I'm Actually Not Overpowered!
Chapter 52 Facing An Earth Dragon, Should Be A Piece Of Cake

"It's an Earth Dragon," Asa whispered.

'I know that, dumbass!' I screeched internally, glancing at the hulking thing several times.

​ However, my surprise at the existence of the dragon was soon replaced by a deep sense of disgust… and distress.

"T-this is…" My eyes widened as I took in the sight of carnage.

This was the second time I would be seeing such gore since I came to this world. However, this one was far more sickening compared to the last experience.

Blood was strewn all over the vast ninth floor, and I could see the innards of people, as well as half-eaten chunks of human meat littering the floor.

It was enough to drive me to the edge of fright.

'I'm scared…'

Blood. Corpses. Death. Monster.

This was a critical moment for me, but my body wouldn't move. My limbs were frozen in shock.

'A Dragon… death… monsters… blood.'

Maybe I had a thing against senseless slaughter, or maybe I just wasn't used to this level of carnage.

I could have watched it behind the screen of a television when I was back home, but this was different.

I was seeing everything directly!

There was only so much a person could take.

"Sam… what should we do?" A voice beside me finally jerked me out of my panicked state.

I ceased hyperventilating and stared in her direction.

'Did she see me panic?' I asked myself.

From her expression, it seemed she didn't. A look of absolute trust was displayed on her face, and her brown eyes glowed with expectation.

'Haaa… I see now…'

I had no idea why, but anytime I stared at Sarah during times like this, I calmed down. It made no sense, considering she was relying on me, but my fear suddenly vanished.

"Isn't it obvious?" I smiled at her, then returned my gaze to the beast beneath.

Every second wasted was another moment that the monster had the opportunity to feast on more people.

"I'm going to save everyone!"

[SYSTEM NOTICE]

<A Quest Has Been Issued>

[A rogue Earth Dragon had made its way into this Labyrinth and has been causing the death of Adventurers for some time now. Defeat it and prove your mettle.]

<Parameters>

Success: Cause the Earth Dragon to flee/Kill the Earth Dragon

Failure: Your allies are eliminated and the Earth Dragon succeeds.

—Reward: 50 Stat Points. 1 Skill (Active/Passive). 500 Karmic Value

—Failure: Death

~Do You Accept This Quest?~

[Yes] [No]

"The System never makes this easy, does it?" I smiled, rising to my feet.

I could feel everyone's gaze on me, but I didn't care at this point.

I couldn't refuse this Quest anyway. It was one of those Forced Quest Scenarios that I was always trying to avoid.

"Well, now that we've come to this point, let's see it through to the end."

'Let's go!'

****************************************

Liebert panted as his saggy body was at the brink of collapse.

Even though his body was barely flesh clinging to bones, he usually had quite a bit of strength to spare. However, now?

"I… I can't…" Liebert found his vitality failing him.

His allies; Desir, Gu, and five other Adventurers had been easily defeated by the Earth Dragon, and while he and his recent acquaintances were still alive, Liebert couldn't say the same for the Adventurers that they had formed a Party with.

"Four of them are already dead… shit!'

Liebert looked around him and met the dejected looks and terrified expressions of his comrades.

He had heard of how dangerous a Labyrinth could be, but he never expected things to be this dire.

If he had known, would he have become one out of desperation?

Even though he had found a way to escape death by starvation, it seemed yet another kind of demise loomed over him.

'I'll die here…?' Liebert groaned as he smiled painfully.

He had a special constitution that allowed his body to naturally heal at a heightened pace.

As a result, he even required more nourishment than an average person. As a result of his body constitution and insufficient nutrition, he was constantly deprived of nutrients.

He had lived a painful existence, but he still did his best to live. Yet, after all that, it was quite underwhelming to Liebert that he would meet his end here.

"No… no way…" He rose to his feet, protruded out bones from his palms as he grimaced in pain.

He didn't have enough energy or nutrients to create any more bone structures, but he was desperate.

As a result, the process was extremely painful.

"… I won't die here!" Liebert prepared his bone daggers and glared at the monster that slowly approached him.

He didn't let the beast's easygoing movements deceive him. The Earth Dragon in front of him was far faster than anything he had ever seen—an impossible monster to defeat!

"HAAAAAAAAA!!!" His screaming voice echoed across the vast hall as he readied himself for the growling beast's strike.

And then—

>BOOOOOMMMM!!!<

A sharp noise echoed across the vast field behind the Earth Dragon—a distance away from Liebert.

"W-wha—?" He was surprised to see other humans descend from the heights of the 8th Floor, despite a monster like the Earth Dragon present.

'N-no… you guys should run. Escape! You can't win this!' Despite his survivalist personality, Liebert was kind.

Even if he was going to die, he couldn't live with himself if he watched others die because of him.

That was the reason why he never became a killer for hire —no matter how bad things got.

"Do not worry, Liebert…" A voice calmed him down, causing even the Earth Dragon to pause in its approach as it turned in the direction of the voice.

The skinny man's blurred vision was finally able to make out the silhouettes of the four people that had just descended.

Among them were two popular faces—A Rank Adventurers of Dulum Adventurer City—and two other faces he couldn't forget.

'Asa and Sam?!' They had taken the Adventurer's Exam together.

Could that be the reason they were here?

'Maybe they're close acquaintances to Desir or Gu? Or maybe they're close with other Adventurers here…' According to Liebert's experience, no one ever did a selfless act for no reason.

There was always something to gain… something to lose.

"Why…? Why did you come…?" His voice was hoarse now, and he felt his strength giving out.

"Why wouldn't I?" The voice was coming from someone—the black-haired person in their small group.

Despite the Earth Dragon approaching the group, none of them seemed really fazed.

'Shit! I'm losing consciousness.'

"Just rest easy now… because I am here."

Liebert's vision finally turned dark—with the last image he saw being a hero's smile.

**********************************************

'Holy shit! Holy shit! Holy shit!'

What the fuck did I just say? Why did I agree to do this?

I must not have been in my right mind then, because now that I was on the 9th Floor, I wanted nothing but to leave this godforsaken place.

For one, the sight of the mangled corpses and deoxygenated blood was so sickening. I could have thrown up a dozen times over were it not for my really convenient Skill.

It was also thanks to this Skill that I was able to smile despite being confronted by this world's second most dangerous race—second only to the Demons, of course.

[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]

<DANGER ALERT!>

[The Level Difference Is Too Wide. It Is Impossible To Win In A Confrontation]

[END OF INFORMATION]

The System was right.

Even I could tell at this point, that the Dragon was far superior to anyone I had seen thus far.

In fact, it far outranked the limits of the human race, as a Dragon's basic stats were always higher than a regular person's.

A Level 1 Dragon would still be able to easily defeat low ranking humans… not to talk of this Level 70 monstrosity in front of me.

'It's impossible…' I nearly laughed at myself for trying something so absurd.

Was this truly the end?

"Sarah, go heal up the victims. Save the ones you can. Byron, assist her. Asa, you know what to do, right?" I commanded my Party Members, as though whatever resistance we could create counted for something.

"Understood!" Their voices all overlapped as they went about their various missions.

For Asa, she was meant to distract the Earth Dragon for some time while I worked my Magic.

'There's no time to set up a rune, so I'll have to do this the old-fashioned way…' I smiled nervously, gripping my sword as I prepared myself.

There was only one chance at success, and if I failed, it was all over.

'… I'll just have to follow in your footsteps again, Damien!'

With an expression of grim resolve, I gave the order.

"GO!" Everyone scattered, leaving me in the center of the Dragon's range.

"GROOOOOAAAHHHHH!!!" It roared and approached at a terrifying pace.

'It's fast!'

Even with [Five Seconds Rule] and [Insight], I was barely able to make out its insanely quick movements.

But, thanks to my new Skill, I was in no serious trouble.

"<Predator>"

It was an Overpowered Skill in a sense, since it allowed me 20% of my prey's Stats as a bonus.

That was the only reason why I even stood a chance!