Chapter 272: Is this the End?

“You bitch…!”

Bellachrona finally snapped.

Not because she could deny Beatrix’s words—mere superficial evidence—but because she realized that those she sought to deceive never believed her for a moment.

All along, she had been putting on an act, fooling everyone.

Chatting, laughing, sharing vulnerabilities, and so on… Now, the realization that everyone had seen through her intentions from the start left her feeling like a complete fool.

What Beatrix said was mostly true, but only a select few had heard about the “plan” directly from Axel. More specifically, only those he trusted to act appropriately, even after knowing the truth.

Fenrir, Beatrix, and himself!

The others were genuinely enjoying themselves, blissfully unaware of the manipulations happening behind the scenes. They only learned of the plan after the split, thanks to the two System Spirits who informed them of the next steps.

“Shut up!” she growled as she lunged forward.

However, with five shackles attached to her by “invisible hands”—Navi and Mimir—her stats had dropped by nearly half, significantly weakening her.

She charged ahead, but Beatrix was quick enough to sidestep and evade her.

Then, Beatrix stepped in and slammed her blue-glowing fist directly onto the female dragon’s back.

BAM!

An explosion erupted as Bella slammed to the ground.

“Oh world—!”

Despite the damage from the hit, she refused to give up. Bella began to chant her skill, intending to stop time for a moment, when a fist collided with her face, interrupting her chant.

“Not on my watch!”

Beatrix’s uppercut sent Bella soaring, followed by a rapid series of strikes—a straight punch, another straight, a hook, and then a grounding slam once more, making the unfortunate dragon bounce like a ball on the solid cave floor.

Strikes came from every direction—left, right, up, and down. Bella was bewildered and utterly unable to counterattack! She couldn’t even finish her chanting!

Beatrix was quite the brawler, after all. Though it had been years since she had stepped away from the frontlines, she was confident her skills hadn’t diminished. Other than a few practice bouts, this was the first time in a long while that she had truly engaged in a fight again.

Bella’s mind was in turmoil.

She couldn’t break free from the combo; she couldn’t even chant. All she could do was become a punching bag, absorbing all the strikes that came—watching the blue fists flash like lasers, blindingly fast!

“Huh—?!”

However, her combo was abruptly interrupted.

A powerful breath attack, resembling a pillar of green light, struck her.

It had been aimed to pierce her chest, but by sheer reflex and instinct, she dodged to the left, resulting in a large chunk of her right side being hollowed out.

“Gahk…!”

Beatrix staggered, stepping back a few paces.

She leaned against the wall, coughing up blood while pressing a hand to her wound. The hole was as large as a basketball, with green veins spreading around the edges—clearly poisoned.

The damage was severe and could not be ignored.

If left untreated, it could be fatal.

“Heh…” Yet, the smile on her lips remained. “Looks like boyfie is angry…”

Just after she spoke, a large figure descended upon them. Smaller than Beatrix remembered, but unmistakably the same. “Faf…nir…”

The dragon landed, its red eyes scanning the battered Bella before turning back to Beatrix, filled with hatred.

[You dare…!]

“Ah, wait!”

Beatrix raised her hand, seemingly oblivious to the danger that filled the air.

As she paused, something shot up from a distant point, soaring toward the sky. It then exploded, transforming into a beautiful red firework that lasted only a brief moment.

Silence lingered for a few seconds until Beatrix shifted, leaning against the stone behind her as if trying to relax.

“Good.” She smiled. “I’ve got… nothing more… to do. Go ahead…”

Fafnir and Bella exchanged confused glances, bewildered by her apparent acceptance of death.

However, they sensed no immediate danger around them. The signal was puzzling, but their priority remained retrieving the Hearthfire. Fafnir intended to finish it quickly.

“STOP!”

Suddenly, another figure interrupted them, stepping in from below. She emerged from behind the stone Beatrix had been leaning against, climbing the mountain from “outside.”

A woman with green hair, clad in the same armor as Beatrix. Bella recognized her—Cherry!

But that wasn’t what shocked them.

It was the object in her hand.

A severed head of a woman, snakes writhing on top as if they were her hair.

Eyes that shimmered in myriad colors, like oil swirling in water. The moment Fafnir saw those eyes, he realized they had made a grave mistake.

[SHIT!]

He moved quickly, trying to shield Bella by hiding her behind him, but it was already too late.

What they were staring at was a high-class cursed object—Medusa’s Head—and it had already “caught” both of them. The moment they made eye contact with its eyes, there was no escape.

Their bodies began to turn to stone, faster than they could blink.

In moments, all three of them had become stone statues.

“…”

Beatrix looked at the two before her and sighed.

“I… barely survived… that…” she whispered, her voice filled with pain.

Then, through Fenrir’s portal, Axel appeared.

…

Axel didn’t need Beatrix to recount what had happened; it was evident from the sight of the two petrified “dragons” and one maid.

Even Cherry had been petrified merely for holding the Medusa’s Head!

The object itself was already secured by Navi and Mimir, allowing Axel to approach Cherry without risk. He moved closer and took out a rather expensive depetrification potion, pouring it over Cherry’s stone form.

CRACK!

As soon as he did, fissures ran across the rock surface.

Within moments, the stone peeled away as if it were a cracked clay pot. Cherry broke free from within, sending fragments of rock flying. Weakened, she stumbled forward, and Axel instinctively caught her by the shoulders.

“Oh…”

Axel gaped, staring at Cherry from up close.

Due to the petrification, she was weakened… but more notably, she was completely nude. Her clothes had been petrified along with her!

To spare her any embarrassment, Axel quickly wrapped a long robe around her. At least this would prevent her from exposing herself to the others. Not that it mattered much, since everyone but Axel was female, anyway.

“Alright!”

After he sent Cherry back to the castle using a return scroll, the others had already gathered around.

They stood encircling the petrified dragons, their eyes gleaming with intensity.

Petrification by the Medusa’s Head wasn’t permanent, of course.

It lasted for a full day but could still be undone by sufficiently powerful spells or potions. The petrified individuals themselves couldn’t break free, as their consciousness was completely lost. In short, it would be dangerous to leave the pair in this state.

“So…” Fenrir stepped forward, tapping the stone body of the dragon. “Shall we proceed as initially planned?”

Axel turned to her, then scanned the faces of everyone else, gauging their expressions…

And nodded.

“Let’s do it.”

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