[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-born-as-a-witch":3,"chapter-born-as-a-witch-born-as-a-witch-chapter-120":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Born as a Witch",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1702577,2172,"Chapter 120: Dangerous...","born-as-a-witch-chapter-120",120,"\u003Cp>The wind had already grown sharp, whispering through the academy’s spires and courtyards, tugging at banners and rattling windows. Lira pressed her palms against the cold stone of the upper hall window, her eyes tracing the restless dragons as they circled nervously above. Maelin clutched her sleeve, voice tight with unease.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, the world seemed to shudder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A sound—deep, resonant, and filled with raw, primal fury—tore through the air. A dragon’s screech, more terrifying than anything Lira had ever heard. Every student froze, every dragon paused mid-flight, wings stilled, and even the teachers flinched. The sound vibrated through stone, air, and earth alike, making Lira’s chest tighten and her vines pulse nervously around her feet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>High above the clouds, a shadow moved. At first, it was just a dark blot against the sunlight, but it grew larger, closer, impossibly massive. Students craned their necks, mouths opening in silent shock. Clouds swirled unnaturally around the figure, whipping in eddies and spirals, as if the air itself feared the presence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then it came into view.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A colossal dragon, black as night, its scales pocked with scars and streaked with gray, older than any Lira had seen, descended with terrifying majesty. Its eyes glowed faintly, not with malice, but with raw instinct—the mind of something ancient, wild, and beyond reason. It screeched again, a sound that seemed to tear at the very air, rattling windows and sending the smaller dragons into frantic evasive flight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The shields around the academy shimmered violently under the assault of wind and raw energy. Teachers had taken their positions outside, hands raised and bodies tense. Streams of elemental magic radiated from them: fire forming walls of flickering flame to counter the wind, water twisting into whirlpools to deflect debris, earth surging upward to brace walls and support structures, air currents tangled in controlled spirals to push against the chaos, and illusions flickering from spirit users to mask vulnerabilities.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the dragon did not relent. Its wings beat with terrifying power, each strike sending shockwaves that tore through shields and made even the strongest students stumble. Sparks flew from magical wards, stone cracked, and the air itself was thick with the scent of ozone and burned energy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lira’s fingers itched, her vines quivering as she instinctively tried to anchor herself and feel the pulse of the earth. \"It’s... too strong,\" she whispered, her voice trembling. \"Even the shields... they can barely hold it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beside her, Maelin’s usual energy was replaced by pale, tense focus. \"Do you see the scars? The age? It’s... it’s ancient. It’s like it doesn’t even understand anything but instinct!\" she said, voice barely audible over the roaring wind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From below, the grandmaster’s voice boomed, though it was almost drowned by the screeching of the dragon. \"Hold the shields! Focus your elements! Earth, brace the walls! Air, push against its wings! Water, redirect debris! Fire, burn with precision! Spirit, maintain illusions to protect vulnerable points!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The students huddled inside, pressed against walls and windows, watching in terror as the battle unfolded. Dragons above swooped and roared, attempting to harry the ancient creature without harming the students. The sheer force of its wings created gusts that threatened to peel away the academy’s banners and shake the outer walls.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cracks began to form in the protective shields. Faint, jagged lines of light shimmered and flickered under the strain. The combined magic of teachers and students was pushed to its limits. Each beat of the dragon’s wings made the air scream, a tangible pressure that pressed on every chest, every heart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lira pressed her forehead to the window, feeling the vibrations through the stone and her vines, feeling the panic of smaller dragons, the strain of the shields, the raw, elemental chaos. Her heart pounded, not just with fear, but with a strange, urgent need to act, to anchor the academy somehow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Outside, teachers’ faces were set with grim determination. Even as the dragon’s screeches tore through the air, they held their ground, directing their elements with precise coordination, each strike, surge, and barrier a desperate measure to buy time, to protect the students within.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And yet, the shadow of the ancient dragon loomed closer, a black, scarred colossus of instinct and fury. Its eyes swept over the academy as if assessing, probing, and its screeches grew louder, more desperate, more wild.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Inside, students could only watch, breath caught, feeling the raw, unfiltered power of a creature so old and so untamed that the only law it obeyed was survival, instinct, and the relentless force of its being.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The shields groaned, shimmering with cracks that ran like lightning across their surfaces. Lira felt a shiver run down her spine. The moment was tense, electric, and terrifying. For the first time, she realized that the academy—its dragons, its teachers, and its students—was being tested against something beyond reason, beyond control... a force as old as the land itself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And from her place at the window, she whispered, almost to herself, \"It’s... enormous... and it’s coming closer...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The ancient black dragon’s wings beat with thunderous power, shaking the very air and rattling the stone walls of the academy. Screams of wind, crackling magic, and the beast’s deafening roars filled every courtyard and hall. Inside, the teachers were shouting, their voices rising over the chaos.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Focus! Strengthen the shields!\" one teacher yelled, fire and air elements twisting together in a spiraling storm of energy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Brace the gates! Divert the debris!\" another shouted, water and earth clashing in protective bursts as stone walls shuddered under the raw force of the dragon’s wings.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Illusions now! Mask the students!\" a spirit-user commanded, her hands weaving shimmering images that flickered across courtyards to confuse the ancient dragon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Amid the chaos, the students huddled in hallways and classrooms, some crying softly, others frozen, trying to keep their hearts steady as the building trembled. Fear pressed down like a tangible weight, and Lira could feel her vines tighten instinctively around her ankles, gripping the stone for grounding. Maelin’s hands were clenched in small fists, trembling, but her eyes were wide with determination.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, a voice cut through the din—a strong, firm, unwavering voice that startled everyone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I won’t stand and do nothing!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All eyes turned as one of the older students, a tall young man with fire-tinged hair and sharp, resolute eyes, strode past the protective thresholds of the main hall. His steps rang against stone, deliberate and fearless, his elemental aura flaring slightly as he prepared to engage the storm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At first, silence fell among the younger students. Many stared, mouths agape. Could he really... step outside, into that chaos, against an ancient dragon?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, as if a spark ignited within them, others began to rise. One by one, hesitant at first, students followed. Some faltered, looking back with wide eyes and trembling, their hands clutching cloaks or each other as if bracing for comfort. Fear curled around them like a heavy cloak, and they almost hugged themselves in place, frozen by the enormity of what faced them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But others, driven by a different fire—the need to protect their friends, their teachers, their home—stepped forward. A girl with water-blue hair raised her hands, directing streams of shimmering water to counter the wind gusts. A boy with flames flickering at his fingertips ran past the doorway, sparks dancing along the ground, and another young spirit-user wove illusions to mislead the dragon’s view of the students’ positions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lira and Maelin exchanged a quick glance, hearts hammering violently in their chests. Fear clawed at them, icy and sharp, but beneath it was something stronger: a sense of duty, a resolve they could not ignore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We... we have to,\" Lira whispered, gripping Maelin’s arm. Her vines twitched slightly, almost as if sensing the pulse of the approaching dragon. \"If we stay behind... people could be hurt. We... we have to try.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Maelin nodded, swallowing hard, her usual exuberance replaced by quiet determination. \"We can’t just... hide. Not now. Not when they need us.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Together, they stepped forward. Their feet hit the stone floors with a small, uncertain rhythm at first, then faster, following the older students who had already crossed the threshold. The roar of the dragon was deafening, the shockwave from its wings threatening to knock them off balance, but they pressed on.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Outside, the wind whipped around them, ruffling their hair and cloaks, tugging at them like invisible hands. Sparks of elemental magic crackled and collided in the air, creating bursts of fire, water, earth, and air that lit the courtyard like fireworks. The shields around the academy trembled and groaned under the ancient dragon’s assault, and cracks shimmered along their surfaces.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lira’s palms itched as she planted them on the ground, feeling her vines pulse in response to the trembling earth beneath her. She could feel the vibrations of the dragon’s wings, the pull of the wind, the tremor of stone and metal. Fear still gripped her, but the resolve that had brought her outside strengthened her. She would not falter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Maelin raised her hands, a controlled swirl of air and energy dancing above her fingertips. Her usual laughter was gone, replaced with a steely focus. \"We can do this,\" she whispered fiercely, her eyes locked on the approaching shadow of the black dragon. \"We have to.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The group of students, older and younger alike, began to coordinate instinctively. Some formed small protective circles, their elements interweaving to stabilize portions of the shields. Others created diversions, pushing gusts of air, arcs of water, or flickers of fire to confuse the dragon’s approach. Even from their limited experience, they realized that courage was contagious—the more who joined, the stronger the collective effort became.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lira and Maelin moved cautiously forward, vines curling slightly beneath the stone to anchor themselves, sensing where their friends’ energies could be supported. Each heartbeat hammered in their ears as they felt the raw, wild power of the dragon pressing closer, the shadows from its massive wings sweeping over courtyards and rooftops.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And in that moment, amidst fear, chaos, and the roar of wings, Lira understood something fundamental: courage was not the absence of fear—it was moving forward in spite of it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Step by trembling step, they joined the fight, hearts pounding, resolve solidifying, as the ancient, scarred dragon drew ever nearer, its primal screech echoing over the academy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The ancient black dragon’s wings cut through the air like massive blades, each stroke sending gusts strong enough to tear banners from the spires and shake the courtyard stones. Cracks shimmered along the protective shields, and sparks flew as elemental forces clashed with raw instinct.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Teachers shouted commands, coordinating the defense with precision born of decades of experience. \"Students, stay behind the shields! Aim carefully! Support the wards!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But many students had already crossed that line of fear and were fighting with everything they had. Older students, moving with confidence and elemental mastery, directed the younger ones, showing them where to stand, how to launch attacks without leaving themselves exposed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lira gritted her teeth, her fingers digging into the stone beneath her, roots of her vines curling and stretching toward the dragon as she focused all her energy. From the ground, she lashed her vines forward, striking like living whips toward the dragon’s massive legs and chest. The dragon roared in annoyance, its immense frame barely slowed by her efforts, but Lira could feel the momentary hesitation, the brief shock that even a small thorn could cause.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Maelin stood a few paces behind her, concentration written on every line of her face. With precise movements, she launched fireballs toward the dragon, small bursts of concentrated flame that flickered against its thick, scarred scales. Each fireball struck with sparks and smoke, creating small distractions that drew its attention and disrupted the wind patterns around its wings.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nearby, a water-user raised a cylindrical caster-like device, unleashing a concentrated jet of water at the dragon’s head. The spray hissed against the black scales, and the dragon reared back in surprise, shaking its head. Even the tiniest disruptions seemed to echo across the massive creature’s awareness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Grandmaster Elion hovered in the air, raised, summoning a torrent of air gusts to buffet the dragon’s wings, trying to push it away from the main line of students. The older teachers moved in tandem, fire, water, earth, and spirit users working together to stabilize the shields, keep debris from flying, and coordinate attacks that would not endanger anyone in the courtyard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Students struggled with the sheer force of the dragon’s wings. Some were knocked back by violent gusts, thrown into walls or the air before being pulled into safety by teachers and magical wards. One student, flung from the ground by a wingbeat, landed heavily against a shielded barrier, groaning as a teacher swept in to stabilize him with a protective water circle. Another coughed through flying dust as fire and earth magic collided around him, his hands shaking but returning immediately to the defense line.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lira’s heart pounded in her chest. Each lash of her vines felt like a drop against an ocean, yet she refused to stop. She could see the cracks forming in the shield near the western courtyard and focused her roots there, trying to anchor the stone and earth beneath the academy, providing a small, stable line of defense. The weight of fear pressed on her, but alongside it was determination—a need to protect, to do her part, to be more than just a thorn in the dragon’s path.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Maelin’s fireballs streaked forward in precise arcs, illuminating the dragon’s massive scars and gray scales. \"We can do this! Keep it off balance!\" she shouted, eyes bright with fierce determination, her hands moving in fluid, practiced motions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The dragon screeched again, snapping its massive claws at the students, its instincts driving it to strike anything in its path. Teachers intervened immediately, raising walls of earth, bursts of wind, and shields of water to block the deadly strikes. Sparks flew as claws met magical barriers, and for a heartbeat, the massive creature froze, shocked at the combined effort of the academy’s defenders.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lira felt the pulse of the earth beneath her, vines coiling tighter as she launched another strike, feeling her strength flow through every fiber. The dragon’s roar reverberated through her chest, but she held her ground, small and defiant against a force that seemed impossibly larger than herself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From behind, Maelin threw a cluster of fireballs, some landing on the dragon’s legs, some skimming off its back, all contributing to a delicate dance of defense and offense. Students with water cannons and earth shields moved carefully, coordinating each strike with the teachers’ instructions, creating brief moments of confusion in the dragon’s attacks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Time seemed to stretch, every gust of wind, every screech, every clash of elemental energy echoing in the minds of all who watched. The students’ fear was immense, yet their courage, growing with each coordinated effort, shone even brighter. And at the center of it all, Lira and Maelin stood shoulder to shoulder, fighting not because they were unafraid, but because they refused to let fear dictate their actions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The battle was far from over, but for the first time, even the ancient, scarred dragon hesitated, its instincts momentarily disrupted by the unified defense of teachers and students alike. The air crackled with raw energy, tension, and the unspoken resolve of those who would protect the academy at all costs.\u003C\u002Fp>",2573,"2026-06-06T14:30:21.781Z",1,"novelbin.me","573aca270c363406d9af4b5334c5cdd8135365a8d817620d98c1a57244c7ca8b","born-as-a-witch-chapter-153","born-as-a-witch-chapter-205",479,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fborn-as-a-witch-cover.jpg"]