The Price of Mercy

Viola… came back… but…

In what should have been a quiet and peaceful night, the cave was illuminated by the glow of magical lanterns.

Daisy stood there blankly, frozen in place.

Before her was Viola’s tall back, wrapped in a black dress.

In one hand, Viola held several feathered arrows.

In the other, she carried the still-bleeding severed head of the tall archer, Captain Bremen, whose body had already become a headless corpse.

She stood there, radiating killing intent, cold and merciless, facing the remaining three adventurers—Katie, Luke, and Jim—whose faces had gone deathly pale.

For a moment, no one spoke.

A suffocating silence filled the space, as if it could snap at any second.

The gap in combat strength between dragons and humans was enormous.

It was far beyond what phrases like heaven and earth or clouds and mud could describe.

It could even be said that a single dragon possessed enough power to rival an entire mid-to-high-tier human nation built upon magical civilization.

Conversely, every part of a dragon’s corpse was regarded by human nations as a priceless magical material.

The profit from slaying a single dragon was enough to revive an entire country.

Because of this, most human nations were obsessed with dragon-slaying—despite the high risk, the rewards were even greater.

However, precisely because of this overwhelming gap, for countless years, human nations never dared to invade dragon territories.

Over time, the dragons’ power faded into distant legend.

To the point that even low-ranking adventurers like Katie’s group no longer took those stories seriously.

In truth, Katie and the others were nothing more than expendable pawns, lured here by unseen masterminds.

Their purpose was simply to test whether they could return alive from a place rumored to house dragons.

Based on that, those behind the scenes would judge whether a dragon truly resided here.

At first, these reckless and ignorant adventurers had only planned to retreat after confirming traces of a dragon.

But driven by greed for the rumored treasure of a dragon’s lair, they decided to sneak in while the dragon was absent.

They never expected to encounter a real dragon.

Now, they were trapped in a desperate situation where death could come at any moment, and survival seemed nearly impossible.

Only now, facing Viola—whose body radiated vast and overwhelming magical power—did they truly feel it.

That crushing sense of despair.

It felt as if their hearts were being gripped in her hand.

Like insects facing a natural predator, they instinctively felt their lives could be taken at any moment.

“You… y-you… you’re also a dragon?!”

Luke, the crude and reckless heavy-armored warrior, was the first to break the silence.

He held a massive broadsword in one hand.

In the other, a large shield reinforced with metal, still bearing the dent from Daisy’s small fist.

Cold sweat poured down his face as he took a half-step back and raised his guard.

“M-my sword was forged by alchemists! It can easily split open the hardened hides of monsters!”

“My shield and armor are made from magic-infused metal! They can withstand fire and acid!”

“Don’t think I’m scared just because you’re a dragon!”

“We’re adventurers from the Mountain Eagle Guild of Gran City!”

“If you dare touch us, stronger people will come to avenge us!”

“The army, the Magic Association, dragon slayers—sooner or later they’ll come and—”

“So what?”

“Human adventurer?”

Viola casually tossed aside the arrows and Bremen’s severed head.

Her beautiful face was filled with cold killing intent.

Without even taking a defensive stance, she stepped forward.

Her aura of violence felt almost tangible as she advanced without hesitation.

“Are those your only last words?”

“Don’t look down on me!”

“I’m an adventurer!!!!”

Driven mad by fear, Luke lunged forward like a cornered beast.

His heavy broadsword was infused with magic from a magic-stone ring, forming a sharp magical blade capable of splitting stone.

Combining momentum, force, and the full weight of his armored body, he swung with everything he had—aiming directly at Viola’s neck.

All they knew about dragons came from vague rumors.

Many of them had never even believed in the exaggerated strength described in those stories.

However, almost every legend mentioned one thing.

The reverse scale at a dragon’s neck—their weakest point.

Dragon slayers in those tales all struck at that point to kill them.

Now, Luke gambled everything on that one desperate strike.

But Viola did not dodge.

She did not even raise a hand to defend.

The blade struck her pale, delicate-looking neck with a loud metallic clang.

Sparks burst outward.

Katie and Jim were stunned.

If that strike had truly hit her weak point, even if she didn’t die, she should at least be severely injured.

They might still have a chance to escape.

Daisy, seeing Viola take the blow without resisting, was also shocked.

She stood there blankly, unable to react.

“I—I hit it!”

“The dragon’s weak point!”

“I’m going to become a dragon slayer!”

Luke shouted in manic excitement.

But suddenly, something felt wrong.

His smile froze on his face.

His sword had indeed struck Viola’s neck.

However, at some point, a layer of silver-gray scales had formed over that spot.

There wasn’t even a scratch.

Yes, the neck was a weak point.

But even with all his strength, enhanced by magic, Luke’s attack could not break through Viola’s scales.

Five flashes of razor-sharp light cut through the air.

Before Luke could even react, his specially crafted sword and shield were sliced apart into fragments.

Along with them, both of his arms were severed.

Metal shards, sparks, and blood scattered violently.

Viola, just like when she sliced meat and vegetables while cooking for Daisy, had simply extended her sharp dragon claws and casually swiped.

With that single motion, she shattered his weapon and shield—along with his arms.

“AAAAAAAHHHHH?!”

“My arms!”

“My arms!!!”

Luke’s face twisted in terror and agony as he screamed.

Blood poured from his severed wrists.

He staggered and turned, running toward Katie and Jim, desperately seeking help.

“Help me!”

“Save—”

Before he could finish—

Viola vanished.

A sharp sonic boom tore through the air.

A flash of cold light followed.

In the next instant, she appeared before him.

Her claw—its nails extended like blades—tore through his armored body.

His entire upper half was instantly shredded apart.

Fragments of armor, chunks of flesh, sparks, and blood exploded outward.

Half of his familiar face rolled across the ground and stopped at Katie and Jim’s feet.

His bulging eyes remained frozen in terror as they stared at them.

That single strike completely shattered the will of the remaining two adventurers.

Their weapons couldn’t harm her at all.

She could tear them apart effortlessly.

Her speed was so fast they couldn’t even see it.

There was no way to dodge.

No way to escape.

How could they possibly survive against such a monster?

“Human adventurers…”

Viola stood calmly, flicking the blood from her claw.

She glanced at the mangled remains of Luke lying in a pool of blood.

“Whatever guild you belong to…”

“Or whatever you think you are…”

“Who allowed you to enter this place?”

“What if you scared my Daisy?”

“Uu…”

Daisy did feel a little frightened.

But not because of the intruding adventurers.

Standing before her, Viola radiated a cold, unfamiliar killing intent.

She had just killed two humans as if it meant nothing.

Then, without haste, she turned toward the remaining two—Jim and Katie—and spoke in a low, cold voice.

“How did you know a dragon lives here?”

“I should not have left any traces in the outside world.”

“How did you find out?”

“Who told you?”

“Speak.”

“……”

“……”

Katie and Jim watched their companions die without resistance.

They stood in absolute despair, knowing they might be next.

Fear choked their voices.

And yet, somewhere deep inside, they still clung to the illusion that a desperate struggle might give them a chance to escape.

“……”

Viola said nothing further.

She simply raised her slender arm.

Her palm opened upward.

Magic surged.

Blazing flames erupted and swirled violently.

They gathered and compressed above her hand.

In moments, a massive fireball formed—so large it nearly touched the cave ceiling.

It hovered like a miniature sun, radiating terrifying heat and power.

The air itself seemed to burn.

The scorching heat blasted against Katie and Jim’s faces.

It felt as though they would be roasted alive where they stood.

This was merely a casual display of Viola’s power.

Yet it far exceeded the limits of human magic.

It even surpassed ordinary dragons.

It was power that could destroy the world itself.

Before Katie and Jim, it manifested as tangible despair.

A cruel sentence of certain death, delivered through blazing heat and blinding light.

If that fireball were thrown, it would instantly reduce them to ashes without resistance.

Even just hovering there, it was enough to burn them alive.

To them, that blazing sphere was like an executioner’s blade hanging over their heads.

At any moment, it could fall—and end their fragile lives.

That overwhelming sense of imminent death shattered their last remaining sanity.

“Treasure—I don’t want it anymore!”

“Spare me!”

“Spare meeeeeee!!!”

“M-monster!”

“A monster!!!”

Unable to withstand the fear any longer, Jim and Katie both screamed as they turned and fled toward the cave exit.

In terms of speed, strength, and magical power, humans simply could not compete with dragons.

Even elite dragon slayers among humans required coordinated group tactics, powerful artifacts, and prolonged battles just to defeat a single mature dragon.

These ordinary adventurers had never truly understood how terrifying dragons were.

This mission had only been meant to confirm whether a dragon lived here.

Or rather, they had been sent as disposable pawns—used by someone behind the scenes.

In the end, they were nothing more than tragic sacrifices.