Chapter 13: Father?

He and Bisca continued to take S-Class jobs whenever they were sent to Fairy Tail. Unfortunately, the job requests the guild received were mostly S-Class jobs asking for the Demon Fairy. This kept him and Bisca in business, but caused a shortage of income for the other guild members.

The guild continued to shrink over the years. Akros and Bisca, who became known as the "Sexy Sniper", became the new faces for Fairy Tail. The regular guild members has very few jobs to take, and received less income as a whole. The once large guild hall was torn down and resized to be much smaller. The mortgage for the original massive hall was too much, so the guild hall was reduced to a tavern.

The remaining members were Macao, Romeo, Wakaba, Kinana, Laki, Jet, Droy, Reedus, Bisca, Akros, Nab, Max, Warren, and Vijeeter. The guild hall was maintained by Akros and Bisca who donated money monthly to pay mortgage. The other members had very little income, so their earning was exclusively for themselves. This made many of them feel selfish.

This period of emptiness in the guild prolonged for years. Akros would stop by when he donated jewel to talk to Macao or Kinana, just to check in on them personally. Bisca knew the other members better, and would talk to them occasionally. Aside from that, the two didn't spend any time in the tavern. Working kept them occupied, and they were generally happy when around each other.

However, Akros hid something from her. In his time working for humans, doing righteous deeds, he realized how much of a scumbag he truly was. He felt like the good guy when he saved innocents, but how many more had he slain in Asha? Not only that, but he let thousands of female elves be raped by his demon army.

As time passed, Akros grew depressed and unsatisfied with his life with Bisca. It wasn't her fault, nor anything she could fix. He simply felt out of place. None of it felt right. He shouldn't be with humans. He didn't feel as if he deserved any part of this life.

Unbeknownst to him, his humanity was reborn when he fused with Acnologia's body. The Dragon King was once human himself, and his motive for his genocide against dragonkin was due to losing his loved ones to them. This passionate human emotion within Acnologia ignited the dormant flame of humanity within Akros' blackened heart.

As a demon, he had always wanted to wage war, to kill and devour souls to empower himself further. Now his demon blood was mixed with noble dragon blood, and his bloodlust was suppressed. It was suppressed by his depression as well, reducing it to almost nothing. He had no motive to kill anymore. That added with his human guilt plaguing his will, he started to slow down.

Bisca noticed his lack of enthusiasm over time, seeing his hesitation with jobs. She was afraid he had grown weary of her, and sat him down in their house one fateful night. She didn't know whether to feel relieved or crestfallen when he told her the truth.

"Y-you raped women in the past?"

"Several. Additionally, I allowed thousands of elf women to be raped by demons under my command. I could have stopped it, but... I'm a monster," Akros gave her a sad, exhausted smile. "I don't deserve this life with you. If anything, Acnologia should've struck me down. I'm not worthy of your love!"

Her heart broke along with his voice. She didn't cry immediately. She squeezed out every drop of her will to keep herself strong as she tried to comfort him. "Akros, I know you've done evil things-"

"Evil things?! I AM EVIL ITSELF!!" He roared in distress, clawing at his face. "DON'T TELL ME IT WAS IN THE PAST!! IT MATTERS NOT!! I SINNED FOR THE SAKE OF POWER, AND DID IT WITH A DAMN SMILE ON MY FACE!! I SHOULD DIE FOR WHAT I HAVE DONE!!"

"AND THEN WHAT?!" Bisca shrieked back, tears welling in her eyes. Akros froze, petrified by the sight of her crying. "YOUR DEATH WON'T SOLVE ANYTHING!! NOBODY ATONES IN DEATH, BECAUSE THEY ARE DEAD!! IF YOU WANT TO BE FREE OF YOUR SINS, THEN DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT!! GO BACK TO THAT DAMNED WORLD AND FIX IT!!"

She breathed hard, standing over him. His eyes were wide as she sobbed quietly. While she sobbed quietly, he stood and embraced her. "Forgive me. I had no intention of making you cry."

"Dumbass. You should've told me about this sooner..." Bisca sniffled. "I'm serious. You're being eaten away by your guilt. You should leave me and return to that world, make it a better place. How you do so is up to you."

"Wait, I can't just leave you alone-" Akros tried to refute, but she silenced him with a sudden kiss. When she pulled away, she smiled at him lovingly. 

"I love you, Akros. I want the best for you. Right now, that's not me. Come back to be after you feel better, okay?"

"Bisca..." He swallowed down tears of his own, desperately holding his composure. "Thank you... for everything. If I didn't have someone to talk to..."

"Don't say that. I'm the reason you're still in this world. Let go of me for a while, and sort yourself out. It'll hurt me to be away from you, but it hurts even more to see you so distraught. Please, go."

"...okay. I'll go. But first..."

Akros' talons glowed purple. He dug his fingers into the fabric of space beside him, tearing open a spatial rift. "This will safely take you to the domain of my Shadow Legion. You have a Shadow Brand, so they'll recognize you as an ally. If that isn't enough..."

He dug into his inventory, retrieving a massive red greatsword with double serrated edge. "This is Hellreaver, the Blade of Gluttony. They know this to be mine. If the brand doesn't convince them, this will."

Bisca hesitantly held it. It vibrated violently in her hands, as if trying to break free of her grasp. "It doesn't seem to like me..."

"After decades of loyal service to me, that's not surprising. It has a soul of its own," Akros explained. She put the blade away, and exchanged one last kiss with him. 

"Stay safe," Bisca pleaded. "And come back to me with renewed vigor. I want to see the true you."

"The true me...?" Akros laughed without humor. "I suppose you haven't. I apologize. Go now, before I change my mind."

She stared at him for a bit longer, memorizing his form. Only then did she enter the spatial tear and disappear. Akros looked down for a moment, thinking of how worthless he was to make her cry. 

"No!" He slapped his own cheek. "I won't bathe in self-pity. I have work to do."

The tear in space remained open. Akros changed the coordinates, setting the destination to Asha. For some reason, the portal fizzed out. Confused, Akros tried again but to no effect. As he tried to figure it out, a system panel appeared before his face. 

The coordinates you are using do not exist. Please set a different location.

"What the hell?" He muttered. "Did Asha disappear or something?"

The world named 'Asha' has been obliterated, and cannot be teleported to. Please set a different location.

"The demons won, then..." He fell to his knees. "No... it's too late..."

He stared at the floor for a couple seconds with grief, then punched himself in the gut. "No! I won't give up so easily! If I can't fix that world, I'm sure there's plenty other worlds being invaded by demons. There always is. But how will I get to them...? Maybe it's time I use those noble souls."

Akros created a new skill, using three of his seven noble souls. He named it 'New Game'. The skill was defined as a teleportation spell that would send him to a world with a few conditions. The world had to be unexplored by him, and plagued by war. Specifically, war between dark and light. Not necessarily demons, but in general an 'evil' side versus a 'good' side. Evil and good were defined as what Akros would consider 'evil' and 'good' with his reignited humanity. 

"New Game!" A swirling blue portal opened before Akros. The waft of flowers and grass drifted through it, a smell that humbled the demon lord. Before he walked through, he decided to humble himself by limiting himself through his quest to atone. Doing it with his full power wouldn't be fulfilling, he decided.

Akros used his old relic, the Conversion Cube, to make another two noble and two fallen souls. With seven high-quality souls, he created a new skill. It had a discount on soul consumption due to his latest fusion.

Human Form

Active: Entertain a human appearance and magic aura. Magic other than human magic will be unusable, including skills. Change between this form and others at will. 

Passive: Human emotions flourish within your shameful soul. You are inspired to do acts of good and kindness. 

Akros entered the portal, then activated the skill. He found himself in a land of lush greenery. Birds sang, streams ran, and foliage blew in the wind. He took time to absorb the smell, the sounds, and the feel of this jungle. 

His light brown skin felt every breeze. His smooth, unclawed hands sifted through stream water. He had human feet with toes that gripped the mud gratefully. Spiky violet hair ran down to his waist, fluttering in the wind. His solid, sculpted body stood bare in the moist air. 

"What an... earthly sensation," The man sighed. "I feel so much different, I should go under a different name. Akros sounds inhuman, but my true demon name is so long I might as well use another part of it...status."

Name: Amin

Race: Demon Dragon

Bloodlines: Shadow Demon (Main), Frost Dragon (Main), Saiyan (Latent), Fallen Angel (Latent)

Demon Name: Vaw Nolg Ryo Jaffuku Greo Bael Ilias Yornn Trisoa Revash Lax Perral Noval Akros

Form: Human

Attributes: Dark (Main), Amethyst (Latent)

Strength: 30,001 (300,100 in Demon form) (x4 in Dragon Form)

Speed: 15,844 (158,444 in Demon Form) (x.5 in Dragon Form)

Magic Energy: 74,500 (745,008 in Demon Form) (x3 in Dragon Form) (x10 in Transcendent Form)

Stamina: 20,199 (201,999 in Demon Form) (x.1 in Dragon Form)

Vitality: 100,007 (1,000,072 in Demon Form) (x4 in Dragon Form)

Souls in Possession: 1,464,650 Mortal Souls, 1 Soul of Might Fragment, 4 High-Grade Holy Souls, 3,213 Middle-Grade Holy Souls, 400,000 Low-Grade Holy Souls, 1 Vengeful Soul

Loaded Materials: Saiyan Blood, Tail Plating, Tremor-Tremor, Press-Press, Infertile Sperm, Short Horns

Skills: Charm (Unactive in Human Form), Cataclysm, Shadow Brand (Unusable in Human Form), Metamoran Fusion, Shadow Melt (Unusable in Human Form), Foresight, Dark Acceleration (Unusable in Human Form), Violet Coating, Production Suction, Flame Vortex, Demolition Beam (Unusable in Human Form), Psychokinesis, Cybernetic Augmentation, Dracomorph, Arcane, New Game, Human Form

Magic: Shadow (Demonic magic cannot be deployed currently), Unholy Flame, Restoration, Violet Frost (Draconic magic cannot be deployed currently)

Universal Law Progression: Destruction (50%), Wrath (22%), Darkness (15%), Lust (13%), Pride (5%), Power (4%), Greed (3%), Love (3%), Honor (1%)

Soul Immortality Level: 5%

Race Ability 1: Soul Peer (Inactive)

Race Ability 2: Demon Blood (Inactive)

Race Ability 3: Soul Devouring Addiction (Inactive)

Race Ability 4: Immortal Body 

Race Ability 5: Dragon Scaling (Inactive)

Race Ability 6: Dracomorph

Talent Ability 1: Undying Spite

Talent Ability 2: Zenkai Boost

Talent Ability 3: Ultraspeed Regeneration

Talent Ability 4: Angel Blood (Inactive)

Notice: As your organs are not truly human, you are infertile in this form. All stats are reduced by 90%. Your blood is not that of a human's. Your magic aura will come off as human. 'Charm' has been deactivated. 

Quite the debuffed state... perfect. I needed a reminder of my roots anyway. This body feels so right, yet so wrong. Having only four limbs is so odd now. It said Charm was inactive, but looking in this stream here... I'm still quite handsome, with a bit of a rugged aspect. I look very much like Acnologia in his human state, but my skin is lighter and my hair is purple. Even though I'm 'human', I have pointed canines and the same eyes as before. My organs... still no anus, and I think that's the furnace organ still in my gut? The hell is with this dollar-store skill?

He shook himself out of his thoughts. "Enough negativity. I need to clothe myself, and find civilization. There's always someone who needs help."

Nearby in the jungle~

On a dirt path, an guarded caravan rolled peacefully. Four exquisite wagons made of lavish wood and clean steel were accompanied by armed guards. Each guard was clad in iron armor and equipped with a sword. They were decently trained soldiers, escorting a VIP to another city.

Inside the second to last wagon was a young girl the age of 14. She was short with light curves as a result of her pubescence. She had smooth skin, glamorous golden hair, and bright green eyes. She was a young beauty, dressed in an elaborate gown. In her wagon, her personal maid sat across from her, ready to aid her whenever. 

"Milady," The maid looked at her cautiously. "I know you're anxious, but please try to relax a bit before we get to Brenn. We still have another few hours before we arrive."

"I know, I'm just worried about father," The noble girl sighed. "Thank you for your kindness, Jane."

Suddenly, the wagon halted. The girl and Jane shared a suspicious look. 

"What could that be, milady?" Jane asked, standing up.

"I don't know. A monster?" The blonde chewed on her lip nervously. "Either way, the sounds from outside are bad. The guards are struggling against something. Wait..."

They went silent, listening to the grunts and cries of men coming from outside. Those sounds would make sense if monsters appeared on the path. However, there was also the clanging of metal. 

"Bandits?" Jane grit her teeth. "Damn it! Milady, we need to run!"

"They're all around us! There's no chance!" The noble girl drew a slim dagger from her sleeve. "We'll have to do what we can! Let's help them- wait, it's quiet now."

Jane put her ear up to the wagon door, listening for noise. Just then, the door was ripped off the wagon, making her yelp and recoil. 

"Oi, check ze ladies out," A bandit with a heavy accent snickered. "Howz about we play whiz zem for a while?"

"N-no!" Jane whimpered in horror. Behind him, she could see a fallen soldier whose head was missing. "NOOOOOOO!!!!!"

"Shut it, bitch!" The thug grabbed by her hair, or tried to. His throat was slit by the noble girl, whose teary eyes were burning with fury.

"Our future doesn't look bright, but!" She flicked the blood off her dagger, then resumed a meager fighting stance. "I'll take as many down with me as I can!"

The death of the first man made the other bandits wary. The next man to enter the wagon was a heavyset and heavily armored brute with an axe. He grabbed the girl's wrist before she could stab him, then tossed her into the waiting arms of the other men. The maid followed right after.

"No! No! Don't do this!" The girl shrieked, fighting against the men that held her. Her dress and undergarments were torn off, revealing budding nipples and a faintly curvy figure. The men leered at her, licking their lips. They had bound and gagged the maid, saving her busty figure for later. "Someone! SOMEONE HELP M-mmmph!"

A hand covered her mouth, preventing her from crying out further. Tears streamed down her face as a man spread her legs. "Ooh, what a pretty pussy! Must be a virgin!"

He unveiled a stinky and filthy penis, and began lining it up. The girl's eyes were wide and she tried to kick him, but her legs were held down. She could only shut her eyes tight and try to tune out the chatter of the thugs. She braced herself, waiting for it to come. But nothing happened. Nothing entered her lower body. She opened one eye curiously.

The naked man, along with the others holding her down, where missing. Nearby birds hastily flew out of trees, making her wonder what happened. Then the smell hit her. 

"Ugh!" A strong stench of iron infested her nostrils. She sat up and looked around. "Did they fleeEEEEEEEEEE!!"

Pools of blood lay around her, staining the grass and seeping into the lush soil. Jane rushed over to her, her bounds destroyed. "Milady! You're unhurt!"

"Yes, I'm fine," The girl covered her mouth with disgust, holding back bile. "Who... what did this?"

"Oh, um. Look over there," Jane shakily pointed behind her. A tall and barefoot person clad in a black cloak was observing the leading wagon, seemingly examining the workings of it. By their large feet, the figure was evidently a man. "That fellow saved us. We should thank him, after I dress you."

Jane took a spare dress from the wagon and hastily covered her lady up. Only then did they approach the mysterious figure. 

"Excuse me?" Jane's voice got their attention. Under the shadow of their hood, their face was well concealed. Jane felt a bit nervous approaching such a deadly person. "W-we'd like to thank yo-"

"Stop. I am not worthy of your gratitude," A deep and somber voice came from the dark hood. The noble girl stepped up with a flashy smile.

"I am Ruberta Lon Visch, second daughter of the Visch house. I offer you my sincere gratitude for the rescue, kind sir. May I know your name?"

"..." The soulless stare from the faceless man made Ruberta break into a cold sweat. 

She was extremely careful with her words and actions, so as not to provoke this man. She could've fled the scene and avoided contact, but she felt that was cowardly. Her pride as a noble's daughter wouldn't allow that. 

"I am a sinner. Nothing more, nothing less," The hooded figure grumbled. "I am traveling on a quest for redemption. I merely came to investigate the source of the screams."

"Even then, we are very grateful. Additionally, I would like to hire you," Ruberta maintained a poker face as she gazed into the abyss, even though she was shaking with anxiety. "I need an escort to the city of Brenn. I will reward you, so could you do this for us?"

"...I apologize if I frighten you. It is no surprise. My evil deeds would scare any," The cloaked man chuckled without humor. "I'm being a little dramatic, I fear. I will take on this duty for you. Please, call me... Vaw."

Vaw steered a single wagon with the two young women inside. It was a peaceful ride, without any further implications. His gloomy appearance placed distress in anything that gazed upon him, including another pack of bandits lying in wait. They sensed immense danger from his figure, deciding unanimously to refrain from attacking. 

A few hours later, they arrived at the Brenn's walls, guarded by a pair of soldiers similar to the ones assigned to Ruberta. They gripped their spears tightly when seeing Vaw's appearance. Once the wagon stopped, they approached him uneasily.

"We're gonna need ya ta take off ya hood, mate," One of them said boldly. "And it'll be ten gahld to entah."

"Wait!" Ruberta burst out of the wagon, shocking the guards. 

"You're!" "A noble's daughter?!"

"I am Ruberta Lon Visch, and this is my savior. He's a bit intimidating, but he rescued me and my maid from a fate worse than death," Ruberta pouted cutely, giving the closest guard puppy eyes. "I need to get home, I miss my papa~."

"N-no, that's okay! You can pass for free!" The guard blushed. "Open the gates!"

As the iron gates closed behind the wagon, the uncharmed guard gave the other a dubious look. "I get it, she wos ah cutie. But wot if she was a hostage or somephin'?"

"No, I doubt it," The guard shook his head. "She seemed too earnest."

Not far from the entrance gates was a man who Ruberta ran to and glomped in a hug. She and Jane greeted him with happy tears, making the man worry.

"Daughter, what happened?" Ruberta's father, Ron, was very concerned by her behavior. "Did someone attack you?"

"Yes, but it's okay now," She sniffed. "Sir Vaw rescued us- Sir Vaw?"

The cloaked man had vanished without a trace. Ruberta puffed her cheek irritably. Then she recalled his words, and sighed. "He's gone now, but a cloaked figure saved me and Jane from being violated by thugs. I wanted to reward him, but he left..."

"Sir... Vaw?" Ron shook his head. "Whatever his name is, we are in his debt. I'm just glad you're safe, dear!"

Hearing the father-daughter banter from afar, Vaw smiled beneath his hood from a rooftop. "I'm plenty wealthy. I don't need compensation, nor do I deserve it for a basic act of kindness. We'll meet again, blondie."

Vaw spent a few weeks incognito in Brenn, killing criminals and interrupting harassment within the city. His figure and name became known to the citizens as the Black Hood. If a fiend was out doing bad things, he'd find them. 

Rumors about him wound their way into the Visch manor in the center of the large city. Ron himself was the mayor. He learnt of recent rumors through spies and manage his people accordingly. Therefore, he heard of Vaw's actions. A mysterious vigilante with no clear motive.

Ron Lon Visch was part of the Yorrgan Council, a group of Yorrgan nobles who helped advise the king. The human Yorrgan Kingdom was a peaceful nation politically, as it remained neutral in most international conflicts. The western Bronchian Empire of elves was in conflict with the southwestern human Estol Republic.

The difference between Yorrga and Estol was the quality of men. Yorrga was a nation known for honor and its only conflicts were internal ones with lawless gangs and criminals. Estol had a lower crime rate, because everyone was scum. It was a nation full ran by wealthy pigs and managed by treacherous mercenaries who'd do anything for coin. That included abducting elves, beastmen, orcs, and other humans to sell as slaves. Slavery was permitted only in Estol, and was frowned upon by other nations. 

The Bronchi Empire had been victims of kidnapping by Estolian sellswords. This enraged the elf empress, Silva, to the point of waging war. Estol had no official army, as any rich person would simply hire a band of mercenaries as protection. Because Silva waged war, the snobby rich men of Estol were forced to work together in order to fend off the furious elves.

Ron was aware of the ongoing war as part of his informative system. He had also been requested by an elven knight, who was an ambassador of Silva herself, to aid the elves in battle. The king of Yorrga refused to take part in the war, as he stayed true to the isolationism his fathers before him practiced. This forced Silva to instead reach out to Yorrgan nobles for aid. 

There were other nations, such as the Cloccas Tribe of beastmen, the orc Democracy of Gorrohan, or even the Normir Coven. However, the last option was absolutely a last resort. She would get Yorrgan aid if possible, as they were the friendliest nation available.

The middle-aged man was bent over a luxurious desk, working through his options. He didn't want to miss a chance to better his relationship with the empress of Bronchi. Yet, he didn't have enough money to amass an army to fight another nation's war. The whole idea was unrealistic and ridiculous, he thought. 

"Sending an army, or even a battalion is too far-fetched. I'll need to settle for an elite force, a group that can operate without a line of order..." Ron pulled on his fine mustache as he thought out loud. He then sorted through documents of possible local candidates for this plan. "An arena champion, an assassin, a free knight, a half-vampire, and a vigilante... these five can do it."

Flyers were sent out around the city, asking for the five named figures to meet at the Visch manor at a certain date. The regular citizens who saw the flyers were kind enough people to pass the word around. Because of this, Vaw learned of this gathering from the shadows.

On the scheduled day when dusk fell, Vaw entered the gates of the Visch manor. The guards knew his appearance, and under Ron's orders they let him in without hassle. He was guided to the main building, where the others waited.

He entered a lounge room, after which the butler guiding him left his side. It was a luxurious room with satin couches surrounding a wooden table and a magic refrigerator full of wine and other beverages and snacks. On the couches were four unfamiliar figures, and Ron who Vaw recognized.

"Vaw! It's a pleasure to finally meet you!" Ron instantly got up, greeting the hooded figure with a genuine smile. "I never did thank you for saving my daughter!"

"No need to. I did what was right," Vaw replied coldly. "Now, why have I been called?"

"Ah, well," Ron was a tad dispirited by the response, but he didn't let it hinder his tongue. "You see, I am in a predicament. Sit down and have a drink as I give the mission briefing."

Vaw nodded. As soon as Ron turned his back to him, Vaw scanned the four figures with Foresight. "Lore, the Wandering Paladin. Hina, the Crimson Blight. Vashi, Freak of the Pit. Berride, the Silent Guillotine. What a diverse group."

"The Black Hood, Vaw," Lore gazed at him suspiciously. Lore was a massive brunette with a undying sense of justice, which lead him to question Vaw's brutal solutions to most problems. He wore holy white armor, wielding sword and shield along with holy magic.

"What? There a problem, chump?" Vashi snapped, slamming a bottle on the table. She was a muscular but average sized woman with vibrant green hair and an attitude bigger than her guns. She wore mismatching gladiator armor which revealed her solid figure in some areas. "Ah? Say it!"

"Oh, do be quiet," Berride sighed to herself. She was dressed in a black jumpsuit and silver armor covering her arms, lower legs, and chest. She also wore a hood, and wore a mask over her lower face. All one could tell about her looks was her bright yellow eyes and thick lower half.

"..." Hina couldn't be bothered to say anything. A drop dead pale babe with piercing red eyes and long black hair. She wore a no-strap dress as dark as night, revealing her bountiful bosom. She also wore ring earrings and high heels, cementing her look. 

"Please be at ease," Ron spoke smoothly. "My mission for you five requires your cooperation with each other."

Ron explained to them the current situation of the war between Estol and Bronchi. The human side had deployed cutting edge military technology that was making the attacking elves have a very difficult time. Silva needed help taking care of the artillery because elves were not assassins, their pride and honor didn't allow them to be. Additionally, she requested that Ron find a way to kill at least a few of the leading wealthy men to break the order of command in Estol.

The group of five had three routes that Ron offered. The first option was to infiltrate the Estolian ranks and destroy them from the inside out. Second was to move stealthily and take them down from the shadows. Third and last option was to fight them head on.

Lore and Vashi wanted the final option, but Hina and Berride voted for the second. The tiebreaker was down to Vaw, who had been silent. All eyes were on him as he tapped his bottle in thought.

"Think about it carefully now. If we attack head on with the elves, we are more likely to be overwhelmed. We can cause havoc, but we shouldn't stay in one area for too long or reinforcements will surround our location. That make sense?"

Vaw's suggestion rang clear through the paladin and gladiator's minds. They nodded in agreement to his words.

"Then it's decided," Ron stood up. "You five will be rewarded handsomely, I'll even add in bonus if you do more than required. There's a carriage outside, the driver will take you to the Estolian border. Happy hunting."

Vaw was the first to leave the room, followed by the other four. They were all uneased by his presence, but judging by the way he spoke he was not a mindless killer like rumor told.

"What do you think he looks like?" Vashi whispered to Hina curiously. The half-vampire shrugged.

"How should I know?" Hina looked at Vashi with disdain. "What good would that knowledge do a barbarian like you?"

Vashi frowned, but didn't retaliate against her rude words. It hurt her pride as a champion of the ring, but she knew Hina was a dangerous foe. All of these people were. Vashi swore to herself to keep her pride to herself during this mission.

Lore and Berride were both very serious and composed people, as a paladin and assassin respectively. Upon a quick glance, they formed a bond of mutual respect for each other's talents and power. They shook hands, but didn't exchange words. 

The carriage ride was silent. Nobody said a word, giving Vaw a good opportunity to change some things.

Souls in Possession: 1,464,650 Mortal Souls, 1 Soul of Might Fragment, 4 High-Grade Holy Souls, 3,213 Middle-Grade Holy Souls, 400,000 Low-Grade Holy Souls, 1 Vengeful Soul

Loaded Materials: Saiyan Blood, Tail Plating, Tremor-Tremor, Press-Press, Infertile Sperm, Short Horns

Skills: Charm, Cataclysm, Shadow Brand, Metamoran Fusion, Shadow Melt, Foresight, Dark Acceleration, Violet Coating, Production Suction, Flame Vortex, Demolition Beam, Psychokinesis, Dracomorph, Arcane, New Game, Human Form

Magic: Shadow, Bloodfire, Restoration, Violet Frost

Vaw modified his Human Form considerably. Instead of locking his demonic and draconic magics, the skill would seal them with two magic tattoos covering each arm. The left arm's tattoo was a purple dragon, in the shape of a eastern dragon of legend. The dragon's head was detailed around his hand. The right arm bore a black design in the shape of his demon tail. It ended in the shape of his tail blade on the back of his hand. Both tattoos connected to his left breast, over his heart. 

Bloodfire was not counted as demonic or dragonic magic, much to Vaw's surprise. It was a result of shadowflame being corrupted by the blood attribute, and lost its demonic properties. Vaw restored it from Unholy Flame because... he thought Bloodfire was more impressive. He only saw it in action once, but it was enough. He had long argued with himself that having anti-immortal magic was a good idea, but he had Crafanc. As a human, he had no need to challenge powerful demons or angels, so what point was there now? Bloodfire was effective anything with blood.

"Vaw." 

The hooded man looked at Hina. "Yes?"

"What are you doing?" The hybrid demanded with a disgusted face. "Keep your filthy eyes away from my body. You can't touch it either."

Vaw narrowed his eyes. He quickly realized his interactions with the system panel had gained the suspicions of the others. He sat up, retracting his arms to his cloak that covered his whole body. Only his tanned feet were bare. 

"I apologize. I had no such intentions."

"You better not! As if I'd let such am impure man dirty my divine skin!"

Berride, who was beside Vaw, sighed. "Don't worry about her, Black Hood. She's just a bitch."

"Ha?! Who are you to talk? You spend all of your nights in the rooms of men. There's no guarantee you're actually killing them..." Hira taunted viciously. Berride's face didn't change at all. Rather, she snorted contemptuously, making the pale woman sneer. "Something funny?"

"Yes, actually," The assassin looked her dead in the eyes. "The only thing bigger than your bags of fat is your ego. You're dressed for a ball, not a disruption mission. What, do you think Estolian men will simply cater to you?"

"...!" Hina went silent, her face morphing into one of shock. 

Vashi flicked a thumb towards Berride. "She's got a point. I myself am an escaped slave from Estol. They treat women like objects. Men are in power because they're physically stronger, and force their way inside any woman they can. The only women there that don't get enslaved are mages, who they call witches. They're outcast from society because the men can't stand not being able to... you know."

"...I see," Hina chew her lip, casting her eyes down. "Despicable people."

"Agreed. The men of Estol must be purged," Lore clenched his fist. "Any who treat women improperly deserve death."

"..." Vaw listened closely, wanting to get a feel for these people. Hina was a prideful woman who looked down upon men. Vashi was likely so strong out of wanting to enact vengeance on those who once enslaved her. Lore seemed to act righteous, but there was no evidence that he was truly that kind of man. Berride seemed stoic, but disliking of Hina.

The carriage traveled until it reached the Estolian border. From there, the five entered the desert nation. The borders were unguarded on the northeastern sectors, where their borders met Yorrga's. Official guards didn't exist, nor did any kind of wall or entrance gate. The wealthy would plant soldiers to defend during war. Against the peaceful Yorrgan Kingdom, there was no need to be prepared. Or so they thought.

"The dunes go on forever..." Berride said in astonishment as the group looked across the desert before them. 

"I can feel the heat," Hina grumbled. "Switch!"

With a flash of red light, her dress and heels were replaced by trousers and a tank top. She tied up her hair in a messy bun. "Okay, this'll do."

"Now that's a better look," Vashi elbowed her playfully, eyeing the jiggle of the pale woman's chest. She had packaged her armor and weapons in a large backpack to avoid overheating. "Seriously, you look good in that."

"Thank you, but I don't swing that way," Hina huffed, crossing her arms. She cracked an eye open to glance at Lore. "Won't you be melting in that?"

He shook his head confidently. His sword rested on his hip and his shield was on his back. Below it was a sack full of supplies. "I prepared an cooling enchantment in my armor for this occasion. I should be fine. How about you two, Berride, Vaw? Black won't fare well in the sun."

"...I'll be fine," Berride spoke with hesitation, examining her black cloth. She didn't want to undress any, so she shook her head. "I can deal."

"If you say so..." Vashi raised an eyebrow curiously, but didn't pry. "Um, Vaw?"

At that moment, a gust of hot wind blew in their direction. It caused Vaw's cloak to flow behind him, revealing a majority of his body. Underneath the cloak he was nude, save for a pair of black sweatpants that were cut at the calf. His stomach muscles rippled as he breathed in the desert air. His face remained hidden.

Hina and Vashi couldn't help but gawk at his musculature, while Berride and Lore caught on something else. The his tattoos were quite unique, seeming to stem from his heart. As the four of them were distracted, Vaw chose his words.

"I am not deterred by the heat. Let us march."

As the frontlines in the war were several hundred miles south from their location, they knew it would be a long hike. However, it was worse than all of them expected. The first few hours were purgatory for their heat intolerant bodies. 

"Haa, haa, can we take a break~?" Hina whined, sweating buckets. "I'm not used to this heat."

"Neither are we!" Lore barked back, fanning his face with his shield. "My enchantment isn't doing much..."

"..." Vaw himself found no discomfort in the heat. It was nothing compared to the Abyss' upper levels that he grew up in. However, he wanted to help his allies to improve their bonds and keep them strong. So, he decided to take a shortcut. A magic circle appeared beneath him and the others, startling them.

"What the-" Vashi began to cry, before her body was dragged through space.

The five of them reappeared on another dune, a hundred miles from where they started. To four of them, they had gained no clear amount of ground. They were out of breath from the sudden transportation and collapsed. Vaw however...

"Ryu no me," He whispered. His red eyes glowed ominously from his hood, and his sight range improved exponentially. He could see a massive battle between elves and men, around 160 miles south. Once he confirmed this, he deactivated the spell.

"What the fuck?" Vashi cursed, shakily getting to her feet. 

"Hina, was that your doing?" Berride seethed, brushing sand off of her clothes. "Alert us first!"

"It wasn't me! I can't teleport five people!" The hybrid grumbled. "Lore?"

"Can't use magic other than holy types," The paladin glared at Vaw. "You should've warned us."

"I shortened our trip by 100 miles, relax," The cloaked man chided softly. "Now that we've made progress, we can rest."

""What?!"" The four cried out in disbelief. 

"You can use teleportation magic? To that degree, no less?" Hina, a spellcaster herself, was astounded. "You must be a master!"

"I've mastered spatial magic. That includes teleportation," Vaw admitted. He turned to the curvaceous woman, making her flinch with his empty stare. "I can teach you if you wish."

"Really?!" She clasped her hands together in delight. "Please!"

Hina used earth magic to create a sandstone cave for them to rest in. It was rough in cut, but was more than enough for the three humans. As they laid down and stripped, Hina consulted Vaw. Her giddiness made the other three a bit dubious of her character.

"She was so condescending until now," Vashi said, scratching her exposed stomach. She was clad in a crop top and shorts, exposing most of her toned and scarred body. Her face was the only place where her skin was clear. "Is she that excited to learn from another magic caster?"

"Beats me. All I can say is that we owe Vaw one. He really did get us 100 miles south," Berride, now reduced to a bra and leggings, heaved a sigh. "I've never heard anything about him using magic. I thought he was a vengeful monk or something that used his bare hands."

"That's what I thought too, but..." Lore, wearing only a tank top and trousers, thought out loud. "Perhaps his tattoos have something to do with it? The purple dragon is interesting."

"Magic tattoos. Magic sealed within his skin," Berride explained. Vashi and Lore oohed at that, understanding swiftly. "Perhaps he is a powerful mage, hiding his power?"

"Well, he's a vigilante who targets generally bad people," Vashi frowned. "Did he seal his magic away because he misused it, and now seeks redemption? That makes the most sense to me."

The three kept talking as they laid down, unknowingly strengthening their budding bonds. Vaw didn't need rest, so he explained and demonstrated spatial magic techniques to Hina as she sat down. She paid close attention, forgetting about his mysterious character. He was a monstrously powerful mage as far as she knew. 

She couldn't sense his magic aura, meaning he had either perfectly concealed it or it was simply too much for her mana sensory nerves to pick up. The latter option was unlikely, but she didn't assume. She treated Vaw with respect and humility, as if he was her tutor.

"So if you don't have the destination's spatial coordinates memorized, you can teleport to a place you can see. I have a sight-enhancing spell that I use for this. When put together I call it the 'sightseeing' technique," Vaw said, drawing a magic circle in the sand below him. "See this circle? This is for teleporting to an unfamiliar location. Remember it well."

Hina scribbled furiously in a small leather notebook. "Okay... what about the eyesight enchantment spell?"

"'Dragon eyes'. There's no magic circle, but a very specific incantation. Ryu no me. Look at my eyes."

Two red orbs glowed from the darkness of Vaw's hood. Hina nodded, then frowned. "How do I spell that?"

"Ah. I can't write this world's language..." Vaw murmured, before shutting his jaw.

Shit! I exposed myself!

"You mean Yorrgan?" Hina tilted her head in confusion. When she wasn't prideful, she was actually adorable. "Well, I suppose the pronunciation matters more than the way it's written."

"Correct," Vaw breathed a sigh of relief. The spell deactivated, and his eyes went dark again. "The spell lasts for one minute unless you cancel it. The best way to use it for sightseeing is multicast Dragon Eyes as you perform sight based teleportation. That make sense?"

"Yes, but multicasting is very difficult, even for me," Hina pursed her lips uncertainly. "I'll need to practice before I use it on the field."

"Of course! No unmastered magic should be deployed on the battlefield unless it's your last resort. You can endanger yourself as well as others if you fail to complete the teleportation stages."

"Collection, transportation, and redistribution, right?" She nodded. "I remember."

After half an hour had passed, Vashi got to her feet. "Okay, let's keep moving. This is an urgent mission."

"There's no rush," Vaw disagreed while fiddling with the system. "I will warp us closer shortly, I just need a moment."

"What are you doing?" The green-haired gladiator looked over his shoulder curiously. "Touching the air?"

"More or less," He replied. Suddenly, his legs were decorated in bright red tattoos in the shape of flames. These actually covered the entirety of his legs, but he was still clothed so only his shins were visible. "There. I've created a means of controlling a type of magic I use. I'm ready to go now."

"...you know, you didn't strike me as the chatty type," Lore said, hefting his sack onto his back. "Under that gloomy hood, your first impression on me was that of a dark mage or an incognito elf. But unless you're a dark elf, who are super rare, your skin wouldn't be that dark."

Vaw had to force himself still to avoid flinching. In reality, he had dark skin and pointed ears, which would mark him as a dark elf. However, he also had elongated canines and demonic eyes. He was supposed to be human, but his transformation was a mix of Acnologia's traits and his demon form's. Fortunately, his limbs were human in shape so he could expose them freely. His head could not be shown at all costs.

"I am human, but I prefer not to show my face," Was his final response to Lore's comment. The paladin respected his privacy, not diving deeper into his person. Hina was a tad disappointed as she was very interested in him now. He was a unique specimen, one she needed further information on. 

Vaw teleported them twice more using the sightseeing technique. Before the other four knew it, they had arrived in the middle of a military command area of the elves. They had sent up many tents to endure the desert wind. The elves themselves wore either light silver armor or robes, distinguishing physical fighters and magic users. Nearby soldiers and officers were startled, drawing swords and nocking arrows instantly. 

"We come in peace!" Lore, being a paladin, was the best choice to engage conversation with elves. Paladins were known for their honest and pure intentions, as they swore an oath to spread their god's will and not forsake it. Essentially, paladins couldn't commit sins without their body taking damage, as the oath manifested in a white magic tattoo on their back. 

Lore fished out the Visch house's insignia, showing it to the surrounding elves. "We have been sent by Ron Lon Visch, an ally of Empress Silva, to aid you in this war as an elite unit! We request an audience with strategic command!"

The elven soldiers exchanged relieved glances. One white haired female elf in gold armor, clearly a warrior with high ranking, spoke to the group. "Thank the goddess you've come. You are the only reinforcements sent by Yorrga so far. Did your client fill you in?"

"Yes," Berride stepped up. "We need to take out their artillery equipment and their leaders, correct?"

"Not quite," The officer sighed. "I am General Rose of the Bronchian army. Come, we have much to discuss."

She lead the five of them into a large rectangular tent. Inside was a square table with a map and chess pieces. Three more generals were present at the table, along with an impossibly beautiful elf decorated in a lavish white dress and golden jewelry. A sleek jeweled crown sat upon her sky blue hair. She wore diamond earrings and slippers as well, as if to tell all who viewed her how wealthy she was.

""Her Majesty Silva?!"" Hina, Lore, and Berride all recognized her on sight, crumpling to their knees at impressive speeds. Vashi and Vaw, who didn't know who she was, quickly followed. The man was actually shocked shitless under his hood. Silva was the only woman he had met until now with beauty that rivaled Lilith's. Her curves were naturally inferior, but the glamour and grace Silva possessed was equal to his mother's. On top of that, her latent magic aura was enormous, likely around his own in his current state. 

Silva's eyes went wide as she sensed Vaw's magic aura as well. The two of them were in a realm of their own, so only they could feel each other's power. Vaw was bowing his head, but Silva stared holes through his cloak. 

"Name yourselves and your occupations," She ordered firmly. Her voice carried an insurmountable amount of authority, making even Vaw feel compelled to act to her will.

"Vashi, ex-slave and gladiator."

"Lore, paladin of the White Church."

"Berride, second lieutenant of the Black Tiger guild."

"Hina, half-human half-vampire and exile of the Normir."

"Vaw... wandering sinner."

"What an interesting group," Silva raised an eyebrow. "A paladin working with a vampire hybrid and an assassin? And do explain what you mean by 'sinner'. Uncover your face."

"...as you wish," Vaw reluctantly accepted her command. He couldn't refuse her or he'd get into serious trouble. She was no normal elf, and he couldn't afford to take her lightly. He took off his cloak, revealing his face and half-nude body. His eyes were closed to prevent alarming anyone. As the room gasped at his ears, he continued speaking. "I have committed some of the most heinous and atrocious sins imaginable, especially against elves. I have sealed my evil magic within the tattoos on my body so I cannot make the same mistakes. I have no genuine occupation, only the motive to atone."

The tent was silent for a minute. Silva gazed at him with narrowed eyes, examining his rugged form. His long purple hair was messy and oddly spiky, considering it had been stuffed into his cloak for so long. It covered his forehead and his right eye, but not his ears. They were long and pointed, peeking out of his violet locks. 

Even more unique was the tattoos on his body. Silva knew what he said wasn't the full truth judging by the amount of magic power still within him. Additionally, his aura wasn't quite elven, nor was it human. It was a foreign sensation, one that made her curious and wary. However, she knew better than to interrogate him in front of his comrades.

"I see. That aside, the mission has changed. Since I sent the request to Ron Lon Visch, the Estolians have deployed new tactics. They created some kind of vertical cannon with explosive ammunition, which has been highly destructive to our archers and mages. To make matters worse, human beast tamers have sent sand drakes into the fray. Our foot soldiers are at a disadvantage, and we cannot deploy cavalry due to the sand," Silva moved a drake figure on the map board, placing it in front of a pawn. "We cannot press onward as it is. We need the technology gone, and the drakes slain. At this rate, taking down their head of command is a less immediate issue. Gladiator, paladin, you two will join our front line and slay the sand drakes. Assassin, vampire, you two will be in charge of destroying their artillery. Lastly, Vaw... I need more information. The four of you, do you understand your roles?"

""Yes, your majesty!!"" They accepted without hesitation. Berride and Hina had gotten the same role as they predicted, so they had no anxiety. Lore and Vashi felt a bit pressured, being told to slay multiple drakes. 

"Good. You will depart as soon as you are ready," Silva looked to the generals. "Leave us, all of you. I must speak with this one alone."

"Your majesty, what if-" Rose interjected, sounding concerned. However, Silva shot her down mid-sentence. 

"Are you questioning my judgement, Rose?" She said lowly, narrowing her eyes at the younger elf. Rose gulped.

"N-never, your majesty. Forgive me."

The four generals and four humans left the tent. As soon as the flaps were zipped up, Vaw stood. 

"You are no dark elf," Silva hissed, marching up to him. "What are you? What truly are those tattoos?"

"You're quite observant, Silva," Vaw opened his reptilian eyes. Her own went wide with shock. "What am I, you ask? A demon lord and dragon king hybrid. I am immortal, despite my mortal appearance. The tattoos restrict my overwhelming magic in this form."

"Demon lord? Dragon king?" She grit her teeth and narrowed her eyes. Her magic aura trembled as she became angry. "Dragons are long extinct, and demons are beings of folklore! No such things exist! You lie!"

"I am speaking the truth. Look," Vaw held out his left arm. It grew and distorted, quickly assuming the shape of a dragon's arm. Gleaming purple scales and golden talons appeared on his arm. As Silva's jaw dropped, his arm returned to its humanoid shape near instantaneously. The next moment, his right arm became dark mist, assuming the shape of an ethereal demon arm. It took a good amount of effort to partially morph at such speeds, causing Vaw to sweat. "Believe me now?"

"What... how...?" Silva was at a loss for words for the first time in centuries. "Are you a god in mortal disguise?"

"Demigod, but yes. I'm also not native to this world, so don't worry about the logistics," Vaw smiled bitterly. "I came here to help the elves of this world for closure and atonement. I didn't know where your kingdom was until Ron Lon Visch employed me, so I apologize for not coming to your aid sooner."

"Er, no, don't apologize," She said awkwardly. "I- ugh, this is so vexing. Never in my reign as empress have ever been this flustered."

"Hahaha! I'm an anomaly, my presence infuriates many!" Vaw chuckled with a sheepish smile, then got serious again. "Now, what can I do for the elves? I want to help in anyway I can, but you know the situation better."

"You're still willing to take orders from me?" She asked, shocked. "We may be of equal standing magic-wise, but... if this is a weakened form for you, I'm sure to be no match. Is your guilt so potent that you'd bow to a mortal?"

"With that much mana, I doubt you're fully mortal," He grumbled. "And don't say it like that. I've sinned against elves, and want to aid you to repent. You're the empress, so I have to work under you for appearance sake." 

"...I can work with that. Very humble of you, Vaw," Silva smiled in genuine relief, making Vaw's heart crash against his ribs. She was so beautiful that her expressions were hard to comprehend. "Say, is 'Vaw' even your real name?"

"It's part of my true name, yes..." He said truthfully. "Demons have extremely long true names, so we take a portion of it and go by that name split. 'Vaw' is the first part of my true name."

"Hm, sounds reasonable. Oh my, I'm getting distracted. I wanted to ask you because I'm not sure- what field of combat do you specialize in? Long-range spells, close-range spells, melee, supportive spells...?"

"I can perform any of those roles if need be, but the best option for your troops' sake... I'd say artillery," Vaw suggested. "That way I can tend to the injured who return or you if something happens."

"Tend to me?" Silva frowned. "I'm not sure if that was an underhanded insult or an attempt at flirting..."

"Neither. I meant what I said about your mortality. You have magic power equivalent to a young demon lord. For an elf that is extremely impressive. I take you're centuries old at least, but you must still be mortal."

"Don't call me old!" Silva snarled. "I'm only in my 600s! You can't be much younger either!"

"..." Vaw was, but knew better than to retort. He simply averted his eyes to decrease the tension. "If we're done strategizing, then I'll start bombarding from behind the camp."

"Yes! Begone with you!" She huffed, turning her back to him. She sighed in exasperation as he left the tent. "What an odd person..."

Her four generals reentered the tent. All of them were curious of what happened between Silva and Vaw, but their duty came first. They informed her that Vashi, Lore, Berride, and Hina had all set out. Lore and Vashi would join an army that was facing drakes. Not all of the battlefronts were plagued with them. 

"Your majesty, what of the dark elf?" A male general asked. "We saw him walking towards our land, did you relieve him of duty?"

"You're asking a lot of questions today, Bulmir. Vaw's acting as our artillery," Silva said nonchalantly, disregarding Bulmir's flinch at the mention of his name. "I have no clue of how he'll go about it, but have faith in his ability. He's quite powerful, so treat him with respect."

"A-as you wish, your majesty," Bulmir shakily responded.

A few hours later, in a large-scale battlefield, Lore and Vashi stood panting before a pack of sand drakes. Their armor was cracked. Their skin was soaked with blood and sweat. Several drakes lay lifeless behind them, along with dead Estolian sellswords and Bronchian elves. The drakes had collars around their necks. Magic collars allowed beast tamers to control those who wore the collars, which is why the sand drakes fought on Estol's side.

The mages and archers did their best to support the two heroes, but their arrows and magic couldn't injure the drakes at all. Even though they were lesser, wingless dragons they possessed dragon scales. That made their defense incredibly difficult to penetrate.

"Haa... haa..." Vashi spat out a bloody tooth. "How many more... must we kill?!"

"There's no end to them!" Lore grimaced, leaning on his sword. "The bombardments have stopped thanks to Hina and Berride, but the drakes are still a threat. What's Vaw doing?!"

"It doesn't matter! I'm not... I won't die here!" She roared with defiance as a sand drake charged at them. "Lore!"

"On it!" As the beast opened its maw to bite Vashi, Lore stepped in between them. The fangs of the drake were stopped by his shield. "Now!"

Vashi leapt into the air, whirling her axes in a practiced formation. "Twin Gash!"

Green energy blazed around her blades. As she swept them in a downward arc from above the drake, two crescents of green energy shot through its neck. Lore shook the limp head off of his shield. 

Vashi landed, panting even harder than before. Using her two sword style exerted much mana and stamina, but without it she'd never cut the drakes' scales. She fell to a knee out of exhaustion. A drake who just finished eating an elven swordsman spewed a bout of poisonous breath at her immobile body. 

"Vashi!" Lore threw himself to her, shoving her out of the way. She grunted as she tumbled on the sand, before realizing what he did.

"You lunatic! Move!" 

Lore stood in the middle of the gaseous attack, blocking most of it with his shield. The gas traveled around his body as his holy shield and armor repelled all forms of poison. However, the poison breath of a sand drake was too strong to be resisted by old enchantments. Lore ended up breathing in some of the poison. When the attack ended, he fell to his knees and vomited blood.

"Lore!" Vashi screamed. "Damn it! We need some help here!"

She was barely able to stand, but managed out of sheer will. She was determined to survive this, even if it meant sacrificing some elf troops. She knew that her and Lore's lives would be deemed more important tactically, so it wasn't a selfish move.

"All hands on deck! Lady Vashi and Sir Lore are in mortal danger!!" A legion of spearmen came and distracted the remaining drakes. The commanding officer glanced at the two humans. "You two need to get out of here! You can't die yet!"

"Thanks for valuing my life, dickhead!" Vashi cursed, hefting Lore's arm around her shoulder. "Come on, you lug! Walk!"

"I'm... sorry..." The paladin said faintly, blood dribbling out of his mouth and nose. His eyes were turning bloodshot. "I don't think... I'll make it..." 

"Don't talk! Just walk! I'm getting you to a healer!" She shrieked desperately. She used up her last drop of strength just then, and the two fell. She tried to push herself back up, only to flop down on her back. "I'm drained... damn it...!"

The spearmen's screams didn't last long. The sound was replaced by the thumping of drakes walking. As the shadow of one loomed over Vashi, she cursed her fate.

I shouldn't have accepted this damn mission. I should've predicted they would send me, a gladiator, to my death. No wonder that noble didn't set a price. He expected us to die, the bastard!

As she braced for fangs to pierce her body, the drake that was about to bite into her suddenly turned its snout to the air and hissed. In the cloudless sky, several gleaming objects flew through the air. One such object crashed down into the drake's back and exploded, sending its guts everywhere. Vashi grunted as she was soaked in drake blood. She and Lore where hidden under its bloodied hide. 

The battle on both sides froze. Estolian mercenaries who had left the battle to the drakes squinted at the battlefield as it abruptly combusted. The sand exploded nearby the drakes, killing them directly or with the blast force. Gore and blood painted the now glass dunes. Not only were drake corpses spread, but also those of humans or elves who had died earlier. The spread of desert that the battle raged upon was dyed red and distorted by glassed blast zones.

The bombardment continued for an hour after all of the drakes perished. The mercenaries who had lounged around, waiting for their turn to fight were annihilated by an unseen force. They couldn't escape nor fight back against the anonymous barrage. The southern front, which was the main front of the war, was won by the Bronchian Empire.

Yet Vashi and Lore did not fare so well, and were discovered late due to drake hide muffling her cries for help. She survived thanks to an elf healer, but Lore died of hemorrhage before mages got to him. Vashi was praised as a war hero, but after losing a valuable and honorable comrade, she felt bitter. 

As the elven soldiers cheered around her, she wept over Lore's corpse. "Why was it me? Why did I survive?! I'm not a good person like you! Why did you sacrifice yourself, Lore?! Why?!"

A few days later, Vashi reunited with Hina, Berride, and Vaw at the Bronchi's temporary military command center. The three women entered the head tent at the same time, and came across the unbelievable scene of Vaw chatting with Silva. They had cups of tea and were laughing over something. The two froze as they turned to face the three shocked women.

"You've returned!" Silva hastily stood, embarrassed to have been caught. "Ahem! What of your missions?"

The trio snapped out of their surprise and knelt before the empress. Vashi spoke first.

"The southern front is won. All of the sand drakes have been slain."

"What of the paladin?"

"Lore..." Vashi bit her lip bitterly. "Lore didn't make it. He sacrificed his life to preserve mine."

"...Honestly, paladins," Silva muttered to herself. She gazed at Vashi with a drop of empathy. "You know what that means, no? Don't waste your life now that he's saved it."

"? What are you suggesting, your majesty?"

"I'll compensate you now for your success and your loss. Clearly you bonded with him over the battle," Silva summoned a large bag of gold coins from a separate space, tossing it on the ground in front of Vashi. "1,000 gold coins. Thank you for your aid during this war."

"Eh?! But I swore to take vengeance!" She looked at Silva with shock. The elf empress shook her head.

"Taking revenge is similar to discarding Lore's sacrifice," She stated coldly. "Could you look him in the face in the afterlife, and tell him that he gave up his life only for you to offer yours to vengeance?"

"..." Vashi pursed her lips, conflicted. 

"Go now, child. Rest until you may return to your homeland with those two."

"...thank you, your majesty," Vashi murmured, shadows covering her face. She took the bag of gold and left the tent. 

"1,000 gold is enough to build a house," Vaw said once the gladiator had left earshot. "You're quite generous, Silva."

"Don't patronize me. Weren't you the one who said loyalty must be rewarded?" She shot back, placing her hands on her hips. 

"May I have permission to speak freely, your majesty?" Hina suddenly asked. Silva glanced at her with slight surprise.

"Go ahead."

"What happened between you two?" Curiosity ran thick in her voice. "Vaw, how can you talk to the empress so casually?"

"That's none of your business!" Silva snapped. Hina flinched in fear. 

"Calm down, empress," Vaw said gently, fixing his eyes on Hina. She swallowed nervously from his gaze as his dragon eyes pressuring her just from looking. "I'm afraid I can't disclose that, nor can you disclose our standing. Now, I believe Silva has rewards for you two."

"Vaw tells me you two destroyed not only their artillery, but you slew the southern front's reserve drakes and their tamers as well," The blue-haired beauty stated. "Is this true?"

""Yes, your majesty,"" Berride and Hina said in unison. 

"I have magic collars as proof," Berride said, bringing a few out from her belt. Silva smiled. 

"Well done, you two," She complimented. Two bags of gold landed at their feet. "500 gold each. I gave Vashi extra for her extreme effort and fortitude. Reports say she slew over two dozen drakes. Even with Lore's aid, it's truly impressive." 

"Thank you, your majesty," Hina gratefully accepted the gold, but then remembered something. "Did you say earlier that Vashi would return with two of us to Yorrga? Who's staying? I-if I may ask!"

"No worries, child. For your question, you, Berride, and Vashi will return to Yorrga. The war is not over, but with winning the main front you have helped us turn the tides of this war. Estol is weakened. I would not ask of your aid any further, as the king will get upset with me," Silva then looked at Vaw. "He's staying to help us finish. His choice."

"My desire is to aid the elven society," Vaw added for clarity. "So I will remain here. I will see this war through and be a pillar of Silva's strength."

"What?!" Hina cried in dismay. "But you have so much to teach me still!"

Vaw rolled his glowing eyes. "I've taught you enough teleportation magic that you can warp yourself back to Brenn, no? After you get Vashi and Berride home, then perhaps you can return to continue fighting for the elves. You'll be paid in magic lessons. How's that sound?"

"Ha! Deal!!" She exclaimed joyously. Silva gave Vaw the stink eye, while he merely shrugged. 

She's a powerful mage who can use blood magic to heal soldiers. Why not keep her around?

"If you're willing to pay her, then fine! I was already being very generous because I need them to keep this mission secret from Yorrgan officials. I don't like having a vampire in my troops though."

Well played on that part. Don't worry Silva, I'll make sure she doesn't suck some poor elf's blood.

"Call me empress. We're not that close."

Yet.

"What are you trying to say?"

Nothing!

"Off you two go, then. Find Vashi and return to Brenn with magic. If you're too nervous to teleport back, let me," Vaw said, waving them off. Berride and Hina bowed deeply, then left the tent. 

"Honestly, you..." Silva heaved a sigh, plopping in her seat. She took a long sip of tea before speaking again. "...You're a pain in my behind, you know that?"

"What? It's a smart choice," Vaw defended himself easily, leaning back leisurely. "Now, what do you think of my artillery frame?"

"Whatever that was, it is beyond words," She spat. "That 'augmentation' technique of yours is so complex. I don't even want to try to comprehend that... you're lucky you have a good sense of humor."

"Haha! Thank you! I try," He chuckled, then his smile faded. "I've no intention of being a burden. But this war... I feel called to it. Even though I haven't done very much, I already feel better knowing I've saved lives. But what I really want to do is free the slaves in Estol as a whole, and abolish the nation."

"A burden? I think it the opposite. This isn't your war to fight, despite your will to aid us. I don't wish to overuse you, as it would hurt our national pride to win a war because of an outsider's influence."

Vaw deflated. "I feared as much. Well, no one has to inform the public that I got involved. The only people who know are you and the four generals. I can maintain my artillery configuration as long as I have mana."

"So that's how that transformation works?" Silva raised her eyebrows. "You use mana to morph your body? That must be heavy on mana exertion."

"It can be. The configuration you saw, the 200 millmeter cannon? Maintaining the transformation by itself doesn't actually exhaust mana. The transforming process as well as creating shells to fire- that's what depletes my mana quickly. I fired 20 rounds, and used a third of my total mana."

"So, the mana cost is lower if you produce less ammunition and transform on a smaller scale?"

"Yes. You're as intelligent as they say."

"Wow, I'm flattered. Go make me more tea."

Just as he stood up to brew another kettle, general Rose burst into the tent. She ignored Vaw and ran to Silva and knelt. "Empress! I bring urgent news!"

"Speak."

"The Estol forces have all gathered into one large army, approaching from the north front! Along with them is a desert dragon!"

"What? That should be impossible," Silva furrowed her eyebrows. "Unless that dragon has been in slumber for centuries... what else?"

"Er, that was all..." Rose was caught off guard by Silva's cool head. 

"No big deal. Vaw, you can handle it, right?" The empress glanced at him. 

"What happened to not relying on me?" He teased, pouring her a cup of tea. She rolled her eyes as she sipped it gingerly. 

"Ooh, this is quite sweet," She cooed. "I need to have you make me tea more often. Off you go then. Make sure you kill only the dragon, I can't let you do all the work."

What- what a bipolar woman! Vaw exclaimed mentally. He left the tent with Rose, who was glaring at him. "What?"

"Why are you so informal with our empress?" She growled, resting a hand on the hilt of a sword at her hip. "Who gave you the right?"

"I am a mightier existence than you realize. I aim to be humble, but I won't be tread upon," Vaw frowned at her, his eyes glowing dangerously. "Now show me where this dragon is so I can do your work for you."

An hour later...

On the northern side of the Estolian-Brochian border, two great armies had amassed. 250,000 men with various weapons and armor, 100 magic beast tamers with 5,000 sand drakes under their control, and a great desert dragon where on Estol's side. 

The monstrous creature was over 2 miles long, with a wingspan just as long. It had beige scales coating its sleek body. Black talons adorned its feet. Black spikes ran down its snout and ended in two horns that pointed straight back. Its magic power was unleashed, making its presence known. 

This being's name was Duna, the last of the desert dragon tribe. She felt a great disturbance from her underground hibernation chamber, so she surfaced to investigate. She was met by mortal men who explained to her the situation. The elves waged war on Estol out of greed, wanting men's riches. 

Duna had no idea that they fooled her, and agreed to protect the desert dwellers. Estol had been founded soon before she entered hibernation, so she wasn't a stranger to their culture. However, the Estol she knew was far different from the current Estol. She knew it to be a prosperous nation of trade and valued enterprise. She was unknowledgeable of the corruption that infested the wealthy over centuries of trade.

The Bronchian army was nervous at her presence, even though they outnumbered the humans. All four generals lead an army of 400,000 elves. Swordsmen, spearmen, knights, mages, and more were placed in sophisticated formations. Each general commanded one of four legions within the army: Armor, Melee, Ranged, and Support. Armor and Melee were very similar, the main difference was that Armors were always placed in front of Melee due to their superior defense. 

Vaw stood beside Cole, the general of the Ranged legion, while examining Duna from afar with Dragon's Eyes. 

"Anything outstanding?" Cole asked warily. "What magic do you believe it'll use?"

"She. That dragon is female," Vaw corrected. "I've only seen a few desert-type dragons before, but she definitely falls into the category. Expect wind, earth, and poison magic. Sand magic too, but that's just a combination of wind and earth magic."

"Got it. Relaying information with telepathy now," Cole nodded, not wasting any time. After he informed the other three generals, he looked back to Vaw. "What will you do? We'll have to strike first, they refuse to approach."

"I'll take her out of the fight, but I'll need time," Sweat perspirated on Vaw's forehead. "She's almost as powerful as the empress, if not equal to her."

"...We're trusting you," Cole's expression suddenly hardened. "Alright, Ranged units! Prepare to move!"

As the elven war horn blew, the cries of hundreds of thousands of elves and men were deafening. Vaw used this to cover up his charge. He leapt from the ground and soared over the Melee and Armor ranks. He sprinted at Duna, his feet leaving glass footprints due to the friction his body faced. His cloak burned to ash as he ran, leaving him in his enchanted legwear.

Duna didn't move immediately, as she was examining the elven army and determining how to defeat them with minimal effort. After so much hibernation, she was still quite lazy. Then she spotted Vaw's form, blurred to all but her. 

"Brace yourselves, front line!" She cried. "Hostile figure approaching fast!"

You are reading story Imagination Incarnate at novel35.com

"Hiryu no hoko!" A screeching beam of chilling air passed through the defending men at the front. The air was wrought with purple snowflakes. After being inside the beam for a second, every man froze then crumbled from the air pressure. After ten seconds, a massive semicircle at the front of the army was created with ice chunks and snow. Over a thousand men died from the attack.

"Draconic magic?!" Duna gnashed her fangs. "You dare?!"

She spread her wings with a ferocious roar. She closed the distance between herself and Vaw very quickly in the air. In a few seconds, they were face to face. She hovered in the sky while he stared up at her, unmoved by her fearsome appearance.

"Who are you?! How can you wield our magic?!" Duna questioned furiously, her eyes full of hate. "Are you the one who slaughtered my kind?!"

"You're the first dragon I've met in this world, so no?" Vaw shook his head, then got into his fighting stance. He entered a boxer's posture with his fingers wrung into claws. The purple dragon tattoos on his left arm and chest glowed bright with power. 

Duna was greatly insulted by his casual response. She took a deep breath in, then used her own breath attack. A torrent of wind blasted at the sand that Vaw had been standing upon moments before. He dashed to the side, then got an idea. The mercenaries had given him and Duna a wide birth. With a sly grin, he dashed in between them, forcing Duna to cancel her breath.

He's trying to get me to attack my own men! Cowardly fool! She snorted with contempt. She reached a claw out, creating a small vortex of wind. An area with a lack of air caused more air to flow into it. She used this to lift Vaw from the ground after predicting his movements, stunning him.

"What the-" Duna's enormous tail slammed into his body with a sickening crunch. He was launched behind the Estolian army and crashed into a dune. He coughed up a gob of blood, gasping. Even though his body repaired itself swiftly, the pain was still debilitating. But...

"It's nothing compared to holy magic!" Vaw grunted, channeling his magic. "Hiryu no hoko!!"

"RAAAAAAARRGHHH!!!" Duna roared at him again, this time unleashing the full extent of her magic power. The breath attack was not just wind but also consisted of sand particles and poison gas. Her magic clashed with Vaw's, creating a great shockwave. Sand clouds rose around Vaw from the wind. 

To his shock, he was slowly overpowered. Duna's breath was piercing his own, as her wind was more forceful than his own frozen air. The difference was that Vaw's frost breath was simply wind with violet frost particles that drained whatever they touched of moisture and heat. Duna's desert breath was highly pressurized, hot air followed by sand and poisonous gas. Her wind pushed his aside, breaking his spell in its entirety. 

"What?! Impossible!! I used my full power!!" Wrought with disbelief, Vaw couldn't move as her breath hit him at full force. 

The pain was indescribable. The wind was so strong that the sand particles carried by it tore his flesh away. Then the poison seeped into his body, weakening him further. Vaw choked and writhed as his body was eroded, unable to think clearly due to the agony.

How... how can this... damn dragon be killing me...! Dragon?

His mind was taken back to his battle with Acnologia. The former Dragon King used an immensely powerful beam attack that eroded his mystical armor. An attack that brought him near death had Bisca not saved him. 

Now he was in a similar situation. Being corroded by another dragon's breath attack, too weakened by it to escape.

This dragon's gonna kill me... with breath. Almost like... Acnologia...

Something stirred within his body. 

Not again...!

A slumbering emotion, one that had not seen the surface of his conscious in decades.

Not again!

Dark energy burst around his withered body.

"WRAAAAAAAAAAGH!!!" 

Duna cancelled her magic in fright and surprise, then retreated several hundred feet. She suddenly felt very uncomfortable. Her body went stiff with anxiety. "W-what is that magic aura?!"

A dark cloud ballooned outward, obstructing her view of his body. An evil magic presence filled the air for miles around, bringing the ongoing battle between man and elf to a sudden halt. Everyone turned to look behind the Estolian army, where Duna was cowering and the monstrous magic power came from.

The black smoke took shape slowly. Four arms. Arrow-shaped tail. A single pair of wings. Three-toed feet. Horns made of scarlet flame. A black maw. A throat full of flame. Three flaming eyes. 

Akros stood at 4 miles tall, his wingspan breaking 5 miles in width. He howled with fury as he spread his wings out. The soundwave added with the blast of wind created by his wings obliterated the most of Estol's forces as well as their command center that was further behind. The elves guarded themselves under magic barriers, unharmed. Under their experienced leadership, they were able to act fast enough to protect themselves. 

"I am Akros! King of Dark! King of Shadow! Destroyer of Humanity! King of Dragons! Son of Asmodeus! Son of Lilith! Prince of Lust! Commander of the Shadow Legion! I'll admit that I underestimated you, however..." Akros boomed, wringing his claws. Duna shivered under his stare, feeling similar to a mouse cornered by a cat. Akros towered over her.  "You pissed me off! You will suffer a fate worse than death!"

Duna summoned a violent sandstorm, planning to flee the scene. She cared not for her image among mortals, her life was far more important. However...

"Urgh!" She couldn't move her body. A faint purple energy surround her, rendering her immobile. 

"You thought that breeze would stall me? Hilarious."

The sandstorm, unbeknownst to Duna, was dispelled by a mere wave of Akros' hands. He latched onto her with Psychokinesis, reeling her in. One of his hands solidified with Violet Coating, allowing him to grab her neck. She thrashed wildly in his grasp, making him snort.

"Hmph. A great dragon, reduced to a minnow writhing on a hook. How pitiful..."

"Just kill me already!" Duna cried hoarsely, feeling faint due to a lack of oxygen. Akros laughed in her face, grinning deviously. She felt her heart sink. "Don't tell me...?"

"I said it just now. You are unworthy of the freedom of death. You'll make a fine toy... rahahahahaha!" Akros roared. Duna fainted. He dropped her limp body to the ground. He turned to the remnants of the Estolian forces, who were wetting themselves with horror. "Now... quite the delectable amount of souls that are here."

Before doing anything else, he used Production Suction to vacuum the souls of the men and drakes he killed with the shockwave. Then, he made a choice. 

"Elves! I will proceed to the Estolian capital, and free the slaves there! Do what you will with these filthy men."

The elves were horrified by him, but they followed his orders obediently with Silva's intervention. Way back in her command tent she felt his magic power. Although he didn't unleash its full might, the latent aura was so potent that she felt it from dozens of miles away. She recognized it to be Vaw's, and told the generals to follow him in battle. As his aura got weaker due to distance, she realized what his plan was. 

"No! He's going to destroy everything!" She hurriedly tried to connect her mind to his. When she failed to do so, she teleported to his location. Her casting was hasty, and she wound up warping herself onto Akros' shoulder. He froze.

"What the...?" His giant head slowly turned to see her. His eyes spread wide. "Silva?!"

"Ouch! So hot!" She was under immense heat due to his flaming horns and eyes. "I apologize for the abrupt appearance, but can you get me further from your flaming parts?"

He blinked with confusion, but did as asked. Somehow she stood on the his shoulder even though his body was an ethereal mass of dark magic. Was his mana so dense that she could stand on it? His True Name Liberation State had vastly improved in size and power since he last used it. He figured that his size had to do with his increase in magic power, as this form was a physical representation of his magic power. 

Akros saved those thoughts for later. He then solidified a hand then put it to his shoulder for her to walk on, which she gratefully stepped on. He repositioned his hand to be in front of his face, but far enough for her to avoid the heat. 

"What brings you here, empress?" Akros asked with genuine curiosity. "Am I worrying you? Or am I that intriguing?"

"What?! Of course you are!!" Silva realized what she said, blushing faintly. He smirked slyly, making her frown. "Jackass. I didn't say it in that fashion."

"Hahahaha!" He chuckled. "Sorry. I'm a bit different in my human form."

"What? No, that's not important right now," Silva crossed her arms. "You were going to head to Hoil, weren't you?"

"Hoil?"

"Estol's capital. You didn't know its name?!"

"That's the lamest city name I've heard..."

"Anyway! You've done enough for me by taking care of the dragon. Although I am curious as to why you spared it, that matters not. Your duty here is done."

Akros wasn't sure how to act. He was a prideful demon, but having an impossibly beautiful elf empress give him orders... it wasn't so bad. He could use a break from responsibility anyway, following another figure sounded nice to him currently. On top of that, he felt relieved to have helped the elves to this magnitude. 

He felt little guilt now. Instead, he was a bit embarrassed by his human persona. It seemed that his human emotions reigned when he took that form, and he became much more humble and submissive. Akros held himself high as a demon dragon. Only a select few people could control him, and they were all powerful women that meant a lot to him. Silva didn't fall in that category, but he didn't feel uncomfortable heeding her. 

"As you wish. By the way, 'Vaw' is my human split personality," Akros explained, making her eyes widen. "My name- or the part of my demon name that I use- is Akros. This is my True Name Liberation State."

"Um..." She didn't know how to react to this information, so she merely nodded. 

"You're very beautiful, Empress Silva. Any chance you're single?"

"What are you saying?" 

"...what else could that mean."

"I don't know. You tell me what you meant."

"Haaa... I really am a sucker for authoritative women, huh?"

"What?! Cease this nonse!"

"We'll talk later!" Akros chuckled nervously, but his deep and loud voice made it sound like the rumbling of the earth. He crouched and let her down, before returning to his default form with the Anti-Gravity Greaves on. "This is the real me."

"Is that so..." Silva studied his demon body with awe. "No wonder your human form has those eyes and ears. It's because you have those features, along with much more, in this state. Are those dragon scales?"

"Hehe. Wanna touch~?"

"No. I see you have a habit of leaving your chest exposed. What are you, an exhibitionist?"

"Guh..." Akros pretended to be heartbroken. "Your words are too harsh for a woman of your beauty."

"Are you always this way?" Silva grumbled, scowling at him. "Go back to your human form. I prefer the version of you that is less lustful. Though you'll flirt with me even then..."

"Ah, on that note, I'm surprised you're not affected by my charming aura. You must have very good mental fortitude to not be fawning over me by now," He smirked. "As the son of the Deadly Sin Demon King of Lust and the Origin Succubus, I have a constant lust-inducing pheromone that lurks in the air around me. Only in this form, though."

"I won't be swayed by such dirty substances! Return to the tent!" Silva huffed, keeping her eyes off of his body. "I'll return there soon myself, so don't do anything and sit tight. Understand?"

"Yes, I understand, empress."

Once he left, Silva waited for her army to catch up to her. As she did, she thought of what to do with Akros.

"He's quite the asset, but certainly a fickle one. I can't have him battling or he will destroy everything. With that in mind, what government occupation could he perform for me? Hmm..."

Akros lounged around inside the empress' tent at Bronchi's military command center. He decided he would go through in serving Silva, while also vowing not to use Human Form again if he could avoid it.

"I humbled myself, and now I am truly grateful for this body and its power," He muttered to himself, sipping some sweet tea. "I feel no guilt, as I've made things much better for the elves here. Besides, the whole vigilante deal was so cringe-worthy. It's like a split personality but I'm aware of it. Eugh."

"Speaking of cringe, maybe I should stop using Fairy Tail terms for my magic. Slayer magic's principle is that to kill something, you have to become it. Dragon slayers slay dragons by using draconic magic and slowly transforming into dragons. Same goes for demon and god slayers, I reckon. But I'm already all three of those, so using slayer magic terms doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Haa, well, I don't need to name my magic anyway. I have my skills. Moving on...

"If I want to remain by Silva's side, I'll probably need to reduce my power..." Akros sighed, opening the system. 

He fiddled with the skill Human Form, and completely changed its function. Instead of trying to change his race, he made it a subset of Cybernetic Augmentation. A humanoid configuration that would reduce his number of limbs, size, and pheromones. He spent dozens of high-quality souls in order to make this form lightweight but also capable of exerting his full magic and physical might. This skill was finalized as:

Configuration: Sentinel

Costs 50% of Mana on activation

Description: Reconfigure into a humanoid made of magnate ruby and black diamond. 

Full Power: Configuration will match default body's physical and magical capabilities. Metal is enchanted to be more durable and better capable of conducting mana than default.

Magnate Ruby: Gravity magic is enhanced by 300%.

Black Diamond: Dark magic is enhanced by 2000%.

Cancel Only: Will remain active until conscious deactivation.

Formidable: Upon taking damage, body will reconstruct autonomously using user's mana.

Zero Charm: Aphrodisiac pheromones will not be released while in this configuration.

"300,000 souls for this?" Akros said in a robotic voice, admiring his new state. His mechanical body was fairly simple in its exterior. 

His body was smooth and humanoid, designed to look like a muscular male human. The majority of it consisted of black diamond. His knuckles, elbows, knees, and spine were constructed of magnate ruby. His entire body glinted in the dim candlelight of the tent. His joints clicked softly as he moved his body around, which was oddly satisfying. His body had hundreds of micro joints that allowed his stomach, back, and other body parts to stretch and contract like organic muscles. 

His head was the only body part inhuman in shape. He had no mouth, nose, or ears. The only feature on his smooth face was two slanted lenses, his eyes. They glowed an otherworldly purple, seeming to emit a small amount of magic particles in the form of mist. In addition, his scalp was adorned with long scarlet hair, the exact same style and length as his previous Human Form's hair. It made him seem somewhat alive and not entirely mechanical. His hair was thick yet smooth. It didn't restrict his movements at all, so he didn't bother changing it.

His hands were smooth and rounded like a human's. His feet were also humanoid in shape, but he lacked finger and toenails.

His sight was much different in this configuration. He could analyze the magic particles in the air and the mana within the things around him. He was also able to slow down his perception of time at will. He wanted to have this ability to allow him to protect others and restrain his power in certain scenarios where he had to make judgement but was given little time to do so.

Akros was extremely pleased with how the configuration turned out, and decided to return to his normal body until Silva returned. He didn't want to alarm her with the glowing purple eyes of his Sentinel Configuration. He opened his status for a quick checkup. 

Skills: Charm, Cataclysm, Shadow Brand, Metamoran Fusion, Shadow Melt, Foresight, Dark Acceleration, Violet Coating, Production Suction, Flame Vortex, Demolition Beam, Psychokinesis, Cybernetic Augmentation, Dracomorph, Arcane, New Game

Configurations: Artillery, Sentinel

Magic: Shadow, Bloodfire, Restoration, Violet Frost

Universal Law Progression: Destruction (70%), Pride (56%), Wrath (33%), Darkness (32%), Honor (15%), Lust (13%), Power (8%), Greed (4%), Love (3%)

Soul Immortality Level: 9%

My understanding and progression of several laws has increased, by a vast amount. I did cause a lot of destruction back there, but I've done worse... did my progression increase because I yielded my power for a while and restrain myself? I can only hypothesize that's the cause for pride and honor to go up as well. 

Some of them seem to go up as I do things, like power or greed. Darkness and wrath must've been from earlier. My transcendent state is very dark, so makes sense. I got pretty pissed, too, but the weird was that I calmed down when I transformed. It was like I got a breath of fresh air, and it blew away my rage. Well, no point in fretting over it, it worked out fine.

Ooh, the system recognizes my configurations, including the one I didn't use souls to make? Hell yea- I could've won against Duna in Human Form if I used Arcane! Maybe not, I wasn't able to think straight. I've always been bad at using it, I should combine it with another skill to make things simpler. System, show me which skills are compatible to fuse with "Arcane"- and "Shadow Melt" too. I don't use it either.

A system panel bleeped into existence in front of his face, displaying his options.

Arcane + Charm = Control

Arcane + Suction Production = Black Hole

Arcane + Cataclysm = Nullify Magic

Shadow Melt + Violet Coating = Shadow Haki

Shadow Melt + Dark Acceleration = Phantom Dash

Only a few options, but better than none. I'd prefer to keep Violet Coating as is, so combine Shadow Melt and Dark Acceleration into Phantom Dash, please.

Withdrawing soul price...

5,000 mortal souls have been withdrawn. Phantom Dash has been forged.

Good! Now forge Nullify Magic! Cataclysm is unnecessary with my weight.

Withdrawing soul price...

500,000 mortal souls have been withdrawn. Nullify Magic has been forged and activated.

Expensive... and activated? Is it a passive skill? What, am I immune to magic? No way...

Akros opened his status again, then tapped on skills to open the skill menu. He then tapped on Nullify Magic to see its description.

Nullify Magic (Passive)

Description: Any damaging magic attacks or magic item that comes into contact with your body forcefully with be destroyed. If the magic attack or item is more potent in power than your total magic power, it will not be cancelled.

Yes way! I'm actually immune to most magic now! I don't even have to activate it! I love passives so much! Ah, speaking of which. I'm feeling proactive right now. System, change the name of Violet Coating to "Armament Haki". 

Changing skill title...

Skill title successfully changed. No fee taken.

I guess it would be free. I'm getting anything physical or magical benefit out of that command, so it can't charge me souls. Lilith constructed this so well and intricately. I have to also appreciate Lyra's ability to know it well enough to replicate it. Truly a pair of powerful, fine women. I miss them, but I don't want my responsibility just yet. I'm going to serve Silva until I can snag her, which'll take years but she's too powerful to pass up. Demon lord-tier beings such as Silva are must-haves. 

How does an elf even get that powerful? The elven magic casters are at best on par with middle-rank demons. For her to reach a level of power similar to my own when I promoted... incredible. 

Behind him, something stirred on the ground. It fluttered its eyes open, dazed. Akros swiveled to look at it, pausing his thoughts. "Oh? You're awake."

"Where... am I?" It muttered in a feminine voice. "Why is everything so large? Who are you?"

"Oh, Duna. Did you forget who your master was?" Akros grinned maliciously, crouching before her. "It's me, Akros. You are now a member of my Shadow Legion."

"!" Duna's eyes widened with shock. She looked at her hands, then at the rest of her body. 

She had a slim frame, similar to herself as a dragon. She had light tan skin, with darker beige scales covering most of her body. Only her genitals and face were uncovered by scale. A long tail with black spikes lay behind her. Four wings sprouted from her shoulder blades. Two black horns angling straight back from her temples. Her hair was onyx black. Her sclera were the same shade, and she had yellow eyes with black reptilian pupils. 

Her facial details were sharp yet gorgeous. She had tight muscle underneath her scales. A meager amount of fat existed in her rear, chest, and thighs. On her collar was a sinister black tattoo. Her feet were four-toed, with three toes in front and one in the back. Her feet in her original body were the same. She was constructed similarly to Akros.

"What is this body?!" She shrieked with horror, getting to her feet clumsily. She had never felt so foreign in her own body, and it made her feel great despair. She glared at Akros with teary eyes. "Why have you done this?!"

He cupped her chin, tilting her head up. She was seven feet tall, making her quite shorter than Akros. Duna's breath hitched at the touch and intense gaze from him. 

"I said it before, no? You're my pet, little Duna," Akros traced her jawline, much to her chagrin. "Don't think of escape. You've already been branded. There is nowhere for you to run."

"Hiss! Release me, fiend!" She bore her fangs at him, grabbing his wrist. Her eyes widened profusely. "What... what is this?"

She was stunned by the fact that she couldn't move his arm at all. She swallowed nervously, realizing she was inferior in strength and thus in his care. Even with her magic power, it meant nothing if he tore her head off faster than her magic activated. She let her arms hang limp by her sides, and her gaze became that of a defeated animal. "What do you want from me?"

"What? It's not that simple," He raised an eyebrow. "I went through the effort of granting you a demon transformation, making you a demon lord-desert dragon hybrid. You are stronger than before, and have access to your current form, a Transcendent Form, as well as your original dragon form. You will serve me as a soldier- and perhaps bear me a child."

"What?! I won't... let you..." Duna felt her strength leave her body. Akros started feeling up her body, infesting her with intoxicating lust pheromones. After groping her for a minute, she was panting with the effort of staying on her feet. Her legs were shaking. "Ahn... uhn... stop...!"

"What was that about? Won't let me what?" He scoffed and let go of her. He sighed, sitting down on the ground and resuming drinking his tea. "Whatever. I'm not horny, so I'll leave you be. Are you hungry or thirsty?"

"???" Duna was extremely confused by this situation. She looked back down at her nude body, then looked at him cautiously. "Yes, but... why do you care?"

"Because you're my soldier now. A companion. Even if I dominated you, you're still valuable to me. I'm also not a total asshole, the least I can do is supply what my companions need," He replied earnestly, looking away. "Truthfully? I didn't want to force you into this role. I don't want to enslave anyone anymore, I'm past that power ego phase. The reason why I took you in was because... I think you were tricked by the Estolians."

"What madness are you spouting?" Duna couldn't believe what she was hearing. "A demon feeling guilt over enslaving a being of another race? Besides, why would my own people lie to me? You must have lost your mind."

"You've been out of the loop for centuries, so I suppose you wouldn't know," Akros sighed, tapping his teacup irritably. "Estol degenerated over the hundreds of years you were asleep. Everyone knows it as a country ruled by wealthy pigs who employ mercenaries to protect them. The women in the nation serve only as slaves, aside from the witch coven. Basically, Estol is a bad place. I'm not sure if they worshipped you at some point or what, but they certainly don't know."

"That's horrible..." Duna grimaced. "The humans of Estol once worshipped me as a symbol of strength and justice. If that nation has become so corrupt, then they must have forsaken me. And yet they still convinced me to fight on their side...! How foolish I was."

"Don't sweat it, it's not your fault. Again, they're twisted people. I might've been that bad at some point myself, but I've become a better person. That's why I took you in. Not to enslave you, but to save you from them. Or the elves, who were more than willing to carve you up for your scales," He glanced at her. "By the way... you wanna cover up, or are you good naked? Not that I mind..."

"I'm always naked?" Duna felt a bit more comfortable in his presence now, but still wasn't trusting him much. He sounded earnest enough, but his appearance greatly contrasted his words. However, he was far too powerful for her to resist. All she could do is obey in hopes of him treating her better. Escaping from one who could travel the Shadow Realm was a cruel joke. Duna could only assume by his transcendent form that he was a shadow magic wielder. She went on talking to gather information on her captor. "We dragons don't cover themselves with fabric. We have pride in our magnificent bodies. You claim to be the Dragon King, so why cover yourself?"

"I'm not intentionally," Akros scratched his chin in thought. "You see, I'm all for being naked all the time, but there's two issues. One is that without these Anti-Gravity Greaves, my 100 ton body mass will crush the ground I tread upon."

"100 tons?!" She furrowed her eyebrows. "Impossible."

"I can prove it later. Second reason is that I have a penis, because I'm male. Penises need to be restrained in fabric called underwear. Otherwise it's extremely difficult to perform daily tasks. Fighting naked is a nightmare for men, and women for the same reason."

"Um, why?"

"Women who have larger breasts experience sagging and bouncing with them. They restrain their breasts' movement with special fabric called bras. Women also wear underwear similar to men so their butts don't jiggle, and to cover their vaginas. I'm not sure if you had those genitals before..."

"No..."

"I thought as much. Let me dress you then," Akros quickly created a set of undergarments, fitted to her body. He had gotten very used to creating underwear for women with wings and tails, so he had a set made in less than half a minute. "Stand up."

Duna reluctantly did as she was told. It was very awkward and embarrassing for her to be dressed by her captor, but Akros didn't seem to care. He hummed peacefully as he slid on her panties and clasped her bra. He made the set to match her scale tone and pattern, so it blended in well. She wasn't very curvy either, so the undergarments made it look like her genital areas were scaled. 

Duna examined her clothing with awe. "How did you do this?" 

"Magic. Sort of," Akros chuckled, winking at her. "Now, need anything to drink or eat? I've got some leftover fish in my separate space."

"Fish?!" She squealed, her eyes lighting up with excitement. Akros gawked at her.

She's... cuter than I intended. 

Duna then realized what kind of display she was putting on, and restored her miffed poker face. "I-I mean, I would appreciate some fish. Water too."

Akros took out some sleeks from his inventory that Hecate gave him a while ago. Items in his inventory went through a state of stasis, where they did not age. He had been in the possession of these sleeks for years, but they hadn't aged a day. He figured Duna would prefer then raw, so he handed her a couple. 

She ate them from his palm like a horse, her pearly fangs grazing his skin. She had a blissful expression as she chewed, one that made Akros' heart stumble. He turned away, placing a hand on his chest.

What the hell? I've known her for an hour. She's adorable and kind of hot, but there's no reason I should be this attracted to her! Maybe because I already touched her body... no, that doesn't make sense! What the hell is wrong with me?!

"A-akros?"

"Hm?" He turned back to her. She had finished chewing, and had an uncertain expression. "Ah, right. Water..."

"Er, that is your name, right?" Duna fiddled with her claws, avoiding eye contact. "The fishes were good. Really good."

"Of course. They were emergency rations, but I can stock up somewhere," He mumbled absentmindedly. From his inventory, he extracted a relic from Nazarick that caught his eye.

Magic Canteen

Description: A ceramic canteen made for holding water. If mana is poured into its base, water will be produced via a magic inscription inside the canteen. 

"Here," Akros handed it to Duna, who held it upside down. "Flip it over."

"Okay. Is this meant to hold water? Does it open from this side?" She tapped the lid dubiously.

"Imbue it with a little magic power first. That should produce the water and maybe open the lid."

She sent some mana through her fingers and into the canteen. A sloshing sound came from within, but it didn't open. She scowled at it with frustration. "This is why I prefer a body of water. So simple, unlike mortal trinkets."

"Well, mortals only use trinkets because they have to purify water before drinking it," Akros said, taking the canteen back to examine it. "They have weak immune systems, and will get sick from drinking lake or ocean water. Beings like us don't have that issue. Ah, got it. The lid screws off."

"Screw? But you twisted it?"

"'Screw' and 'twist' are used interchangeably for twisting motions."

"I thought you meant screw as in sex."

"Wha? Why would I use sexual terms for a canteen?!"

"I don't know! You tell me!"

Akros opened his mouth to retort again, but restrained himself. If he yelled too much, he might attract attention to the empress' tent. He knew there were elves on standby around the camp, so they would hear any screaming. 

"Anyway..." He handed the canteen back to her. "Drink up."

They sat in silence for a long time, disrupted only by Duna's sipping from the canteen. She had some difficulty with her humanoid lips, but got the hang of it after a few spills. After a few minutes, Akros laid down on his stomach and fell asleep. 

Duna didn't know what to do with him. It should be possible for her to escape, but her gut told her to sit tight. She was branded, and if his shadow magic had anything to do with it... she had a bad feeling that she'd suffer for trying to flee. She lounged around, keeping watch over him.

A flash of blue light blinded her suddenly, then fading as fast as it came. Duna cracked an eye open, then shot to her feet with shock. "Empress Silva?! You're still alive?!"

"Who are you?" The elf narrowed her eyes. "You appear similar to Akros. Another demon dragon?"

"Speak of the devil," Duna nudged Akros with her tail, bringing Silva's attention to him. "He's been sleeping for some time now. He um, changed me. I was the dragon from earlier."

"Is that so? So this is why Akros spared your life," Silva shook her head in disbelief. "He continues to surprise me. What is your name, dragon of old?"

"Duna, the Desert Guardian," The hybrid spoke. "I was born 550 years ago, but..."

Silva's eyes widened slightly. "Ah, I remember that name. I recall that you entered hibernation roughly 400 years ago, making you 150 years old. What woke you?"

"A series of violent explosions on the surface created tremors in the earth. I was literally shaken from my sleep," Duna whined, remembering the unpleasant experience. "Do you know the cause of that?"

"...yes," Silva heaved a sigh. "The cause is that ruffian right there. Akros! Wake up!"

She stepped on his back and twisted her foot around, trying to dig into his back. Unfortunately his muscles and scales prevented her from being able to exert any pressure onto his body. She frowned with irritation. Duna looked on with a similarly unhappy expression.

"Just so we are clear," Silva scowled at her while stomping on Akros. "We aren't friends. Not you and me, or me and him. I'll accept you as an ally because he tamed you and you're not an evil being. Don't forget your place."

"Likewise, empress," Duna hissed, glaring back with fangs bared. "I wouldn't forget your mortality. Akros and I are immortal existences. I can kill you before any of your foolish elf magic could finish casting. The only reason I'm cooperating is because Akros wants to serve you for some reason."

Said demon suddenly woke. His head twisted 180 degrees to look at Silva, who yelped and leapt away. He pushed himself to his feet as his neck faced forward again, chuckling at her fear. Duna rolled her eyes at his silly trick, which made Silva think she was being mocked.

"You dare mock me?" Silva growled, summoning a sword of pale blue flame. Duna flexed her talons in response. 

"Come get some, dumb dress," The sand dweller hissed viciously, her body rigid.

"Alright! calm down," Akros got between them. His tail swept through Silva's firesword and shattered the mana holding it together. She stared in astonishment as her magic fire fizzled out.

"Wha-what is this?" She trembled, backing away from Akros fearfully. "What have you done?"

"I dispersed your magic by touching it?" He answered uncertainly. "That's cool. I didn't mean to scare you, but there's no need for hostility."

Silva swallowed her anxiety, then spoke again. "So... you're still willing to work for me? If you can really cancel magic of my power, then the position I have in mind for you will be even better. If you're willing."

"Depends. What are you thinking?"

"This may sound insane, so hear me out. What if you became a professor at the Royal Magic Academy in Chrysanthemum, the capital of Bronchi?"

Hina returned as they were packing up the command center. She was instrumental in tending to wounded elves thanks to her blood magic. Those who would've died of blood loss were saved as she produced blood for them. Elves seemed to share one singular blood type as well. Once Hina drank a sample of their blood she was able to produce it with mana.

The war was soon won by Bronchi thanks to Akros. Silva returned to the royal castle a few days later and granted Akros and Duna bedrooms in it. He and Hina shared a bedroom at her insistence and the lack of a third vacant room. She reasoned that if they did, it'd be easier for him to tutor her on magic. Akros didn't mind the company, as Hina was far friendlier than Duna who was still on edge with him.

She informed all the guards of the castle to treat the three non-elves as heroes of the recent Desert War. Duna wasn't technically a hero, but because she didn't harm a single elf in battle Silva was willing to let her pass as one.

Once they were settled, the trio visited the Royal Magic Academy in Chrysanthemum. The academy was currently in its three month vacation period, so it was quite empty. Some students were attending summer school, but aside from them the massive district was silent.

The principal of the Royal Magic Academy was an elder male elf named Oak. He was over a thousand years old and the founder of the RMA, having acted as its principal to this day. He interviewed Akros, Duna, and Hina to see what occupations would best suit them. 

Akros was a very proficient mage, having mastered several types of magic that elves struggled with or didn't even know existed such as Violet Frost. Bloodfire and shadow magic were also very rare as they were typically used by vampires in this world. Hina herself wasn't proficient in either magic, only able to use them to a meager extent. She did however stress the important of mastering both to Oak, helping him make his decision. The elderly elf hired him as a magic instructor.

Duna on the other hand was much more proficient with physical combat. Her magic wasn't anything to be scoffed at, but it shied in comparison to her strength. Even though she was still getting accustomed to her new body, her movements with her tail and claws were very refined. Oak placed her as a physical combat instructor.

The only reason Oak wasn't suspicious of Duna and Sentinel Akros was due to a letter of recommendation from Silva. The empress' words carried a great amount of weight. Her telling Oak to hire them was another way of saying they were trustworthy and powerful. This letter also made him respect them deeply, for they were worthy of the empress' praise. She was known to be very select with who she gave praise to. 

As a result of Silva writing about Hina's medical proficiency, Oak hired her as the school surgeon. The RMA already had a nurse, but lacked a healer able to mend deeper wounds. Oak wanted Hina to fulfill this role, which she gladly accepted. She didn't care too much for the job, she just wanted to be with Akros to learn more magic.

Later that evening, as Hina and Akros ate in their shared bedroom, she told him about how to design his curriculum for the students.

"The reason why the RMA had vacancies is because young elves are extremely rambunctious and rebellious," She said while chewing a bite of pasta. "That's probably why I got hired as a surgeon or emergency healer. Fights break out often because young elves disagree and turn to violence. It's actually quite interesting for such a sophisticated race to be so unhinged in their youth."

"No kidding," Akros nodded, eating a platter of a rooster legs. In Bronchi, roosters were their version of chickens, so they ate roosters like modern humans ate chickens. Legs, wings, breast, tenderloin, all of it was available for rooster here. It was lean yet somehow very tender, making him wonder if elf cooks used magic to prepare it. "So I should be ready to disperse fights?"

"Yes. Duna should already know this as well, but as a physical combat instructor, they should behave around her. Her appearance should be enough, really. Anyway. Remember what Elder Oak said about the grades. There's 10 grades, divided by age. First grade will be eight year olds, and tenth will be eighteen year olds. However, elves don't hit adulthood until their fifties, so by their eighteenth birthday they still look and act like kids."

"I have to teach each grade every day, and for an hour each," Akros grumbled. "Ten hours of school is seems like a lot for little kids. It's a lot for me."

"Well, they have a lot to learn. Most of these kids are from wealthy families or friends of the throne. Elves don't have nobility rankings like humans or vampires do, but money is still a factor in enrollment. Poorer families can't afford the RMA, so unless their kid gets a scholarship they can't go. But that creates a divide between-"

"Wealthy and poor kids? Discrimination. Fantastic."

"You signed up for this. Also keep in mind that you'll have to teach each grade differently, as they get more advanced with their magical capabilities."

"Oak gave me a sheet saying what each grade will know about magic going into my class. We have a whole month until school starts, so I'll whip something up."

Days went by quite slow as Akros had very little to do aside from teaching Hina. She had prior knowledge of spatial magic and became proficient in a couple days. They ate their meals together in their room, as Akros reconfigured when he was in public and couldn't eat in that state. 

He could wander "naked" because he had no genitals, but that was disrespectful to Silva in her palace. He wanted to improve his standing with her, so that wasn't an option. To solve this issue, he created yet another set of clothes for himself. A pair of black slacks, a white dress shirt, a black jacket, black dress socks, thin black gloves, and finally black loafers. Hina taught him how to tie his hair back in a ponytail, to make it slightly less wild. 

On their fifth night staying in the royal palace, Akros was taking a stroll around the building. He found himself in the royal garden. It was the size of a football field, with precise and delicate arrangements of all sorts of odd vegetation.

Flowers, vines, fruit trees, bushes, and several fountains entertained the eye. The constant flowing of water and rich scent made for a soothing atmosphere. Fortunately he had scent and audio sensors, allowing him to partake of these effects. Akros wandered around the garden for a few minutes, examining some of the different flowers. To his surprise, some radiated with mana. 

He crouched in front of some bright orange flowers with twelve round petals. They were full of pollen and swarming with insects. Most of the critters resembled honeybees with black and orange fuzz on their bodies. There was also a few spiders who preyed upon this bees, snatching their bodies away.

"Vicious little things," He noted, standing up. He continued to navigate the garden leisurely until he found an open area. A circle of neatly trimmed grass, without a fountain or plants. Instead there was a flat pedestal with some text around its perimeter. His Sentinel eyes translated the elfish letters into demonic characters so he could understand it. "'Stone of Transcendence, discovered by Empress Fern 5,000 years ago.' Whoa."

Akros cautiously looked around. The royal florists had retired for the night, and the nearest guards were out of line of sight. He sat on the pedestal crisscross and meditated. He hadn't done so in decades. With the tranquil environment, he was at peace. His mind went silent.

He sat there for over an hour, not moving a joint. He became so immersed that he stopped listening to the world around him and simply existed. A state of existence, not affiliated with anything else. Inner peace. Escape from his shame, lust, anger, greed, and stress. He was always thinking about something, so it was odd to not be. Yet it felt so good, he didn't want to stop until someone approached him.

"Akro- pffft! What is with your hair?!"

Light reignited in his lenses. Silva was in front of him, doubled over with laughter. He got off the stone and straightened his jacket. "Listen, you could at least appreciate my effort in trying to look nice."

"What do you mean? I've never seen such an outfit before. That and your hair- why do you keep it in your Sentinel state? Isn't your body a machine right now?" She said, inspecting his red locks. "Your bangs look good, but the rest is sort of crazy."

"Are you suggesting that I should cut it?" Akros asked, crossing his arms stubbornly. "I like it."

"Hm. What were you doing on the sacred stone?" Silva changed the subject, her face returning to its usual stern setting. "You seemed to be meditating?"

"Yes. My mind is clearer now. I hope you don't mind."

"If it were anyone else, I'd have them executed for violating a sacred treasure."

Akros' fingers twitched with a flicker of anxiety.

"But I'll make an exception for you. My garden is very peaceful, so I can understand the desire to meditate here. However, I have a room inside the palace designated for such things. Come."

She walked away, her slippers clacking against the stone pathway. Akros sighed in relief, then followed her into the palace. They traveled a long way, eventually arriving at a small room near her chambers. 

The room was illuminated by candles only, which Silva lit herself with her blue fire. There was a large but flat cushion on the floor, where she sat down. Akros stood awkwardly, not sure whether he was welcome to sit down yet.

"This is where I meditate. You're the first person to enter this room since I was crowned empress," Silva said as she crossed her legs and closed her eyes. "Join me. The cushion is more than large enough for us both."

He sat down beside her silently. They meditated together for an hour, before the candlelight faded out. 

"If the candles burned out, then an hour has passed," Silva murmured. Akros got up first, offering her a hand. She smiled politely and took it. 

"Do you meditate regularly?" Akros asked curiously. "I doubt you have the time to."

"I don't usually," She replied as they left the room. She gave him a tired smile. "I'm very busy during the day, and at night I need to sleep. I only meditate when I can't sleep, but then I fall asleep while I meditate. I suppose your presence kept me awake."

"I'm... not sure how to feel about that, but you're welcome?"

"Ha! You're weird, you know that?"

"Geez. One blow after another, huh?"

"Hahahaha!" Silva's laughter was like the singing of birds. It was a regal and natural sound that made him want to entertain her further. He didn't notice it before when she was laughing at him due to his pride, but now... he worried that he would grow attached to her. It was an addictive thing to listen to.

He bid her goodnight after he made that realization. Silva was slightly surprised that he didn't want to spend more time with her, but didn't think too much of it.

"It is getting late, after all."

When Akros returned to his bedroom, he found that Hina was already asleep. She was scantily clad in a thin nightgown, laying on her side. Akros froze at the sight.

Damn! Since when were her boobs that big? I want to get in with her, but... no, resist it. Floor. 

He unequipped his clothes and reverted to his default form. He sprawled belly-down on the carpeted floor, resting his head on a pillow. 

I may be the Prince of Lust, but I need to have standards. If I'm going to spoon or cuddle her, I need her consent-

"Bunny, where are you~?"

His eyes flew open. He used Foresight to detect who had spoken.

"Bunny...?" Hina muttered in her sleep, clawing at the air in front of her. Her hands brushed against another pillow beside her head. "Bunny!"

She latched onto it, hugging to her chest. "Hmmmm..."

Akros made sure there wasn't anything else in the room, then eased up. While he thought Hina's actions were very cute, her voice had alerted him. He was in the royal palace, so he suspected assassins at some point. Silva was far from weak, but with her magic aura being undetectable to most mortals there's no doubt someone would try it. Oddly enough, her power worked against her in that way.

From that night forward, Silva and Akros would meditate together in the evening. She was stressed out by events in Estol. Freeing the slaves was easy, but there were still mercenaries protecting them and the wealthy dictators. Two weeks after the main Estolian force was vanquished, Hoil was still crawling with men. 

Silva wanted to free the slaves as many of them were elves. Other races such as beastwomen or human women would serve to increase Bronchi's standing with other nations. However, the two weeks of irking reports had exhausted her patience. She was very tempted to ask Akros to obliterate the entire city.

One night, her temptation won out as she tried to meditate with him.

"What?! Are you crazy?" Akros would've been wide-eyed if not for his Sentinel form. "That would ruin the purpose of everything! Didn't you wage war because they were taking elves as slaves?"

"Well, yes..."

"Then there's no value in killing them with collateral damage. Didn't you say I shouldn't participate in the war anymore? Just give your troops time."

"...fine," Silva sighed. As he resumed his meditative posture, she flashed him a rare smile. "Thank you. You might be the only person I know who's willing to talk me down like that."

"I'm sure Duna would if you pissed her off," He deflected the compliment, but she was persistent.

"No, I mean it. Besides, that's a different type of conversation. Me and her can argue, yes, but you offer me a better course of action calmly. That's unique to you," She said gratefully. 

"You could say I'm used to giving advice," Akros spoke wistfully in his mechanical voice. "Everyone needs someone to look to when they're at their wit's end. A shoulder to cry on. I've done my best to help my loved ones in the past. It feels natural to me now."

"You're a kinder person than you let on, you know. I think you let all your shame get to your head," Silva murmured, placing a palm on her chest. "You may think yourself the villain because of your heritage or your misdoings, but those only define you if you let them. Define yourself by the good things you do."

"Silva..."

"I'm serious. The fact that you have to meditate so often means that you're internally conflicted. You need to stop worrying about your past. I appreciate you helping me to this extent, I really do, but surely there's other things you must do."

"There is," Akros thought back to the Shadow Legion. 

He had so many things to do with them he'd lost count. He needed to pause the growth in numbers and focus on individuals growing at some point. His whole idea with the Legion was a group of elites, but elites had to be strong. The seven demons he first recruited still needed to promote to high-rank. Pheom was ready to promote to demon lord. He had kids to raise into powerful warriors. 

And at the peak of his objectives was growing himself. Aside from fusions, he hadn't undergone any kind of training since Vrathe. His lack of finesse was made clear when he battled Acnologia and nearly lost. Perhaps he should scrap the whole teaching idea and just leave this world, he thought.

"Yet..." Silva's graceful voice brought him back to reality. "I don't want you to go."

"Huh?" He responded dumbly.

"I said I don't want you to go. Not until the bullshit with Estol wraps up," Silva gave him a pleading look. "There's something about our conversations, I- I need someone to talk to or I'll snap. Please, don't leave this world yet."

"Silva, cal-" Akros caught himself. He had learned telling women to "calm down" usually was a bad idea. "Er, I won't. Truthfully, it's not my shame that's keeping me here anymore. I've developed a new goal, now that I've redeemed myself some."

"Oh? What's that?" Silva asked curiously, inwardly sighing in relief. 

"You," He looked at her directly, making her flinch.

"Eh? What do you mean?"

"I want you to come with me when I leave. I have several other women, but you're... different."

"How so?" Silva's eyes narrowed at 'other women'. 

He must have concubines... why do I feel this way?

"I only love a few of my maidens, the rest are more similar to- what is the human term? 'Friends with benefits'?"

"Friends who you sleep with?" She asked suspiciously, frowning. "Concubines?"

"They're my comrades who are interested in me," Akros tapped his fingers on his knees as he thought of a way to explain it well. "I've told you how my default body is intoxicating, right? I think that's why they like me so much, but at some point I think the interest went beyond lust..."

"So they love you?" Silva's voice was getting bitter. "You have an entourage of loyal women who love you?"

"Basically. I don't return all of their feelings, because there's too many of them. I still treat them well though. What I'm trying to say here is that I only have feelings for a select few women. You are one of them."

"W-W-WHAT?!" She sputtered, gawking at him. "What kind of shitty confession is this?!"

"Well, my love life is complicated, which is why I explained it beforehand. I'd hate to lead you on, only for you to find out late that I'm a shared product," He looked away with great shame. "I sincerely apologize. All these years and I still have no tact besides brutal honesty."

"You... you're ridiculous!" She was having a difficult time piecing words together. Her cheeks were slightly flushed, and her eyes were unfocused. She rarely let herself get flustered like this. She fiddled with her hands uneasily. "...I-I can't leave the empire without a leader! If I can appoint a new empress, then maybe."

"So, yes?"

"D-don't get any ideas! I was just thinking!"

"Uh-huh," He inwardly smiled. "I will always like tsunderes."

"I don't know what a 'tsundere' is, but I don't like the sound of it!" Silva huffed, glaring at him halfheartedly. "Call me... I permit you to call me Sil instead."

"Well, Sil," He scooted over to sit beside her. Grabbing her hand, he lowered his lipless face to kiss it. "I love you. Join me, and transcend mortality."

"!!" She blushed harder, snatching her hand back and turning away. "Enough... retire for the night. We shall continue this tomorrow."

"Playing hard to get, huh. Ah well," He launched himself into the air with a flick of his wrist, landing at the door leading out. He looked over his shoulder at her. His eyes gleamed through his hair brilliantly. "See you, Sil."

He left the room, gently closing the door behind him. Once she felt his magic aura distance, she heaved a sigh. She fell on her back and stared at the ceiling.

What am I doing? That tightness in my chest when he mentioned other women... what was that? Was it envy? Why? I knew he was a woman magnet after he revealed his body, but... something about having his attention, it just drives my heart wild. Even in his robotic form, I get butterflies in my stomach when he looks at me. I thought I was going to pass out when he touched me just now. 

Silva sat up and tidied her hair before leaving the meditation room. She relocated to her chambers and had her maids prepare a hot bath. As she lounged in the soapy water, Akros' words kept reappearing in her thoughts.

Damn it all! Why am I so attached! Why do I want him to stay! Why do I like being around him...

She suddenly laughed to herself without humor, staring at bath bubbles with wide eyes.

I've never been fond of anyone before, I'm always too busy and too unapproachable to male elves. What do I... what do I do with these outrageous emotions? I'll ask Akros- wait no, that's stupid. I can't ask anyone else though... urgh! I hate being empress at times like these! I can't even speak to my own citizens personally. What am I going to do...?

The next day was the worst Silva had had in years. She couldn't sleep well the night prior. There was no update on the Estolian rescue operation at all. Someone attempted to break into the palace. Worst of all, there was a new plague outbreak that came with some of the refugees from Estol.

"Necrotic Rabies?" Akros asked with disbelief. Silva had summoned him to her throne for guidance.

"One beastman went feral and bit several people before being neutralized. The people he bit contracted the disease and became feral as well," Silva rubbed her temples, trying to ease her headache. "To make things worse, dead carriers turn into feral undead. That's why it's called Necrotic Rabies."

"Where is the infection currently? How bad is the spreading?"

"It began in Grove, a border city the refugees were taken to. However, the news about the outbreak is over a day old. The whole city may have fallen to ruin."

"Hmm..." Akros was once horrified by undead in fiction, especially as a young child. The thought of being eaten alive by zombies, powerless to stop them chilled him to his bones. Yet now, he had power. "What of the public? How are they responding?"

"Mass panic in the east border region. People here are already afraid. The academy has been closed until the outbreak is confirmed to be over. Several teachers and students who were registered for the fall semester have gone missing."

"I see... In that case, give me a map of Bronchi and I'll go. I can't cure a Necrotic disease, but I can certainly stop its spreading."

Silva flashed an exhausted, weary smile. "Please. I am in your debt, Akros."

"No, no. Have you forgotten my goal here in Bronchi?" Akros shook his head solemnly. "Once it is done, consider us even."

Silva's eyes widened slightly, before she smiled again with pink cheeks. "As you wish."

After obtaining a map of the country, Akros flew east in his default form. He covered hundreds of miles in a few minutes at full speed, stopping when he felt a nefarious magic signature from below. He was hovering above a valley connecting the border region to the rest of the empire. 

Two massive lakes blocked off the border region, meaning the infection would have to travel through the valley. He searched around for elves, and found a large village at the body of the valley.

In the village below him, townspeople were running away from a horde of bloodied men and women of varying races, who crawled on all fours at high speeds. Among the horde were armored knights and mages, suggesting that the military forces had been overrun by the infected. However, there was something out of place.

"Why are they not consuming flesh? They only seem to have a few bite marks, and they aren't even that deep," Akros observed, grimacing. "Is someone trying to purposely wreak havoc in the empire by creating this plague? It seems to be designed to create hordes, and there's a magic presence coming off of the infected... how filthy. I have no choice but to wipe them off the map..."

All four of his hands pointed forward with the index and middle fingers. He gathered them together to form an eight finger pyramid. He rotated so he aimed down at the ground. Bright red energy surged from his heart, then flowed into his fingers. Pressure created by an overflow of mana built up in his fingers as he concentrated his power. 

"FIRE... FLOOD!!!" Bloodfire flooded from his fingertips, washing over the village. Everything burned. Buildings crumbled to ash. Infected and healthy alike were evaporated, their souls hovering a short distance from the ground.

Akros spotted other infected hordes entering the valley. He moved his hands to aim at them. "None will escape! I'll purge you all!"

The red tongues of flame engulfed thousands more infected. Akros maintained the spell as hordes persisted ceaselessly. After ten minutes he halted the flow of his mana, ending the spell. The flames ceased, and the new carriers of the plague surged forward. However...

The valley's far entrance had become a slag heap. The dirt was absorbed by a fresh lake of bubbling lava that reached from that valley entrance to where an elf village once was. The infected ran into the lava mindlessly, destroying themselves.

"How fortunate for there to be a choke point," Akros commented from the sky. "Something's off though. The border region is quite small, so why is there so many infected? Don't tell me... are they coming from Estol?"

His eyes went wide. "Perhaps this was a last-ditch effort by the Estolians to get back at Bronchi, or there's a third party involved. But there is no way this is a natural disease."

He put a finger to his forehead, imbuing his own mind with mana and thinking deeply of Silva. 

Silva. Akros here.

"What's the situation?" She sounded worried.

I'm purging the infected, but there's hundreds of thousands of them. 

"What?! That can't be!"

Most of them seem to have been men. I'm thinking they come from Estol, where the plague really started. 

"Shit! What an underhanded method of exacting vengeance!"

No. It's worse.

"How so? If it's you, then it must be horrific..."

I sense a potent and evil magic presence from the infected. This was no doing of Estol, although that's where the infected are coming from.

"So a third party?"

Exactly. Some powerful mage skilled in disease magic.

"Damn. We need to cut the plague off from the source. Akros, listen. Go to Estol or anywhere else that may be where our culprit is. I'll send Duna to come quell the remaining infected."

No need. You know the valley connecting the east border region and the mainland?

"Root Valley? What about it? Did you... destroy it?"

...Might've made it a lake of lava. 

"So the infected can't get past until it cools. Good work. That'll give Duna some time to prepare."

Akros fully expected her to be upset at the destruction of her land, but she was not. He then realized that she was thinking logically. Better to sacrifice her land than her people.

Let me contact her. She'll listen to me before you, all things considered.

"Okay, make it quick. And be safe out there. Who knows what forces are at work here."

As they were communicating, Akros descended to 400 feet above the ground. He studied the infected closer, trying to discern anything important. He noticed that as they melted in the lava, they kept moving until they were physically unable to. A thin green mist surrounded the infected, barely visible. He activated Dragon's Eyes to examine the strange mist.

I can sense a faint demonic residue on the infected after getting closer. It must be from an extremely powerful demon, as it's this potent when it's spread this thin. Silva, be ready to leave this world at a moment's notice.

"Hold on-"

If I battle another demon lord, this world will suffer immense damage. I mean several nations being reduced to chasms and craters due to collateral damage alone. Don't underestimate a demon lord. If things turn sour, I'll send you and Duna to the Abyss where the Shadow Legion remains. You'll be safe there. 

"...and what of you?"

In a worst case scenario, you'll just have to trust me. Start gathering your belongings, and keep Duna nearby you.

"What of Hina? I thought you two were close."

...she's my student. How can I be so cruel? Keep her with you as well.

"Thought so."

Yeah, yeah. I'm going.

Akros broke the link. He then flew further east into Estol territory. He didn't like leaving the infected unattended, but the lava wouldn't be cooling for some time. Until then, they would be able to make any progress. Even then, there was hundreds of miles between that valley and Chrysanthemum. 

As he flew, he made a brief telepathic call with Duna, using the Shadow Brand on her to lock into her mind. He instructed her to stay with Silva and Hina. She was reluctant at first, but when he sent her a mental image of the hordes she obeyed. She confirmed his orders before closing the link herself.

Akros flew over several hundred thousand more infected in the desert nation. He became increasingly worried as he hypothesized that the creator of the virus was targeting Bronchi. The real question was why. If it wasn't an Estolian committing this act, then who was the culprit and why were they after the nation he was protecting?

"What is that aura?" A monstrous demonic aura could be felt in the distance, one so purely demonic that it made him feel like a fraud. Akros had felt this type of evil aura before. "Could it be...?"

He stopped at Hoil, Estol's capital. He could tell that the infected sourced from here, as they were pouring out of the city's gates to head west. He still didn't know why, and was wondering until he felt the demonic aura grow much more potent. He looked in front of him with alarm.

"What's this? A descendant of mine still lives?"

Another demon was suddenly in Akros' face. One that was 16 feet tall, and greatly resembled him. This figure was clearly a shadow demon due to his black skin and wings. He had fins on his shoulders and tail. The shadow demon was also extremely attractive. Perfect musculature, soft silky hair that ran to his ribs, a chiseled face, and a posture that stank of confidence. Even though Akros was confident in his heterosexuality, he had to admit this demon was on par or greater than himself in looks. 

Still, he was very surprised to see the demon pop up in his face without him noticing. He instinctively thrust himself backward with his six wings. "W-who are you? Why could I not sense your movement?"

"Hm? You don't know your own father? How troubling," The shadow demon grinned. Akros' eyes widened profusely.

"...Asmodeus?!" Father?!

"Yes, honey. I'm hurt. Surely you can feel my lustful aura? I believe that to be enough to distinguish me."

Akros was enraged internally. This demon was his biological father. He was the reason Lilith had to cast Akros away before he was even born. Seeing Asmodeus now, he now knew Lilith's judgement was adequate. He felt a burning anger deep within his soul, unlike any rage he'd felt before. It clawed its way to the surface, but Akros forced himself to stay calm for now.

Asmodeus was not only a demon king, but a Deadly Sin Demon King. A mere clone of him would serve as an insurmountable challenge to Akros in battle. Even if his body was destroyed, his soul was immortal and could possess another body, possibly Akros' own. Unless there was a way to destroy the soul...

That's it! I need shadowflame back! I can destroy his soul that way!

"I am resistant to lustful auras, Lord Asmodeus," Akros said through grit teeth, bowing his head and thumping his chest in false respect. He would avoid revealing his origin for as long as he could, before fleeing this world entirely. He needed to reach demon king before he challenged his father. "I am a clone of you. I am fortunate to have a fragment of your lust power."

"Hm? How interesting," Asmodeus flew around Akros' body, studying it. "Dragon scales, partial exoskeleton, reptilian eyes and feet, and small horns... what happened to you, boy?"

"I am over a thousand years old, Lord Asmodeus. I have slain thousands of dragons using something called 'dragon slayer magic', which transforms the user into a dragon after prolonged use," Akros spoke. "That is why my body appears draconic."

"Hm..." Asmodeus scrunched his nose with disgust. "Dragons are an inferior species, yet you would take on away with you, whelp!"

He kicked Akros away with enough force to shatter a continent. Akros didn't have time to use Haki or dodge, and was blown to bits. As his remains flew through the clouds, a fresh body reconstructed around his heart. He immediately used the momentum he had to speed towards Chrysanthemum. 

I need to flee, before he chases after me! But... I won't let him get away with this! Just you wait, asshole! I'll get stronger, and kill you someday!

Meanwhile, Asmodeus remained above Hoil. 

"That should've destroyed his body," He muttered to himself. "I'll go check on his remains soon. Demon lords don't regenerate that fast. Now then..."

He brandished a large, hairy insect leg that had a plaguing aura around it. This aura was the original aura that Akros detected. "Let's continue to play with Beelzebub's gift. It has been two millennia since he gave it too me after all. These plagues are so fun."

Later, Asmodeus searched for Akros' body. He destroyed any body part that he found, which was every organ, muscle, and bone. The only thing missing was the heart. Asmodeus doubted Akros would survive long in just a heart, so let the matter be. 

Little did he know... his procrastination would come to haunt him.

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