Evil Red Dragon

"Congratulations, you passed my test."

Helena's voice echoed in the laboratory, each word falling like a feather, yet also feeling as heavy as a thousand pounds.

"test?"

Alecto loosened his embrace, took a step back, and met Helena's gaze.

Helena gently straightened her wrinkled clothes, her movements calm and unhurried.

"Yes, if you had made a move just now, you would be a dead dragon by now."

Helena smiled as she picked up a quill pen and played with it, the pen tip spinning between her fingers.

"Every book you read, every experiment you see, even every conversation we have is part of the test."

She looked at Alecto:

"I want to know if you've truly begun to accept the status quo, or if you're just pretending."

Alecto also laughed:

"And what was the result?"

"You did a great job."

Helena put down the quill pen and braced her hands on the edge of the table:

"So good...it almost made me believe it."

"almost?"

"almost."

As soon as he finished speaking, ripples like water appeared in the shadows on the other side.

Another Helena figure slowly materialized from nothingness.

Alecto turned to look.

The same purple robes, the same faces, the same expressions.

"What you are seeing now is my true form."

The newly appeared Helena spoke up:

"And this one..."

She pointed to Helena in front of the worktable.

"...is my clone."

The clone in front of the worktable smiled slightly, and its body began to become transparent.

The purple light spots peeled off her body, floated back to her main body, and eventually merged completely.

Alecto thought to himself:

It really is a clone.

He had long suspected it.

Helena's performance during this period has been exactly what he expected, like a carefully crafted script.

Step by step, his shackles were removed, the space bag was returned, the half-elf was released... everything went suspiciously smoothly.

Looking back now, it was just bait.

If it's a real fish, it will bite the hook.

Aren't you surprised?

Helena approached slowly.

Alecto spoke the truth:

"A little, but I'm more interested in knowing when you started using clones to replace yourself?"

"It was a clone from the very beginning."

Helena stopped in front of Alecto, the two of them no more than three steps apart.

Alecto said expressionlessly:

"So you've been observing me the whole time, like watching an animal struggling in a cage?"

"No."

Helena shook her head in denial:

"It's more like observing a flower in bloom. I want to know what color it will eventually turn."

She reached out to touch Alecto's cheek, but stopped at the last moment.

"Do you know?"

Helena said softly:

"For a split second just now, I actually hoped you would attack the clone."

Why?

"Because that would give me a reason to keep you locked up, to keep you locked up here, and to slowly wear down your rough edges until you completely submit."

She raised her eyes and looked directly at Alecto:

"But you chose to be patient, which proves that you are not an ordinary red dragon. You have enough patience and enough rationality... My previous judgment may have been wrong."

"What kind of judgment?"

"Regarding your potential."

Helena turned and walked to the other side of the laboratory:

"I thought I could change you with time and gentleness, but now it seems you are more stubborn than I imagined."

She stopped in front of the materials shelf by the wall, with her back to Alecto.

"In that case, let's try a different approach."

Can I ask you a question?

Alecto suddenly changed the subject.

Helena paused slightly: "Go ahead and ask."

Why are you so fixated on me?

Alecto looked directly into Helena's eyes:

"With your qualifications, you could have found many more suitable partners—strong human warriors, other adult dragons… so why me of all people?"

"Because you are special, so special that I am willing to spend so much energy on you."

"What's so special about it?"

"I don't know~"

Helena turned around with a playful smile on her face.

It's now!

The moment Helena turned around, Alec lifted her up.

His body vanished from the spot, his pure physical strength unleashing extreme speed, his target Helena.

Helena's purple eyes reflected the rushing red figure, but she didn't seem surprised, her smile remaining unchanged.

However, the two were only three steps apart, a distance that Alector could cover in an instant.

His right hand formed a claw with five fingers, and dragon scales instantly covered his arm. The magic corridor circulated rapidly, and all his magic power erupted instantly, his power climbing to its peak in an instant.

Helena could feel the shackles and marks she had left in Alecto's consciousness being forcibly torn apart.

The resistance was much fiercer and faster than she had anticipated.

In a mere instant, Alecto burned away all the remaining shackles on his body.

The dragon claw, accompanied by a sonic roar, aimed straight for Helena's throat.

There are no fancy tricks, only a ruthless determination to kill with a single blow.

Helena certainly hadn't anticipated that Alecto could break free from his restraints so quickly.

Before she could react, the dragon's claw was already upon her.

Just before the dragon's claw was about to touch Helena, an inconspicuous amethyst pendant on her body suddenly burst into a dazzling light.

hum-

A magical shield instantly unfolded, completely enveloping Helena.

Alector's dragon claws slammed into the shield.

Click!

A teeth-grinding cracking sound rang out.

The shield fluctuated violently, and spiderweb-like cracks appeared, but it did not break.

The powerful recoil traveled through the dragon's claws, causing Alector's arm to go slightly numb.

This shield's strength is definitely at least level seven!

Is it a high-level trigger-type protective item?

That's right. As a level seven mage, Helena certainly doesn't lack items for protection and rescue.

Having failed to achieve his goal, Alecto's eyes gleamed with even greater ferocity.

His left claw followed closely behind, slamming into the same spot with even more ferocious force.

At the same time, the dragon's breath in its throat could no longer be suppressed, and blazing crimson-gold fire lines spewed out from its mouth, condensing into a spear that pierced straight into the center of the shield's cracks.

The dragon's physical strength and dragon breath erupted simultaneously.

boom!

The shield could not withstand the impact and shattered under the double shock, turning into countless points of light.

However, the shield's obstruction bought Helena a crucial moment.

Her figure retreated rapidly amidst the shattering light of the shield, her purple robes fluttering in the wind.

At the same time, a protective talisman flew out from her sleeve, transforming into a silver-white shield that blocked her path.

After Alecto broke through the first layer of shield, his momentum slowed slightly, but he was still incredibly powerful.

His dragon claw pierced through the dissipating purple light and gripped heavily onto the newly appeared silver-white light shield.

The light shield dented violently, and silver light splattered everywhere, but it was extremely resilient and was not pierced.

However, the powerful force still passed through the shield and slammed into Helena's arm, which she hurriedly raised to block.

"Hmm!"

Helena groaned, her face paled, and her body flew backward uncontrollably, crashing into the laboratory wall with a thud.

A sharp pain shot through her parrying arm; the cuff of her purple robe was torn by the dragon's claws, revealing a bruise that quickly turned bluish-purple, with faint traces of blood seeping out.

Alecto knew that Helena had more than just these two life-saving items.

The two layers of protection he had just used had already neutralized his long-prepared sneak attack. If they continued to fight, he would be in danger again once Helena recovered.

His gaze swept instantly over Odette, who was standing there bewildered, looking lost.

Alecto moved with lightning speed, lunging at Odette.

Odette felt a blur before her eyes, and the next second, she was swept up into the air.

Helena's arm pain had not yet subsided, but she had already locked onto Alecto.

A trickle of blood escaped from the corner of her lips, but her voice remained steady:

"You still chose this path after all."

Alecto remained silent, his feet stomping on the ground as he swiftly retreated towards the laboratory door.

Although the area was riddled with trigger traps, they were irrelevant to him.

"Trying to leave?"

Helena raised her uninjured left hand, loosely clenching her fingers.

Purple light simultaneously shone from all four corners of the laboratory, and intertwined runes appeared on the ground, wrapping around Alecto.

Alecto let out a low shout, and his wings suddenly unfurled behind him, the golden patterns on the wings shining brightly, as if molten gold were flowing.

The golden patterns were now fully activated, and the surrounding space seemed to be ignited, crackling and popping.

When the runes of the binding array touched the golden pattern, they melted and dissipated as quickly as ice and snow meeting fire.

A look of surprise flashed across Helena's eyes:

"You really did have a trump card up your sleeve."

In that brief moment, Alecto had already rushed to the door.

"Stop him!"

Helena's voice suddenly turned cold.

Three figures suddenly shot out from the shadows; they were the alchemical puppets that Helena had hidden.

They were shaped like thin snakes, extremely fast, and went straight for Alecto.

Alecto swung his claws back, his dragon-scale-covered arm leaving afterimages as he shredded a puppet to pieces.

But the puppet's obstruction slowed him down by half a beat.

Helena had straightened up from the wall.

She wiped the blood from her lips, her purple robe fluttering without wind, and six slowly rotating runes appeared around her.

Each rune emanated a chilling magic, and the space inside the laboratory seemed to freeze.

"I wanted to be gentler, but you seem to prefer a more direct approach."

She pointed her right index finger slightly forward.

One of the six runes flew out and transformed into a bolt of lightning, striking Alecto.

Alecto's pupils contracted.

He didn't recognize what kind of magic it was, but he was certain that if he were hit, he would not have a good ending.

Alecto leaned back violently, lightning grazing his chest before striking the door in front of him, instantly reducing the entire door to dust.

The shockwave knocked Odette unconscious.

Seeing this, Helena stopped holding back, and the remaining five runes lit up simultaneously.

A huge phantom of a magic circle appeared on the laboratory ceiling, with countless runes hanging down.

Alecto knew he couldn't wait any longer.

He suddenly turned around, the golden patterns on his wings bursting out to their fullest extent, and his whole body transformed into a streak of crimson-gold light, rushing straight towards Helena!

This charge came without warning, and its speed was several times faster than the previous sneak attack.

Helena was caught off guard by his counterattack and paused in her movements.

That's the flaw—this stagnation!

Alecto closed in instantly to within three steps of Helena.