Yevgeny naturally had plenty of reasons to be filled with rage.
Her mount, the Pegasus—or rather, the mounts of most Elf officers—was uniformly issued by the High Elf military based on position after a qualification review. Although her Pegasus wasn’t of the highest quality, not even medium grade, she still treasured it as a rare gem. She took extra care of it daily, making her the envy of her sisters.
The accidental death of a military Pegasus outside an official battlefield was also subject to investigation and accountability by the military. Even if she could avoid whipping and imprisonment by bribing superiors and pulling strings, a semi-public exoneration hearing and a fine large enough to deplete her salary for several years were inevitable. She would also suffer a reprimand from her superiors, leaving an indelible stain on her record. She could even imagine the sneering and mockery she would face from her colleagues and those bitches behind her back.
Most importantly, this Pegasus had been with her for sixteen years. Through many years of fighting side-by-side and long companionship, they had established a deep bond; she regarded Aima as family.
And now, to compensate for the fatal flaw in her plan, Yevgeny saw the Red Dragon about to break free from its paralysis and escape. She had no choice but to resolutely drive her mount into a hard collision with it. Even at the last moment, Aima ultimately couldn’t overcome its own cowardice and natural fear of the Dragon and wanted to shrink back. At that moment, Yevgeny’s heart twisted with pain, and she too wished to avoid such a cruel farewell.
But for the sake of a better tomorrow and the future of all under her command, Yevgeny, with tears in her eyes, drew her dagger and plunged it into Aima’s hindquarters, bestowing upon it the courage for its most glorious moment.
"Aima, you must believe that your sacrifice is worthwhile. It will be sung and remembered by all Elves in the future!"
"We will now avenge you. Rest in peace, Aima!"
Yevgeny, with trembling hands, tried to close the Pegasus’s eyes, which were wide with rage. But whether it was dying too resentfully or because it thought it could still be saved, the Pegasus’s eyes remained stubbornly open. Perhaps it dreamed of returning to Dewensen to drag the treacherous bitch who stabbed its butt and crashed it into the Dragon before a military court. Its eyes glared like two BMW xenon headlights.
Yevgeny tugged at them twice. Her hands, covered in blood, were nearly cramping, but she still couldn’t manage to close them.
"After this is over, I will have you and that mare whose rear you used to sniff buried together."
Perhaps finally accepting its fate, Aima at last consented to close its eyes.
Just as Yevgeny finally managed to soothe the Heroic Spirit of her beloved horse and turned to witness the Red Dragon that had killed Aima being dismembered by her subordinates, a thunderous Dragon’s Roar echoed through the mountains and forests. "ROAR!!!"
Yevgeny painfully closed her eyes. In a daze, she felt an overwhelming pressure rapidly approaching from the distance, as if the whole world trembled before it. Suddenly, that deafening Dragon’s Roar exploded beside her ear and in her mind, filling the air with a palpable sense of wrath and destruction. Her ears buzzed, and she could hear almost nothing. Breathing became difficult, and she couldn’t help but clutch her throat, gasping for air.
The sudden massive shockwave tore through everything around, lifting rocks, rotten wood, and dust into a whirlwind before smashing down upon her.
Yevgeny, in pain, struggled to open her eyes. Her vision was already blurred, but she could see her subordinates clutching their ears in agony, just like her. The Pegasus Knights closer to the sky were wailing in unison as they and their frothing mounts plummeted. Her own body was being violently shaken and dragged by her adjutant.
She instantly realized something was wrong and understood what she had just encountered. It was *Ferocious Aura*—or rather, an eruption of Dragon Might, empowered by the Authority: *Wrath*!
Distracted by comforting her beloved horse, she hadn’t noticed the Red Dragon’s volatile mood had peaked. As a result, she took the full force of the *Wrath*ful Dragon’s Roar, a blast potent enough to rival a mass psychic blast from Spirit Suckers.
This was bad! The next moment, the scenario she had foreseen yet least desired occurred:
She saw the Red Dragon, whom she had knocked from mid-air with her Pegasus, staggeringly rise. It did so in an impressively menacing manner despite appearing severely wounded, with many scales curling or even shed. Its seemingly cumbersome yet ferocious head scanned its surroundings in anger. Then, its wrathful and malevolent gaze settled upon her, its pupils slowly contracting into dangerous vertical slits.
Yevgeny’s body shuddered; a mix of indescribable fear and anger surged within her simultaneously.
This was bad! She tried to get up but couldn’t control her limbs, which were wracked with phantom pain. She realized she was in extreme danger.
The next moment, she heard a series of guttural dragon growls mixed with an irate roar explode again:
"Is that how you drive a BMW?"
"Those were my newly grown scales!"
David kicked and snapped the front leg of a charging Pegasus, causing the Pegasus Knight to tumble as the horse tripped. He then swung his tail to knock away an Elf who had leaped from a tree, trying to stab his throat with a slim sword. Cursing in a language incomprehensible to the Elves, he began charging at full speed towards the High Elf officer who had rammed him with her mount.
This wasn’t entirely for vengeance or to vent his anger. David was keenly aware of his predicament. With those few Pegasus Knights circling overhead, holding air superiority, and his own body still partially paralyzed with unresponsive wings, he knew that any attempt to forcibly take flight would be futile. The Pegasus Knights would simply follow their leader’s example and knock him down again.
The previous fall from mid-air already made him feel like several ribs were broken, and his head was so dizzy he wasn’t sure if he had a concussion. If this happened one or two more times, he might truly be done for today.
The only two solutions now were...
Take out the enemy’s leader amidst the chaos. As long as the commander dies, I have a chance!
He wants to kill me! The moment David moved—or rather, when his gaze fell upon her—Yevgeny had already discerned his intentions.
Or rather, this was the inevitable choice for her opponent, cornered by her plan!