Ethereal Ascendance: A Journey of Transformation(1-3VOL)

Vampires Can't Fly

With a familiar loud "crack!", Alfreed the 6th-level swordsman nimbly dodged the Bone Dragon's attack with a backflip. He then stepped onto the monster's jawbone and fiercely hacked at it with his sword.

"Clang clang clang clang..."

Each strike left a deep gash in the bone. But the Bone Dragon felt no pain as an undead creature, and without vocal cords, it made no roar.

Still, having a puny human standing on its mouth must have pissed it off well. Since violently shaking its head failed to dislodge Alfreed, the Bone Dragon decided to utilize its aerial advantage and shot straight up into the sky.

"No brains sure makes things tough. Letting a human climb all over it just like that..."

The vampire clicked his tongue as he watched the aerial battle overhead.

Earlier, Adrian had said that the towers of Val City were somehow controlling these Bone Dragons. But clearly, it wasn't fine manipulation - the mindless undead were simply set loose to serve their masters through instinct alone.

So while the dragons boasted power and speed exceeding 6th level, their actual combat ability was severely limited. From my observation, they performed best in large-scale clashes where their massive bodies and lack of intellect mattered less. Smaller confrontations like this played more to their weaknesses.

If it were up to me, I would never have sent these war machines to chase us down. What was Val City thinking? Just like last time when they dispatched two dragons only to have me and Adrian jam them into the city walls.

Didn't they have any other flying 6th-tier forces?

"No matter. The rest of you look plenty weak anyway. I alone should suffice."

The vampire licked his lips hungrily as he eyed our group, poised to swoop down and finish us off.

Wasting no time, he charged at blistering speed, crossing the dozen meters separating us in the blink of an eye.

Hayden bravely stepped forward to meet the attack, raising his shield to guard the others. With a clear ringing sound, the shield shattered under the tremendous impact and Hayden was flung backward. Adrian and I rushed to catch him before he tumbled further.

Such terrifying power - the sturdy shield nearly caved in from that casual swipe! We sucked in our breath, alarmed. The squishy mages like Selene and Eleanora were now exposed before this monster.

But something about the vampire's devastating attack bothered me. It felt... off.

I took to the air, sword lifted overhead, and dove at the vampire while firing spheres of Purification from above. Sure enough, he instantly recoiled from the holy light rather than tanking the hits. Just as I predicted! I poured my strength into an overhead slash directed at his dodge.

My sword clanged loudly against his body as if striking solid stone. Pain and numbness shot through my hands. My blade snapped clean off, leaving me gripping a bare hilt.

At least he wasn't completely unharmed - a thin cut now marked his upraised arm.

I quickly flapped higher, hovering in midair.

The vampire stared at his injury for a moment before deciding not to pursue me skyward.

He really can't fly! A vampire that can't fly!

According to Adrian, vampires in bat form have powers akin to angels with tucked wings - basically useless. And he likely can't fly very quickly even transformed. Without hitching a ride on that Bone Dragon, he'd have never caught up to our ground-bound party from the city.