The Longinus Smasher tore through the battlefield like a divine punishment from god.
A gigantic, concentrated beam of crimson draconic energy erupted from Arthur's chest, engulfing King Tepes in a cataclysmic explosion of fire, light, and raw destruction.
The impact cracked the very foundation of the world beneath them, obliterating all form, color, and sound in its path.
The Dimension Lost's purple dome couldn't withstand the blast; it shattered completely, and the purple mist of the barrier scattered as it began dissolving into the air.
The shockwave traveled like a gale across the sky.
Even from miles away, a radiant crimson pillar surged upward like a second sun, piercing the night's veil and turning it blood red. Birds scattered from the trees. The wind stopped. The world held its breath.
On the outskirts of the battlefield, the blast reached Dulio, Georg, Connla, and the unconscious Valerie, like a tidal wave of light.
The heat scorched the air, and crimson red energy crackled violently as dust and wind howled around them.
"Shit! Brace yourselves!"
Georg shouted, extending another purple mist barrier just in time to shield them from the sheer intensity.
Connla held Valerie tight as he turned around to use himself as a human shield, his boots dragging across the rocky surface as he struggled to hold position.
Dulio turned his attention toward the blast and, with his Zenith Tempest, created a massive wall made of earth around the purple mist.
"Remind me never to get on that kid's bad side!"
Inside the original mist dome, Cao Cao's eyes widened at the incoming red light.
"Oh, shit!"
He cursed, immediately spreading his ten glowing angelic wings.
A golden barrier expanded around him, and the unconscious Marius was just as a wave of destruction surged through them like a raging wildfire.
His barrier strained and hissed, debris pelting off it in bursts of ash and stone.
From the faraway hills near the dhampir village, Heracles and Regulus paused mid-battle.
The screams of vampires had gone silent, replaced by the unnatural rumble of power crackling in the air.
The night sky slowly turned into bright red.
"What the hell…?"
Heracles whispered, staring at the towering beam of energy in the distance.
"What the fuck is going on out there?"
Regulus narrowed his golden eyes.
"That's Ddraig's power. And not just any form. That's the true nature of the Red Dragon of Domination."
Farther still, in the distant Carmilla Manor, within the lavish dining hall lit by candles and moonlight, Queen Carmilla's fork froze mid-air.
Her gaze slowly shifted toward the tall window that framed the night.
Beyond it, impossibly far but unmistakably bright, was the glowing crimson beacon.
Lavinia's expression grew pale as she rose from her chair, her blond hair gently swaying from the draconic pressure still faintly reaching them.
"Arthur…"
She whispered, her voice cracking with sudden concern for her beloved.
Jeanne stood up next to her, one hand on the hilt of her sword.
"That light… this presence… It's him, isn't it?"
Carmilla rose next, her crimson eyes narrowing.
"This presence… I've felt it before. But I did not expect it to belong to your leader."
She said softly.
Back at the heart of the explosion, the world finally began to settle.
The battlefield had been reduced to molten glass and scorched rock.
Where once towers and trees stood, now only cinders remained, the air was thick with smoke and drifting ash, and silence stretched long and deep.
In the center of a vast, glowing crater, Arthur stood alone.
Steam hissed from the glowing cracks along his scales, his wings twitched with residual sparks of red light, and each breath he took sent tiny wisps of energy spiraling from his lips.
The once-mighty, roaring monster now stood like a flickering candle in the wind.
His green eyes, glowing dimly behind the cracked helmet, gazed up at the broken sky.
He took one step forward on the scorched earth.
Then, with a guttural, primal release of pain and triumph, Arthur threw his head back and roared at the heavens.
*ROOOOOAAAAAR!!!*
The sound of the Heavenly Dragon echoed across the scorched land, haunting, powerful, and tired.
And then, his body began to dissolve into drifting red particles.
His Juggernaut Drive had reached its limit.
The armor slowly peeled away, the green jewels dimmed one by one, and his tail and wings cracked, fragmented, and vanished into the wind.
His body, once towering and monstrous, shrank back into its human form, battered, bruised, and barely conscious.
Arthur slowly fell on his back, then landed onto the scorched earth.
His breaths were ragged, his eyes were half-lidded, and his hair clung to his forehead, slick with sweat and ash.
The toll on his body was unlike anything he'd felt before.
"Ow… my… ow… ow..."
He muttered weakly, barely able to move his lips.
Ddraig's voice returned to his mind, concerned.
(Arthur… are you alright?)
Arthur groaned.
(Does it look like I'm alright… My brain feels like I got severe migraines and then got hit by a church bell…)
Dddraig couldn't help but chuckle at the absurd comparison.
(Your body took too much. You pushed beyond safe limits. You're lucky your heart's still beating after that stunt you pulled.)
(Yeah… yay me…)
He tried to move, keyword: 'tried', but his limbs wouldn't respond.
Everything below his neck felt like he was paralyzed.
His vision began to waver, and dots and shadows danced at the edge of his sight.
He exhaled slowly.
(…Maybe just a short nap… Just for a bit… I earned it… after all...)
As the sky above slowly returned to darkness, and the scorched wind passed over his motionless body, Arthur's vision finally faded into black.
DxD
The moment Arthur's consciousness stirred again, he found himself not in the cratered battlefield nor a medical bed, but in an endless, white void.
He blinked.
"Okay... This is super weird."
Arthur muttered, voice echoing slightly.
He looked down at himself, his body looked normal, clothes intact, no wounds, just him, standing in what might as well be a blank canvas of the universe.
Arthur rubbed the back of his head and sighed.
"...Did I die? Am I in Limbo? Heaven? Hell? Purgatory? Or worse... A Truman Show studio?"
He started walking forward, not that any direction seemed different from another.
With every step, the void remained unchanged, and the silence was louder than ever before.
"Hello? Anyone in here? Preferably someone who's a Double-D?"
His voice stretched far but met nothing in return.
After what felt like hours, though time here didn't seem real, he finally stopped and scratched his head in growing annoyance.
"Okay, it is painfully obvious that nobody is in here. Where the hell even is this place?"
Suddenly, a voice spoke behind him, familiar and low.
"You're inside the Boosted Gear, partner."
Arthur yelped and spun around, practically jumping out of his skin.
"JESUS FUCKING CHRIST!"
Before him stood a great red dragon with green reptilian eyes and golden spikes around its body.
It was the Red Dragon of Domination himself: Ddraig.
Arthur pointed a finger at him, eyes wide.
"What the hell, Ddraig?! You don't sneak up on people like that!"
Ddraig let out a deep, amused rumble.
"Hahaha… Forgive me. Your reaction was just too priceless."
Arthur rolled his eyes and crossed his arms.
"Oh, hardy har har. Glad my terrified face is funny to you."
"You'll get used to it. You've got time."
Ddraig said with a smirk in his voice.
Arthur glanced around.
"Yeah, speaking of that, where have you been? I've been walking around, calling for someone, or anyone for the matter, for what felt like hours."
Ddraig chuckled again.
"Arthur… you've only been here for five minutes."
"...What?"
Arthur's voice went flat as he stared directly into the dragon's eyes.
"Five minutes."
Ddraig repeated, voice calm but amused.
Arthur blinked twice again, clearly done with all this otherworldly nonsense.
"So time's a lie, and you're a troll. Got it."
Ddraig's tone shifted his gaze forward.
"Besides, you're not alone in here."
Arthur blinked.
"What?"
Ddraig lifted one massive claw and gestured behind him.
"Look."
Arthur turned and paused.
Hundreds, maybe almost a thousand, of cloaked figures stood silently in the distance, all facing him in silence.
They didn't move, but he could feel their presence like a tidal wave pressing into his skin.
Arthur's brow furrowed.
"...Uhh, hey Ddraig? You wanna explain why there's a robed cult meeting in front of me?"
Ddraig's tone was solemn now.
"When a host of the Boosted Gear dies, a fragment of their consciousness remains behind… sealed within the Sacred Gear itself. Normally, they lie dormant until the Juggernaut Drive is triggered, but it looks like right now is an exception."
Arthur's eyes widened slightly.
"So… these guys are…?"
"Previous hosts. Red Dragon Emperors. Men and women who carried the burden before you."
Arthur stepped forward a few paces, eyes scanning the cloaked crowd.
"Huh… Okay then. Uh... Greetings. I'm Arthur. Nice to meet you, I guess?"
He raised a hand awkwardly.
No one answered.
But more of them began to appear, emerging from out of nowhere.
They surrounded him, circling slowly, yet there was no threat in their movement, just curiosity, reverence, resentment, and confusion.
Then came the whispers.
"This one is different…"
"Such an odd existence…"
"Will he fall like the rest of us…?"
"Such immense talent…"
"Too bright… too unstable…"
"Poor child..."
Arthur shifted uncomfortably.
"Yeah, hey, uh, while you guys are whispering about... whatever it is you're whispering about, could anyone maybe give me some help getting out of here? Preferably through an elevator that has a smoking, sexy attendant managing it?"
Suddenly, a confident, masculine voice echoed from the crowd.
"What's the rush, kid? You just got here."
Another voice joined in, this time soft and feminine.
"It's truly a pleasure to meet a new face again, especially one so talented."
The crowd parted like a wave, making way for two figures walking through.
The first was a tall, muscular man with long, unkept green hair and piercing pink eyes.
He wore a sharp, black noble uniform, trimmed with red, with a cape fluttering behind him.
Beside him walked a woman of stunning beauty, long, wavy blonde hair cascading over her shoulders, light green eyes warm and observant.
She wore a flowing lavender gown that shimmered subtly, and atop her head rested a silver and purple tiara-like adornment.
"Oh shit…"
Arthur muttered, his eyes locked onto the blond beauty approaching him.
The green-haired man grinned, waving a hand.
"How's it been, you overgrown lizard? It's been quite a long time."
The woman bowed politely.
"It's good to see you again, Ddraig."
Ddraig's golden eyes lit up with joy.
"Belzard. Elsha. How long has it been since we've talked?"
Arthur stared at the two figures, his brain trying to process the weight of their names.
The aura they gave off was undeniable.
"You're Belzard... And you're Elsha. The two strongest Red Dragon Emperors in history…"
Arthur said slowly, eyes widening.
Belzard flashed him a confident grin and put a fist to his chest.
"In the flesh. Well, whatever's left of it."
Elsha smiled gently.
"Welcome, Arthur Pendragon. We've been expecting you."
Belzard nodded toward him, his expression shifting from playful to serious.
"We've got a lot to talk about, kid."
Elsha stepped beside Belzard, her voice soft but resolute.
"And not much time."
The cloaked figures around them stood in complete silence now, watching and waiting.
DxD
Hello readers!
Here's an extra chapter, so gimme more Power Stones.
Thank you, everyone, and see you later!