The dragon stirred again, its massive bulk heaving as it struggled against the debris that trapped it in the cave. Its eyes, glowing like molten coals, seethed with fury. A low growl rumbled from its throat, reverberating through the ground and shaking the rocks beneath Ellie’s feet.

  “Gods help us,” someone muttered behind her.

  Ellie’s heart raced as she watched the adventurers spread out, moving cautiously in a wide arc around the cave’s entrance. All eyes flicked toward her, waiting for her next move. They trusted her—somehow they still trusted that she had a plan. Of course, she didn’t.

  She stood frozen, her mind whirling. What was she supposed to do? The dragon was too close, too powerful, too angry. Her instincts screamed at her to run, but there was nowhere to go. The mountains hemmed them in, the dragon barred the only exit.

  Haldor’s voice cut through the rising panic. “Ellie!” He caught her eye from across the rocky field, his face grim. “Whatever you’re going to do,” he growled, “do it now.”

  “Do it now?” she whispered, her throat tightening. What did he think she could do? Her every step so far had been nothing but luck, mishaps, and desperate guesses.

  The dragon snarled again, its enormous tail whipping through the air, sending clouds of dust and rock spiraling up. The adventurers around her tightened their grip on their weapons, edging closer to the inevitable clash. She could see their faces—fear and hope mingled together, every single one of them trusting her with their lives.

  “I don’t have a plan,” she whispered under her breath. “I don’t even know how I got here.”

  As if in answer, the dragon reared up, massive wings unfurling. The wind howled as the dragon let out a piercing roar that split the sky.

  The dragon inhaled sharply, the glow in its throat flaring bright. Flame built in its chest, ready to erupt.

  “Ellie!” Haldor roared. “Now or never!”

  Her hands shot up instinctively, palms out. She expected... a fireball? Or a shield, maybe? Anything to stop the dragon’s deadly breath. But instead, a burst of magic surged from her, golden and erratic, an explosion of light and energy. It wasn’t a fireball or a shield—she didn’t know what it was. The spell struck the dragon just as it opened its mouth to release its flames.

  The collision was catastrophic.

  The golden energy collided with the dragon’s fire mid-exhale. For a moment, the air itself seemed to warp, folding under the pressure of two forces meeting head-on. Then came the backfire.

  The dragon’s flames exploded inside its own throat, a brilliant burst of heat and light that illuminated the cave like the noonday sun. The beast reeled, choking and roaring, smoke pouring from its maw. Its thrashing grew erratic, frantic, as though it couldn’t understand what was happening.

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  Ellie stumbled backward, the remnants of her spell fizzling out in her hands. Her heart pounded as she watched the dragon collapse to the ground, its movements slowing. The flames had done more than injure it—they had ruptured something deep within, leaving the great beast gasping and trembling.

  Finally, with a shuddering exhale, the dragon lay still. Its molten eyes flickered once, twice, and then went dark.

  The earth was silent. Dust settled around the massive form, and the adventurers stood frozen, weapons still raised as if expecting the creature to rise again.

  Haldor broke the silence with a low whistle. “Well, I’ll be damned.”

  Ellie stared at the dragon’s body, her mind struggling to catch up. She hadn’t meant for any of that to happen. The spell… she hadn’t even known what it was supposed to do. But the adventurers didn’t know that.

  “She… she killed it,” one of the younger adventurers whispered, his voice trembling with awe. “With magic.”

  “A single strike!” another chimed in, louder now, excitement breaking through the shock. “She knew exactly when to act!”

  Ellie opened her mouth to protest, but no words came out. She hadn’t done it. It was just dumb luck. But the growing chorus of admiration drowned out any attempt to explain.

  “Incredible!” someone shouted. “I’ve never seen anything like it!”

  The adventurers rushed toward her, their faces beaming with excitement and disbelief. They clapped her on the back, their voices ringing with praise.

  “One spell! That’s all it took!”

  “A true prodigy!”

  “A living legend!”

  Ellie’s heart pounded in her chest, the noise of their cheers deafening. She felt disconnected, as if she were floating above the scene, watching it unfold from some distant place. Her legs wobbled beneath her, and her hands shook uncontrollably. She had to say something, had to tell them the truth.

  “I didn’t—”

  But they weren’t listening. The cheers only grew louder. A blur of faces and noise overwhelmed her senses. Haldor approached, his gray-streaked beard twitching as he chuckled, shaking his head slowly.

  “You’ve outdone yourself, lass,” he said, his voice laced with amusement and something like admiration. “You had us all fooled.”

  Ellie forced a hollow smile, barely managing to stand as the weight of their expectations bore down on her. She hadn’t done anything. It was all a lie, an accident. But they saw only the dead dragon and the girl who had slain it.

  “We’ll be talking about this for centuries.” One of the adventurers wiped dust from his face. “A single spell against a dragon—that’s unheard of.”

  “A legend,” another murmured, awe dripping from every syllable.

  Ellie wanted to laugh, but all that came out was a bitter breath. A legend. The word echoed in her head, twisted and hollow. A legend built on lies, on luck, and on a series of mistakes.

  Her eyes drifted to the dragon’s body, its massive form still against the earth. For a moment, she felt a pang of pity for the creature. It had been ancient, powerful, a force of nature. Now it was just… dead.

  “Ellie! Ellie!” The adventurers chanted her name, their voices full of adoration and triumph. Swords raised in salute, their faces glowing with pride.

  Ellie swallowed hard. She hadn’t meant to do any of this. She wasn’t the hero they thought she was. And yet here she was, standing among them, her name etched into their minds, celebrated for a victory she hadn’t earned.

  “I’m not who you think I am,” she whispered, her voice lost in the roar of their praise.

  But it didn’t matter now. The legend had already been written. And Ellie could only hope that her luck, improbable as it was, would hold out just a little longer.