remain if coming into contact with that skill.

Showing each other’s blade, the two rushed in forward and started clashing with no thought or consideration over the damage they might inflict.

Steel and fire collided in a terrifying storm of power and fury as Thill and the dragon threw themselves at each other with no hesitation.

Thill’s sword struck with relentless precision, meeting the dragon’s scorching Cinder Claws head-on. Each clash sent sparks dancing through the air, their combined energy rippling outward in waves that made the watching mercenaries step back instinctively, even from their distance. The ground itself shook beneath the force of each blow, creating craters in the earth where Thill and the dragon stood their ground.

For Thill, this battle was something beyond survival—it was a revival. It had been so long since he’d faced an enemy of this magnitude, one who could push him to the very edge of his abilities. His Warrior’s Domination skill still surged through him, amplifying every ounce of his strength, and his keen focus read each of the dragon’s moves with a battle-hardened clarity. He saw not just a beast but an opponent, a creature fighting with all it had, just as he was.

The dragon, in turn, showed no sign of backing down. Despite the terror Thill’s Warrior’s Domination had inflicted, its Cinder Claws burned hotter, flickering with a darkened flame that roared with its desperate will to survive. It struck with a wild ferocity, channeling everything it had into each swipe, trying to break through the human’s defenses.

Finally, the dragon reared back, its wings folding in as it took a breath. Thill tensed, recognizing the stance of a dragon preparing its attack: [Ashen Breath].

Without hesitation, Thill called on the deepest reserves of his core energy, channeling the wind to build a whirlwind barrier around himself. He knew that facing a dragon’s breath head-on was as close to suicide as one could get, but he had no intention of retreating. This would be the clash that determined their battle.

With a roar that shook the heavens, the dragon unleashed its venomous breath, a wave of toxicity so intense that the very air ignited, spreading an inferno of gray fire across the field. Thill gritted his teeth and raised his sword, pouring his energy into it.

He would cut through this blaze or be consumed by it.

Fwoooosh!

Thill’s barrier met the flame, and for a moment, it seemed the fire would overwhelm him—but then his wind surged, slicing through the heart of the inferno. He pushed forward, step by step, until he was through, emerging from the other side with his sword burning in his own fierce, unyielding energy.

As the dragon’s breath faltered, Thill seized the opening and dashed forward, his sword raised for a strike.

Intermediate Technique – [Whispering Gale]

Using the set of skills he learned from the Tempest Blades of the Gale, He conjured the set skill he had learned from before.

By manipulating the very air he could control, he gathered it to his blade and made a dashing move forward. The Whispering Gale was an intermediate sword technique that uses air manipulation to enhance both the speed and range of each swing.

So for each swing, his sword strikes would only get stronger as time passes by.

Running to the dragon, he made his first whispering gale strike and struck the very foot of the dragon’s foot. From there, he continued striking as he leaped into higher levels. From the foot to the thigh, to the waist, to the stomach, to the chest, to the right peck, the left peck, the right arm, the left arm, from the lowest point of it’s neck all up to the highest point of it’s neck, until finally his slashes made it up to the head of the dragon.

All in all he made around twenty slashing moves where each one got stronger by the second. Once he strikes the head, the blow was so powerful, it ultimately knocked out the lights off of the dragon, halting it’s move for two seconds.

The dragon fell all from standing on it own two legs down to the field itself. It crashed like a tower with no hesitation at all.

What came to this seemed like Thill’s victory, but he knew that the dragon was more fiercer than that.

Meanwhile, the audience from afar looked and saw the battle with such an admiration.

‘How can he move like that? Him…a boy his age?’ thought Desmond as he felt envious of the boy’s power and skill.

“He’s a monster…” said Andel as he was shaking in fear. For what he saw, as the dragon fell, Thill was seen smiling ever so victoriously. He showed no fear at all.

To inhibit such a bravery was nothing but admirable and dangerous.

“…” and as for Evelyn, she couldn’t help but gaze with such an affection. Once again, this boy had proven to be quite the knight in shining armor. Fulfilling tales such as defeating dragons alike. She couldn’t help herself but be flushed in watching the glory of Thill’s achievement.

***

“Get up.”

“.…”

“You’re not done yet.”

“…”

“This isn’t what I’d expect from a dragon of all things…I thought you had more pride than any existence known to man.”

“…g-”

“…GET UP!”

“!?”

*ROOOOOOOARRR!!!!!!!!!*

The dragon screeched in pain as it was overflowing with rage.

Letting out its skill again.

[Dragon’s Dreadful Rage!]

No human has ever showed such intensity for a challenge before…no human…

“I’ll-END-YOU!!!!!” the dragon spoke with such intensity that it spread it’s wings so far and wide, without a second to even matter, it flew out to the sky at a blitzing speed.

*FWOOOOOSSSHHHH!!*

And out to the sky, with it’s wings spread about, it glared down on the human with such a prideful rage.

All things will end in this one skill alone.

[Crashing Oblivion!]

With it’s form spread wide, something changed in the dragon’s overall nature.

Smoke was being let out not from it’s mouth, but from underneath it’s own skin. And what came next was the show of a grievous gray flame that enveloped the entire body of the dragon.

Clouded with gray fire, the ash dragon dived down.

Once it will crash, everyone and everything in the village will perish.

This was simply the skill that would brought about death.

But Thill stood his ground.

This final clash against the dragon, it won’t touch a single flesh from the villagers…only his own blade will handle it.

“Haaa….” letting out a deep and controlled breathe, Thill gathered every form of energy he had stored in his core.

A last stand to fight against a dragon.

But this wont be his end.

As the dragon dived down, Thill looked before the beast with such a calm gaze.

And with it, he thrusted his sword forward.

Master Technique – [Zephyr Rend]

Without realizing it, before the two forms could crash against one another, the dragon, out of sheer shock…felt a hole on his chest.