"Don't hold back on me. I just realized you were holding back," he said, eyes narrowing. "I thought you were going all out, but you actually restrained yourself because you saw me as no threat. But now? Now I'm bigger than you imagined. You were only using about 50% of your power on me. Go all out. Show me what a dragon's true strength feels like. I was taught a single slam from a dragon could destroy a mountain. Show me. Go all out."

"Well, I don't see what gave you this confidence. For a human, you're not meant to be this strong. You dodged my attack just now. You left me no choice. That is humiliating and it annoys my pride. But still, you are going to die," the World Eater Dragon growled.

Instantly, the atmosphere shifted. The air thickened with heat as black and red energy crackled around the dragon's body. The ground beneath him began to press inward under the force of his aura. Parts of the walls seemed to melt, rock liquefying as his energy distorted the entire room.

"I welcome you, human. If you survive this, consider it a gift. This punch, my full power, can shatter mountains. Not a single bone in your body will remain. Everything will turn to dust from the heat," the dragon said, his voice shaking the very air.

"Well, come at me. Stop talking, you weakling," Raito said, smirking.

"How dare you mock me once again?" the dragon snarled.

In an instant, it moved. Boom. Its fist was already at Raito's face before he could react. The heat alone burned the air around him. Raito felt the heat searing before contact, his face threatening to melt under it.

[System Notification]: Skill in use: User will not be ripped apart, no matter the attack.

Part of Raito's neck cracked from the force, but in an instant, the bone rejoined automatically. The burns on his face vanished, leaving him unscathed.

Raito smiled, raising his hand back and then forward. He struck the dragon's face with a punch infused with his newfound strength.

Boom. The dragon's head snapped back violently. His system reacted, enhancing Raito's ability to react stronger to attacks, but the sheer force of the counterattack shattered Raito's bones.

Boom. Raito flew backward, slamming against the wall. Pain shot through him, every bone aching, but his system immediately repaired the fractures.

"What the? That strength from the punch, my body hasn't reached this capacity yet. There's always going to be damage, even if I can now react to attacks stronger than me. That attack was stronger than I am," Raito thought, clutching his chest as he regained his stance.

The dragon hovered in front of him, eyes wide. "I never expected you to still be alive. You truly surprise me, human. And I am using 100% of my power," the World Eater Dragon said, its aura blazing even brighter, the ground trembling beneath him.

"But why didn't your rib break just now?" Raito asked, glaring at the dragon as he floated there, breathing heavily but refusing to back down. "That attack I just landed was stronger than the one I used to shatter your rib earlier. Stronger. So why didn't you take any damage? Not even a scratch?"

They drifted closer, closing the distance, eyes locked in mid-air.

"Well," the World Eater Dragon said, voice calm, "I'll tell you. Because you are a human, I didn't see a reason to activate my defense. I simply raised it a moment ago. Now…" Its grin widened. "Let me see how you plan to defeat me. Show me what you've got, human."

The dragon vanished.

Boom.

It appeared directly in front of Raito and punched him in the face. Raito's head snapped backward violently, but the system instantly healed him.

Raito reacted with a counterpunch, fast, precise, instinctive.

Boom.

The dragon slid back slightly and then reappeared with the same strength. Then again. And again.

It threw twelve punches in a blur, each one equal to its full force. Raito reacted to each one, matching the dragon's power perfectly and punching back with even greater force, just as his new skill allowed.

But the cost was brutal.

Crack.

The bones in Raito's arm shattered from the overwhelming recoil of matching a dragon's full power. They healed instantly, only to shatter again on the next punch. Then heal again. Then shatter again.

His body was repairing itself nonstop, LP burning like wildfire as the system forced him to endure.

The dragon raised an arm to block, sliding backward as Raito continued matching blow for blow.

Then.

Boom.

A punch from the dragon landed in Raito's stomach. His ribs exploded inward, shattered completely, before instantly reforming as the system kicked in again, draining more LP.

Raito didn't even let the pain register. He lifted his leg high and kicked the dragon across the neck.

Boom.

Both of them slid back.

Raito gasped for breath.

"Even with the skill I gained, preventing my body from ripping apart from my own punches, and even with auto-healing no matter the LP cost, my body, my muscles, they're starting to weaken," he thought, trembling. "Every time a bone shatters, it grows back stronger. But my muscles can't keep up. This is insane. How do I win? How?"

He stretched out his hand.

Shing.

His dagger materialized in his grip.

"Well," Raito said, his breathing slowing, mind sharpening, "I changed my mind. There's no need for me to rely on punches."

He tightened his grip on the dagger.

"I'll still react with the same strength, the exact force you're using on me. But this time, not with my fists." His eyes glowed. "With a blade."

Raito raised the dagger, aura vibrating around it.

"With this, I'll be able to penetrate your skin. This is going to be much better."

"I'll show you, then. Even if you can react to my strength, no matter how I throw it at you, that dagger will never pierce my body. It will shatter the moment it touches me," the dragon said.

"Well, you're wrong," Raito replied. "It won't."

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