The actions of the Dragna Empire rocked the world to the very core. Everyone was shocked by their merciless behavior.
Twenty-Six.
That’s the number of countries that were raided by Dragna forces. Although not all of these countries were destroyed, not one of them still possessed a state leader. What happened goes without saying….
In some cases, the capitals were wiped off the earth, while others had their entire country ravaged. Countless across the world had the same question in their heads.
“What had enraged the Dragna empire so much that they would do such a thing?”
The answer came out pretty quickly and it was what many had expected.
They were angered by the fact the Higher Beings had declared Tiamat’s Proxy an enemy that must be eliminated. This would naturally anger anyone close to Miko, but the opponent was all of the proxies in the world. Who would oppose them? Well, the world got their answer. The Dragna Empire had made their intentions clear.
“Whether it’s the whole world, it doesn’t matter. We’ll slaughter anyone that comes after our own.”
The Dragna empire wasn’t afraid to take on the world. That fact made many people break out in cold sweat.
“These people are crazy.”
“Do they really think they can take on everyone?”
“There’s a limit to how arrogant one can be!”
At first, people started mocking them, however, once their heads cool down they started asking themselves a serious question.
“…..But what says they can’t take on the world?”
The Demon Continent, a Continent dominated by demons and demon-related beings. A total opposite of the God Continent. On the continent, there existed a demon empire so powerful its name was equivalent to dread in one’s mind. This Empire was called the MorningStar Empire. The MorningStar Empire was by far the most powerful Demon Empire in history. This Empire consisted of dozens of countries; but the 9 largest, which were seen as the main countries, were called the Nine Hells. Each of these countries was powerful enough to rival a global powerhouse by itself much less together. Each of the Hells was based on the nine circles of hell and was ruled by different powerful beings who were under the same person.
The central country or the 9th Hell was called Diabolus and was where the founder of this empire resided in a large palace. In this palace, a servant bowed down in front of a throne. On this throne, a being sat in a relaxed manner. The physical features of this being couldn’t be seen. All one would see was a terrifying shadowy figure.
“I see. Thanks for the report. You can leave.”
The figure said.
“Yes, my lord.”
The servant disappeared in a dark fog. The figure was left alone sitting on his throne. The room was silent for a while, so much so that not even the sound of breathing could be heard.
And then-
“Hahaha!”
Laughter erupted from the shadowy figure. His laughter was similar to that of a child. One wouldn’t expect such a laugh to come from something like this.
(You seem to be in a good mood.)
A new voice echoed in the room. The figure didn’t seem surprised at all to hear the soothing voice. It was as if they had expected it.
“Well, I just found it funny how the world is freaking out now that the Dragna clan made their move. It’s like they never expected them to act this way. It’s funny how stupid people can be.”
(Well, the Dragna clan has been quite docile for a long time now, so many of them were simply ignorant of how the Dragna Clan really is. Others either forgot or thought they had lost their fangs….Such a foolish thought.)
“Foolish indeed.”
The shadowy figure laughed once again.
“How can a clan like that ever be underestimated? It was created by a man who once had the world in his hands after all.”
(Saying that he had the world in his hands is an exaggeration.)
“Ah, you didn’t like him huh? You guys clashed on a regular basis right?”
(Augustus and I only fought a few times. The one who I’m always clashing with was my stupid son who sided with him.)
The voice was getting upset.
“Ajax Diabolus huh? I heard he was a monster that was equal in strength to Augustus himself. He was a Demon God, right? I would want to meet him.”
(Forget about that ungrateful bastard. I hope he’s dead.)
“Seems like you guys had a really bad relationship.”
The shadowy figure laughed again.
“Anyway, my information networks confirmed that none of the leaders of the Dragna, Saevus, or Flameheart clans directly took part in the massacres. The ones who took part are the Sword Maiden Kirika, the Murder Princess Sasha, Alec of the Bloodflame, and although not confirmed, the Gremlin Aeon Dragna. I also heard the Demon Lion Krox was in charge of the operation.”
(Krox huh? He’s a pretty dangerous person who doesn’t show mercy toward his enemies. His mother was Ušumgallu which makes Tiamat his grandmother and Nero’s cousin. He inherited Ušumgallu’s demon lion characteristics, especially her ferocity. In the war, he was a real nuisance to deal with.)
“I heard he and Ušumgallu’s proxy, Raven are brothers. I heard Raven is a beast himself. Apparently, he was the one who suppressed Nero and Nova when they tried to slaughter their clan for trying to kill Sonia Dragna.”
The shadowy figure paused for a bit before saying.
“The more I think about it, I’m glad I didn’t accept the orders to attack the Dragna clan. It’s not that I would lose if I did, it’s just not worth the trouble. I mean, look at what they did with over half of their forces not even participating. Those idiots thought the Dragna clan showed their full strength, but that wasn’t even close.”
(That’s why I ignored what the council wanted. I’m sure that’s why others like the Asgard Empire didn’t move either. They know the risks. What the Dragna clan did was to show those who didn’t get it what they were getting themselves into. I’m positive after this that no one will target Tiamat’s Proxy for a while.)
The shadowy figure nodded. He then stood up.
“Say Lucifer…”
(What is it, Dante?)
“Do you really think Tiamat’s proxy will turn into the monster you all fear he’ll become?”
(Without a doubt. But I don’t mind if he becomes one. The world has been quite boring after all. I hope he can spice it up a bit.)
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Dante laughed.
“I hope so as well.”
Dante Diabolus more commonly known as Nine Hells Dante. The founder of the Morningstar Empire. Master of the group that was acknowledged as the best swordsmen in the world, the Seven Swords of Lucifer. Ishma’s relative, Lucifer’s Proxy, and easily the strongest Demon Proxy to ever live. A demon who the king of demons, Lucifer himself acknowledged as his equal. A man who was considered to be the demon mortal closest to the title of Supreme Being.
A being like this has started to become interested in Miko.
“It would be a shame if he dies before his time.”
His laughter resounded in his palace.
Meanwhile in Renacido, Dragna Empire.
“I can’t believe something like this happened without me knowing.”
Miko had a frown on his face while sitting in his home.
“And to think that you even took part in it without telling me, Oden.”
Oden was standing not too far away from him with a smile on his face.
“It’s not like it was my intention to keep you out of the loop, Don. It’s just they didn’t want you to know because they knew you would want to get involved.”
“Of course, I would get involved. This makes it looks like I’m nothing without my family. Like I’m a sheltered princess who can’t defend himself.”
“To be fair, you do look like a princess.”
“Kristen, It seems that you want me to show you some brotherly love.”
Miko glared at his little brother who didn’t seem to mind and continued to eat a cupped pudding he had in his hand.
“Anyway, Oden. I heard the country you attacked was plotting to attack here because of you guys?”
Oden nodded.
“That’s right. The president of that country wanted to enslave our race. Looks like he heard we’ve all obtained a soul and thought we would make the perfect soldiers. The one who informed me of this was Aeon. Apparently, his subordinates caught a group trying to sneak into the empire and interrogated them. He then offered a chance to get back at them.”
(Aeon again?)
Miko frowned.
“Looks like we really need our own information network.”
He mumbled.
“So did you bring back any of the citizens so that your people could devour them?”
“Of course. They’re already being distributed. My people are happy to get the chance to devour those who wanted to treat them as toys.”
Oden laughed.
“I don’t wrong them.”
“Big Bro.”
Tessa walked in eating a cupped pudding like Kristen.
“Aeon said that Ace, Hina, and Sora have finished their training.”
“Oh, that’s great.”
“But there seems to be some trouble concerning Hina. She’s apparently trying to kill Aeon.”
“……..”
Miko quietly held his head.
“Tell him I’m coming over. Just hold her off until then.”
Miko arrived at the royal palace and saw Hina frozen with a clock under her feet. Miko knew from her pose, which consisted of her swinging a giant flaming sword, that Aeon was forced to stop her time.
He looked and saw Ace and Sora looking at her while scratching their heads.
“Oh, Miko. What’s up?”
They saw Miko and greeted him with a fist bump.
“Looks like you three have gotten way stronger than you were in the last few months. It’s amazing if I say so myself.”
“Well, we didn’t really feel the urge to sleep or eat in there, so all of our time was literally spent on getting stronger.”
Sora replied. He gently hit his fist on Miko’s chest.
“But I must say, even after all the hellish training that we’ve been through it doesn’t feel like we’ve left you behind at all.”
“Well, I wasn’t slacking off either. Even so, I think you three can beat me if we fought currently.”
“Pretty much.”
Ace replied.
“Cocky bastard.”
The three of them laughed.
“It’s good that you’re in a good mood. But can you do something about her?”
Aeon said while pointing at Hina. There was a cut across his neck. It looks like Hina took him by surprise.
“Just let her go and it’ll be fine.”
Miko said.
“If you say so.”
Aeon snapped his fingers and the clock under Hina disappeared, causing her to come to life once again. She spotted Aeon and gripped her weapon tightly.
“Die, You bastard!”
She screamed and rushed towards him.
“Hina.”
Her body froze. She turned around and looked at Miko.
“Come on, let’s go home.”
She looked at him for a bit and then her sword disappeared and she returned to normal.
“Okay~!”
She happily skipped over to Miko and clung to him.
“Well, we’re going now. Thanks for everything you’ve done for them.”
Miko thanked Aeon and started to leave. That’s when Hina-
“Later, you piece of shit~. I’ll be sure to kill you one day~.”
She threatened Aeon with a happy tone before she left with Miko. She even waved at him. Aeon smiled and waved back as if he was seeing off a friend.
Miko then returned to Renacido with the trio.
“Apostles?”
“Yeah. I want to make you three my Apostles.”
They were in the base talking.
“If I remember correctly, Apostles are loyal followers of a Proxy who pledged their allegiance to the Proxy and their God Parent, in return for the Higher Being’s blessing which will grant them some of their power, right?”
“That’s the textbook definition, so yeah.”
Miko replied to Sora.
“Wait, So you mean to tell us we can become dragons?!”
Ace’s eyes started sparkling with excitement.
“No, you can’t turn into dragons. But you can gain some draconic abilities. That and Tia is also a goddess of sea, creation, and chaos, so there’s a lot of benefits to gaining her abilities.”
“I can’t turn into a dragon but it sounds like a nice deal. I’ll do it.”
“Me too.”
“There’s nothing to lose.”
The trio agreed as Miko expected. His eyes narrowed.
(Now I’ll use this as a test.)
“Only someone truly loyal to the Proxy can be made their Apostle. Meaning, you have to be loyal to me for it to work.”
“I don’t see the problem.”
None of the trio showed any signs of nervousness, even though their loyalty will be tested. This greatly pleased Miko.
“Tia!”
“There’s no need to shout. I was coming anyway.”
Tiamat walked into the hall and said.
“You guys wanna be Apostles huh? Then it’s simple. Swear your loyalty to Miko by declaring your own creed in front of me and while presenting him your hand.”
The trio looked at each other for a bit and nodded. They all approached him and kneeled in front of him.
The first to speak was Hina.
“I promise to forever stay by your side and never betray you for as long as I live. If I break this promise, I’m no longer the person you know. As such, I permit you to kill me with your own hands for I doubt that I will be happy.”
She spoke a creed that demonstrated absolute love and loyalty.
Ace was the next to speak.
“I promise to fight by your side for long as possible. For as long as I am your sword, I will continue to pave the way for you to walk. Until the day you sit on your throne or until we part ways.”
Ace’s creed declared a warrior’s loyalty towards his fellow warrior.
Sora was the last to speak.
“I promise to walk alongside you as your comrade and face all of your enemies, as I know you will help me face mine. I swear that even if we’re far apart I will consider you my friend and equal.”
Sora’s creed demonstrated loyalty as an equal.
The three creeds had different meanings and showed different emotions but they all demonstrated genuine loyalty.
As proof, the trio was showered by a holy light.
“You guys can stand now. Oh, and look at the back of your hands.”
Tia said. The trio stood up and looked at their hands and saw a print of a dragon emerging from the sea.
“That’s the Apostle’s Crest. As long as you have that, you’ll be able to tap into my powers.”
Tia explained.
“There are numbers and a crown behind your insignia?”
Just as Sora said, there was a number and crown behind the dragon and the sea.
“The crown shows Miko’s condition. It’s showing clearly now because he’s in full health. If it starts to fade then that means Miko’s health is deteriorating. The more transparent the crown, the worse his health. And if it disappears then that means he’s dead.”
“Wait, there’s something like that?”
Miko was surprised to hear what the crown represented.
“So basically, it’s Miko’s HP bar. What happens when it runs out?”
Ace asked.
“Game over. The crest will remain but you won’t be able to draw power from it.”
“So it just turns into an ordinary tattoo huh?”
Tia nodded.
“And the numbers?”
Sora asked.
“It’s your Apostle Rank.”
“You mean we’re ranked? By what?”
“Power. You’re ranked by how much of my power you’re able to draw out. In a way, you can say that it equals to your potential.”
Tia explained. The trio looked at the numbers they were each assigned.
Ace -1, Hina-2, and Sora-3.
“Hell Yeah!”
Ace celebrated.
“I can’t accept this.”
“Me neither.”
Hina and Sora started frowning. In response, Tia-
“Look again.”
They looked and saw a different set of numbers on their hands.
Hina-1, Sora-2, Ace-3.
“Nooooo!”
Ace screamed out in despair.
“The three of you are currently equally matched. Because of this, the ranks will continue to change until a distinctive gap is between you all. The slightest thing can change your ranks.”
She explained.
“Then they can compete for #1. Sounds fun to me.”
Miko laughed.
“If you were to make someone stronger than them your Apostle, the ranks will be solidified you know.”
Tia said. Miko opened his mouth to say something when he saw his mother walk in.
“Good news, Miko. We’ve handled all those targeting you so you’re now safe to roam freely.”
“That’s good news.”
Sasha smiled and then said-
“As such, your father and I have decided that you’ll be attending the academy again.”
“Huh? No way. Why would I go to the academy? Are you stupid?”
“?!”
The moment Miko said those words the room became quiet.
“…..Ah.”
When he saw everyone looking at him, Miko realized that he had made a huge error.
Insulting his mother.
“Miko.”
His body stiffened from her calling his name. He looked at her and saw no fury on her face which made him even more nervous.
“What did you just say?”
He regretted it. For the first time in a long time, Miko felt regret.
“It seems that becoming a king has gone to your head. To think you’d talk to your mother like that.”
Miko started to look for help, but he was shocked to see he alone was in the room. Everyone else had left. Even Tia and those who just pledged their loyalty to him.
(Is your loyalty this fragile?!)
He screamed in his head as his mother approached.
That day, Miko discovered that no matter how strong he gets, he’ll never be able to beat his mother. And he found it out the hard way.