199 Devours Faerun

The unexpected battle between dragon and serpent soon drew the attention of everyone near Faerun City. It was impossible to miss: two monsters over ten meters long and weighing several tons had gone at each other with barely a moment of hesitation. Houses and buildings collapsed beneath them, and countless people and extraordinary creatures were crushed to death.

Even Sonic, the mastermind behind it all, was surprised. He projected his consciousness down from the image of the Nature God's Divine Kingdom in the sky and watched the Young Red Dragon grapple bloodily with the Six-Headed Serpent. He knew the serpent was Hiddink, but where had that Red Dragon come from? And how had it ended up helping him?

Nikolayevich emerged a step later and was startled too. He was about to help when he looked up and saw the image of the Nature God's Divine Kingdom growing clearer, as though it might become solid at any moment. His expression changed. Abandoning the fight below, he flew straight upward and sent Hiddink a message. "Don't get bogged down. Get up here and help. Sonic's about to succeed."

Nikolayevich's voice sounded in Hiddink's mind, but Hiddink felt no urgency. Instead, he sneered to himself. I'll help once I've dealt with this Red Dragon. Pity Red Dragons aren't so easy to put down! Nikolayevich, you old fox. You keep sending me in first while you hang back to reap the rewards. Sonic's about to succeed. Let's see how long you can afford to wait. It's your turn to risk your neck. Heh! I'll come help after I beat this Red Dragon.

In fact, Hiddink had seized on his unexpected encounter with the Red Dragon as an opportunity. He would fight the Young Red Dragon and pretend it had him tied down, forcing Nikolayevich