Dragon King: Throne of Demons and Gods-Chapter 106: The Sage and the Snakes

The chamber was silent.

One Lloyd knelt beside Darwin’s body, his head bowed, whispering a prayer.

The other Lloyd stood at the door, immobile.

The young royal guard trembled.

"You... you were supposed to be in the conference hall... I escorted you there... so why... why are you here? Why are you praying here, Sir Lloyd..."

His eyes darted between the two, his breath catching in his throat.

"A demon," he whispered. "This is a demon... I’ve been... he is..."

He staggered back, panicking, eyes flicking toward Darwin’s body.

"So that means... That means... I’m going to die?"

The Lloyd beside the body sighed.

"You could just leave. He isn’t here for you. He’s here for me."

The guard hesitated. His legs trembled, but he took a step back. Then another.

The other Lloyd at the door remained still.

The guard, hands raised apologetically, began to inch sideways.

"I-I apologize... I’ll just... I’ll go now, alright?"

Just as he reached the threshold, the demon spoke.

"Wait."

The guard froze. The first Lloyd raised his voice.

"He means nothing to you. Let him go."

The demon tilted his head.

"He means nothing now," he replied. "But the moment he steps outside, he’ll bring undesirables. As a hero... shouldn’t you want to avoid damage to your friend’s body?"

Lloyd stood up.

"Then I’ll follow you. Anywhere you want. Just leave this place intact. I won’t risk damage to Darwin’s body."

There was a moment of silence.

The demon stared at him, his lips twitched in an annoyed grimace.

"I gave you a privilege already, Sage. I let you pray. Now you ask for more. Isn’t that greedy?"

Lloyd nodded.

"Then I thank you for your understanding. I’ll repay it. By going with you."

The demon’s lips curled into a crooked smile.

"That’s the problem with kindness, Sage. People think it’s a transaction. A bargain. A free basket of fruit. You offer a slice of bread, they demand your home. You let them speak, they recite their whole life. Kindness is a cost. And favors?"

He laughed lightly, folding his arms behind his back.

"Favors are debt. Your prayer? One. This pawn’s life? Two. Preservation of this room? Three. That’s three debts."

His eyes gleamed.

"If you want them... you’ll have to pay."

Lloyd turned fully to face him, calm and unimpressed.

"That face is trying too hard to look like mine."

He narrowed his eyes.

"What do you want?"

The demon raised a finger.

"Recognition. That’s all. Say it aloud. That you, the great Sage, owe me, a demon, three debts."

Lloyd was quiet for a long time. Then, slowly, he shook his head.

"You must be very low in your ranks. Only the desperate seek recognition so loudly. You remind me of a child throwing a tantrum. But if it makes you more cooperative..."

He exhaled.

"Yes. I acknowledge it. I owe you three debts."

The demon’s posture eased. He exhaled, long and slow, and turned toward the door, hands behind his back.

"Humans and their arrogance," he muttered. "A sin without power is nothing but error."

He turned to the door.

"Finish your prayer, Sage. Then we go."

His eyes flicked to the guard.

"As for you... stay here until we’re gone. You do that, and you’ll stay alive."

The guard nodded shakily, not daring to move.

Lloyd turned again to Darwin’s coffin. He closed his eyes and resumed his prayer.

Meanwhile, in the deepest part of a forest, silence reigned.

No animal, no wind, just an unnatural silence.

Then, a bolt of lightning shot sideways, tearing through the trees in a sharp, electric flash.

Bel stood at the center of the blast. His body crackled with raw energy, arcs of lightning dancing over his body, his hair spiked and wild.

The ground around him smoked.

The lightning faded, and the air stilled once more.

He took a breath, then glanced at the numbers floating beside him.

[HP: 30,000 / 30,000]

[MP: 50,243 / 55,000]

[Stamina: 33,621 / 34,800]

"That much mana?" he muttered. "This mode... it’s my strongest. But the drain... I need to fix it."

He opened his menu and hovered over the Synthesis tab. It let him combine skills or traits into new forms. It could be powerful, but risky.

"Could work... But what if I make it worse? What if I end up with a big attack that eat all my mana?"

He shook his head and closed the menu with a sigh.

"No. I need more skills first to experiment that. And I know where to find them."

He reached into his inventory and pulled out the black key.

[Item: Obsidian Key]

Rarity: ???

[Effect]: Unlocks the [Trial Dungeon of Ascension].

One attempt only.

Bel clenched it.

"I guess this is it."

He flexed his arms, his muscles bulging. He’d trained long enough. Category C dungeons were easy now, so it was time.

He closed his eyes and focused.

He imagined a door, like always, and turned the key.

[You have used the Obsidian Key]

[Synchronizing classified item parameters... Hidden content recognized]

[Unlocking the Gate of Ascension... Hidden Quest Registered: [Trial Dungeon of Ascension] Type: ??? | Rank: Unknown | Objectives: ... ]

From nothing, a single spark of red lightning twisted into the sky.

Then another.

Darkness spiraled around the bolts, swirling together until it a vortex formed.

But it wasn’t like the others.

It was black, so black it would have been invisible if it wasn’t for the red lightning and the noise.

Bel took a step back.

"...Well, that’s new."

The rift pulsed, different than anything he had ever felt.

[Trial Gate of Ascension: Initializing... Countdown: 13 seconds until teleportation]

Bel raised an eyebrow.

"A countdown?"

He looked at the swirling black rift, then smiled wider.

"I was right... this thing is sentient."

He cracked his neck, then clenched his left wrist. Sparks danced across his fingers.

"You won’t need to force me, I’m burning with impatience."

He stepped forward.

At the same moment, in the royal castle’s chamber, Lloyd stood slowly beside Darwin’s coffin.

He turned back toward the demon.

"Sorry for the wait. We can go."

The demon’s eyes narrowed.

"That’s more than a minute, Sacred. You’ve overruled our accord." freēwēbηovel.c૦m

Lloyd gave a tired smile.

"You’re right. And I know you hate apologies... so consider me even more indebted."

The demon paused, then let out a low laugh, folding his arms.

"You... sly bastard."

He turned toward the door.

"Let’s go."

As they passed by the guard, Lloyd stopped.

He looked him in the eyes.

"Tell them not to follow. If I don’t come back by tomorrow... it means I’m dead."

The guard trembled, nodding.

Then, with a slow stretch, the demon let out a pair of angelic wings.

Feathers pure and gleaming, too perfect to be on the back of a demon.

He beat them once, and soared into the night. Lloyd watched him go, with a surprised expression, then slowly smiled.

"You snake."

With a flick of his staff, red energy swirled around his body, and then, he flew.

This 𝓬ontent is taken from fre𝒆webnove(l).𝐜𝐨𝗺