"What are you waiting for, Kuro? Belia can probably sense when a Monster King dies, so you should hurry," Pointed out Diablo.

  Yeah, I know that.

  "Then hurry up and teleport into the barrier already," Urged Lazarus.

  No, that's not what I'm going for this time.

  "Huh? What do you mean?" Inquired Diablo in confusion.

  I was thinking about everything you told me about the Dragons……and having gone through all the details, I don't think the best option is to just consume the Dragon King's life force……instead, I think I'd rather have him serve under me.

  "Wait, for real?" Remarked Lazarus in surprise.

  Yeah, for real. Think about it, if I consume the life force of the Dragon King, sure, I'll gain control over the Wyverns and Lesser Dragons, but not the High Dragons or Elemental Dragons, they'll be our enemies. After all, from what you guys told me about the Dragons, they're all loyal to their king, right?

  "Yeah, unlike the Vampires……hah, burn!" Laughed Diablo.

  "Oh, please, it's not like the Demons are especially loyal to you!" Retorted Lazarus with a huff.

  "Yeah that's because Demons are naturally independent, stupid Vampire……and besides, at least they don't hate me!"Countered Diablo smugly.

  Guys, knock it off already. As I was saying, we'd just be making more enemies, and even if I can defeat them without much trouble, they're all supposed to be fairly powerful, right? It'd be a shame to let that go to waste.

  And that aside, you said that the intelligent Dragons are extremely proud creatures, so if they give us their word that they won't betray us, we should be able to trust that. And besides, when I asked you two about the Dragons, you both spoke about the Dragon King favorably, which I've never heard either of you do so about any of the other Monster Kings.

  "Well, yeah, Draco was easy to get along with, I liked the guy," Replied Diablo.

  "So did I, he had this way of alleviating any sense of hostility or aggression in you when he's not in a fighting mood. To the point where I'd sometimes slip away from the other Vampires to meet up with him and just talk, it was rather therapeutic, especially when I was stressed out," Agreed Lazarus.

  "Wait, for real? I did that too, from time to time!" Exclaimed Diablo in surprise.

  Huh……so the Dragon King was basically your therapist? That's certainly unexpected. Alright, I'm going to shatter the Forbidden Zone, do one of you wanna take over and talk to the Dragon King once I do?

  "Yes!" They both replied in unison.

  Okay, then, uh……decide by playing rock-paper-scissors.

  "But……," Began Lazarus.

  "……we don't have forms inside your consciousness, remember?" Finished Diablo.

  Oh, right, good point……alright, how about this……Diablo, I'll give you control of my right arm, and Lazarus, you can have my left arm……go nuts.

  If there's anyone around to see me right now, I probably look like a crazy person playing rock-paper-scissors by myself. Anyway, to make a long story short, Diablo won, after three rounds of ties.

  I then flew up and above the Forbidden Zone barrier, which was at the outer base of a volcano. I'll destroy it the same way I did with the Kraken Forbidden Zone, after I transferred the Sea King's life force into Az and headed back to dump his corpse and shatter the barrier in order to free the Krakens.

  I formed two more arms and charged up Obliteration Magic in each of my four palms, before focusing and concentrating them like lazers and firing each one at a corner of the top of the barrier, striking all four corners simultaneously and wiping them out.

  Cracks then rapidly spread out across the barrier from the corners as I descended back down towards the ground, landing right as the whole thing shattered like glass and dissipated, revealing a whole bunch of massive winged reptiles.

  My heat sense says……that there's two hundred and eight of them. According to Lazarus and Diablo, one was the Dragon King, also known as the Flame Dragon, and was part of, along with three others, the Elemental Dragons……there used to be four excluding the king, but the Earth Dragon was killed by an Elemental Sage-, and the remaining intelligent Dragons were five that are known as High Dragons.

  The rest were all Lesser Dragons, which were basically bigger and stronger versions of Wyverns, but like the Wyverns, they're unintelligent, respawnable monsters.

  And that's another reason why I decided to recruit the Dragon King instead of absorb him. Because if I consume his life force, all the various types of Wyverns and Lesser Dragons would certainly fall under my control, but they won't respawn when killed.

  But if I can convince the Dragon King to join me, then we'll basically have an immortal army of Wyverns and Lesser Dragons, which will be quite the asset. Now, then……I suppose I should address them……

  "So, which of you is the Dragon King?" I inquired in a loud voice, attracting the attention of all the Dragons, several suspicious gazes locking onto me.

  Suddenly, two Lesser Dragons shot forward and pounced at me with fierce roars, before I blasted one of them away with Repulsion and used Teleport to appear right above the second one, slamming it onto the ground with a swift punch. I then floated back down and landed, turning my sights back towards the Dragons again, as their expressions shifted from suspicious to wary.

  Suddenly, one of the Dragons stepped forward, with dark red scales, yellow eyes with sharp black irises, wide wings, two slightly backwards-curved horns on his head and a row of spikes down his spine and tail. And then, he changed……specifically, he shrunk down drastically, and also into a more humanoid form.

  Most of the Dragons stood on all fours, and while some did stand on just their hind legs, it was clear that standing on all fours was more natural to them……but as the Dragon King transformed, he didn't just grow smaller, his legs turned more bipedal while his arms grew a bit more slender and longer, with more pronounced elbows.

  To clarify, it's not that he's turned into a human-like form, he still had those long jaws, dark red scales, wings, tail, etcetera, it's more like he's changed to a smaller, more nimble and agile form. He looks less intimidating like this, but he's likely a lot more formidable than in his bigger form. Still, if he's on par with Lazarus when I fought him, then he shouldn't be a problem for my current self.

  Now, then, I suppose I'd best cut right to the chase……

  "So, you're Draco the Dragon King, are you?" I greeted him with a smirk, "Mind coming with me?"

  "Hm? And you are?" He inquired with a raised eyebrow……well, not that he has any hair on his brow or anything.

  Huh, and looks like his face is more expressive in this form too.

  "I'm the ruler of a nation known as Abyss, and if you must know……I'm technically human," I replied with a smirk.

  "Hah, is that so? How……amusing……," He responded, trailing off with a laugh before adding in a more serious tone with narrowed eyes, "And what is it that you want with me, human?"

  "I think I'll let someone else, a familiar face, tell you instead," I answered, before switching out with Diablo, my horns growing out and my third eye forming as a result.

  Alright, Diablo, you're in control, take it away.

  "Yo, it's been a while, Draco!" He greeted the Dragon with a wave.

  "Hm? Those features, but……could it be……a Demon coexisting with the host consciousness? I have never seen this before," Remarked Draco with a look of intrigue.

  "Yeah, it's a long story……and as for who I am, let me give you a hint……about five hundred and twenty years ago, we had a contest of strength……through a game of tug of war using a Kraken-," Diablo began.

  "Diablo, is that you!?" Exclaimed Draco, his face lighting up.

  Wait, they did what?

  "That's right, you got it!" Grinned Diablo, flashing him a double thumbs up.

  "But……how-? And the way you speak is……different."

  "Well, in a nutshell, this human dared me to try and possess him, I accepted the challenge……and after what felt like an endless stalemate, we agreed to compromise and coexist. And his personality affected me, that's why the way I speak has changed. Oh, and I'm not the only one in here besides him……Lazarus is here too," Explained Diablo.

  About half an hour then passed, as the two Monster Kings caught up with each other……as for why I didn't interrupt, they both seemed so excited that I just didn't have the heart to pour cold water on their reunion.

  And then, finally, Diablo got things back on track and gave Draco our proposal……

  "You're probably wondering why Kuro……the owner of this body-freed you from the Forbidden Zone. It's about time we get to business……"

  He then explained the situation that this world was currently in, everything that Belia had been upto and the recent events with the other races. One thing I managed to gather from their conversation was this……they both had somewhat of a disdain towards Belia.

  According to what I've heard from Diablo and Lazarus, the Demons are characterized as independent, while the Dragons are characterized as proud, and while that may not apply to all Demons and Dragons, those are more exceptions than rules……and given how Belia often sends her troops to their deaths, it's easy to imagine that these two monster races in particular wouldn't take too kindly to such an untactical approach.

  "Hm, quite an intriguing proposal……but I cannot agree to accept a human as my master so easily. I can see that he is rather powerful, that is why I entered my humanoid form. Perhaps a battle will help us come to an agreement?" He suggested with a slight smile, a gleam in his eyes.

  Hey, Lazarus, what does me being powerful have to do with him shrinking down in size?

  "When it comes to the High Dragons and the ones above them, they stay in their larger forms against opponents that they don't view as threats. But if they acknowledge someone as a threat, they rely on their humanoid forms. In a way, it's a sign of respect, though I guess you could say that the most practical reason is that they want to minimize their blind spots," Explained Lazarus.

  Huh, that actually makes a lot of sense, they're bound to be a lot faster in their humanoid forms.

  "Exactly, their power levels don't change, regardless of their size. But it's more focused in their humanoid forms," He replied.

  "Well, Diablo? What do you say? I have no fought in quite a while, and now that I am finally breathing fresh air again, my body is aching for a good fight," Remarked Draco enthusiastically.

  "I don't know……no offense, but this human defeated Lazarus after fighting more or less on equal terms with him, and he's now several times stronger than he was back then, so……," Diablo trailed off awkwardly.

  "Oh, now that has captured my interest! I see what you are trying to imply, that since I was more or less as strong as Lazarus, I won't stand a chance against that host of yours, is that right?" Responded the Dragon King with a smirk.

  Wait, did he say 'was'?

  "Yeah, he's strong enough to go toe to toe against Belia and the Elemental Sages, but more importantly, he's a lot more skilled than they are," Added Diablo.

  "Now I am all the more interested in fighting him! You see, quite recently, I am not sure exactly how long ago, but I and the other high level Dragons underwent something of a change. We all felt significant surges in our power levels, I am not sure what happened, but what I do know is that I am stronger than I was before……and I would like to test it out," Remarked Draco, the air around him starting to shimmer slightly.

  Oh? Well, that's interesting……did Belia make them stronger somehow? Or maybe……their full power was sealed and that seal deteriorated over time? Either way, I'm intrigued……

  Diablo, time to switch, I'll take it from here.

  "Got it……," He replied, before addressing Draco, "Alright, Kuro is switching back. Have fun."

  "Well, human? Will you fight me?" Inquired Draco expectantly, as I switched back.

  Alright, now to take advantage of this situation……

  "Yeah, I think I will……say, how about a wager?" I suggested with a smirk.

  "Oh? Do tell," He responded with a look of interest.

  "If I win, I'll use Diablo's Chaos Magic to sever your connection to Belia, and then you and the other Dragons will loyally serve under me in Abyss……," I proposed.

  A few murmurs rang out around the High Dragons and Elemental Dragons, as they watched me with narrowed, suspicious eyes……

  "Hah, in all my years, never has a human spoken to me with such confidence and lack of fear! How fascinating……so, then, what if I win?" He responded in amusement.

  "Then you can do with me as you please, and Abyss will be yours to command, or burn to the ground, whichever you want. If that's not enough, you can suggest whatever you want……because I won't lose," I declared confidently.

  "Hah……hahaha!" He responded in laughter, before adding with a slight smirk, "Very well, I agree to your terms, human. Now, then……show me that your confidence is not misplaced!"

  _____________________________________________

  Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Don't forget to vote, and feel free to leave a comment, I appreciate any and all feedback and criticism!

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