Reincarnated as an Orphaned Dragon!

Chapter 24 - "Dungeons and Gods"

I met Raine at the adventurer's guild just as planned, and she explained the location.
"The closest dungeon is a short travel south from here. It's one of the rare natural dungeons."

Natural? There are artificial dungeons?
"Are those important?" I ask.

"They're the easiest way to acquire materials from monsters or to practice fighting them, or even just to have fun. It should be a breeze for you, though. You won't have to be in transformation the whole time." She answers.

That made me so relieved, this felt like it was actually going to be fun!

The entrance to the dungeon looked surprisingly intricate, and the first few floors had nothing that took more than a quick spell to deal with.
We were just about to move on when suddenly, the sound of something heavy sliding on the ground interrupted us, and I noticed that a hidden passage was opening.

I got a little too confident and didn't hesitate to go in, but as soon as I did, an invisible barrier kept Raine out.
"It seems I have to clear this part on my own."

"Be careful! I don't want to tell anyone something happened to you!" Raine called.

The path forward was way more narrow than it was up to this point, there was no way I was fitting normally.
"I'm going to have to go through this in transformation." I complained with irritation.

"You'll probably need my sword then, I'll wait outside the dungeon for you. Don't even think about getting hurt! That old fossil back at the village will die if he hears bad news." Raine demands and tosses her sword through the barrier. It seemed that it let objects through.
I tried to dispel the barrier, and to break through it, but I couldn't do it even with an incantation. That really surprised me.

So, I had no choice but to pick up the sword and continue forward in transformation.

I move onward until eventually I walk into a larger chamber.

"Oh? The great one didn't tell me you would be so young!" A voice booms through the silence.

The sudden voice startles me to no end, especially since I was not expecting to hear anything talk in here.
I immediately looked up and realized in front of me was a tall and slim man.

A human? No, he was wielding twin hook swords, and appeared blurry and translucent with a long, flowing cloak.

"The only way out of here is to defeat me. I'll even give you the first strike!" He declared with a smirk.

"Who are you supposed to be?" I ask cautiously.

"I'm the guardian of this dungeon, and let's just leave it at that. I'm not answering any more questions. You'll just have to get past me if you want them."

"And what if I don't want to?"
I would rather not fight at all.

"Then you will stay here for an eternity. No magic you could try will work here."

That would be terrible on its own, but I have no idea what my lifespan is as a dragon. It's probably long.
There's no way I'm going through another lifetime being helpless and waiting to die.

I lunge forward and take the first swing, but it gets blocked easily.
Just as quickly, I jumped back to get distance.

Even an idiot should be able to deduce what those hooks are supposed to do.
Binding swords is absolutely not an option.

"That's good! But it's my turn now!" He yells with a wickedly excited cry as he speeds forward and takes a swing.
I can feel it and try to duck under it and swing my sword at the created opening, but he also miraculously rolls out of the way.