SSS Rank Dragon Tamer: Unleashed
Chapter 97: Flashy Entrance

Chapter 97: Flashy Entrance

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And though they didn’t say it aloud, both of them felt the adult spark starting to grow—slow and cautious, but no less fierce than the flames that had just stitched his skin whole.

Fenna squeezed his hand once before letting go. "Let’s finish the boar before someone comes looking for it."

Zephyr smirked. "Still thinking about that kiss, though."

"Later," she said.

But her eyes said maybe sooner than that.

A few steps away, Muse paced in irritated circles, her injured cheek glowing faintly from the shallow tusk-scratch. Aurora hovered beside her, chirping with concern for her seat. The cow stopped, gave the chick a long suffering look, and licked her gently once, causing the phoenix to squeak indignantly and puff up like a tiny ember dandelion.

Muse mooed once. It was gruff but steady and returned to glaring at the dead boar.

Fenna wiped a streak of sweat and soot from her brow, her body still recovering from channeling the True Fire. "One Ember tusk down," she said with a sigh.

Zephyr knelt beside the carcass, his breathing steadier now. The boar was still, its flanks no longer steaming. With practiced hands, he pressed his fingers to its throat—no movement. Dead.

He drew his hunting blade and slid it cleanly down the creature’s midline, parting with a thick hide. Steam and smoke poured from the wound, reeking of iron and ash. He reached in, elbow deep, and after a moment, his hand brushed something warm and pulsing.

Zephyr pulled it free— a glowing orb of amber- orange mana, the size of a large plum, swirling gently with ember threads.

"E-rank core," he muttered, wiping it on a broad leaf and wrapping it in bark.

"Star’s snack?" Fenna asked, watching him with a half-smile.

Zephyr grinned faintly, still shaken by the healing flame but trying not to show it. "Parley offering. ’No more satchel theft, try this instead.’"

They laughed like worn out, soot streaked, and sore but very much alive.

They quartered the Ember Tusk quickly, muscles aching from both battle and effort. Fenna worked with brisk efficiency, her hands deftly separating meat from bone, while Zephyr hauled the heavier cut parts onto the cart. Muse stood nearby, eyeing the steaming flesh with mild interest, her usual bark chewing forgotten in the face of so much fresh meat. A bloody bandage still clung to her cheek, but the wound was clean, courtesy of Fenna’s healing flames.

"Hold still," Fenna had told her earlier, voice soothing, eyes glowing faintly as her hands ignited with a gentle gold red flame. Muse didn’t flinch as the Phoenix Fire licked her wound. She only snorted softly, accepting the strange warmth.

Now the cow had resumed her chewing with stoic pride, as if she’d been the one to bring down the Ember Tusk by herself. The MVP of the team.

Aurora, perched atop the highest haunch stacked on the cart, fluffed her feathers and preened like a queen on her throne. Grease slicked her beak. She chirped once—pure proudness.

Zephyr straightened from the meat pile, rubbing his sore back. He eyed the crimson puddle that bled into the ash soaked dirt beneath the carcass. "Predators are going to smell this," he muttered.

Fenna tied off a haunch with a sinew cord. "Then let’s be gone before that happens."

They started moving, cart creaking behind them, Muse pulling it without complaint. The ridge ahead curved toward their makeshift camp, a gentle downward path that promised safety and rest.

But only twenty paces in, Aurora shrieked.

It was no playful trill—this was her alarm cry: sharp, urgent, full of warning.

Zephyr spun on instinct. His eyes searched the canopy just as a dark Blur burst through the upper branches. Wings outstretched, claws extended, it dove with lethal grace.

Ash gray feathers, beak glowing faintly red, talons like black knives—

"Raptor," Fenna gasped. "Ash Fang!"

Rank D, if the size was right.

Zephyr threw himself sideways, raising his dagger. Fenna had an arrow half-drawn but hesitated—no clear shot.

Muse braced, hooves skidding, as the raptor shrieked and lunged, aiming directly for the meat.

Carrion thief.

Core hunter.

They’d seen what one could do to a person before they entered Emberwood city. Two raptors attacked them before. They only left behind claw marks and an injured amr.

But just as the raptor narrowed its dive— A shadow fell across the clearing, fast and wide. Wind blasted the corridor. Leaves shot upward. A sound like a thunderclap tore through the trees.

"Star?!?"

He came in from the sky like a bolt of obsidian lightning, wings booming with raw power. The drake’s black gold scales shimmered in the morning sun, every beat of his wide wings scattering ash and light.

He didn’t hesitate.

He collided midair with the raptor— shoulder to wing, a burst of red sparks exploding on contact. The raptor screamed, its feathers bursting into flame, its trajectory knocked wild. It spiraled midair, missing the meat entirely.

But Star didn’t let it flee.

With speed belying his bulk, he pivoted mid-glide, claws snapping out. One hooked the raptor’s leg, another its wing, and in a brutal twist, he flipped the bird in the air, then dove down.

Ash exploded as the raptor hit the ground. The impact snapped branches and rolled dust. Star descended after, wings folding tight. He landed with a ground thudding stomp, tail whipping through air, flames steaming from his nostrils.

Clutched in his hind talons—twitching faintly— was the raptor, neck pinned, eyes wide and ember bright. Smoke wafted off its feathers, but it was alive. Barely.

Zephyr gaped.

Fenna let out a low, stunned breath.

Star stood over his catch like a small ruler of fire and fury. The raptor gave one final jerk, then stilled, unconscious or dead, no one could say.

For a moment, no one moved.

Then Star turned his head toward them, panting slightly. His molten gold eyes met Zephyr’s. He released the raptor’s corpse with care, letting it drop to the ash.

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