"Very well," Ryu rumbled, the sound no longer just raw power, but a voice with a name. He shifted, settling into a more attack-ready posture, the faint glow returning to his eyes. The raw grief was still there, the deep scars of his past, but now... now there was also a spark of something else. A grudging acceptance. A shared absurdity. A new path, beginning with 325 more dodges.
He didn't hesitate. The pause for contemplation was over. With a guttural roar that held less desperation and more... professional courtesy? ...he launched his attack. Fire erupted, claws swiped, teeth snapped. He was relentless, powerful, every move honed by centuries of existence and fueled by a lifetime of rage.
And I dodged.
Swoosh. WOOSH. Swoosh.
My body moved on instinct, fueled by adrenaline, practice, and the sheer absurdity of the situation. Fifteen meters away, Ryu was trying to kill me. I was avoiding it not just to survive, but to fulfill a divine checklist. And with each near miss, each wave of Ryu's power washing over me, I felt my shield vibrate, subtly absorbing the raw, ancient energy radiating from him. It wasn't the System counting this, not directly. This was... a separate process. Related to Ryu. Related to the rage. Related, I suspected, to that dark power I sought. But not the task itself.
Progress: 675/1000.
The System notification flickered at the edge of my vision, a constant, digital tally of my absurd task.
Ryu attacked with renewed vigor. Now that the decision was made, the conversation was over, he was putting his full, considerable power into it. Tail sweeps that flattened trees, charges that cratered the earth, roars that sent smaller jungle creatures fleeing in terror. He was magnificent. A terrifying, beautiful engine of destruction.
And I was a human-sized anomaly, weaving between death, dodging with a precision born of necessity and a touch of divine amplification (I suspected). My life depended on not making a single mistake. My goal, the 1000 dodges, depended on enduring all of them.
Progress: 700/1000.
Progress: 750/1000.
Progress: 800/1000.
The rhythm became hypnotic. The sounds of the jungle faded, replaced by the roar of the dragon, the snap of breaking branches, the whistle of near-misses, and the constant, quiet hum of my shield absorbing power. My movements were fluid, almost graceful. Ducking under a swipe, leaping over a fire stream, sidestepping a charge at the last possible second. I wasn't just dodging; I was dancing with death. And winning, one step at a time.
My muscles screamed, yes, but the potions and beverages from earlier kept the worst of it at bay. My mind was sharp, focused purely on survival and that damn number.
Progress: 900/1000.
Almost there. The end was in sight. Just 100 more dances with destruction.
Ryu seemed to sense the shift. His attacks became more varied, more cunning. Trying to anticipate my dodges, cutting off my angles. He was a proud dragon, and even if he'd agreed to this, he wouldn't make it easy. He was pushing me. Testing my limits.
Progress: 950/1000.
Sweat streamed down my face, stinging my eyes. My breath was coming in ragged gasps. Every part of me was screaming for me to stop, to rest, to just let one hit land. But I couldn't. Not now.
Progress: 990/1000.
Ten more. Just ten more dodges.
Ryu let out a final, ear-splitting roar, gathering energy for one last, massive assault. The air grew heavy, charged with draconic power. Fire swirled in his throat, his eyes glowed with an intense, burning light. This was it. The final push.
Range: Immaterial. Area of Effect: Large. Attack type: Full Power Blast.
I braced myself. There was no single 'dodge vector' for this. Only finding the absolute safest spot at the edge of the impact zone, relying on speed and sheer luck.
WOOOOOOSH!
A torrent of fire, scale, and pure, unbound rage erupted from Ryu. It consumed the space where I had been, tearing through the jungle with devastating force.
But I wasn't there.
Swoosh!
I twisted, a final, desperate movement, diving to the side as the blast roared past, the intense heat scorching my shield arm even through the air barrier I threw up instinctively. The wind from the attack threw me, sending me tumbling through the undergrowth.
I landed roughly, skidding across the damp earth. Pain flared in my arm. My vision swam for a second.
But a notification appeared. Not flickering at the edge. Center screen. Big. Bold.
Divine Task Complete: Evade 1000 Attacks from a Creature of Significant Power (Dragon-Type)
Reward: Unlocked. Check System Menu.
A second notification layered on top, this one quieter, almost subtle, directly related to my shield.
Dragon Essence Absorption: Completed.
Conditions for [REDACTED] Met. Awaiting further catalyst.
[REDACTED]? Okay, so the System wouldn't even name the Cursed Series yet. But the absorption was complete. The conditions were met. It wasn't the reward for the dodges, but it was triggered by enduring Ryu's essence. A separate process. Good. That goal was still on track.
My immediate focus snapped back to the main reward notification. Check System Menu.
I pulled up the menu, navigating through familiar options. Status, Equipment, Skills, Party... and a new one. 'Rewards'. I tapped it.
Reward List:
- Divine Task: Evade 1000 Attacks (Dragon-Type) - COMPLETE
-- Reward: Multiversal Pass (1 Use)
Multiversal Pass. One Use.
My brain stalled again, though less dramatically than with the sudden adult women incident. A pass. To other universes. Just... a ticket. For dodging a dragon 1000 times.
I thought of the God. His offer to make me a messenger. His ability to travel between worlds. His arbitrary tasks. This... this was him providing the means. A not-so-subtle nudge towards accepting his offer, or at least showing me the possibility.
A single-use ticket to anywhere. The implications were staggering. Escape? Information? A chance to see... other things?
I pushed myself up, the physical exhaustion mixing with the mental whiplash of cosmic bureaucracy. A multiversal pass. Just like ordering something online and getting a completely different, potentially universe-breaking, package.
Ryu stood where his blast had ended, his massive form silhouetted against the lingering haze of smoke. He wasn't attacking. He was watching. His glowing eyes fixed on me, sensing the stillness, the lack of immediate follow-up attack from my side.
"What... what was that?" he rumbled, his voice holding a mixture of awe and... something else. Did he feel the completion of the task? Or just the end of our combat ritual?
"That," I said, my voice rough, still resonating with the memory of dodging, "was... I completed the task."
Ryu took a step closer, his gaze intense. "The... the energy," he stated, not a question, but a realization. "Something... something from me... it's... with you now."
He felt the essence absorption. Even if the System wouldn't name the Cursed Series yet, Ryu felt the connection, the transfer of his raw power, his rage.
"Yeah," I confirmed, looking at my shield, still just my regular Shield, no dark aura emanating from it visibly yet. The conditions were met. Awaiting further catalyst. Maybe the catalyst was simply... choosing to use the curse. But not now. Not here.
"Alright, Ryu," I said, pushing myself fully to my feet. The jungle felt different now. Charged. Dangerous. Not just because of the dragon, but because of the bizarre rewards the universe decided to hand out.
I looked at the massive creature who had gone from being a necessary evil, a target for a divine task, to an unexpected confidante, to the living source of power I needed, and now... my companion.
"So," I said, the weariness of the past few days, the confusion of the reward, mixing with the pragmatic reality of the situation. "What now? Companion?"
Ryu stared at me for a long moment. The sadness I'd seen earlier was still there, the deep scars of his past, but now... now his eyes held a new light. Acknowledgment. Understanding. And maybe... a shared path. He had given me his rage (unwillingly, then perhaps grudgingly). I had taken it. And I had offered him companionship in return.
He shifted his weight, the ground rumbling softly. He didn't answer verbally. Instead, he turned, his massive form moving with surprising grace towards the direction of the jungle's edge, towards the way out. He expected me to follow.
Yeah. Okay. A vengeful dragon, the source of my potential curse, my new companion, and I just got a ticket to anywhere. Just another Tuesday.
I accessed the System Menu again. Looked at the 'Rewards' tab. 'Multiversal Pass (1 Use)'. I didn't need it right now. My priority was here, with Raphtalia, Rifana, and Filo, getting them strong, securing our place, maybe figuring out this curse catalyst thing. But later... maybe.
I looked towards the jungle's edge, where Ryu was patiently waiting. The 1000 dodges were over. The task was complete. But the real journey, the one accompanied by a dragon and potentially crossing dimensions, was just beginning.