Athena couldn''t help but sh a yful smile as she watched the dragon''s body return to its original form. She had anticipated that defeating it wouldn''t be so simple.
Excitement burned in her red eyes as she clenched her hands together, releasing a surge of powerful red aura that erupted from her body.
The aura warped the space within a five-hundred-meter radius, as though everything might copse at any moment.
"Let''s fight again," Athena dered coldly.
In an instant, her figure vanished, reappearing directly in front of the dragon. With her right hand pulled back, she unleashed a devastating punch to its lower jaw.
*Bang!*
The sudden strike left the dragon no time to react. Its massive, mountain-like body was sent hurtling skyward.
But Athena didn''t stop there. In the blink of an eye, she reappeared above the dragon. Twisting her body midair, she delivered a fierce kick to the top of its head.
*Bang!*
The dragon''s colossal body plummeted back to the ground at terrifying speed, creating a thunderous impact uponnding. The force of its crash obliterated the surrounding area, reducing everything within a two-kilometer radius to rubble.
*Roar!*
The dragon''s thunderous roar echoed across the capital, carrying the searing rage ignited by Athena''s sudden attack.
In the distance, Leon sat frozen on his horse, his eyes widening at the sight before him.
Watching Athena pummel the massive dragon as if it were a mere sandbag sent shivers down his spine.
"This woman… she''s unbelievably strong," Leon muttered, swallowing hard. "I guess I''ll have to postpone telling her about my rtionship with Liliana… and about our three daughters."
Over the past few days, his bond with Athena had reached its peak. She had hardly left his side, staying close to him at every moment.
This was only natural, given how persistently Athena had pursued him in the past. Once he epted her love and feelings, she likely wanted to release all the emotions—love and affection—she had been holding inside.
Hence, he had nned to use this time toe clean—to tell Athena about his true rtionship with Liliana and the existence of his three little daughters.
But now… he decided to abandon the idea entirely!
This woman was more terrifying and powerful than he had imagined. Though he hadn''t spoken of it yet, he could already picture how Athena would react.
*Arghh!*
Suddenly, the growls of monsters echoed from the side, snapping Leon out of his reverie.
He turned to his right and saw over fifty monsters charging toward him.
With a t expression, Leon swung the sword in his right hand, unleashing a sh of holy power that reduced the monsters to ashes in an instant.
But that wasn''t enough. Drawn by the explosion of his attack, more monsters emerged from all directions.
"Tsk! These shits are really annoying," Leon muttered, his irritation growing.
A surge of holy power erupted from his body, and without hesitation, he leaped off his horse, charging toward them fearlessly.
While Leon battled the monsters, Athena and the dragon were locked in another fierce confrontation.
*Boom!*
The two shed violently. Athena clenched her left fist and delivered a crushing punch to the dragon''s stomach.
*Roar!*
The dragon roared in pain as its massive body was sent soaring hundreds of meters into the sky. But it quickly spread its enormous wings, stabilizing itself midair.
The dragon fixed its furious gaze on Athena, as though it intended to tear her apart.
*Whoosh!*
The dragon pped its enormous wings, sending five shes of wind hurtling toward Athena.
The shes were powerful, capable of tearing anyone hit to shreds. However, Athena remained calm, unaffected in the slightest by the attacks speeding toward her.
With a casual snap of her fingers, five fireballs the size of houses materialized behind her.
"Go," Athena muttered coldly, swinging her hand forward.
The massive fireballs surged forward, colliding with the wind shes in a powerful explosion that obliterated everything in its path.
The dragon roared in fury, and just as it prepared to retaliate, a fireball suddenly shot toward it, mming into its stomach.
*Boom!*
The fireball exploded, ripping apart half of the dragon''s stomach. ck blood poured out, and the dragon''s internal organs were gruesomely exposed—a sight that would make anyone shudder in disgust.
Yet, as before, the injuries quickly healed as if they had never existed.
Athena narrowed her eyes, and her usual dismissive expression faded, reced by a look of clear vignce.
"This is really troublesome," she muttered, clearly annoyed.
In their earlier battles, she had always maintained the upper hand, each of her strikesnding squarely on the dragon''s vital points. But despite the damage she inflicted, the wounds always healed within moments, leaving her increasingly irritated.
"In this world, no technique or ability is without its weaknesses. Its healing power must have a w, and I''m certain of it." Athena took a deep breath, regaining herposure.
Her focus now shifted to battling the dragon while searching for any weak points to exploit.
*Buzz!*
As Athena was lost in thought, the dragon suddenly opened its mouth, and in the blink of an eye, a fireball five timesrger than the previous one began to form in front of it.
Its immense heat caused the air within a one-kilometer radius to shimmer, raising the temperature of the sky above drastically.
Lowering its head slightly, the dragon aimed the massive fireball at Athena andunched it with full force.
In response to the deadly attack, Athena swiftly clenched her palms and thrust them forward in a punching motion.
*Rumble!*
Arge portal opened behind her, and an enormous red dragon''s hand emerged from it.
The hand clenched tightly, mirroring every movement of Athena''s right hand, then swung forward to strike the fireball.
*Boom!*
The fiery, searing fireball shattered instantly upon impact with the massive red dragon''s hand.
The dragon''srge eyes widened in surprise at the sight, and for a moment, something deep within seemed to urge it to surrender. But the rage and madness coursing through its veins quickly suppressed any such thoughts.
It roared in fury, and ten fireballs, each asrge as the previous one, materialized before it.
Athena wasn''t about to let itunch another attack. She swiftly curled her left palm, then made a gripping motion forward.
*Rumble!*
A massive portal appeared, simr to the one before, and a colossal red dragon''s hand emerged from it, mping down tightly on the dragon''s neck.
*Roar!*
The ten fireballs vanished instantly, and the dragon roared in frantic rage. It thrashed violently, struggling to break free, but its efforts were futile.
The red dragon''s hand gripped its neck with such immense strength that the dragon couldn''t budge.
Seeing this, Athena smirked coldly. She brought her right hand''s index and middle fingers together, then pointed them at the dragon.
"Nature Magic: Meteor Fall!" she said, her voice chilling.
*Buzz!*
High in the dark, clouded sky, a massive red circle suddenly formed. Momentster, a red meteor the size of a mountain emerged from it.
The meteor was colossal, its heat so intense that the surrounding air seemed to melt. A scorching wave of heat spread throughout the capital territory.
Beyond the capital, the rebel army, along with Luna, Valen, and Albert, who were locked in battle with the monsters, saw the meteor clearly, causing their hearts to race.
"Shit! What is that?" one of the soldiers asked, his voice trembling with fear.
No one answered for a few moments, until finally, one of hisrades shouted, "It''s a meteor!"
At that, their faces went even paler, and their legs shook uncontrobly.
They hadn''t expected a mountain-sized rock with such intense heat to be a meteor!
If it struck the capital, the entire region—and all of them—would be reduced to ashes.
Luna, Albert, and Valen shared the same look of concern as the soldiers. They couldn''t fathom why such a massive meteor was hanging above the capital.
Was it a punishment from the gods for the Holy Empire of Elysium?
Luna''s expression shifted suddenly as she remembered that Leon was still inside the capital.
"Not good! Leon is inside!" Luna eximed in panic, attempting to leave, but Valen stopped her.
"Wait! Don''t go!" Valen said firmly, spinning his spear to take down two monsters that were closing in on him. "If you leave, we''ll be short on people to fight these monsters."
"But..." Luna started to speak, but Valen''s indifferent, stern voice cut her off.
"Don''t worry about that damn man. He''s strong enough, and that meteor couldn''t hurt him." Valen snorted coldly, channeling his holy power as he beheaded more and more monsters.
Luna fell silent, considering Valen''s reasonable words. Leon was indeed incredibly strong, and she also believed the meteor wouldn''t harm him.
With a deep sigh, she refocused on the monsters around her, resuming the fight.
Meanwhile, Leon, who was battling a hundred monsters charging toward him, widened his eyes when he saw the meteor in the sky.
"Shit! A meteor?" Leon gasped, his body going rigid.
The meteor was massive and scorching, and Leon was certain that if it struck, the entire capital and everything within a hundred kilometers would be obliterated!
He turned his gaze to Athena in the sky and then to the enormous dragon pinned by the red dragon''s hand. It suddenly clicked—this meteor had to be Athena''s ancient or nature magic!
"Damn it! Does Athena intend to destroy the entire capital region? I can''t let this happen!" Leon eximed in horror.@@novelbin@@
In an instant, holy power erupted from his body, creating a devastating whirlwind. Leon extended his left hand, and soon, the Holy Sword of Zenith materialized in his grip.
Raising the sword high, he shouted, "Hero Technique: shing—"
But before he could finish, Athena''s soft, reassuring voice echoed in his ears.
"Don''t worry, I won''t destroy the capital."