Battle of the Dragons Part 2 — Meilin

The monster howled, locking its bloody eyes with mine.

At that moment, it felt as if gravity was dragging me down. My legs wouldn’t budge. I stared up at my teammates hopelessly as they all fought for their lives. It may just be my delusion, but something feels wrong.

“We have to end this battle soon!” I shouted at Haruki. The monster brutally flung off Himari, while Jianyun was swept away by its tail. The dragon was fuming, smoke pouring out of its nostrils. Its scales darkened, and it doubled in size. “I believe the dragon is powering up in some way,”

“But we can’t possibly end the battle now.” Haruki gripped his staff tightly. “We’ll have to survive through it.”

I frantically racked my brain for ideas. We have to end this shortly. If it fully powers up, I don’t know if I’ll live to see another day. And I want to live. I must live.

I cannot use any more risky spells like the one I used before. I have to be more cautious. I have to use a powerful yet low-risk spell. Think, Meilin, think! What spells are there?

“Wait…Haruki, remember that duo spell we once discovered?”

“That spell is nothing but a legend!” Haruki grunted, casting defense spells left and right.

“But it’s worth a try!” I pleaded with Haruki. I can’t think of any other way.

He looked uneasy, but obliged anyway. “Alright. I trust you.”

Jianyun was thoroughly beaten up, and so was Himari, who was nowhere in sight. There was no other way. Please, whoever’s up there, let this work.

“Magical duet!”

It sounded foolish, like a spell straight out of a fairytale, but to me, Elysium is a fairytale, so I poured my last ounce of faith into it.

“It sounds like something that came out of a manga about magical girls,” Haruki grumbled, having the same thought as me. But at that moment, my staff rose, pointing in the direction of the dragon. Then it splintered with a chime, shattering into a million pieces, and shifted into magical instruments.

A violin glided right into my arms, and a cello plummeted onto Haruki.

I picked up a bow, and so did Haruki. My hands waved in a graceful motion, as if the goddess of music herself was guiding me with my bowing. Along with Haruki’s cello, we produced a harmonic melody that wrapped around the area in circles.

Each note rose like a spark, each chord wove together into the form of a dragon, its body made of constellations—glistening, faceless, endless, flowing like the Milky Way.

The dragon—the fifth zodiac of the twelve animals. I was born in the year of the dragon, a dragon child, destined for good fortune and ambition. Seeing the shimmering dragon in front of me, I saw a younger version of myself smiling in the stars. The light of ambition returned to my eyes. I believed.

The dragon coiled in the sky, then descended. A significant tremor caught us off balance, and it crushed the white dragon beneath its shimmering body. With a final bow, the duet was finished, the final notes echoing over the chamber.

The dragon was defeated.

The instruments faded away, leaving only ashes behind. "Oh..." I whispered into the thin air. That marks the end of my staff. Luckily, I still have my wish orb stored right here.

As we celebrated with cheers and yippees, I peeked over where the dragon rested.

Huh?

That blonde hair, those soulless eyes…

It can’t be.

In front of me lay the weakened spirit of the dragon. She wore a sly smirk on her face, clutching an orb in her hand.

“Hihi, Meilin.”

That voice sent shivers down my spine.

An old classmate of mine, one who died shortly before I arrived.

“What are you doing here?” By then, Haruki and the others have gathered around the weak spirit. She was in no state to fight, but still, we aimed our weapons at her. Even Himeka was observing from a distance.

“Oh, Meilin, look at your poor bestie.” Haokei was a serpent with a silver tongue. All my life, she had trapped me, purely with words. She never laid a finger on me, but a single word from her was enough to turn the entire class against me.

“Who’s this?” Himari tilted her head in confusion. Haruki quietly explained that she was here to pass the dragon orb onto the next person.

“Yes, and after I pass it on, I’ll be gone, forever and ever, Meilin.” She had me wrapped around her finger, looking at me with pitiful puppy eyes. “Just like that time in the forest.” That came out as a hiss only I could hear.

“But there’s a way you can save me, Meilin.” Haokei’s smile was as sweet as honey, but behind it was an intention as malicious as a venomous snake's bite. “Trade your wish orb for my dragon orb.”

“And what makes you think I’d do that?”

“Because it’s a win-win situation.” Haokei replied calmly, “I get to live, and you get to become the most powerful dragon in Elysium.”

“I don’t want to stay in Elysium. I’m going back to Earth.”

“Oh?” She raised her eyebrow, “But you have nothing there. You don’t have any friends. You’ll only be tortured in that classroom you despise. Every. Single. Day. You have everything here in Elysium! Friends, money, a place to live. Are you sure you wish to return?”

“I know what you did. And I won’t die knowing that you were behind all of it. Without you, I wouldn’t have died in the first place. Without you, I wouldn’t have suffered. Without you, my mother wouldn’t be this depressed.”

“That’s quite a bold assumption.” Haokei’s brow furrowed, “What makes you think that?”

“No need to play innocent.” I clenched my teeth. Oh, how I want to slap that smug smile off your face. “Even if it wasn’t you, which I know it is, you never even thought of helping me. You claimed you were my friend, but always turned a blind eye to the bullying.”

“Oh, come on, if you were in my place, you wouldn’t help yourself either. You were like a princess, having everything handed to you.” Haokei shrugged, “Admit it, you're just like me. Aren’t we such good besties?”

“There’s no need for you to negotiate." A firm, loud voice echoed through the cave. “I’m taking the dragon orb.”

Standing in front of me was the silhouette of a strong warrior. Her hair danced in the wind, and she looked back at me with a grin, like a heroine coming to the rescue. I smiled. She really resembles Yulan, huh.

“You don’t have to do it, Himari. I can do it.” Haruki tried reaching out for the dragon orb, but Haokei quickly whipped it away.

“No! No! You can’t!” Haokei broke down, protectively hiding the dragon orb. “This is for Meilin. Meilin only! She doesn’t deserve the wish orb as much as I do! She deserves to suffer like I did. She ruined my life!”

What?

How did I ever ruin her life?