Dragon's Wrath: The Cursed Returnee

Ethan didn't imagine he would succeed on the first attempt, but he didn't waste time celebrating. A wave of fire flying was already on its way to burn him to a crisp. Instead of running away, Ethan jumped toward it. Thanks to his newfound skill, added with the power of Brutal Swing, Ethan nullified most of the damage he was supposed to suffer. The specters got caught off-guard when the stranger suddenly crossed the wave of fire and approached them. In mere seconds, he slashed and killed dozens of specters before Ethan could start to fall.

You received ninety experience points.

You received twenty-eight coins.

You received ninety experience points.

You received twenty-eight coins.

You received ninety experience points.

You received twenty-eight coins.

From that moment onward, both sides could no longer ignore the strange figure who looked like a big child. Despite his lack of equipment and presence, the boy fights like the real deal. One couldn't judge a book by its cover, and it was clear that the stranger was a seasoned fighter.

The first group to recover had been the guards. They used the momentum Ethan created to charge and kill the golems. Despite their small numbers, the tide of the battle had changed. So, they had to capitalize on that moment.

Before Ethan had the chance to resume his offensive, he looked for the commander of the guards and then found him, thanks to an emblem on his shield. The symbol was of an eagle on fire, so he was probably a noble family member. Ethan was fully aware that communication would be difficult, and he didn't know any spells that could help with that. Still, certain messages can be passed and received. Ethan shouted at him and then tossed the empty bottle of the mystical potion. The commander frowned but soon understood the message when he saw Ethan drinking another potion. In the next moment, the commander shouted something to one of his men.

"Let's hope he got the right message," Ethan said and then returned to face the specters.

Those creatures were pretty smart. In just a few minutes, they recognized Ethan as the real threat. The specters formed a circle around Ethan in order to attack him from all sides. Now his strategy of dashing toward the enemies and ignoring the damage wouldn't work because no matter which direction he chooses, he will end up getting attacked from behind. That was a bit troublesome, but at the very least, it gave the guards some room to breathe.

"Well, I just have to endure it," Ethan said and then jumped toward the monsters.

Ethan could activate and deactivate the Neutral Enchantment at will, so he managed to save his mana and only used the attack when it was absolutely necessary. However, even by doing that, he could only fight for so long. His mana was quickly spent, and his health reached dangerous levels.

Congratulations! The skill Fire Resistance has leveled up!

Congratulations! You obtained ten coins for leveling up the skill you learned by yourself.

Congratulations! The skill Heat Resistance has leveled up!

Congratulations! For leveling up the skill you learned by yourself, you obtained ten coins.

…

"No other choice, huh," Ethan clicked his tongue.

Before Ethan could increase the level of his Fire Resistance and Heat Resistance to nullify the damage caused by the specters completely, he felt a wave of energy passing through his body. After a few seconds, he felt the presence of someone nearby and the link between them. Ethan saw a female mage pointing her hands toward him. Although she was covered in a robe from head to toe, he could recognize that she was a woman because of the massive curves around her chest. Ethan was a healthy teenager so he couldn't help but stare at it for a few seconds.

"Holy crap…" Ethan muttered after he recovered his concentration. "That is like a whole new level of hypnosis magic."

The female magician scratched her head since she managed to recover Ethan's energy much faster than she thought. It looked like the people had misjudged Ethan's strength. In any case, that worked for the best, and it only meant that Ethan would be able to utilize that support for quite a while.

With the support he was receiving, Ethan's fighting speed increased by manifold. It wasn't because his status had been buffed, but it was because he knew that no matter how he fought, he wouldn't die. Fighting recklessly while focusing solely on attacking was one of the few things Ethan was good at, after all.

Despite all that, it took more than a few minutes for Ethan to decimate all the specters. Still, the moment Ethan finished the last one, the guards defeated all the remaining golems. As if all of them were puppets that got their strings cut, Ethan and the guards fell on their butts on the ground. Since that happened at the same moment, they couldn't help but smile, and quickly, the smile turned into a loud laugh.

The commander had been the first one to recover. He got up and approached Ethan while offering a handshake. Ethan almost accepted his handshake by instinct, but then he stepped back.

"Sorry, there is a good reason why I can't accept your handshake," Ethan said and then lowered his head.

It was clear that the other side didn't understand his words. They looked at each other in confusion. Ethan had strange clothes, but they didn't imagine he was from another world. The commander took out his helmet and then showed the hairy face of a man who looked quite a bit like a human. The only real difference between them was their silver eyes. All the guards have silver eyes… so maybe there were humans who didn't have them.

The hooded magician cast a new spell, one that made some mana flow to Ethan's brain and the commander's brain. After doing that, the female magician said in clear English.

"Now you both can talk," The hooded magician said. "Try to be quick because the spell won't last forever. I'm a bit tired, so I'm going to return to my room."

For some reason, she looked quite annoyed. Although that wasn't strange, after a battle like that, most people would feel sad after seeing the corpses of their fallen comrades. That brief moment of a laugh between Ethan and the guards only happened because they had won a difficult battle. They survived… and that was what one had to feel after facing death: happiness.

"Thank you for your help," Ethan said. "You saved my ass."

The female magician ignored Ethan's words. Now that he thought about it, she was the only magician Ethan saw. All those who died were guards… that was quite strange given how useful magicians were on the battlefield. In any case, Ethan didn't waste much time thinking about that; he faced the commander once again.

"Sorry about before," Ethan said. "But I have a problem with my body… I can't touch others. My name is Ethan, by the way."

"Is that so?" The commander said, slightly surprised. "No worries, I can understand that. My name is Aharis. On behalf of all the guards and on the people, who took refuge here, I thank you for your help. You are the hero who saved this fortress… actually, you look a lot like the hero who saved this world a few years ago."

"Ah, about that…" Ethan forced a smile.

Truth be told, Ethan had no idea how much he could reveal about his situation. Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, he was a terrible liar. So, hiding things would only make him look suspicious, despite the fact that he just saved the people of the fortress. That being said, John didn't forbid him from telling anything. Since he came to that world without permission, he will be punished somehow, so he might as well go all out without worrying about such small details.