Shut Up, Malevolent Dragon! I Don’t Want to Have Any More Children With You

The scorching heatwave swept across the area, making it nearly impossible for the members of the Lionheart Guild to open their eyes. Their skin felt like it was being scorched alive.
"Did they really recreate the Flame Demon?!" Martin exclaimed in shock.

"If the 'Fang Monstrosities' were at least within the realm of understanding, the idea of 'resurrecting' a beast that died over a century ago is completely beyond comprehension," he added, his voice trembling.
Within the five-kilometer danger zone, an ancient beast—one known only from research documents and historical texts—stood before them, alive and towering, its fiery presence overwhelming.
"Alright, that’s it. I’m writing an autobiography after this," someone muttered nervously.

"I already know which publisher I’m calling!"
"Hey, before the Lionheart Guild, weren’t you a veterinarian? No publisher cares about your story. Besides—"
"Let’s worry about not getting incinerated before thinking about autobiographies, okay?"

The banter was cut short when the intense heatwave suddenly stopped.
Everyone looked up, puzzled. For a moment, they thought the Flame Demon had ceased its firestorm, but that wasn’t the case.
Leon had activated the preliminary stage of the Shadow of Sumeru, shielding the guild members from the blazing heat.

Turning his head slightly, Leon spoke in a low, commanding tone:
"You handle the Scaled Crows. This ancient monster is mine."
Elia had anticipated this.

Unlike during their confrontation in the empire, where she had used imperial guards as cannon fodder and recklessly sacrificed fusion experiments, she had laid all her cards on the table from the very beginning.
Her intent was clear: to deny Leon and his allies any chance to retaliate.
Madam Shadow had warned her about Leon’s tenacity. If she didn’t suppress him early, his counterattack would overwhelm the battlefield. Elia took that warning seriously.

Thus, with the combined assault of the Scaled Crows and the Flame Demon, even Leon found himself stretched thin.
He ordered the guild members to focus on the lesser threat—the Scaled Crows—while he faced the Flame Demon.
The guild sprang into action, led by Rebecca and Martin, as Leon withdrew the protective energy of the Shadow of Sumeru, condensing it into a crackling sphere of lightning in his palm. With a sharp motion, he hurled it at the Flame Demon.

The beast roared, retreating momentarily in the face of the attack. As the energy sphere closed in, the Flame Demon lowered its massive, jagged horns, gathering its own energy.
In an instant, a spherical beam of fire clashed head-on with Leon’s attack.
The resulting explosion sent shockwaves rippling outward like violent waves on a pond.
Through the smoke, Leon emerged, lightning sparking from his hand and screeching like a furious bird.

"Why is it always fire?" he muttered under his breath, shaking his head as he braced for the next wave.
The Flame Demon retaliated with another fiery assault. Leon countered with a burst of electricity, his power dispersing the flames and sending arcs of lightning toward the beast.
The moment his lightning struck the beast’s fiery mane, an intense heatwave erupted from the Flame Demon, radiating outward in a devastating pulse.

Leon was thrown back several meters, his boots skidding across the scorched ground as he fought to regain balance.
Bending slightly, he muttered to himself, "That attack was enhanced with the speed of the Nine Hells Gate. Its destructive power should’ve been several times stronger than usual. Even an old demon wouldn’t dare take it head-on... and yet, it deflected it so easily."
Straightening up, he locked eyes with the Flame Demon.

Elia's voice rang out, cold and mocking. "I thought you’d be dealing with a defective replica. Turns out my creation is more authentic than even I expected."
Leon smirked, brushing the ash off his shoulder. "Is that supposed to impress me? Show me what else you’ve got."
Elia sneered. "Oh, don’t worry, Leon. This generation’s Flame Demon has a few more tricks. You’ll regret underestimating it."

Leon’s gaze turned skyward as he raised his right hand. The once-gray skies darkened further, rolling with ominous clouds. Thunder rumbled in the heavens.
"Captain, is he using the big guns already?" Martin asked, dispatching another Scaled Crow before glancing back at Leon.
"Is it Dragon’s End? If it is, maybe we can finally get out of this hellhole," Rebecca remarked.

But even as they speculated, Leon’s attack was already underway.
The Flame Demon raised its head toward the thick clouds above, seemingly unfazed. It began gathering an enormous amount of fire elemental energy.
One beam,
Two beams,
Three beams…

In mere moments, dozens of fiery beams shot upward, piercing the clouds and igniting a violent clash of fire and lightning.
The storm clouds began to dissipate as the fiery onslaught overwhelmed them. The blazing sun reemerged, searing the arid land below.
"How… how is this possible?" Leon muttered, staring at the rapidly clearing sky.

Elia’s voice broke through the tense silence. "You’ve never used Dragon’s End in the imperial army, Leon, but did you really think Madam Shadow wouldn’t prepare for it?"
She chuckled. "Dragon’s End is powerful enough to kill any creature on this continent, but it relies on the natural force of lightning storms. Disperse the storm, and you render it useless."
"Of course, regular fire—even Konstantin’s flames—wouldn’t be enough. But the Flame Demon… now that’s another story entirely."

Her voice turned sinister. "Leon, we’ve been planning for this moment. You won’t escape."
The guild members gasped as the truth sank in.
"Dragon’s End… was neutralized?" Rebecca murmured, her eyes narrowing as she studied the dispersing clouds.

"Elia used the Flame Demon to scatter the storm clouds before the attack could ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) even fully form. It’s an effective strategy, but it takes a creature of immense power to pull it off," she added grimly.
Indeed, the Flame Demon was the undisputed master of fire. Its ability to command fire elemental energy surpassed even Konstantin’s.
Leon’s expression darkened as he focused on the blazing monster. The sky turned crimson, and the heat intensified to an unbearable level.

The flames surrounding the Flame Demon began to morph and twist, taking on a sinister, monstrous face that roared with feral fury.
The fiery beast lunged at Leon, its flames consuming everything in their path.