Okay, it’s time to change my job to dragon knight!

Everyone pressed forward toward their goal.

After glancing back at Lin Shuang's expression, March 7th couldn't help but comment.

"Lin Shuang, you don't look like you're about to fight… You look like you want to catch the Doomsday Beast and roast it for dinner."

"If you can carve a piece of meat off that thing, go ahead and eat it."

Lin Shuang shot back, unimpressed.

March 7th scratched her head, grinning, and stuck out her tongue in a playful gesture, as if begging for mercy.

But Lin Shuang didn't bother to hide her true intentions.

"Well, I do have my own reasons. You all know that Mount No. 1 was originally an elite unit of the Antimatter Legion—the Trampler."

"Yeah, you were ranting about that when you complained about March before."

Since Lin Shuang had said it in frustration, Stelle had remembered it clearly.

"Hey—weren't we supposed to not bring that up!"

Ignoring March 7th and Stelle's chatter, Lin Shuang continued.

"I don't have many hobbies, but I do have a bit of a collecting habit. When it comes to mounts, I've always fantasized about taming a massive dragon and riding it across the cosmos. That'd be so cool, wouldn't it?"

"…"

Dan Heng's expression turned complicated, but March 7th and Stelle both nodded enthusiastically.

"Yeah, totally."

Himeko simply blinked, as if she had already guessed what Lin Shuang was planning.

It seemed Lin Shuang wasn't as serious as she first appeared.

And, as expected, the second half of her words followed:

"Look, the Doomsday Beast—it looks like a dragon, moves like a dragon, roars like a dragon… so doesn't that make it a dragon?"

And she wasn't wrong.

Big mythical creatures always show up at the start of stories.

Doesn't the Doomsday Beast look even more like a proper, traditional dragon than the Vidyadhara?

At least, Lin Shuang thought so.

"Yeah, yeah… huh?"

March 7th was nodding along absentmindedly, but halfway through, she suddenly snapped out of it.

"The Doomsday Beast is a dragon? That's way too far-fetched! Wait, no—why am I even agreeing with you?!"

March 7th threw up her hands in frustration before groaning, "Are you trying to tame that thing and turn it into a pet? Do you even realize what kind of chaos you'd unleash? If you provoke the Antimatter Legion like this, aren't you afraid the Order of Destruction will hunt you down?"

Fighting and killing were one thing.

But brainwashing an elite enemy unit into a personal pet and making them turn on their own side?

That was another level of humiliation entirely.

She hated this kind of 'humiliation' the most when playing games.

Unfortunately, her complaints didn't register with Stelle.

At that moment, Stelle was gripping her bat, eyes sparkling with excitement.

"That's so cool! Can I ride it after you tame it?"

"Hey—why is that your takeaway from all this?!"

March 7th felt exhausted from arguing. Was this even the right time to talk about how 'cool' it was?

Who called her reckless? Compared to Lin Shuang, she was practically cautious!

Himeko chuckled beside them.

Lin Shuang's words had taken her aback a little. Capturing an enemy alive was far harder than simply defeating it.

But thanks to Lin Shuang, the tense atmosphere had lightened.

At least, March 7th's stiff shoulders had visibly relaxed.

—

They swiftly cut through the scattered enemies on their way and soon arrived at their target platform.

It was completely empty.

A vast platform, sealed off from the vacuum by specialized barriers, without walls—just like a classic battle arena.

Lin Shuang could clearly see the depths of space beyond, with blue stars glowing close by.

And the technology holding the station's atmosphere in place, preventing it from leaking out… that must've been Herta's doing, right?

She'd always been curious about this platform back when she played the game.

And now, she was seeing it with her own eyes.

"Wait, March—!"

Dan Heng, ever on guard, quickly raised the alarm as a shadow loomed.

Lin Shuang grabbed March 7th's shoulder, stepping forward to shield the group.

Beyond the platform.

A monstrous Doomsday Beast beat its massive, fleshy wings, hovering in the void, its gaze locked onto them.

Himeko glanced at Stelle.

"The Doomsday Beast… actually chased us here."

Lin Shuang's words were confirmed. The location of the Stellaron had been exposed.

The more Lin Shuang studied the beast, the more she liked it. Its fierce wings, streamlined body, long, sinuous tail, and powerful limbs—

Not bad. Not bad at all.

This was the kind of thing gamers lived for.

Today, she would be a dragon rider.

"You all stay right here—"

Lin Shuang barely got the words out.

Boom—

Flames erupted from her body. Her massive, crimson greatsword, wreathed in searing fire, exuded an overwhelming pressure.

Without activating any dangerous triggers, Lin Shuang forced her body to its peak.

Her power surged to the limit.

Before March 7th, Stelle, or the others could react—

Even before the greatsword's hum had time to reach its second note—

Bang!

Lin Shuang shot into the sky like a flaming meteor.

Charging straight at the Doomsday Beast outside the space station!

"ROOOAAARR—!!!"

The Doomsday Beast had been swooping toward the platform, but seeing a mere human dare to charge at it—

Its fury ignited.

It roared, determined to crush the arrogant challenger with its own body.

But Lin Shuang? She was even more excited.

Just as they were about to collide head-on, she flung out her left hand!

Glowing threads burst forth, wrapping around the Doomsday Beast's limbs, wings, and head.

Flames crackled along the threads, burning red-hot as they locked the beast in place.

Lin Shuang tightened her grip and flipped, landing directly on the Doomsday Beast's neck.

With a sharp downward thrust, she drove her greatsword deep into its armored hide!

Fire roared from the wound, consuming the beast from within.

Flames burst from every crack in its shell, as if the creature itself had turned into a living inferno.

"ROOOAAARR—!!!"

The Doomsday Beast's agonized cry echoed through the void, transmitting directly through Lin Shuang's sword.

Its body, once diving toward the platform, jerked off course as it struggled against the fiery bonds.

With a screech of metal and a tremor through the platform, the beast just barely skimmed past it.

And then—it soared higher.