The Dragon King descended slowly. Majestically. Its every movement was exuding an aura of absolute power.
It landed some distance from the main battlefield. Its crown-like antlers began to glow with an inner, oppressive light.
A wave of energy pulsed outwards from the Dragon King. It wasn't physical force. It was pure, draconic aura. With a scent of sacred element mixed in. It slammed into the Dragonbane smoke.
And the sweet, metallic scent of the smoke began to fade. The yellowish-green haze thinned. Dissipating as if being sucked away by an invisible vacuum. The debilitating effects on the dragons vanished.
The dragons had been stumbling. Coughing. Weakened. And confused.
But now... One by one, they straightened their postures. Their glazed eyes got sharpened. Regaining their predatory gleam. Their once sluggish movements became fluid. Powerful. Even more than before. Their roars returned with renewed, amplified fury.
The Dragon King's aura didn't just negate the Dragonbane. It refined it. It energized the dragons. They, instead of reverting to their prior strength, surged with an even more unnatural vitality.
They were stronger than they had been even before the bombs. Their scales seemed harder. Their eyes burned brighter. Their sheer aura expanded further.
The new nobles had been energized by their temporary victory. But, they now froze. The sudden shift was devastating for their morale. A punch to the gut. The despair that had briefly receded now returned. With a vengeance, darker and heavier than ever.
Spark felt it too. The Dragon King's aura was immense. Ancient. And crushing. His [King Disposition] flared again. Automatically neutralizing the raw intimidation directed at him.
Its aura didn't affect him. But the sheer power of it to the dragons was undeniable. The creatures around him... The ones he had just been butchering with such ease... They were now bristled with renewed, even greater, strength.
He looked at the Dragon King. Its colossal form dominating the battlefield despite being quite a distance away. Its crowned head surveying the carnage with cold amusement.
Spark gritted his teeth. This wasn't just a battle anymore. This would be a terrible nightmare.
A huge cobalt-scaled dragon lunged at him. Its maw opened. Revealing rows of dagger-like teeth.
Spark didn't hesitate. As his draconic werelion form lowered its stance, he instant-casted his [Elemental Coating - Water]. Over-layering his already water-coated arms.
The shimmering blue, almost liquid energy blocked as the dragon's teeth tried to snap shut. Those teeth failed to tear through flesh and bone.
Instead, they met an unnaturally slick, resilient surface. The sharp teeth skidded. Grinding uselessly against the water-hardened muscle beneath.
Spark, with a guttural growl, twisted his body. His claw, still empowered by the same elemental coating, raked across the dragon's snout. Scales were ripped away.
The dragon roared. A shriek of pain. And recoiled. This was different. But it was too shallow. Before, he'd torn through them with ease. Now, even just injuring one was a brutal struggle.
Another dragon swooped low. A lean, emerald-hued beast. Its tail was whipping like a gnarled rope towards a group of new nobles huddled together.
The nobles were still stunned by the Dragon King's power. They were easy prey. The tail slammed into them. Bones shattered. Bodies flew. Ragged dolls against the sky. Before crashing in broken heaps.
Spark's focus hardened. He watched. But he couldn't help them. Survival was the most important thing for him right now. He was treated like a pawn, deployed to die. But, he wouldn't.
A blast of noxious gas erupted from a purple-bellied dragon's maw. Thick and burning. The dragon was heading straight for him. From behind. Spark felt the air warp. The heat searing his fur even before it hit.
His survival instinct triggered his [Godspeed Reflex]. His muscles coiled. Then exploded in a fraction of second. He became a blur. A streak of black shadow. Vanishing from the gas's path by a hair's breadth.
He reappeared a few meters to the left. Breathing hard. The gas scorched the earth where he had stood. He survived. Again.
The other nobles weren't so lucky. A scholar-like noble fumbled with a spell scroll. A dragon descended. Its shovel-like talons clamped down. The noble's body was compressed. Then burst with a wet, sickening sound. Red mist. Gone.
Another noble tried to flee. Scrambling over debris. A dragon swooped. Catching him mid-stride. It lifted him high. Then released him. He plummeted to splatter against the stone ground. Dead.
Spark suddenly felt a searing pain in his shoulder. He hadn't seen the acid spray from a smaller, cat sized gem dragon.
The pain flared, intense. His werelion form was resilient, but pure acid was a nasty thing. Red flesh was exposed beneath melting fur.
He gritted his teeth. [Celestial Healing] was instantly activated. It was a subtle warmth at first, then a rush. The raw, exposed muscle knitted together. Fur regrew, black and thick. The wound closed quickly. Leaving only a faint, damp mark where the acid had burned.
But Spark didn't just stay still and wait until he was healed. He roared. Charging forward again. Toward the escaping gem dragon. But the tiny creature was elusive. It managed to escape him.
A brute small sized dragon with scarred hide, lunged. Spark met it head-on. Their forms collided in a thunderous impact. Claws tore. Teeth gnashed. Spark used his immense strength. Locking onto the dragon's neck.
Its thrashing was violent. But Spark held fast. He felt a sickening crunch as his grip tightened. Crushing its vertebrae.
But as the dragon went limp. Two others immediately swarmed him. From different directions.
Jack gritted and activated his [Devil Contract (Time Stop)].
The world froze. Spark quickly backed away. Putting distance between himself and the two frozen beasts trying to charge at him.
The world blurred back into motion. The dragons crashed against each other. Their attacks were missing the mark.
Meanwhile, Spark had activated his [Supernatural Stealth]. Hiding himself below the wing of a huge dragon's dead body.
He was exhausted. Out of energy and stamina. He needed a few minutes of rest.
He peeked outside . The new nobles, the ones summoned with him, were almost all gone. Scattered bodies, pools of blood, and smoking craters marked their demise.
Those were evidences to the dragons' renewed ferocity. And they showed how ruthless were the higher ups of Avianest Kingdom. They had really been turned into pawns. Destined to die in war.
Spark slowly took a deep breath. He didn't dare to make a big move that could attract anyone's attention.
He was waiting. The kingdom should make its move snow. Or, those dragons would demolish the city.
Then, the air trembled. This time, it was not from a dragon's impact. But from something else. Just like what Spark thought. The Kingdom made its moves.
...
A guttural roar split the air. Filled with primal lightning. From his hiding place, Spark could see three figures launched themselves from inside the city.
They were not weak. They were immensely powerful. They radiated power that was only weaker to the Dragon King.
The first was a monstrous combination of avian creature and human. Towering, with the head of a huge eagle. And four legs of a lion. It also had powerful feathered wings. And the muscular torso of a man.
The whole body was covered in sparks of golden-white lightning. Crackling all around him. He descended like a thunderbolt. Landing amidst a cluster of dragons.
Despite being concealed be the fusion form, Spark immediately recognized him. This was Prime Minister Pavo Elfalcon, a Tier-7 Soulframe Battlemage.
The old man moved with incredible speed. A whirlwind of claws, wings, and lightning magic erupted from his body. Forming whips that lashed out. Striking multiple dragons at once.
Their scales blackened. Their roars turning to agonized screeches as they spasmed. He wasn't just a mage. He was a living storm of soulcraft and framepath. Tearing through the horde with savage physical grace and raw elemental fury.
Next... A massive, black-furred, armored were-gorilla that landed with a ground-shaking thud. It had huge pair of leathery wings. Its colossal muscles seemed to be rippling under thick fur and armor.
Each movement he made seemed to radiate terrifying physical power. Spark also recognized him. Field Marshall Kestrel Misthawk, a Tier-7 Framepath Warrior.
The Field Marshall didn't cast spells. He simply moved. He punched. A dragon's head exploded.
He grabbed another by the tail. Swung the monster like a club. And sent it crashing into its kin. Bones snapped. Limbs tore. He was a living battering ram. Clearing a path of destruction with pure brute strength.
Third... A figure clad in gleaming, heavy exoskeleton power armor. It was unlike anything Spark had seen here.
It was a three-meter tall battle armor. Intricate and formidable. With glowing lines tracing its surface. Its arms were equipped with large energy cannons. And its back was supported by powerful thrusters. Things that allowed it to hover and dart through the air.
It was another obvious figure of the Kingdom. Navy Admiral Lex Ashenowl, a Tier-7 Technomind Engineer.
He was a walking arsenal. Energy bolts ripped through dragons. Carving smoking holes in their hides.
Mechanical appendages extended from his armor. Grappling dragons. Pulling them close for a point-blank burst of energy. Or deploying small, explosive drones that swarmed and detonated.
He moved with cold, calculated precision. A technologically advanced killing machine.
The battlefield had been a slaughterhouse for the nobles. But now, it reversed again with dizzying speed. Most of the dragons, for all their renewed strength, were no match for three Tier-7 powerhouses.
Pavo's lightning incinerated them. Kestrel's fists pulverized them. Lex's energy weapons drilled through them. Dragons fell like flies.
The air was thick with the smell of burnt scales and dragon blood. Hope began to bloom again on the faces of the noble survivors. And the city guards peering over the walls.
Spark watched. A strange feeling in his chest. Relief, yes. But also a deep-seated distrust. These were the ones who had sent him and the other nobles to die.
And yet, here they were. Fighting for the city. It was a complex game. One he didn't fully understand. But he understood power. And these three wielded it in spades.
Then... the air trembled again. More violently this time. It was the Dragon King. A creature of titanic proportions and ancient malice...
It moved. It had been observing. Acting as a distant, terrifying presence. Now, it had decided to join.