A shadow moved across the battlefield.
It was like a flash, like a streak of lightning.
Drahon noticed it and dismissed it as perhaps another of the demon dragon monsters.
It was probably a Boss monster.
But then, footsteps echoed across the cracked, blood-stained ground. It was slow, steady, and oddly calm.
The air around the land seemed to change with each step the shadowy figure took, a subtle shift until...
Tendrils of smoke drifted across the place.
It was like an explosion of very thick fog.
He stood tall and imposing, his presence dark like he was a demon lord.
He was in armor that seemed to be made from a dark, matte metal that absorbed light rather than reflected it. It had a faint luminescence with a shadowy energy. The plates molded perfectly to his lean, muscular frame, light enough for swift movement but strong enough to turn aside most blows.
His chestplate bore a stylized emblem of a dragon’s claw gripping a crescent moon, and Drahon wondered if it hinted at the dark power he possessed. Uneven pauldrons rose slightly over his shoulders, giving him a broader, more intimidating silhouette.
From beneath the armor, a long, tattered cloak of midnight black flowed behind him, the edges flickering like smoke in a breeze. It moved like the wind was making it dance, trailing dim wisps of shadow.
His face was like that of a shadow warrior, framed by raven-black hair that fell just past his jawline. His eyes were cold and piercing, holding the calm confidence of someone who was to set the bones of the demon dragon monsters apart.
Power! — Great power!
Drahon, weak and tired, gazed at Devon with a smile, and Ayvira did the same.
Behind Devon, something slowly moved.
Black mist tore from his back, coiling up into the air like smoke. The space around him twisted faintly; like it was trying to submerge the force around Devon.
Ayvira turned weakly, looking at it in shock.
"What...?" she whispered.
Devon stopped moving.
A faint mark on his palm shimmered. He looked at it, as if just noticing it for the first time.
From behind him, a massive form rose, four-legged, long-winged, with uneven scales that radiated a dark red light. It was a demon dragon, emerging from the mist, hidden in the cracks between moments. Its claws dug into the ground as its mouth opened in a low, gravelly snarl.
Then it lunged at Devon.
But not to kill — instead, to merge.
The beast enveloped Devon completely, spiraling around his body like liquid armor. Its wings folded into his back, its horns sprouted from his head, and a glow of dark energy sparked outward like a heartbeat. His body became wrapped in scaled plating, rough and dark, glistening from beneath with a molten hue.
His eyes, once calm, now burned red.
The transformation took barely three seconds.
When the mist cleared, Devon stood in silence, fully fused with the demon dragon.
’The fuck? Devon could fuse with his dragon already?’
He had always known he was OP. And he just realized he was a half-legendary dragon when the man in this dream-like state had said it.
The ground cracked under his feet with each step forward. The air around him suppressing all morsel a bit.
The monsters, already in motion before, now halted.
Even they knew what this meant.
A few hissed, unsure whether to flee or fight.
Devon looked up. He wasn’t angry, neither was he calm...
He just looked... focused.
"Ok, let’s get this over with," he said quietly.
Then his claws lit up with a dark energy, streaks of crimson fire dancing along their tips.
Drahon managed to sit, ready to see what Devon was about to do.
The first monster made a sound, something between a growl and a screech, and lunged.
Devon didn’t move. He only watched, expecting the monsters to come at him.
The beast came fast, its claws swiping through the air toward his head. And just when it seemed like Devon would take the hit...
He vanished. Like he had just warped himself into the air.
The monster staggered forward, confused... then its upper body split in half. It fell, twitching.
Devon reappeared behind it, his sharp claws dripping dark blood. He hadn’t even turned around. He simply kept walking.
Another monster roared and leapt in from the side. This one didn’t even get close. Devon raised a single hand and snapped his fingers.
A short, sharp crack.
The ground beneath the monster exploded, a burst of shadow energy blasting upward like a mine going off. The creature flew into the air, its body ragdolling as its limbs twisted in directions they shouldn’t.
Before it even hit the ground, Devon was already above it. Mid-air, his claw slammed down, driving the monster’s head straight into the dirt.
The ground split open a bit.
Ayvira, still barely on her feet, stared in disbelief.
Drahon didn’t even blink. He was so surprised and all that went in his mind was how?
Two more monsters came from both sides, smaller ones, but they were quite fast. Devon moved again, darting between them, their arms slicing outward in clean arcs.
The monsters’ heads rolled and their bodies dropped.
Every step he took was precise and measured. The way he moved through them— it was...
dismantling! Like these monsters were furniture to be disassembled.
One of the bigger monsters tried to flank him, stomping forward and opening its mouth wide. Flames poured out in a wide spray, but Devon raised his arm, and the flames simply bent around him, like wind curving around a wall.
Drahon opened his mouth wide at that, speechless.
His scaled plating didn’t even darken from the heat.
He stepped into the stream of fire, raised his claws, and hurled a bolt of dark energy straight through the monster’s mouth.
It exploded from the back of its skull.
The fire stopped instantly and the monster dropped, thudding into the dirt, its mouth still open in mid-roar.
Another leapt at his back.
Devon turned and grabbed it mid-air by the throat, and...
He drove it into the ground.
Then, he didn’t even give the almost-dying monster time to recover. He lifted his foot and drove it down into the creature’s chest.
Ayvira slowly rose to her feet, brushing the dirt from her arms, in awe.
Drahon was in awe too, and so he just kept watching, because Devon didn’t stop.
Monster after monster fell until...
It was over, all monsters laying on the ground, brutally dismantled.
[CONGRATULATIONS, PLAYERS: You have cleared the Encroaching Field. All hostile threats eliminated.]