"System, activate flight once again," Raito said.

[Skill: Flight Activated]

The notification appeared before his eyes as his body lifted from the ground. Wind brushed against his face while he rose higher, gazing down at the courtyard below. Around forty undead knights stood there, swords raised, waiting.

"It's time to do this," he muttered.

But before he could move, a sharp whoosh echoed through the air, like something slicing through the sky.

"What was that?" Raito said quickly, looking around.

A dark shadow passed over him. Then, from above the castle ruins, a massive shape descended through the clouds. Its wings were nothing but bone, its ribcage hollow, and its eyes burned with a faint blue flame.

Raito's expression froze. "What… the hell is that?"

A notification flashed in front of him.

[Warning: Undead Dragon Detected]

"Wait, what?" he said, staring at it in disbelief. "So this… this is actually a dragon. A real one. Dead, but still moving."

The creature let out a low, echoing roar that rattled the air around him. Raito clenched his dagger tighter, his heartbeat pounding in his ears.

"Where the hell am I?" he muttered. "And how the hell am I supposed to handle this?"

"Well… should I run?" Raito muttered under his breath, staring at the massive creature. "No. I shouldn't be afraid. It's just bones."

He looked down at the dagger glowing faintly in his hand. "My blade's covered with healing magic. Undead are weak to holy energy, I know that. This shouldn't be too hard."

He took a deep breath and steadied himself midair, wings of energy keeping him afloat. Then, he darted forward. The undead dragon lifted its head, bones creaking as it began to glide toward him.

When the two were only meters apart, the creature opened its jaw slowly, silently. Inside its skull-like mouth, dark energy began to swirl, forming a massive orb that pulsed with power.

"What the hell is that?" Raito whispered, his heart pounding. "Dragons breathe fire, not whatever that is."

A sudden notification flashed before his eyes.

[Warning: User must evade immediately. Direct contact will result in instant death.]

"What?! Instant death?!" Raito shouted, eyes widening.

The dragon's wings flapped once, sending shockwaves through the air as it released the dark sphere. The attack shot forward like a blazing meteor.

Raito shot upward, narrowly avoiding it. The heat brushed past his skin, it wasn't fire, but it was hotter than any flame he'd felt before.

Even from afar, he could feel the heat pressing against his skin, like being trapped in a furnace. "This is insane!" he shouted, flying in sharp zigzags through the air as the dragon followed his every move, eyes glowing faintly blue.

He stopped for a moment, panting. "Flying constantly burns my stamina… but I can't stop now. I have to get closer."

He darted higher, trying to gain altitude above the dragon. The undead beast noticed and let out a deep, hollow roar as it followed him up.

"Damn it, my plan won't work if it keeps tracking me like that!" Raito gritted his teeth. "Alright… I'll try something else."

The two shot through the air, Raito diving downward while the dragon soared upward. They were on a collision course.

At the last second, Raito twisted his body, slipping through a narrow gap between the dragon's massive ribs. Wind screamed around him as he passed. In that split second, he drove his dagger deep into the dragon's exposed spine.

The creature roared in pain, its hollow body trembling violently. Raito gripped tightly with both hands, plunging his second dagger into the same wound.

"Got you!" he yelled, holding on as the dragon thrashed and began to carry him higher into the stormy sky.

Raito clung to the undead dragon's back, both daggers buried deep into its spine. Pale healing light sizzled across the creature's bones, burning cracks through its undead frame. The light didn't just glow, it hissed, fighting against the corruption that held the dragon together.

The sky above was bright and alive, clouds drifting lazily in the sunlight. But here, thousands of feet in the air, the only thing Raito saw was motion and death.

"Damn it," he muttered through his teeth. "This thing's fast even without flesh."

Wind whipped against his body, trying to rip him away. The dragon's massive wings carved through the sky, each beat heavy enough to shake the air.

A system window flickered in front of him:

[Boss Monster: Undead Dragon HP 98%]

[Weak Point Detected: Spine Core]

Raito smirked. "Then I'm already where I need to be."

The daggers flared brighter, pure green light cutting across the daylight. He twisted the blades deeper into the creature's spine, bones cracked, smoke hissed, and the smell of burning rot filled the wind.

The dragon let out a deep, hollow roar that made the air tremble.

It rolled, spun, and jerked violently, trying to throw him off. Raito pressed down, his boots slamming into the slick bone for balance.

[Grip Enhancement Activated]

Blue runes crawled across his arms, lighting his skin beneath his torn sleeves. The wind howled, but he held firm.

Then, suddenly, the dragon stopped rising. Its skull tilted down toward the castle below.

Raito's eyes widened. "No way…"

It dove.

The world tilted, and gravity punched his stomach as they dropped at terrifying speed. The entire castle came into view below, the yard filled with undead knights, frozen in place, watching the beast fall.

"If that thing crashes," he whispered, "…it's going to wipe everything out."

A grin tugged at his lips. "Perfect."

Green light flickered around his right hand.

[Skill: Healing Burst Ready]

"Let's see how much pain healing can cause."

He slammed his palm against the dragon's back. The light detonated like a bomb, not destructive, but purging. It crawled through the bones, tearing away the magic that held them together.

The dragon screamed, its roar splitting the air. Its entire spine glowed green, then started fracturing.

Raito twisted both daggers, shouting, "Break already!"

Cracks raced down the dragon's back, until

CRACK!

The spine split apart.

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