Chapter 112: Dragon meets Dragon

The Oasis City of Tomo was the grandest of the six Oasis Cities on Magmor. The city itself was huge, dozens of miles wide and long, full of a variety of people. A towering wall of white stone, stained grey from the occasional ashfalls from the Magma Sea, protected the city, surrounding it.

What set Tomo apart from the other Oasis Cities was the man that controlled it.

Magmor had no ruler or leader, but that didn’t mean that no one of strength lived here.

Tomo was controlled by a powerful human known as Pavlo, the Blazing King. A King Class Wizard that studied Magma Magic, a specialized type of Fire Magic. His presence on Magmor was a large reason for its independence. His prowess had made him a bit of a legend that no Major Power wanted to antagonize.

Pavlo had set up shop here more than 250 years ago, obsessed with both his research of Magma Magic and the legendary Ascension Ruins that served as a perpetual source of mystery and wonder.

As a high ranking King Class Wizard, Pavlo was extremely powerful. If he had wanted, he could’ve seized control of the other Oasis Cities without issue. He had declined from that, however, in the interest of spurring competition.

Pavlo didn’t want to control the planet or any form of worldly power or possessions. He simply wanted to solve the riddle that was the Ascension Ruins and break into the Angelic Class.

As part of that, several times a year, when the chance to enter the Ascension Ruins came up, he would host and encourage a huge competition, hiring teams of mercenaries and Wizards to explore the Ruins while also offering large rewards to anyone that could bring back new information.

And right now, Pavlo could be found sitting upon a small stone chair in a courtyard at the center of the grand Oasis City.

He had a middle-aged appearance, with a slim chest and a lean, non-muscular physique. He wore a long, red robe and had a face lined with age. Short white hair covered his head, while a sizable mustache was planted firmly on his face.

In his right hand, he held a glowing red scepter.

“So you specialize in infiltration and subterfuge, according to the mercenary records I have of you.” His voice was quiet as he spoke. It held no intimidating edge, but behind it, a solid feeling of confidence and strength could be felt.

“Yes, King Pavlo.” Standing in front of the legendary King Class Wizard was a nondescript figure whose face was hidden by a long, black robe. Their voice was neutral, neither feminine nor masculine.

“A Wizard such as yourself will be a valuable asset to my Ruin Teams. The Ascension Ruins are going to appear within days, perhaps even hours.” Pavlo began, waving the red scepter at the hooded figure,

“My men have fully vetted your background and confirmed everything. I’ve decided to hire you on. Alongside your presence, we should be able to contest at least half of the spots to enter this time around.”

The black robed figure seemed to shift slightly. Their face was invisible, but a pleased air seemed to appear around them as the figure looked down.

“That is excellent news, King Pavlo. I’ve already discussed my payment with you.”

“Yes, yes. Everything will be as promised. I do not go back on my word.” Pavlo responded, nodding his head nonchalantly. He waved his hand to the side, prompting a man forward.

A Wizard dressed in a tight red suit stood at attention. A fiery, Kingly Aura flowed around this red headed Wizard, giving him a dangerous appearance. His face was handsome, but his eyes cold.

“This is Henry, the leader of all of the Ruin Teams I’ve formed. You will report directly to him.” Pavlo began,

“Every team member gets their own code name for when they are acting. Have you decided on one?”

The black robed figure looked up, his or her face still hidden by the hood they wore.

“Yes, actually, I have.” The air seemed to shiver slightly,

“You may call me Mello.”

.. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

“Ahh, that was tasty!” Dorian tapped on his stomach comfortably as he rested on his chair, taking in the atmosphere of the restaurant they had stopped at. It was a lively place, full of mercenaries and other tough-looking fellows. The restaurant had an open, tabled area and a long bar off on the side.

The pancakes and meat that had rested on his plate had been devoured in a matter of moments. They’d been as delicious as he’d hoped for.

“It was alright.” Leader sniffed slightly as he looked down at his plate, disdainfully. Most of the food was still on it.

“Now, let’s get planning.” Dorian replied with a small smile, talking over the quiet din of the restaurant around them.

“The World Bridge to Lansc is about 60 miles north of here. We can reach that today with ease.” Dorian moved his plate to the side of the table and began to draw a line on it, showing their route.

“Once we arrive on Lansc, we take a flying ship over to the World Bridge to Magmor. A quick, hour long flight at most due to how close the two Bridges are.” He crossed his finger across the table, drawing towards the edge.

THUMP

He tapped his thumb down at the very end.

“And then we arrive here. Magmor.” Dorian’s eyes flashed,

“All in all, it should take us one day at the least, two at the most.”

“That sounds agreeable, Great Lord. We will complete your mission and begin the revival of the Demon Race!” Leader looked at Dorian with eyes that glowed with fervor. His desire to ally himself with Dorian hadn’t changed a whit. The overwhelming strength Dorian, as Yukeli, displayed was extremely convincing to he who lived by his pride.

“Alright, so now let’s consider the minutiae. Magmor has six large cities spread across its rather small surface. What we need to do…” Dorian began talking with Leader, explaining his plans. Leader responded amicably, adding to the conversation with his own cunning guile. All of his subordinates were to stay behind here on Paxital while he adventured forth with Dorian.

ring

The doorway to the restaurant had a small bell attached to it, one that rang out any time someone entered. It rang out just now, tinkling in the background.

Dorian ignored it, motioning at the table,

“So the Ascension Ruins are located on the back of some giant turtle, through some type of magical portal setup. The turtle only surfaces and becomes accessible every couple weeks, at sometimes random intervals. The ruler of Tomo City, the Blazing King, publicly releases and spreads information on the when and where the turtle will appear, so we don’t need to worry about that.” He spread his hands wide, tapping with all ten of his fingers,

“What we need to prepare for is safely securing one of the ten entrances when it does appear.” He nodded his head sharply at Leader.

Leader shrugged back,

“I’ve heard of the Blazing King and I’m sure you could take him. He is no problem.” Leader smiled confidently, looking at Dorian with almost puppy dog eyes.

Dorian stared back. If he became Yukeli again, Dorian was confident he could take on most foes as well. But that entailed a huge risk, and one Dorian wasn’t necessarily willing to accept. He would be putting the lives of anyone around him at risk.

He also didn’t know how to, or even if he could still switch over personalities. He still had Yukeli’s memories in the back of his head, but he no longer heard that voice talking to him, telling him to kill people. The world around him had become much brighter and lighter without that.

“The Flame Empyrean Turtle might be a problem, however.” Leader’s voice was brooding as he continued,

“It’s a gigantic beast that can fight with Angelic Class Wizards and come out ahead. It might prove too difficult for us to handle without sufficient preparation, Great Lord.” His words were chosen carefully, as if not to offend Dorian.

“You’re not wrong, but we don’t need to figh-”

THUMP

Before Dorian could finish speaking, his entire table shook as a hand slammed down on it. His plate flipped off of it, flying through the air to knock against the head of a heavyset mercenary sitting a few meters away.

Dorian turned in surprise, his eyes widening.

A tall, handsome man wearing a set of golden robes was looking at him. The man had enthralling, golden eyes that gleamed with mystery. Standing next to him was a beautiful woman wearing a semi-translucent gown responded, her long brown hair wrapped up in a braid.

“Greetings, friend.” The man began, his voice rich and full,

“Apologies for the intrusion but I wan-” Before the man could finish, he was abruptly cut off.

“WHO THE HELL THREW THIS PLATE?!” The heavyset mercenary who’d been hit by Dorian’s plate spun around, his eyes bloodshot with rage. Dorian could smell alcohol on his breath, even from over here.

As the man yelled, the area around them quickly cleared, mercenaries and other guests alike stepping away from the fray. Some of them seemed to recognize the big fellow, a small giant of a man that towered nearly seven feet tall. Muscles bulged under the grey leather hides he wore, giving him a tough appearance.

–

Species: Human

Class – Grandmaster Class (Middle)

Maximum Energy Level: 491

–

Dorian scanned him in an instant, his passive Demonic Eyes Ability always active and letting Ausra qualify and quantify anyone he looked at.

‘Middle Grandmaster Class? Not too shabby. He appears to be a warrior though, not a Wizard. There really are a ton of decently strong figures on this traveler’s planet.’ He thought in a split second, turning to look back at the man wearing gold robes.

“Ah yes, that was me.” The golden-eyed man responded, shrugging his hands. His voice dripped with arrogance. His eyes flickered to the side, however, as he glanced at the woman standing by his side. His face seemed to tighten and he added a few more words,

“My apologies.” He gave the heavyset mercenary a stiff nod and then turned back to Dorian.

“As I was saying I-”

“Do you think you can just attack me and ignore me?!” The heavyset mercenary lumbered over, holding a mug of beer in his left hand. His eyes flashed dangerously as he glared at the golden-eyed man.

The golden-eyed man took a deep breath, his face twitching as he turned back to look at the mercenary.

“It was not intentiona-” He was cut off again.

The mercenary stepped forward, grabbing ahold of the hem of the golden-eyed man’s robe as he sputtered,

“Listen up, here, you bastar-”

WHOOSH

The instant the drunk mercenary grabbed the hem of the man’s clothes, Dorian saw a brief hint of emotion appear in the golden-eyed man’s eyes. An emotion that was alien to Dorian, foreign. Unfeeling, uncaring, a look that stared down at the human as if he was mere prey.

A split second after, the man’s right arm blurred.

BOOM

A resounding impact rang out as the body of the mercenary was flung across the restaurant, crashing through several wooden tables and chairs, throwing up shards of wood. The heavyset man’s body blurred through the air and bulldozed through the wall of the restaurant, leaving a gaping hole.

His body bounced for about a dozen meters, skittering down a paved stone street and knocking over several passersby before coming to a rest, covered in blood and wooden shrapnel.

The entire restaurant fell into a fearful silence at the sign of awe-inspiring might. A second later, chaos broke out as everyone began to flee, quickly escaping from the area. In the background, yells and shouts broke out as people called for the city guard.

“Aiden, we agreed that we weren’t going to attack anyo-” The woman wearing a translucence gown standing next to him began.

“I didn’t kill him. He’s still alive, I held back enough, see?” Aiden cut her off, pointing.

Dorian turned along with the woman, at a loss, unable to get a word in.

Just barely, through the gaping hole he had left in the wall, Dorian could make out the figure of the heavyset mercenary. The man had struggled to his knees and was looking down at the ground, somehow still alive. A few bystanders were trying to help him up.

“Rude and arrogant.”

Dorian turned back around as Leader’s voice echoed in the restaurant, booming with authority.

Leader’s eyes were cool as he stared at the golden-eyed man, displeasure visible on his face.

“You disapprove of my methods?” The golden-eyed man smiled in amusement, turning to look at Leader.

“No. You get straight to the point. I admire that. Your unwavering arrogance, however, is your downfall.” A powerful, rainbow colored Aura began to wrap around Leader as he spoke, the air around him starting to shiver.

The golden-eyed man smiled slightly. Small, golden scales began to appear on his face, forming out of nowhere.

“Oh is that so?” The alien emotion returned to the man’s eyes as he replied to Leader, stepping forward so that he was standing just a meter away.

Leader smiled back, his eyes exemplifying the Prideful Aura around him as he responded, standing up,

“Indeed. Don’t think you can just smash me to the side and ignor-”

BOOOOOOM

The golden-eyed man’s arm moved too quickly to be seen, not even a blur, as it slammed into Leader’s chest.

A split second later, Leader’s body blasted outward, hurtling through the air and through the back of the wooden restaurant. He knocked aside a good dozen tables and chairs as if they weighed nothing, destroying them by accident.

THUD

Leader’s body flew off into the distance, smashing into the store across the street, a clothing shop of some sort. The storefront exploded from the impact, a mixture of linen and wood thrown into the air. Various screams and yells rang out, joining the general chaos in the background.

–

Species: Golden Flame Dragon (Humanoid Form)

Class – King Class (Middle)

Maximum Energy Level: 1,047,395

–

Dorian’s heart dropped as scanned the golden-eyed man and looked over the information Ausra picked up.

‘Crap. It’s a dragon. A hostile dragon. And it’s even stronger than the last dragon I saw.’

His mind raced into overdrive as he began to plan, his body tensing up. He raced over the techniques he’d gained from Yukeli, his every Ability and power, trying to think of a way to respond and survive.

‘Don’t I still have one last Absorption?’ He’d never used the last of his three Absorptions.

Before he could do anything, however, Leader’s voice echoed out into the air as he reappeared, the rainbow Aura that surrounded him pulsing with light.

“I WILL END YOU!” Leader instantly threw himself at the Humanoid Form of the Golden Flame Dragon. The attack that had knocked him away had taken him by surprise. He wasn’t injured, but his pride had been wounded, the worst possible outcome in his eyes.

“Is that so? Will you, now?” The golden-eyed man responded back, stepping forward to greet Leader. A powerful, golden Aura surrounded the man, flush with power.

“Aiden!” The woman in the translucent gown called out, her voice full of concern.

BOOM

Leader and the humanoid Dragon collided. A large wave of force obliterated the floor of the restaurant and everything within several meters. Dorian was knocked backwards from his table, stumbling over several meters before he righted himself in a smooth roll, making use of the instincts he’d gained from Yukeli.

WHOOSH

thud

Dust and wood had been thrown into the air, temporarily blinding him. He coughed a few times, clearing his throat as he looked around blearily.

The two fighting men were nowhere to be seen. Instead, a huge hole was now visible, in the roof of the restaurant. Timbers of wood leaned out from this hole, cracked and twisted as mid-morning light leaked in.

Just barely audible, Dorian made out the voices of the two as they yelled at each other.

“You will fall before me! The Pride of Man cannot be stopped!”

“Pride?! Hahaha, what pride can be stronger than the pride of a Dragon?!”

BOOOOOOOOM

BOOM

BOOOOOM

Several shockwaves shot out, setting the nearly empty restaurant to shaking in the background.

Despite that, as the two began to fight, Dorian noticed that he didn’t actually feel any ill will from the golden-eyed man. Despite his rather rude attitude, it didn’t appear as if he had actually wanted to attack Dorian.

“Oh dear.”

“Oh my.”

Dorian and the woman wearing the translucent gown exclaimed at the same time as they looked at the mostly destroyed restaurant and then at each other, exchanging glances.

They both sighed simultaneously.

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