Player Chapter 27. I've Played Worse Raid Bosses
He leapt, barely clearing the sweep. The wind from the tail still caught him midair and threw him sideways. He slammed into a rock wall hard enough to see white.
[Fatal Damage!]
[HP -350]
He slid down, breath knocked from his lungs.
"…Great."
The dragon inhaled again. Darkness coiled.
He fumbled at his belt and pulled out his last Low HP Potion.
"Don't judge me," he muttered.
He bit the cork off and drank. Bitter. Artificial. Functional.
[HP +100]
"Still trash-tier," he coughed.
The Darkness Breath fired again.
He didn't dodge outward this time.
He sprinted straight toward it.
The beam tore behind him as he zigzagged violently at the last second, using terrain as partial cover. Stone melted inches from his boots.
He reached the dragon's front leg and slammed both daggers into its scaled ankle.
The blades barely pierced.
"…You're kidding me."
The dragon roared and lifted its leg, trying to crush him.
He didn't let go.
He re-summoned daggers mid-motion, thicker, heavier.
[Summoned: Dual Thunder Daggers]
Electricity crackled along the blades.
He drove them in again, deeper this time.
Thunder exploded outward along the dragon's leg.
The massive body jerked violently.
[Stun Effect: Partial (1.2 seconds)]
"Yes!"
He used the brief stun immediately.
He jumped, slammed one dagger higher into its scales, then another. Using them like pitons.
Climb.
The dragon thrashed, wings beating violently. He nearly lost grip twice.
The wind moved around him violently.
He climbed anyway.
One dagger in.
Pull.
Second dagger in.
Pull.
Blood, thick, dark, splattered down over him.
He looked less like a hero and more like a very determined wall climber on a moving skyscraper.
The dragon launched upward. Shadow Flight activated again.
The ground dropped away beneath him.
Wind howled.
He tightened his grip, boots braced against scale ridges.
"You picked the wrong idiot," he growled.
The dragon twisted midair, trying to dislodge him.
He slammed another Thunder-infused blade into its shoulder.
Lightning arced violently across its spine.
[Stun Effect: Partial (0.8 seconds)]
Not enough.
But enough to reposition.
He climbed toward its neck.
The Fear Aura intensified at that proximity. His limbs felt heavy. Instinct screamed again.
[Status Effect: Fear]
[Willpower Check… Passed.]
He laughed breathlessly. "I've played worse raid bosses."
The dragon rolled midair.
He lost one dagger.
Nearly fell.
He reacted instantly.
[Summoned: Ice Hook]
A jagged ice spike shot outward and lodged into a scale ridge. He grabbed it with his free hand, momentum snapping his shoulder painfully but saving him from falling.
[HP -120]
"Still good!" he shouted to no one.
The dragon dove.
Fast.
Very fast.
He climbed the final stretch toward the base of its skull.
No potion left.
He switched strategy.
[Summoned: Thunder Lance]
A concentrated spear of lightning formed in his palm. He drove it straight into the gap between horn and skull plate.
The impact detonated with a deafening crack.
The dragon screamed, a sound that shook clouds apart.
Lightning spread across its body in violent arcs.
Its wings faltered.
Shadow Flight destabilized.
They plummeted.
Riven held on.
The dragon hit the valley floor in a catastrophic crash, carving a trench through rock and earth.
He was thrown forward at the last second but rolled with it, barely avoiding being crushed under the beast's head.
Dust swallowed everything.
Silence.
Then a low, angry rumble.
It was still alive.
He stood, swaying slightly. Blood dripped from his chin. His coat was shredded in multiple places. His ribs ached with every breath.
HP at 40%.
Mana at 15%.
The dragon struggled, wings twitching violently as it tried to rise.
He limped forward.
[Summoned: Thunder Strike]
He didn't hold back.
He drove the entire remaining pool of mana into a single downward thrust straight into its exposed neck joint.
The lightning blast erupted like a miniature storm.
The dragon convulsed violently.
Then…
Silence.
Its massive body sagged.
Wings collapsed.
Head dropped forward, stopping inches from Riven's boots.
He stood there, chest rising and falling unevenly.
Dust settled slowly around him.
The Night Dragon lay fallen in front of him.
Legendary.
And defeated.
He wiped blood from his eye with the back of his hand.
"…Okay," he breathed. "Not bad for the second day."
His knees almost buckled. He caught himself before they did.
Still okay.
Barely.
But okay.
The Night Dragon's massive body lay before him, wings half-spread like a fallen eclipse. Its silver eyes flickered faintly, not dead. Not gone. Just… dimmed.
Then the System flared.
A darker notification than usual.
[Night Dragon has been weakened.]
[Shadow Contract Available.]
[Bind Target and it will become your servant.]
Riven blinked.
Then blinked again.
"…Yes."
His grin spread slowly across his blood-streaked face.
"Yes. I like this."
He staggered forward on tired legs and pressed his palm against the dragon's scaled neck. The surface was warm. Still alive. Still dangerous.
But not resisting.
He closed his eyes briefly.
[Shadow Contract]
Dark energy surged from his palm, not explosive like lightning, not sharp like ice, but deep. Quiet. Absolute. It spread across the dragon's body like ink spilled in water, weaving through scales, coiling around horns, threading into wings.
The dragon's body shuddered once.
Its eyes widened slightly.
There was no violent thrashing. No dramatic rebellion.
It was too weak.
The shadows tightened.
Bound.
A faint sigil burned briefly along the dragon's forehead before fading into its scales.
[Shadow Contract Successful.]
Riven let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding.
Then another notification appeared.
[Congratulations.]
[Transmigrator Rank Increased: E.]
He stared at it.
"…Nice."
The dragon's status panel flickered into view.
[Name: Night Dragon]
[Type: Legendary]
[Level: 52]
[Skills: Darkness Breath, Shadow Flight, Fear Aura]
[Status: Bound Servant]
[Loyalty: Conditional]
He laughed breathlessly.
Level 52.
"Bro," he muttered to the unconscious dragon. "You were level 52? And I'm level 31… That's unfair."
The dragon answered him with a grunt.
He collapsed backward onto the ground, staring up at the darkening sky. The sun was sinking fast. Orange fading into purple.
Dinner time soon.
And he looked like he lost a bar fight with a mountain.
His potions? Gone.
Mana? Practically zero.
Stamina? Laughable.
He tried to stand.
His legs said no.
"…Okay," he muttered. "Rest for thirty seconds."