We finally get back to their backstory. I don't suppose the childhood friend Shion is dead, is she? But going by the usual rules, no named character is dead until their corpse or at least their grave is shown.
I'm just having a hard time buying the seriousness of this battle against the dragon. Even though there's a reason (area debuff preventing movement) it just looks like everyone else is just standing there gawking and commentating at him fighting it toe to toe all by himself.
Yes, fight like the one-man party you've always dreamed of. Finally, a manga that says teamwork can go fuck itself, you don't need no stinking power of friendship or love because you've got cheat skills to make it all obsolete.