Max breathed in the air of lightning and thunder as it crashed against the earth around him. Each step he took deeper into the Thunder Dragon lands made his hair stand on end. This place was terrifying in the most beautiful way, brutal, violent, and alive, as if the whole region had been born inside a storm.

It did not take them long to sweep through most of the villages and smaller towns, gathering an enormous number of people beneath his iron grip. Wherever Max went, fear spread like a curse. It passed from mouth to mouth, from home to home, from one trembling crowd to another, until he finally reached the citadel bathed in lightning.

At least fifty thousand reserve troops the Thunder Empire still had gathered before the citadel, standing with weapons raised as they prepared to protect their home from the invaders. They could not understand how it had happened. Their emperor had left to destroy a human threat, and now that same human stood before their walls, leading all four clans with numbers that far exceeded anything they could resist.

"People of the Thunder Dragon Clan, I have come to liberate you from the evil Emperor Thor. Please let me in peacefully and follow me back to my kingdom. I promise to treat you well!"

Max put on a show as he stood at the very front, his voice carrying across the battlefield like the words of a savior who had arrived with chains hidden behind his back. Yet he did not look happy, nor did he carry the same fire in his eyes that he had before.

More than ever, he looked almost tired.

"We don’t need your devilish liberation. Our people live in peace and harmony. Your presence in these lands is what creates the need for liberation, to save our people from your grip!"

An old general stepped forth from the army, his furious eyes fixed on Max.

"Is that so?" Max stepped forward, not caring about the army of weaklings before him.

For a moment, the soldiers tightened their grips on their weapons, ready to defend their home with everything they had.

Max only raised his hand.

"Goodnight, then." He said softly and snapped his fingers.

A massive wave of darkness spread from him, rolling across the battlefield in silence. It surrounded the army before they could react, seeped into their bodies, and stole their mana with terrifying ease.

The old general’s face changed first. His knees weakened, his weapon slipped from his hand, and then he collapsed. Behind him, thousands followed, falling one after another as exhaustion swallowed their bodies.

Shivers ran through the people behind him. The Wind Dragon warriors who had dared to stand in his way before all remembered how terrifying that magic was. To them, he was almost like a god who could strip their strength away with a single thought.

Only the most powerful fighters could resist his attack, and even those who had tried to block the invading energy from spreading into their mana cores had barely managed to hold on. The weaker ones had simply collapsed before they could even understand what was happening.

Max sighed heavily. Secretly, he had hoped this place would have a monster like an old Thunder Dragon Emperor hidden somewhere inside, but so far, he had seen nothing promising. He walked closer to the citadel bathed in lightning, leaving his people to clean up after him.

He pushed the large black gate with his magic, forcing it to open. The black walls pulsed with electricity, too dangerous to touch with bare skin unless he wanted to end up burned and electrocuted before even stepping inside.

With an ancient creak, the tall doors opened to reveal a corridor filled with blue pulses of light, like a living heart dancing across the dark walls. Max walked through it slowly, examining everything with sharp eyes. Each step he took made the ground respond beneath him, sending faint ripples of lightning through the floor.

"Magnificent..." Max could not help but exclaim.

This stronghold was like a magic castle. He had only seen something like this in video games, and now he was walking through it as the invader who had come to claim everything inside. After a long walk forward, he found himself standing before a tall throne, white as marble, with blue veins pulsing into it from all directions.

A woman sat on the throne.

She greeted Max with a soft, warm smile. Her green eyes scanned his body, and her expression looked almost gentle, as if she had been waiting for an old friend rather than an enemy.

"I have been waiting for you, Max," she said warmly, making him pause in confusion.

She had short black hair that rested neatly around her face, and her fingers tapped gently against the throne before she stood up.

Max gulped.

Her massive breasts, bigger than anything he had ever witnessed before, bounced beneath her light blue dress, barely contained by the thin fabric hugging her body. His eyes almost betrayed him right away, but honestly, how could they not? The woman looked like she had been made by some divine craftsman who cared too much about temptation and not enough about mercy.

"That’s how a king has to be welcomed. I appreciate that," Max replied, his gaze shamelessly enjoying the sight before slowly climbing back to her face. "But I don’t seem to know big sister’s name." 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

He could clearly see she was much older than him. Her appearance was that of a woman in her forties, with a body far more developed than any twenty-year-old beauty could ever hope to achieve, yet her face still carried a youthful softness that made the whole thing even more dangerous. And yet, something about her smile was too calm for a woman whose empire had just fallen.

"Charming, just like I’ve heard."

She walked toward him, then knelt before him, leaving Max stunned.

"I am Freya, the Empress of the Thunder Dragon Empire, and I would like to serve you from now on instead of my useless husband..."