Chapter 256: Dragon Slayer

Riseth emerged from the now-still body of the elder dragon, drenched in blood and gore that was greedily siphoned away by Jack. Unwilling to waste the corpse, she stored it with a wave of her hand, eliciting a disappointed growl from her weapon.

Alistair scanned their surroundings, checking if their intervention was needed elsewhere or if they had suffered any losses. However, he found that their forces, alongside the dragons opposing the marked ones, were more than capable of meeting the challenge. Many of the marked dragons were already attempting to flee, their retreat futile against the overwhelming force bearing down on them.

They would deal with the stragglers later. For now, Alistair was more interested in securing more Dragon Slayer titles.

He was relieved to see they had earned one despite fighting alongside Riseth. Their slayer bond ensured that even if they split the record, as long as the challenge was great enough, they would still receive a title.

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Titles:

Tier: [Legendary]

Name: Black Elder Dragon Slayer

Effect:

Grants a 10% bonus to [Power], [Body], and [Mental] statistics and significantly enhances affinity for [Acid] & [Crystal].

Origin: Acquired through the slaying of Naredim, a powerful black elder dragon alongside your slayer bond [Riseth].

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"Let's split up," Riseth said, stepping up beside him. "We should put an end to this assault before moving on."

Alistair nodded, though his attention was momentarily pulled elsewhere as another Slayer title appeared before him. He quickly realized that King’s massacre had finally resulted in a title of its own. He hadn’t expected to be credited for kills he wasn’t directly involved in—but then again, being a summoner was a viable path, and few summoners fought up close and personal like he did.

"I just got a Slayer title for King's kills," Alistair remarked.

Riseth paused, her gaze shifting toward King, who was still tearing through the battlefield. His insult game had significantly improved after spending time at home watching recommendations from Alistair, Simon, and the rest of the family.

"SHUT YOUR FESTERING GOB, YOU TIT! YOUR TYPE MAKES ME PUKE!" King bellowed, black flames surging as he launched himself at another unfortunate target.

"Let me guess, that was another obscure reference from Earth," Riseth said dryly.

"YOUR MOTHER WAS A HAMSTER, AND YOUR FATHER SMELLED OF ELDERBERRIES!" echoed from the battlefield.

"Yeah, that one's on me," Alistair admitted with a snort. "Though I can't say I'm sorry."

"Don't be. That last one I got," Riseth replied with a chuckle.

Alistair smiled as he checked the second title he got.

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Titles:

Tier: [Supreme]

Name: Blue Dragon Slayer

Effect:

Grants a 10% bonus to [Power] [Mental] statistics and significantly enhances affinity for [Lightning] & [Summoning].

Origin: Acquired through the slaying of Duvros, a powerful blue dragon.

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Alistair couldn't help but whistle—not one, but two titles that boosted his mental stats, which had been lagging behind badly. He wondered about the Summoning boost the second title had awarded. Was that because I essentially killed the dragon with my summon alone? Or was that particular dragon a summoner himself? He’d have to ask King once the battle was over.

He had also gained two levels since arriving. Coupled with the stat multipliers, this trip had already resulted in a significant power spike. Finding beasts that were both numerous and strong enough to award titles like these wasn't exactly easy to come by.

For now, Alistair needed to find a green dragon, as it was one of the hostile colors he had yet to slay—and there weren’t many left.

He knew there were also white dragons that could help with cold or ice affinity, but green dragons—since their flight had largely risen up against the marked—were far rarer. Their poison affinity, at least from a defensive standpoint, would be far more useful to him.

It didn’t take long for Alistair to spot a green dragon fleeing in the distance. Without hesitation, he teleported above it, then descended at incredible speed, driving his weapon deep into its back and spine. The force of the impact sent the dragon hurtling toward the ground, its head snapping upward before it twisted around, unleashing a torrent of poison breath in retaliation.

Alistair rapidly repositioned, his Purity Flames clashing with the incoming breath attack. The shift in power was immediately noticeable—this time, his flames were strong enough to at least keep the breath attack at bay.

While Alistair himself was well protected by his armor, Viv wasn’t. She had her own ways of dealing with poison, but he wasn’t about to risk her well-being.

As they finally crashed into the ground, Alistair quickly identified the dragon as [Kydione - lvl 160]. While his stat growth and totals still couldn’t quite measure up to those of a dragon, his titles were slowly but surely closing that gap. Having a level advantage certainly helped as well.

His Kinetic Strikes were taking their toll. With each impact, the dragon flinched and jerked, her head and body rocking back as her tough scales cracked and broke. Blood seeped into the ground as she swiped, breathed, and clawed at Alistair and Viv, both of whom dodged and blocked the frenzied attacks.

Kydione snarled and lashed out again, and Alistair seized the opportunity—channeling as much power as he could to meet the strike head-on. His weapon sheared through flesh and bone, severing her claw from her body. A roar of agony tore from her throat, immediately followed by another breath attack.

As the poisonous mist began to linger, saturating the battlefield, Alistair was forced to ascend again. The spreading toxin made it harder to approach without first burning it away or displacing it with explosive blasts.

Blood streamed from the wound, and the dragon’s movements visibly slowed.

"I refuse to be killed by a lesser," Kydione snarled. "Bring forth your pet dragon."

"He ain't no pet, and you're in no position to make demands," Alistair shot back. "And King deserves better than my sloppy seconds—you’re just a baby-murdering stain I have to wipe from this reality."

"They, too, were abominations, wrong, discolored things," Kydione rasped. "We did them a favor by saving them from an inferior existence."

"Then let me save you the trouble of witnessing their rise," Alistair replied. "Let’s hope your remains will do more good than you ever did."

The green dragon let out an indignant roar as she surged at him once more, determined to swallow him whole. But Alistair didn’t let her. He smashed her head aside, using her own momentum against her before grappling her by the horns and driving her back into the ground.

She didn’t last much longer after Alistair and Viv attacked her weakened form. Even when the system notified him of another title, he took little satisfaction in the fight. The dragon had been powerful, but she lacked finesse and technique—there had been no real challenge, only the question of how long it would take to bring her down.

Alistair rose, scanning the battlefield for a white dragon—the last of the present colors he needed.

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Sotarr let his gaze sweep over the battlefield, his rage barely quelled. He knew that newly integrated species occasionally practiced barbarism, but seeing his own kin engage in it was jarring to the extreme.

His pupils were no strangers to battle, yet he regretted letting his emotions get the better of him—pulling them from their well-deserved break with little warning and no time to prepare.

Even now, he felt Mitania’s gaze lingering on him. She had made her displeasure abundantly clear.

She understood his reasons, but she demanded better of him. She always had. She always would. And that was just one of the many reasons he loved her.

It didn't take long for the battle to swing in their favor, though the many bodies of those defending their homes served as a grim reminder of his outburst.

He would have years to reflect on his actions, but for now, his duty was to watch and ensure the edict was carried out.

It nagged at him that they wouldn't be able to place one of their stewards on this world. He would likely have to train that silver or another local to fill the role, though as he thought about it, he decided that her personality wasn’t what he considered suitable.

He had observed several dragons who would have been a far better fit, but they were either too old or still too weak to command the respect the position required.

Sotarr split his attention into multiple projections, mentally compiling a list of the dragons that had caught his eye and the magics they wielded. He cross-referenced them with the ranks of the Lyraxis Ascendancy, searching for a suitable match.

While observing, he found King’s tirade of insults highly perplexing—though undeniably effective. It both aggravated and confused his opponents and layered them with curse magic.

Suppressing the urge to question his ward’s choice of insults, Sotarr merely shook his head.

He watched as the number of marked dragons dwindled. With no means of escaping their world and now vastly outnumbered—set upon by both the Ryser and Beshin Clans, as well as their former kin—they wouldn’t last much longer.

Under normal circumstances, Sotarr would have insisted on granting their adversaries a fair fight, allowing them a semblance of an honorable death. But with these… monsters, he found no urge to speak on their behalf.

His gaze drifted to the spectral form of the female oni. She was incredibly powerful, well into the next grade—but what stood out even more was her ability to create a domain, something his own pupils had yet to accomplish.

He couldn’t help but wonder who her master was. Hopefully, not an enemy of the Lyraxis. The two clans had grown quite close, and it would be an incredible waste if their much older factions' squabbles strained that alliance.

Given the power and potential she displayed, he suspected her master belonged to a formidable faction—likely one of even higher standing than the Lyraxis. If that were the case, there shouldn’t be any hostilities. The Lyraxis Ascendancy maintained good relations with most major factions, aside from a few irksome ones that clung to conflict as a means of growth, though he would still not classify those as outright hostile.

His real body turned to face his wife, who was still staring at him, arms crossed.

"If you keep looking at me that intently, I might get the wrong idea," he teased.

Mitania scoffed. "You wish."

"I truly do," Sotarr lamented, then shifted back to the matter at hand. "Though there’s something else that requires our attention."

He sent his wife the information he had on Sakiyama. As she scanned through it, curiosity sparked in her expression.

"We should make some discreet inquiries about her master and which faction they belong to," she mused. "It could be an opportunity to make new allies—or at the very least, prevent unnecessary hostilities."

Mitania let out a long sigh. "I know you’re just trying to wyrm your way out of this again," she said, fixing him with another pointed stare. "But you’re right—we should make an effort. She clearly ranked much higher in the Ascendancy tournament than Alistair and Riseth, and I suspect she disguised her identity with the help of a master."

"She’s a rather peculiar subspecies of phoenix—clearly evolved through some kind of trial reward. One of the phoenix-led clans would be a safe bet," Sotarr mused.

Mitania nodded. "Leave the inquiries to me. And be sure to reflect on your actions."

"I will," Sotarr promised, which earned him a kiss on the cheek.

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