'GRUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!'

The dragon’s neigh resounded within the castle, the imperial capital, the plains, the kingdom—throughout the entire world. It was a roar proving the birth of a transcendent species that would look down upon a new world—a declaration of existence by a newly born dragon.

"───!! This voice...!?"

The hero reflexively covered his ears against the ear-splitting roar, his brow furrowing deeply.

By that time, the hero—Weiss and his companions—had already escaped from the imperial castle, which had been half-destroyed and was now beginning to collapse entirely. From outside, they had borne witness to the life-or-death struggle between the Shadow Dragon and another crimson draconic warrior, and the hero reaffirmed his resolve.

────I was prepared for this, but… this role is painful…

Bathed in the morning sunlight at the peak of the rubble, a draconic warrior stood with majestic composure.

Seeing this scene firsthand, how many could believe that the crimson dragon before them had once been human? The draconic warrior standing there had lost all traces of humanity, having fully transformed into a complete dragon.

They had been forewarned that such an event might occur. It was more than just a possibility—if anything, there was a ninety-percent certainty that this outcome was inevitable. His trusted and respected master had declared this fate for himself.

Yet, when it actually came to pass, fear gripped their hearts.

"Cla…y…!!"

Upon seeing the transformed figure of her beloved, the Ice Princess was struck speechless. Tears welled up in her sapphire eyes, ready to overflow. Overcome with despair, she seemed ready to rush towards the dragon at any moment, but the hero instinctively held her back.

"No, Freesia!!"

"No! Let go of me! I have to save Clay right now!!"

The hero understood her pain all too well. It was because he understood that he held her back. Gritting his teeth, he turned his gaze toward the draconic warrior, now filled with determination.

Perhaps because the battle had just ended, the draconic warrior remained still. But for how long? Already, the human consciousness that once existed in him had been completely erased. Only the instinct to rampage like a monstrous beast remained, driven solely by an insatiable bloodlust.

"───!!"

He wanted to reject this cruel reality. To dismiss it as a nightmare, a bad joke. But the truth unfolding before his eyes was undeniable. This was reality. This was fact. And because he understood that, he had no choice but to act—because he had been entrusted with this duty.

────If the worst happens, you must be the one to…

Those words echoed in his mind. A final, personal exchange that had taken place just before the Dragon Slayer War began. No one else had been informed of what was about to happen—only him. Only the hero, the sole person holding the key to the solution, had been entrusted with this request.

In such a short time, the repeated acts of bloodsucking had completely drowned the consciousness of the draconic warrior—Claym Bradley—in abyss. Now, his every thought was dominated by the impulse to drink blood. He would rampage, steal, and bring ruin without hesitation—a true monster.

Moreover, the draconic warrior now bore multiple bloodline magics within him, wielding their immense power. Though he retained the form of a draconic warrior, his existence was akin to an ancient nightmare reborn—a Demon King from legend, whose name continued to be spoken in countless tales.

"Could you have ever predicted this future?"

'GURAAAA…'

At the hero’s question, the draconic warrior let out a low growl, either by chance or by intent. Crimson eyes locked onto him, unmistakably recognizing his presence. Under that gaze, the hero took his first step forward.

"Weiss…?"

"Leave this to me. Freesia, can you find Alice?"

"But…!!"

"This is a promise I made to Clay. So… please."

"… I understand."

Reassuring his troubled comrade with a faint smile, the hero turned back.

Only Weiss, the Hero, could kill the Demon King that Claym had become. It was a role assigned to him by the world itself. It was, in essence, the reenactment of a legend. In fairy tales and epics, there was always a hero, a demon king, and a dragon. The villainous demon king or dragon would be defeated by the hero, restoring peace to the world—this was the archetypal conclusion.

Following that logic, this battle was inevitable. It was fate.

The Hero held a unique advantage against abyss. The magic of Light, a symbol of hope, was the only weakness of the dark forces that spread chaos and destruction.

Though the Demon King before him possessed Light, which should only be wielded by the descendants of heroes, his body had been drained of nearly all power in the battle against the Shadow Dragon. Now, only his draconic strength remained, meaning his other magic had become nonfunctional.

Furthermore, as mentioned before, the battle with the Shadow Dragon had left him significantly weakened. If the hero struck now, he would have a high chance of victory.

────But that would be meaningless.

Yet, the hero did not launch a surprise attack. Instead, he approached the draconic warrior head-on.

Why was he throwing away a golden opportunity? The answer was simple.

"I never imagined that my first duel with Clay would happen like this…"

Pride. That was all there was to it. No matter the situation, fighting the draconic warrior before him meant more to the hero than world peace or ending the war.

Life was truly unpredictable. A long-lost dream, a duel with a revered master—it was now unfolding before him in an unintended form. In this moment, Weiss Brightness was both the Hero and an ordinary boy. Above all, he stood there as the first disciple of the one before him.

"But I won’t hold back, okay?"

Looking into the eyes of the draconic warrior—now devoid of selfhood—he posed the final question. It was a test. To see if even a shred of his former self remained.

And the answer of Claym Bradley, his mentor, his idol, his guiding light, was—

'GRUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!'

"I see────"

A dragon’s roar. No longer human. That fact was hammered into him once again.

Clenching his lips in regret, the hero drew his sword.

"Then no hard feelings. Let’s fight to the death!!"

And so, the Hero of Light cast himself into the battle of dragon-slaying.