Chapter 48 Public Duel (2) Season 1 End (Not really)...

"'Public duel'? No, Xia Ying, this is not the same as the small-scale skirmishes we've had so far."

Hearing her words, the dragon was not angered, but instead spoke patiently.

"Besides, you have no reason to do so."

“I think I have perfectly good reasons for doing this.” Xia Ying tilted her head. “Fafnir, do you know why I still can’t complete [Ring Domain Internship] even though I’ve already completed Wilderness Mission #63?”

Faced with her questioning, the dragon fell into a brief silence.

After a long while, he let out a low laugh. Xia Ying's expression remained unchanged as she listened quietly as the laughter grew increasingly unrestrained and flamboyant.

"This is because, from the very beginning, the so-called conditions for completion were nothing more than your own wishful thinking."

The dragon has completely shed its gentle mask.

A black collar appeared around Xia Ying's neck, and Fafnir dragged the chains made of magic essence, pulling her closer.

Xia Ying was suddenly pulled down in front of him. Fafnir leaned down, one hand wrapped with chains, the other gently lifting Xia Ying's face.

The dragon's golden vertical pupils stared unblinkingly at the girl's expression, which was slightly furrowed in pain.

"This means that no matter how hard you try, you will never reach the end of the [Ring Domain Internship]." Just like when they first met, his eyes sparkled with pleasure. "Xia Ying, you will never be able to leave the Crimson Crown Ring, and you will never be able to escape my control."

Fafnir's fingers traced her lips and cheeks, pausing slightly at the corner of her eye. "Why are you looking at me like that, Xia Ying? Perhaps you find it hard to accept at first, but it's not a bad thing. Yes, I've taken away your freedom, but aren't dragons always like that?"

The dragon whispered cruel words of love to her.

"Why not stop those pointless struggles? Once you become my partner, Cocytus will be unable to hurt you anymore, and you will no longer have to fear anything..."

Xia Ying slowly raised her head, and Fafnir's figure came into full view. The dragon smiled, but he also noticed that even at this moment, the light in those eyes had not yet faded.

Xia Ying smiled and said, "So, is that your reason for not daring to accept my challenge?"

Fafnir suddenly stopped: "...What?"

Even though Xia Ying was the one imprisoned by the Sisyphus Collar, Fafnir was pulled toward her instead when she gripped the chains.

"What's wrong? Isn't a 'public duel' a matter of honor for the Crimson Crowned Ones?" She stood up and roughly grabbed the dragon's red hair. "Hurry up and tell me, will you accept or refuse?!"

Fafnir looked up at her, his eyes shining like flames.

"You'll regret this, Xia Ying."

He loosened the chains, and the collar flashed one last time before slowly fading from shape.

Dragonfire instantly ignited, enveloping the two, transforming their location from a dragon's nest into an empty arena.

Fafnir transformed into a dragon, unfurled its membranous wings, and cast a massive and terrifying shadow upon the ground.

The dragon's voice boomed like thunder: "Xia Ying, what do you fight for?"

“One request,” Xia Ying said. “The winner of the duel may make one request to the loser, whatever it may be.”

A scale appeared above the arena. As Xia Ying finished speaking, one side of the scale sank, as she had placed her promise on it first.

The dragon flapped its membranous wings faster and faster, and the hurricanes it stirred up made the battlefield tremble: "I accept your challenge."

The other side of the scale suddenly sank, temporarily achieving balance.

The "open duel" was thus established.

Xia Ying immediately drew her golden dragon-slaying longsword. Fafnir was the most powerful enemy she was facing head-on, and she had to carefully choose when to use the Golden Apple... However, the moment she met the dragon's gaze, Xia Ying laughed.

From the dragon's gaze, Xia Ying strangely understood his thoughts at that moment.

A pure energy closest to destruction began to accumulate and surge within the dragon's body, its intense light illuminating his crimson scales as if they were flowing fire.

"The two of us, actually, might..."

Xia Ying used the [Golden Apple], and as powerful golden magic enveloped her, the young heroine leaped into the air.

Pale dragonfire surged forth, engulfing her figure in an instant.

The Golden Apple bore the brunt of this catastrophe for her, but the terror brought by this destructive dragon flame far exceeded death itself.

The pale flames came with immense force, but as Xia Ying was engulfed by them, the first thing she felt was absolute silence.

Space itself seemed to be choked, all sound instantly wiped out by an invisible hand. What followed was a distortion of perception; the scene before her eyes began to change, sunlight was torn into pale streaks of light, and the ground beneath her feet seemed to be constantly extending.

Time lost its meaning here; Xia Ying was trapped in a boundless, pale void, and even her own existence began to blur...

Xia Ying suddenly regained her senses, gripped the Dragon Slayer Blade tightly, and thus found her footing.

She quickened her pace, swimming upstream against the dragon fire, the finish line becoming increasingly clear in her eyes.

She was gazing at the dragon's neck.

In the dragon's deepest dream, Xia Ying had witnessed Fafnir's defenses being breached by the Titans, and thus she remembered that the dragon's weakness lay in his neck.

Xia Ying simply didn't know which scale it was hidden under.

However, the moment had come when she had to wield the sword.

The instant she reached the dragon, Xia Ying poured all her power into the [Dragon-Slaying Pact]. Just as this sword, heavier than a thousand pounds, was about to fall on the dragon's neck, the last bit of magic power of the [Golden Apple] was exhausted.

The golden barrier shattered suddenly, and in the face of this devastating catastrophe, the human body was as insignificant as dust.

The dragon fire suddenly engulfed Xia Ying.

In Xia Ying's perception, the moment of death was infinitely extended.

When she first saw the Pale Dragonfire, she felt a deep fear, but now that she was facing annihilation, there was only one thing on her mind.

Xia Ying thought to herself, if only she had a little more time.

Just one second. She pleaded. Just one second.

Xia Ying's death began to reverse, and her body, which had turned to dust, was rapidly reconstructed. However, she was still within the dragon fire, and the forces of rebirth and destruction were locked in a tug-of-war, making the resurrection process extremely difficult and painful.

Enduring the scorching heat of the flames of destruction, Xia Ying finally brought her sword down with all her might.

Her almost forgotten title, which had a lucky charm effect, came in handy at an unexpected moment.

In that instant that Xia Ying had achieved with all her might, Lady Luck bestowed all her favor upon the tip of her sword.

The Dragon Slayer Pact struck Fafnir's Achilles' heel with unparalleled precision.

The dragon's armor crumbled, and the out-of-control pale dragon flames engulfed both the dragon and the hero.

Time slowed down once more, and in this pale, meaningless wasteland of ashes, Fafnir smiled at her once more.

"I never thought you could actually make it this far, Xia Ying."

Didn't you guess?

Xia Ying said something else.

“Fafnir, I thought you gave me the Ring of Greed because you believed I would eventually get here.”

It was in this arena that Fafnir knelt down on one knee and placed the ring with the black gemstone on Xia Ying's finger.

The dragon's greed constantly clamors for complete possession of its beloved, but Fafnir's desires yearn for more.

In the final moments of the public duel, he gazed intently at the dragon-slaying hero, a scene reminiscent of the ending of an entertainment program... Amidst the crimson moon and the light of the sword, Xia Ying's figure was etched into the dragon's eyes for the first time. As the sword left its mark, he too fell in love at first sight with this radiant girl.

I want to see her like that again in person.

I want to experience that glorious victory once again.

so.

Come and challenge me, Xia Ying.

“I heard your love confession and fully understood your desires, so I came here!”

At this moment, even the pale dragon fire could not extinguish Xia Ying's shouts.

The dragon-slaying sword, forged from the ring, severed the dragon's head. As dragon blood rained down, the hero's body was utterly destroyed by the dragon's fire.

The devastated arena fell silent.

Dragon blood and ashes fell indiscriminately, slowly extinguishing the remaining embers.

From the highest point, the ultimate arbiter of the battlefield spoke.

"Both sides in the public duel are now dead. In your opinion, who should be the ultimate victor?"

Jormungandr closed his eyes gently and sadly: "I vote for Xia Ying."

The Qilin said coldly, "Without a doubt, Fafnir."

Charybdis lingered, unwilling to look away from the battlefield, his soul almost shattered with grief: "Xia Ying."

"Is it my turn?" Taotie laughed. "I already have a bias in my heart, but I'm also very curious about the Demon Lord's opinion... So, I vote for Fafnir."

With both sides receiving the same number of votes, it is now up to the Demon Lord to make the final choice.

He stood up, struck the black scepter in his hand, and gave his answer.

"I declare Xia Ying the winner."

The scales hanging over the battlefield suddenly tilted to one side.

"A public duel, this is the verdict."

####

Xia Ying opened her eyes in the tranquil lake water.

The Fountain of Life gently surrounds her, giving her new life while also soothing the wounds that death has inflicted on her soul.

Xia Ying turned her head and found the handsome red-haired man still sleeping soundly beside her.

This scene seemed just like an ordinary morning she spent in the dragon's nest, with no indication that the two had just been fighting each other and had crossed a deadly place together.

Xia Ying tried to stand up, and the lake water gently lifted her body, the swaying waves waking the giant dragon.

When the dragon opened his eyes, she was looking down at him.

"Fafnir, it seems like I've won."

"Um."

"Your dragon fire burned me painfully, but I also cut off your head, so I won't hold it against you."

"Um."

"Fafnir, are you listening to me?"

"Mmm." Fafnir took her right hand, the one that had once held the sword, and kissed the knuckles of the ring she wore. "I love you, Xia Ying."

Xia Ying paused for a moment, then replied casually, "I know."

Amidst the beautiful lake scenery, the atmosphere seemed to subtly shift. Xia Ying coughed lightly and continued, "Since I'm the winner, I must exercise my legal rights... Do you remember the condition you promised me?"

“Of course,” Fafnir said. “I will keep my promise.”

Fafnir raised an eyebrow, waiting for her to continue.

"If the genie gave me the chance to make a wish, I would probably tell it that I want a thousand more wishes... Sorry, that's the kind of person I am."

Xia Ying said with a hint of pride.

"So my demand is, Fafnir, to transfer ownership of the Sisyphus Collar to me."

The moment Xia Ying asked to confirm, the black collar appeared in her hand.

She bent down, and with a soft "click," the collar locked onto the dragon's neck.

Based on the results of the public duel, the magical artifact acknowledged the superior-subordinate relationship between Xia Ying and Fafnir.

The Sisyphus Collar is now in effect.

"I've wanted to do this for a long time..."

Xia Ying tightened the chains and bent down to approach the giant dragon.

"Call me 'master' first, Fafnir."

####

In his temporary lodging, Cerberus was waiting for Xia Ying to return.

She returned much later than expected, and the food was reheated again and again, but the demon dog still didn't hear her open the door.

In an apartment exactly like Room 1008 in Building C, only the clock ticked incessantly. This silent atmosphere reminded Cerberus of the past when he lived with Xia Ying in the human world.

Compared to the demon realm, human life is peaceful, but it's also hard to understand why there are always complicated reasons that lead Xia Ying away from the demon hound. So he can only wait alone, waiting for her to open the door again, waiting for her to drive away the unbearably cold silence.

But Xia Ying told him that no matter how far she went, she would always come home.

From that moment on, Cerberus began to understand the definition of "home".

Suddenly, footsteps sounded, and someone turned the doorknob.

As the door was gently pushed open, everything in the room came to life. Cerberus could no longer hear the clock; he transformed into a black dog and eagerly ran towards the girl returning home.

"Kerber, I'm sorry I'm so late." Xia Ying hugged the black dog and rubbed her nose against its fluffy cheek. "I'm so hungry, let's eat first..."

She smiled and looked up.

"In a little while, I have a very long story to tell you."

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Author's note: How wonderful, Xia Ying, she has a stable home life while having affairs on the side.

The first chapter of this story is almost finished. If this were an animated film, some new ending themes would start playing at this point...