I’ve been waiting oh so long for the chance to put my power to good use.
And for a place to die after finally fighting to my fullest.
We creatures called the ancient dragon chiefs are still only a pathetic imitation of true dragons.
In truth, we are chimeras born of Potimas’s experiments.
Unlike Ariel and the other humanoid chimeras who were in the custody of Goddess Sariel’s orphanage, we ancient dragon chiefs bore appearances close to those of the real dragons.
As such, we were treated not as children to be protected, but as beasts.
Perhaps we had other brethren who were experimented upon and died without my knowledge.
In fact, I do not doubt it is so.
It was Lord Güliedistodiez who protected us all the same.
That is why we feel such respect for our lord.
No doubt Ariel feels similarly toward Goddess Sariel.
Unlike her, however, we were designated as monsters by the system.
Yes, even the gods saw us as beasts.
So we chose to pursue the path of being our lord’s kin and underlings.
We gave up on blending in with humans, yet refused to be reduced to mere monsters, and obtained the position of an administrator’s loyal retainers.
Along the way, we carried out various roles, increased the number of our kin, and built a foundation on which we could live in this world.
Hyuvan set to the task of purifying the polluted wasteland.
Iena took charge of the seas to prevent people from roaming into the open ocean.
Nia, Nguyen, and Gohka each had their own territories to control, too.
And I was in charge of sealing away the Sword of the Demon Lord.
The main reason for this is that I was a leftover, with no territory of my own.
There was another reason, too: My power was special compared to the powers of the others.
If the time ever came that the Sword of the Demon Lord was needed, my power might be needed as well.
So I was sealed away along with the sword.
You see, I deliberately built up my abilities for a particular purpose.
Namely, to do battle against gods.
The only kind of power that works against gods is the sort of ability that attacks the soul.
Heresy Attacks, which directly assault the soul.
The Rot attribute, which deals in death.
Abyss Magic, which extinguishes the soul.
I put the majority of my skill points toward these specialties and prioritized their growth.
All in case an outside god ever attempted to invade this world.
But of course, such a situation is highly unlikely.
According to my lord, Administrator D is not only far stronger than he is, but feared even among the other powerful gods of the universe.
No god would ever attempt to invade a world under Administrator D’s control.
If they did, it would only be out of incredible ignorance.
So my existence was nothing more than an emergency measure—for the unthinkable event of a god’s invasion, though it would be quite a serious matter if it did come to pass.
But even as an emergency measure, I would be of precious little use.
If a god did invade our world, it is our lord who would be the first to face them down.
My power would only be necessary if our lord were to lose.
And if our lord could not defeat the invader, then surely I wouldn’t stand a chance.
I was much too weak to serve as a proper emergency measure.
A deeply limited solution, though still better than no solution at all: That is the sum of my existence, my purpose.
My moment would only come in the unlikely event that my lord were to be defeated, and even if that moment did come, I would be more than likely to lose as well. In the grand scheme of things, it made no difference whether I existed or not at all.
One cannot help but laugh.
In the million-to-one chance that my lord lost a battle, I was the insurance with a billion-to-one chance of succeeding in his stead.
None would ever carry more than the faintest hope that I might prove useful.
Thus, I had no real sense of purpose.
I longed for a moment where I could shine.
Where I could put my power to use.
A place where I could finally demonstrate the meaning of my existence.
And if such a place and time exists, surely it must be here and now!
“Hiyah!”
I unleash a Heresy Attack with the heel of my palm.
Unlike the other ancient dragon chiefs, my body’s structure is still fairly humanoid even in dragon form.
Thus, I am the only chief who uses human martial arts.
And it just so happens that martial arts combine very well with skills that add an attribute to strikes, like Heresy Attack and Rot Attack.
Administrator D blocks my palm strike with her sword.
The blade digs deep into my skin, and I pull back my hand.
But it’s only a matter of seconds before the deep slice in my palm seals itself.
The elf known as Missoka has used her Charity skill to enhance all of our regenerative abilities.
Thanks to her, I can fight without worrying about such wounds as these.
Still, I mustn’t let my guard down for even a moment.
D’s sword speeds toward me.
My stats average around eleven thousand each.
Even then, her movements are still faster than my eyes can follow.
There’s no time to dodge, either.
Just as the blade is about to slice off the top of my head, another figure intercepts it.
It’s Sophia, using her broadsword as a shield against D’s attack.
On top of that, she’s trapped D’s leg with red ice.
I take that opening to spring out in front of Sophia with a flying kick.
But D manages to break the ice and dodges away.
“Too bad. We almost had her.”
“INDEED.”
Though she dodged our onslaught, it still had an effect.
Administrator D is deliberately avoiding my attacks.
Against me alone, she always dodges or guards with her sword, even though she seems to take no damage from the others’ attacks regardless of whether they hit her directly.
This in spite of the fact that attacks far stronger than mine in terms of stats and raw destructive power have been raining down on her nonstop.
This proves that my attacks will work on Administrator D.
And everyone here knows it.
Of course, that means I’ve become the main offensive force.
Everyone else is backing me up to help ensure that my attacks might hit their target.
Truly, it’s quite a thrill.
Here I am in the leading role on such an important stage.
It is the first time I have ever felt so keenly that my existence has a purpose.
I am satisfied.
All that remains is to put everything I have into this role, until the curtain closes on my life at last!