Chapter 116: Chapter 187 – The Storm That Is Approaching

“Before that, Bryn.” Asterios glanced at the Valkyrie behind him.

“Yes, Master?”

“Just in case, I would like to put a barrier over the spectators. Do you think it’s possible to set up an outwards-facing one instead of the usual, dome-like protection?”

“Without an issue, Master. I have the perfect spell in mind.” She smiled beautifully.

After receiving a nod, the winged beauty soared into the sky and began circling the plaza. People gasped in amazement whenever she flew by them while diving down to leave mysterious sigils in various spots on the ground, walls, and roofs.

Five minutes later, Bryn stopped in the very center of the square and spread her wings wide. Chanting something quietly, she raised her staff and multiple rays of light shone from it right into the marked spots. Ethereal walls began rising and everyone watched how they bent at perfect ninety degrees to expand away from the plaza. Soon, all the spectators, buildings, and streets had a glimmering barrier above them, with just the market left untouched.

She returned to the ground and Asterios thanked her for the help. The girls stepped back while he, Tina, and Grea got to work. Three distinct, smaller circles had been placed inside the huge array of hundreds of patterns and each person sat down in their respective one, with Asterios taking the most complex of them all.

They had spent a lot of resources to prepare this. Besides obvious cheap and expensive magical ingredients, Asterios used up plenty of his own gathered materials. A few kilograms of the mysterious dust from the Dungeon Core disappeared during the creation of the lines around them. He didn’t even want to think about the worth of this summoning circle in gold coins.

Asterios, Tina, and Grea shared a look from their positions in the form of a triangle. The two women closed their eyes and started the ritual. The black lines began to glow with green light, then blue, then red, then purple, and then faded to black again. The spectators were confused, beginning to think that something had perhaps failed.

But, everyone gasped in surprise when a rainbowy shine suddenly illuminated the plaza, strong enough to overpower the faint light from Bryn’s barriers. They watched excitedly with bated breaths for whatever was going to happen next.

Confirming that both Grea and Tina integrated themselves properly with the array, Asterios began his own work. He extended his hand forward and brought out the catalyst from his storage ring. Countless people screamed in shock and terror the moment the offering materialized in the middle of the magical circle.

It was an expected reaction. What they saw was nothing common. A huge skull of a Dragon lay on the ground. Only Asterios and his friends knew that it belonged to a Skeletal Dragon so the people could only assume, and assumed they had. Talks broke out amongst the audience about how their new lord must have slain a Dragon in the past.

Asterios ignored everything while focusing on the ritual. He slowly made a bunch of precise hand signs while observing the other two. With their eyes closed, both Tina and Grea weaved their fingers at their own pace too. After a short moment, he found his own rhythm and joined in on the patterns, with one hand coordinated with Tina’s motions and the other with Grea’s.

Then, after about three minutes, the duo stopped at the same time, making a circle above their crossed legs with their fingers. The formation’s shine faded a little but the rainbowy colors remained in the patterns. Asterios positioned his hands palms-up on his knees in a meditative position and closed his eyes.

He merged his consciousness with the formation and appeared in the starry space with the projections of Tina and Grea by his side. They joined their immaterial hands together and he took the lead. Both women trusted him wholeheartedly so it was banally easy for him to control their merged energies.

In the outside world, three pillars suddenly shot into the sky from the spots where the three Summoners sat. One dark crimson, belonging to Asterios; another dark blue, belonging to Tina; and one bright pink, belonging to Grea. Thick streams of spiritual energy pierced the heavens. For many, it was a view of a lifetime.

Meanwhile, Asterios began releasing his Echoes of Consciousness to look for powerful entities capable of protecting an entire town. He made sure to stay away from any thoughts about Dragons, even though they had used the skull of one. But, he was sure that it was his blood that was the key to attracting their attention, specifically during the Blood Summoning.

Thankfully, no such realms or entities flashed in front of his mind. He spent what felt like hours trying to attract a worthy protector. It felt weird actually rejecting offers instead of praying for stumbling on any. But, he didn’t want his past mindset and experiences to affect the ritual. He yearned for the best for the town and its people.

He had never felt his summoning attempts consume so much spiritual energy. There was a reason why big groups of Summoners attempted Domicile Summoning and he experienced it first-hand. Thankfully, his vast, scorching hot reserves were enough. He borrowed some mana from the two women too, of course, carefully observing their state not to overstrain them. As the main pillar of this ritual, he put most of the stress and tension onto himself.

Then, a powerful wave of thick spiritual energy washed over the trio, making them shiver. They had connected with a truly powerful entity. Asterios checked if it wasn’t a Dragon and was relieved not to notice any signs pointing at that result. Although, the flash of their upcoming guest had given him a brief scare at first.

The same energy burst outwards from the formation and crashed into the barriers protecting the people. The three spiritual pillars increased in size and intensity, creating a small spiritual storm inside the plaza as an additional helix of mana coiled around each of the powerful columns. 

Then, a dark gray gate began growing high in the sky, horizontally above the main square, slowly covering almost its entirety. It expanded unhurriedly while swirling like the eye of a cyclone seen from above. Soon, it hung menacingly above the plaza.

Suddenly, a gigantic shape fell out of it and continued to descend towards the ground. Before it slammed into the stone pavement, three pairs of thick wings unfurled from around it and thudded in the air together, slowing the pace of what now looked like a house-sized reptile with a massive, vicious body. A powerful gust of air slammed into the barriers, hitting the Summoners and the few people not protected by the transparent walls.

Slowly and gracefully, the entity landed in the middle of the formation and folded its wings. Standing tall on its four, thick legs, it reached almost as high as a two-story building and was as wide as a common house. Sections of tough, almost black armor covered its entire body like sharp, triangular plates of angled rocks. A giant, slightly sharp-angled head sat at the end of its short, forward-facing neck, closely resembling that of a Dragon, especially with the two massive horns. They sprouted from the sides of its head and aimed straight to the front.

Complete silence fell onto the world as the entity regarded its surroundings with its deep blue eyes decorated by vertical pupils. A low rumble then broke it, coming deep from the humongous beast. Asterios hastily returned to reality as soon as he could and his brows shot to the sky after he noticed how much bigger their guest was when compared to what he had seen in its homeworld. Seeing that most of the inhabitants seemed similar to it, he hadn’t thought that they were huge.

The Dragon-like being moved its gaze to him. Asterios was sure that it wasn’t a True Dragon, thankfully. It was clearly a humongous Drake-reptile hybrid with how low its belly hung near the ground, practically scraping over it. The lizard-like figure, albeit very thick, massive, and with ominous armor, didn’t leave that much doubt about it. But, the issue was the quite big number of wings.

He stood up and nodded at the girls that it was alright to come and support him. Grea and Tina received some assistance too as they gathered in front of the huge snout of the giant Drake. Its jaws were literally the size of almost two people standing on top of each other. It wasn’t as big as the Skeleton Dragon’s head but the overall size of the two draconic beings was decently similar.

“Welcome to my home realm, proud beast. My name is Asterios. I apologize for not addressing you with a more respectful title, but I am not sure about the identity of your species and would hate to assume incorrectly,” Asterios said loudly and made a polite bow.

“Hmmmmm…” A deep, old, ancient voice reverberated through the air without the supposed Drake opening its mouth, just like it had happened with Esil in the past. “I am the Storm King Venuzathor, part of the proud family of Dracodons. As for you…”

Under the scrutinizing eye of the powerful Dracodon, Asterios had no doubts that the Storm King had figured out his species, either from the spiritual energy during the summoning or just right now from examining him.

“If it wouldn’t be too impolite of me to request this, I would be in your debt if we could keep my real identity a secret from the masses,” Asterios whispered barely audible words, certain that Venuzathor could easily hear him.

The Dracodon stared at him for a brief moment while releasing some more deep, rumbling noises.

“Very well. I shall agree to this in respect of your unfavorable condition. I can understand why you would want to remain in this form.”

Ast’s brows furrowed. “Unfavorable condition?”

Venuzathor extended one of his thick front legs and poked Ast’s chest with his giant, sharp talon.

“Is it not an unfavorable condition for one to be rendered half-dead?”

A cold shiver ran through Ast’s body as his eyes widened to the brim. He had no idea what the Dracodon was talking about but he knew that the entity in front of him had no real reason to throw him into confusion with such heavy lies.

“What do you mean half-dead?!” Miria suddenly stepped forward and shouted with her voice almost cracking near the end.

The Storm King moved his gaze to her and puffed some cold air at her through his big nostrils.

“The wound in his chest runs deep, deeper than my eyes can peer. It is a miracle he is still alive after suffering such an injury.”

“Injury?! Bryn healed Master a few days ago and she didn’t say anything about any grievous injuries!” Miria continued with a panicked tone. “Is it from spiritual energy?! Is it because of the crystal from the cave?! Is it all my fault?!”

“Miria!” Asterios called to her after she began screaming her lungs out.

He hastily pulled the panthergirl towards himself. She trembled in his arms as tears rolled down her cheeks. His hands cupped her cheeks and caressed them lovingly while pulling Miria into a gentle, affectionate kiss. He brushed his mouth against hers dearly.

“Stop. Don’t blame yourself without knowing anything. Bryn said that she removed all the traces of the Limit Breaker, remember?” Asterios spoke to her quietly after she calmed down a little.

“But…”

“Just stop.”

Miria’s lower lip trembled as more tears escaped the corners of her eyes. She hugged Asterios tightly, almost tearing through his spiritual clothes and crushing him with her strength.

“I can’t lose you…” she whispered to his ear with a trembling voice.

Asterios tenderly caressed her head and ears. “You won’t. Half-dead, half-alive, it doesn’t matter. True Dragons are immortal and you can’t really halve immortality. I will never leave your side. I swear.”

They stayed in the hug until Miria stopped sobbing and brought her face back in front of him. He placed one more kiss on her sweet lips and she nodded faintly. Wiping away her tears, she freed him and remained by his side while tightly holding his hand.

“We will talk about it later, without all the people around,” Asterios promised Miria. “Let’s first focus on the ritual.”

“Yes, Master.” She smiled at him weakly and glanced up at the Dracodon. “I sincerely apologize for my outburst, Storm King. Please, pardon my rude behavior. I have acted out of the line and my words and actions are my own, not my Master’s. I swear that I will surrender myself to proper and adequate punishment so please, don't let this sour the relationship between you and my Master.”

A few moments after she stopped speaking, a booming rumble shook the ground as the Dracodon raised its head to the sky. Asterios and his companions quickly realized that Venuzathor was laughing or chuckling in his powerful, echoing way.

Returning his deep blue eyes to them, the Storm King puffed some chilly air in their direction.

“I like you, child of the feline. Very well. Let’s discuss the reason why you have called for me, the Storm King Venuzathor, to this peaceful world.”

Miria bowed once more and Asterios glanced at the Committee Members behind them to see if everyone was fine, as much as they could be in front of a gigantic, draconic monstrosity.

“So much for a show of power, huh? Nothing beats learning that your newly appointed lord is a walking husk.” He chuckled at Ted.

“I wouldn’t be so sure. On the contrary, if this is what you can do with one foot in the grave, people’s imaginations are going to run wild with what you could achieve at full strength.” The man smiled back at him while anxiously eyeing the Dracodon.

Asterios shook his head and returned his gaze to the Storm King. “Oh well. Let us start again. Thank you for answering our call, Storm King Venuzathor. First, let me state our main purpose for doing so. We are looking for a guardian for this location and would like to request your aid. That is if watching over a human settlement is not below you, of course.”

The Dracodon raised his head and slowly looked over the crowd and surrounding buildings.

“Are those your people? You have quite a lot of attachments for a… human,” he stated.

It seemed that Venuzathor had almost called him a Dragon but Asterios was glad that he changed it due to their brief agreement after noticing some similarities between the people.

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“Yes, that is correct. I can’t call myself their king but they are under my supervision as someone delegated by the ruler of these lands. It’s my responsibility to oversee this settlement and make sure that the people under my care are living a good and safe life.”

“Hmmmm… Very noble of you. But, let me ask you a question. If I would agree, who would I answer before? You or the ruler you serve?” The Storm King returned his gaze to the ground.

“This might sound confusing, but I’m not exactly the king’s servant. I have received the honor of watching over this town for my… achievements. You can say that while the people here govern themselves through a somewhat democratic system, I have a free hand in assisting and guiding them. Therefore, all my actions are my own, except for those that explicitly request the king’s aid. This summoning is my personal initiative,” Asterios explained.

“I see. You would be my master then, is that right?”

Asterios nodded. “Technically speaking, yes. Although, this is a specific type of summoning that doesn’t require your complete submission to me. This place will be your anchor instead of my person, and while you could of course listen to more of my requests if you are willing, your only responsibility would be to protect this area and its inhabitants, and I won’t be able to force you to do other things.”

Venuzathor examined the patterns for a moment, turning around his massive body.

“This is a commendable formation and I can tell that you are not lying about its purpose. I’m in awe of your prowess, to support such a complex array with just the three of you. My curiosity has certainly peaked, especially from the fact that you handled and are still handling the vast majority of it alone.”

“Thank you for the praise, Storm King. I’m sure it’s not anything that spectacular for someone of my stature.” Asterios made a respectful bow.

“Even considering who you are, don’t think that anyone can achieve such things with just pure power. Knowledge is the mold that guides the spiritual energy towards the desired outcome.” The Dracodon seemed to lightly bow his head at him too.

Asterios understood his words clearly. They had stumbled on two major vaults of knowledge belonging to his father, who certainly was a powerful True Dragon. Yet, the man still had to spend years if not decades researching magic for some reason.

“With such a perfect ritual, though, I am wondering about the cause of the interference,” the Storm King added.

“Interference?”

“As I was traveling between the realms, I noticed something else besides the marked destination of my descent. It was faint, but a ripple of spiritual energy seemed to interfere with the dimensional tunnel. Naturally, choosing to investigate some weak auxiliary signal would be comparable to willingly stepping off the safe path, thus unbelievably stupid, so I ignored it.”

Asterios rubbed his chin. “I have no idea what it could have been.” 

He then glanced at the girls and the Committee members but everyone shook their heads.

“All I can tell is that the source shouldn’t be located far from here. I can still faintly sense something towards… the southwest,” the Dracodon said.

“Master, maybe it’s connected with our issue?” Miria glanced at Asterios curiously. “If it’s powerful enough to interfere with your magic, it could also affect the fauna, right?”

He smiled at her and petted her cute ears until she couldn’t stop herself from purring adorably.

“Good thinking. We’ll definitely have to check it out.” Asterios then turned back to Venuzathor. “Do you have any more questions or concerns? Would you be willing to aid us if not?”

The Dracodon regarded him with an unhurried glance and puffed some air at him and Miria again.

“I am interested in your request. From what I can feel, our contract should greatly benefit both sides. Besides receiving a small share of your essence, I would like to add a few of my own conditions.”

“As long as they are in my capabilities, I will see to them.”

“First, I would like to receive permission to hunt in this region. Fret not, though, I will do so in consideration so as not to destabilize the ecosystem of this area. This is mostly for my own egotistical desire to taste what your realm has to offer.”

A bunch of people shuddered when the Dracodon let his head slowly swing from one side to another above the audience while releasing a low rumble.

“I see nothing wrong with that but I would like you to confirm your prey and game with me before going for the kill, just so that you don’t accidentally hurt someone or something important. We wouldn’t want to anger our powerful neighbors.” Asterios presented his counteroffer.

“That is a wise amendment. I accept.” The Storm King nodded. “The second condition is related to the first. I hope consuming the enemies daring to raise their claws at the settlement and its inhabitants can be included in the ways of dealing with them. I assume that some of them might be human, thus my question.”

Another shiver ran through the crowd and plenty of people immediately swore to never cause trouble in the town no matter what. A few smaller, petty criminals or those with something on their conscience began to sweat profusely.

Asterios thought it over for a moment and nodded. “Depending on the gravity of their transgression and their intentions, I see nothing against it. Do hold yourself back for less serious threats, please, if I can ask for it.”

“I shall do so. Lastly, I would like to request a fight with you if and whenever you regain your full strength, Asterios. Not to the death, of course. That would contradict our agreement. Since you are the lord of this place, it’s only natural that my protection includes your person too.”

This time, it was Asterios who broke into a cold sweat. Venuzathor might not be a True Dragon, but he could tell that the Dracodon was an immensely powerful and proud entity and who knew how close he was to the True Dragon woman they had fought in the past? In the end, it was actually a good condition. It would allow Asterios to fare against a draconic being without risking certain death.

“I accept your challenge, Storm King Venuzathor. I promise I won’t disappoint you and give you a satisfying battle.”

Booming, rumbling laughter echoed through the town and the Dracodon lowered his head to Asterios and Miria.

“Very good. I have nothing more to say. Let us proceed whenever you are ready. I swear on my name that if the need arises, I will protect your subjects with my life on the line.”

Asterios and Miria exchanged glances and smiled at each other. She then gingerly pecked his lips and trotted back to the other girls while Tina and Grea showed up by Ast’s sides. The two ladies also smiled at him.

“Ready?” he asked them.

They both nodded and walked to their previous positions. As they sat down, Asterios remained standing and cut his palm to drip some blood onto the formation. He sighed deeply and stabilized his breathing while Selene approached him from behind.

His vulpine mate weaved some sigils in the air with three tails out. A spiritual bubble surrounded Asterios and became almost solid, obstructing the vision. People began whispering among themselves so the Committee Members explained that their lord had to undress for this part to save his clothes from getting damaged and everyone nodded to their words.

Obviously, that was a lie.

Inside the small sphere, Asterios slapped his palms together and let all of his true self out. Soon, his scales, horns, and tail showed up, and his limbs turned much more draconic. He groaned heavily and opened his spiritual circuits to their limits.

Selene had to bring out three more tails and use both hands to prevent the bubble from bursting from the insane amount of mana surging out of Asterios. A crimson pillar was still able to shoot into the sky and tongues of spiritual energy escaped the bluish cocoon like dancing serpents extending outwards.

Asterios poured his energy into the magical circle and everyone watched how it gradually turned dark crimson with the motion of flowing water. A scream broke from his lips as he strained himself to his limits. It took him three minutes to fully activate the formation and he felt like his entire body was burning from the output of mana.

But, he succeeded and transferred enough spiritual energy to trigger the contracting part of the ritual. The entire magical circle shone brightly with crimson hues and Ast’s Summoner Brand appeared briefly on the Dracodon’s forehead before fading away. He could feel a connection with the Storm King.

Panting like mad, he managed to withdraw his transformation and let Selene know that it was fine to take the obstruction down. She did so and immediately supported Asterios as he fell backward, setting him gently on the ground as he chuckled wryly.

“It’s been… a long time… since I’ve exhausted myself so much… hahaha…”

“Just rest, my Lord. I can’t even fathom how you filled this entire thing alone.” She smiled at him warmly.

“I guess it’s time to do my part,” Venuzathor said and began shifting on his massive body and legs a bit.

Everyone watched how the Dracodon’s dark back was illuminated by a blue glow coming out of the crevices between the plates of his armor, creating multiple arrowhead-shaped stripes along his upper body. A pattern resembling tens of lightning strikes surfaced on his underside. He then pushed himself off the ground with his front legs and stood on his hind ones. 

“Oh, shit. Cover your ears!” Asterios shouted and reached for Selene’s much more sensitive fluffy triangles.

Whipping his head to the sky, the Storm King shot a thick beam of condensed lighting out of his jaws and an ear-splitting, booming roar shook the air, sending mighty, trembling waves of force all around the source, which caused a small earthquake in the area. The spiritual energy crackled and flashed as the violent pillar tore the firmament of heavens to the accompaniment of loud humming and buzzing noise, and the beastly roar.

Dark storm clouds gathered around the flashing monument and swirled viciously as the proud beast kept howling. A powerful wind broke out amidst tens of lightning strikes and thunder echoing through the air. The sky became gray in a moment while the formation on the ground seemed to turn azure and change a little, expanding even more.

After thirty seconds, Venuzathor closed his jaws and the pillar of lightning was no more. He fell forward with a loud thud like a collapsing building and the sky began clearing up a little bit. The storm had passed but the clouds remained slightly gray.

“What was that?” Asterios asked after partially regaining his hearing.

“I claimed this region as my territory. No one should dare to intrude on my new sanctuary without a death wish. And also…”

Everyone started looking around when a loud, thundering noise reached their ears from every direction. People soon realized that the noise belonged to hundreds if not thousands of flying animals and beasts, from little birds to massive Wyverns. They descended onto the plaza and all the nearby buildings, sitting on top of the barriers set up above the people. In a moment, the entire city was covered by a blanket of winged creatures.

“What’s happening?” Grea asked after appearing next to Asterios with Tina by her side.

“They’ve come to pay their respects, of course,” the Storm King boomed. “And to receive their orders.”

“Orders?” Miria asked confusedly.

“I will need an army of agents if I want to properly keep an eye on the entire region.” Venuzathor chuckled deeply and glanced down at Asterios. “Now, listen to your subordinate and rest. I can see that you are barely keeping yourself conscious with sheer will. I’ll send scouts to gather intel on the weird interference and bring you good news when you wake up again.”

Asterios smiled wryly and nodded. Releasing a heavy sigh, he let the girls take care of him as his eyelids finally surrendered and he fell asleep immediately.

 

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