The moment of reckoning had not really happened long ago.

And while to others it was the moment Chancellor Malrik burned to death as a hydra, for some, it actually happened just moments before that.

In the case of beings who couldn’t anymore be classified by species and could only be grouped by allegiance, their moment came during that minuscule window after the surprisingly successful attack on the golden dragonling.

Yes, all in that one moment.

Then again, calling it "their moment" was a stretch, considering it hadn’t really been a collective achievement at all. But rather, the result of circumstances that would’ve driven even the faithful mad.

Because of all people, it happened to the recently disposed of creation who had just been dismissed for being useless.

Left to die as the only surviving patchwork between humans and magical beings—who regretfully proved that stitching together existing humans with body parts of magical beings wouldn’t exactly result in survival and the ability to use mana properly—he’d been thrown away for being a waste of time.

Too tiny to even be used as a meat shield and too flimsy for grunt work. Even the other experiments couldn’t find any interest in playing with or tormenting him.

If he had perished at the facility, no one would’ve even noticed.

As such, he should’ve died the moment he was discarded, just like the other experiments before him.

Usually killed for looking too ghastly or devoured by unsuspecting beasts after being neutralized, a nameless creation like him—one that shouldn’t even be able to move—should’ve met the same fate.

But just as he’d been discarded for being all too weak and human, those unwanted things were ironically the same traits that allowed him to survive.

The lack of presence.

The humanoid appearance that allowed him to blend in as a crazed beggar.

The inability to use mana that unbeknownst to them, made the neutralization useless to him.

And most importantly, the all too human brain that managed to suppress the need to hunt just to appear more humanlike.

All those things allowed him to make it under the right conditions. Surviving long enough for an encounter that would undoubtedly change his life.

Because suddenly, he—who had long sought solace in the darkness of the sewers—felt everything begin to shake.

__

The ground trembled violently.

Again.

And again.

The force came in rhythmic bursts that shook the sewers from end to end. From his hiding spot, the surviving experiment could hear people running overhead. Their muffled screams echoed through the tunnels as they shouted about dragons.

The creature stilled.

From the very beginning, all of them had been told what to think.

Conditioned into zeroing in on anything "dragon." But more importantly, they’d all been reminded about the relationship between the dragons’ downfall and their inevitable success.

However, the conditioning hadn’t been words alone. Normally, tremors like this would’ve driven the other experiments into a frenzy. They would’ve rushed toward the surface without hesitation, throwing themselves at dragons regardless of whether they could actually win.

But he was different.

Too human and too aware of his lack of ability.

So instead of joining the chaos, he simply hid.

Curled within the darkness of a sewage drain, he peered through the grate above and watched the battle unfolding outside.

The red dragon.

The robed figure standing before it.

The two other attackers.

All he could do was watch them from the sidelines.

But who would’ve thought hiding would turn out to be the better choice?

The creature pressed his hands over his ears, trying to block out the roars reverberating through the tunnels.

And that was when fate practically dropped something into his lap.

A runaway. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

The very same one who’d vanished moments after a serrated blade tore through the leg of the figure defending against the red dragon.

Hidden deep within the shadows of the sewer, the abomination remained motionless.

Silent.

Practically nonexistent.

__

Meanwhile—

Tavos slithered through the tunnels in his serpentine form, scales scraping against wet stone as he moved with frantic urgency. A bloodied serrated dagger was clenched tightly between his jaws. And even after being treated with preservation magic, the metallic scent of fresh dragon blood still lingered in his wake.

And maybe—just maybe—if not for this forced pretense of loyalty and obedience, he would’ve taken it for himself. At the very least, dying by his own hands would’ve been far better than continuing to live under Malrik.

But thoughts like that could barely even exist, fleeting and fragile. Because even the luxury of entertaining such desires was beyond someone as unfortunate as him.

The serpent’s movements were rushed.

Desperate.

He twisted through the maze-like tunnels without hesitation, clearly heading somewhere predetermined.

But unbeknownst to the escaping attendant, something else lingered nearby. Hidden within the dark was a being whose very existence defied natural law, its hollow eyes silently tracking the serpent’s every movement.

However, in all this, the frazzled Tavos never looked back.

Never slowed.

Apparently, the blade mattered too much to his master’s plans.

Even now, despite the chaos above, despite the roars still echoing faintly through the underground tunnels, he guarded it carefully as he pushed forward.

But just as temporary rest was in sight for him—

A loud, wet crack echoed through the sewer.

"!!!"

And unfortunately for Tavos, he hadn’t been left unaffected by this as everything went dark.

The serpent’s body slammed heavily against the damp wall.

Then from the shadows, the abomination emerged while gripping the broken wooden leg of a chair with both hands. The crude weapon trembled slightly from the force of the desperate strike he’d just delivered.

For a moment, he only stared.

Then he hurried forward.

His fingers closed around the dagger first.

Then around the limp serpent.

Without wasting another second, he dragged the body into the darkness and ran through the winding sewer tunnels as fast as his unsteady legs could carry him.

The corpse scraped loudly behind him.

But in his panic, the escaping abomination never realized the serpent had already stopped breathing.

It was only as he tried to claw his way out of this darkness, that he realized his bargaining chip had long since passed away.

__

"It’s dead."

Dead.

Those words alone shattered every hopeful dream the experiment had managed to cling to.

Shaking and short of pleading for his death, the creature trembled violently.

He’d made a mistake.

He was too careless as he imagined his life to change with his spoils.

But instead of bringing back something useful, he had dragged in someone already dead. And now, after finally earning a chance and facing a figure of authority he’d only ever heard of, he was certain he’d ruined everything.

He lowered himself even further against the floor until he was practically hunched over completely.

Suffocating.

Waiting.

After insisting he had returned with something important, he was dragged before the one they often referred to as their Queen. A terrifying existence. And now, his worthless life hung by a thread.

But the judgment he expected never came.

Because what accompanied the dead serpent proved valuable enough to outweigh the mistake.

A woman stood before him with long black hair cascading down her back and a carved bone mask hiding most of her features. At first, she merely stared at the serpent and the serrated blade beside it, looking mildly curious.

She looked harmless like that, but the abomination was certain that everyone in the room felt like keeling over in distress.

Then without breaking a sweat, she broke the preservation magic wrapped around the weapon.

The seal shattered instantly.

And just like that, the scent of dragon blood wafted through the room.

The originally bored woman froze, her expression seemingly changing in that very moment.

"This—"

"You actually have this?"

Her voice sounded almost breathless.

Then, with disturbing eagerness, she lifted the blade and inhaled deeply against it like someone reunited with a scent they had desperately longed for.

The creature shook harder.

His forehead pressed tightly against the floor as he stammered that it was the blade he’d seen plunged into the leg of a man who released blue flames.

"Is that so...?" she said merrily, her voice sounding like she was suddenly indulging a house pet.

Then the woman laughed.

Softly at first.

Then louder.

The sound echoed through the room in a way that made everyone else flinch as realization had struck her.

She had finally found it.

Her eyes widened with unrestrained excitement as she slowly turned toward the massive empty throne looming behind her.

"My love," she whispered.

Then louder—

"My love! We finally have it!"

The creature blinked in confusion before slowly lifting his head.

He... succeeded?

For the first time since arriving, some of the tension left his body. Maybe he had finally proven useful. Maybe this time he’d actually done something right.

"Good work." The woman turned toward him, offering warm praise.

The creature immediately lowered his head again, but this time in gratitude and relief.

"T-thank you, Your Majesty," he stammered, relief bleeding into his voice.

The woman tilted her head slightly, smiling despite the constraints of the mask.

"And because you’ve finally done something right," she said sweetly, "I’ll allow you to choose your reward."

At those words, the creature’s eyes widened.

Hope flickered briefly.

But they vanished just as quickly as they’d appeared when he heard her next words—

"So," the woman continued pleasantly, "how exactly would you like to die?"

"!"

Silence filled the room.

The creature froze.

Then his entire body began trembling all over again.

"!!!"

Panic overtook him almost immediately. He screeched loudly enough that the robed figures surrounding the room visibly recoiled from the sound.

But that was it. From that short moment, only shrieking could be heard until it suddenly stopped.

"There. Now just as you wanted, everyone will remember you..."

It became difficult to breathe in that room.

Meanwhile, the woman merely blinked at what had just occurred before her gaze slowly swept across everyone present.

"Huh," she said casually. "I’ve graciously rewarded him appropriately, and none of you are clapping?"

The room fell deathly still.

"Shouldn’t you all be happy?" she continued. "When he returns, at least he wouldn’t have to hear how every single one of you failed while that one succeeded."

The robed figures lowered their heads even further, practically kissing the ground that might as well have been their final resting place.

Then, as if realizing their precarious situation, one of them slowly began clapping.

The applause cracked through the silence like thunder, sharp and abrupt enough to make everyone flinch. Yet, as expected, the others hurried to join in, palms colliding in increasingly frantic rhythm until the chamber was drowned in overwhelming applause.

And at the center of it all, the woman simply smiled and said,

"Prepare to meet your King."