The ExRump Western Warehouse.

It existed beyond the standard definitions of a warehouse, instead it was an entire complex hidden within the peaks of ten snow-capped mountains that clustered together.

The warehouse was concealed by a network of hidden entrances and tunnels snaking beneath the earth. These passageways interconnected the mountain entrance to another, forming a labyrinth so intricate that any outsider would find it nearly impossible to ever comprehend the complicated activities that went on within it.

The mountains themselves had been drilled into a vast network of caves and caverns. These chambers safely stored valuable resources meant for distribution throughout the Western Region.

But storage was only half of the facility's purpose, while the rest of the other half of the complex was dedicated to production.

Here, artisans and engineers crafted an array of goods, but their focus recently shifted to the creation of magical artifacts and products in high demand due to the recent dealings with the Fairies and the Tarxan Coalition. These included Magic Artifacts necessary for warfare.

Living quarters were existed throughout both the storage and production sections housed the dedicated workers to make sure that the warehouse was not only self-sustaining but more importantly, safe.

...Until now.

------------------------

"IT'S A DRAGOOOOOOONNNN!!!"

Screeches filled the chambers and cavern walls of the Warehouse as the very interior of the entire mountain rumbled deeply as a result of whatever was happening outside.

Mere moments ago, the workers had been busy with their activities. But the instant the alarms rang from the watchtowers, everyone ceased their activities.

And the moment they learned what it was, their eyes turned to the trembling walls with dread dawning in every face.

This was no time to work.

It was time to run.

"A WILD DRAGON IS HERE!!!"

As fear overtook them, screams and panicked voices filled the air as grown men and women cried like babies.

Some staggered, others sprinted as they rushed through the maze of chambers and passageways, desperate to find the nearest way out of their assigned sectors.

"RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!!!"

The shouts of desperation echoed in waves through the cavernous halls of the Warehouse, transforming into a full-blown stampede. Workers from all corners, those resting in their quarters and those on break, were jolted awake and jumped from their bed, joining the frantic crowds through the corridors.

There was only one thing on everyone's mind.

SURVIVAL!

BOOOOOM!

More volleys of what they presumed to be Dragon Breath pounded the mountainside, causing portions of the ceiling to collapse.

Thankfully, no one suffered fatal injuries, and they poured into the emergency escape tunnels and fled, abandoning their belongings and everything they had without a second thought.

No one dared venture outside. Instead, they would take the hidden tunnels and journey through them for at least a mile before exiting through a cave that was considerably far from the Warehouse.

At the very least, they would be able to preserve their lives that way.

With everyone in a frenzy, no one dared to even think of coming back or fighting back.

In the presence of a Dragon, there was nothing anyone could do and survival was all anyone could hope for.

------------------------

"Fuwaa..."

A long yawn escaped from an exceptionally handsome man as he rose from his bed, stretching leisurely.

He was being tapped by two young maidens who shared his bed and sat at both his sides.

"Hmm?" He raised an eyebrow, noticing the distraught look on their faces as they shifted uncomfortably beside him. Their naked bodies greeted his sight, but the tremors and distant sounds of screams pulled his attention further.

"What's going on?" he wondered, glancing around the grand lavish chamber, a room fit for a king, and noticed the bedposts, the chandelier, and even the walls seemed to vibrate subtly.

Shouts and screams echoed faintly from outside, and he could feel the walls quivering. At first, he had thought the noise was part of a dream. But now that he was awake, it seemed the commotion wouldn't die down, making it clear that something was terribly wrong.

"Could everyone just shut up?" He grumbled as he itched his head, causing his long black hair to fall down over his shoulders and obscure part of his face and sighed as he stroked his bald chin gently,

As his sharp black eyes fell on the maiden beside him, he slowly opened his lips and asked his question.

"Why did you wake me up from my sleep? Haven't I told you that I don't like being disturbed?" he said coldly with a cutting gaze.

"W-we're sorry, sir..." stammered the naked woman to his left, shrinking back. Her hands trembled as she pulled them back to her chest.

Her moist eyes were filled with fear, and her face was pale with utter terror.

She had reason to fear. The man before her was one of the 8 Heads of Destruction, and he had been assigned as a guard over this very place.

He enforced two strict personal rules when it came to his affairs.

One: No woman he called in was allowed to leave his presence unless he said so.

Two: No one was to wake him up when he was asleep.

Anyone who broke these two rules had to die.

SPLOOOSH!

Blood sprayed from the young lady's head as her head practically exploded.

"ARGHHHH!!!" The second woman screamed, hands flying to her face in horror as she watched her friend's headless body slump forward beside her.

Why? Why did her friend have to die such a brutal death?

It wasn't their fault that this pervert of a man summoned them to his room at his whim and forced to serve his pleasure as he had his fun with them through the night.

While that night was the best sex they ever had, not going to lie, they still remember they are with someone that could easily kill them with a mere thought.

And right now, they wouldn't even dare to disturb him, but they had no choice as they had only wanted to warn him of the danger.

"L-Lord Phobio... please, w-we had no..."

"...Too loud."

SPLOOOOSSH!

The second woman's head burst, and her scream died, leaving a silence that filled the room like a balm. Phobio gave a satisfied smile, savoring the quiet that now enveloped him.

The blood that splattered from both girls were not splattered around the room but rather suspended mid-air around him, like liquid red bubbles.

Not even a single drop had splashed on his body.

With a flick of his fingers, more blood lifted from their bodies until they became nothing but dried-up corpses.

Slowly, all the blood pooled together to form a single perfect large crimson sphere of blood.

"Haaa... finally some peace and quiet." He whispered, ignoring the sphere that was floating next to him. "So, what exactly happened? What's causing all this racket?" he wondered aloud.

His gaze flickered to the lifeless room, and he clicked his tongue in annoyance.

"Tch. Why did I kill them? Am I still dreaming, or...?"

Lord Phonio, as he was called, pushed himself off the bed with a lazy groan.

He was naked, so his lean, but well-toned muscular body was unashamedly exposed in all its majesty to the cool air. He reached for a white robe and wrapped it over his shoulders before sliding his feet into a pair of sandals.

As he did so, the sphere of blood hovered faithfully beside him as he strolled into the living area.

------------------------

Lord Phobio. The Crimson Angel.

That was his title within the Mercenary Gang, though many would argue his nature was far closer to that of a devil than an angel.

With a face beautifully crafted to perfection and a physique body honed like a warrior's, he was a vision of dangerous beauty, all thanks to his vampire lineage and bloodline as a descendant of a Vampire Lord, gifted him with both the allure and the lethal prowess of his kind.

Phobio, the vampire, arrived in the parlor, a glamorously furnished chamber that rivaled any noble's estate. No one would ever expect such a room like this to exist deep within the mountains.

"Let's see what all the fuss is about, shall we?" he murmured, making his way to a corner of the room where a mirror was hung on the wall. Its ornate frame was carved with crimson veins that glinted in the dim light.

For a moment, he paused to admire his flawless reflection, taking in his chiseled features and faultless physique. His dark eyes roved over his own striking appearance with appreciation, lingering on every detail of his appearance.

A smirk crossed his lips, his looks had earned many a woman's adulation.

He took another minute or two to observe his handsome face and his perfect body. He was extremely gorgeous, and even his 'tool' down there was too large to be true.

Many women had testified to this.

It was only after checking himself out a couple of times that Phobio reminded himself that he had come to the mirror for an important purpose.

...Besides checking out his body, of course.

"Show me what's going on outside," he commanded.

Obeying his words, the mirror stopped reflecting him, instead displaying the havoc that was ensuing within the warehouse.

'They're all fleeing, eh? Interesting...'

The workers were in full flight, flooded the halls and scattered like ants, screaming and fleeting in panic. There were a couple thousand that lived and worked in the ExRump Western Warehouse under his watch, and this was the count after he had executed a few hundred to serve as examples to the rest.

After taking control of this place, the rules were pretty simple.

The workers would work in exchange for their lives.

They weren't getting paid, at least, not in cash. Still, that didn't mean they could do shoddy work or desert their work posts.

Phobio's gaze sharpened as he watched the stampede of workers scrambling toward the emergency tunnels.

"Looks like it's time to remind them who's in charge," he muttered.

Placing a hand on the mirror, he spoke a quiet incantation.

"Activate the emergency trap."

The moment he said this, the mirror's surface glowed bright with a deep crimson light, and seconds later, the ensuing screams of chaos and death echoed his ears from beyond the walls.

When he took command of this place, he with the help of a colleague had fortified it with traps more than three times the total number of workers within the Warehouse.

He placed them on the ceiling of the path that led to the other end of the emergency exit, that is, the emergency tunnels.

Each arrow was poisoned, so civilian-level magic users who served as workers didn't stand a chance even if they were grazed by one.

The result was pure carnage.

"How dare they attempt to desert their workplace..." he whispered with a satisfied smile, watching as nearly every worker met a swift and brutal end from the poison arrows that seeped through flesh and bone.

All those thousands of lives extinguished in a matter of moments.

"I'll have to get new workers. Well, it shouldn't be a problem... right?"

Frankly speaking, Phobio didn't care in the slightest.

He would simply do as he pleased, just as he always had done. It was the very reason he'd joined the Mercenary Gang, to act without constraint. He knew his worth to them, and he understood that they'd tolerate much to keep him.

Who among them was a descendant of the infamous Vampire Lord? Who else wielded the rare ability to manipulate blood, a skill as rare as Spatial Magic or Gravity Manipulation?

The only reason he wasn't among the Deadly Three was that he simply didn't care for the title. Being recognized as the strongest would mean more responsibilities and more expectations. And right now, responsibility was the last thing Phobio wanted.

No, Phobio's desires were simple. All he cared for at present was drinking, sleeping, having fun with women, and jerking himself off while staring at his own reflection whenever he liked.

Perhaps one day, something more would capture his interest in the future, but for now, his life was perfectly simple.

"Ahh... I never did find out the source of all that commotion."

Glancing at the mirror again, he noted with mild amusement that the halls were littered with corpses of his former workforce, but he suspected a few workers could still be alive. After all, poison didn't always kill instantly.

'If any of them survive long enough, I'll just extract the information I need before I dispose of them.'

Phobio wasn't sure if they would be honest with him if he didn't offer an incentive, so he decided to lie and offer a false hope of salvation, enough incentive to make them talk. If they believed he might save them, they'd tell him everything he wanted to know.

'A good plan. Now then... let's go.'

------------------------

Phobio's soft white robe flowed around him with each step as his sandals squeaked faintly against the stone floor. He came to a stop once he reached the pool of blood that littered his sight.

The blood on the ground slowly began to gravitate towards him, and into the crimson sphere floating by his side.

As the last droplets drained into the sphere, all that remained were pale, shriveled husks and empty shells of the workers who had once filled the halls as they scattered like lifeless dolls across the clearing

"Ahh... they're all dead," Phobio murmured, slapping a hand to his face with a sigh in mock frustration. Disgust twisted his face as he scanned the lifeless bodies scattered around him. "Couldn't even one of you survive long enough for me to question? Useless weaklings."

They were nothing like him. No one was. He, Lord Phobio, was special, even from the very moment he was born.

"Guess I'll have to investigate myse-"

"How unexpected..."

The voice suddenly echoed within the massive clearing that Phobio stood in, forcing him to cease his words.

He could feel a prickling sensation behind him, and he quickly turned around to look in the direction of the only other living entity in the room.

Standing in the shadows was a figure in a black trench coat and face was hidden by a dark mask.

'Who...?!' Phobio's mind raced as his gaze locked onto the stranger.

"...To think there was still someone left." The masked individual said, taking a step forward.

"Who the hell are you?" Phobio demanded, his loud voice filled with annoyance.

'I didn't even notice his presence until he spoke. He's not normal...' Phobio narrowed his gaze instantly.

The masked fellow certainly wasn't as special as he was, but he was formidable.

He had to admit that much.

The masked man tilted his head, studying the scene. "Drained corpses? Did you kill all those people?" he asked, pointing at the dead bodies of the dead ExRump Corporation employees.

"Pretty much. But you still haven't answered my question." Phobio said impatiently. He was seconds away from striking this stranger down. The fact that he'd tolerated this insolence even once was, in his mind, uncharacteristically generous.

The intruder tilted his head slightly, as if considering his words, or feeling amused by it.

"Who am I? Well, that answer depends on who's asking. But, for the purposes of this... encounter, let's just say I am a Dragon."

At that, the stranger's eyes glowed with an eerie purple light, and an indescribable aura filled the air, one that made Phobio's heart beat faster with a mix of surprise and intrigue.

Watching the Dragon introduce itself, the vampire couldn't help but leak out a wry grin and chuckled.

"Kekeke... a Dragon, huh?" he sneered, his lips slowly curling into a twisted grin that didn't suit his otherwise handsome face, contorting it into an expression of venomous amusement.

Phobio's expression contorted further, giving him a serpentine look at that point. "So what? So what if you're a Dragon?" He taunted as he let out a mocking laugh, letting his posture relax with every movement oozing with arrogance.

"Hm? Aren't you supposed to be frightened or something?" the Dragon asked calmly, almost amused.

"Afraid? Me? Why would I be?" Phobio snickered. Fear had been a stranger to him, always had been.

As a True Vampire and one of the descendants of the infamous Vampire King, his bloodline bestowed him with immense strength and power unmatched by others since childhood. He had always been the one instilling fear, not the other way around.

"I've killed Dragons before. If you came here looking for trouble, I'll just add you to the list..." His words were laced with the cold confidence of someone who never questioned his own power.

Though he wore no enchanted gear beyond his simple white robe and sandals, Phobio didn't need them.

'The blood I've gathered from thousands of people should be more than enough,' he thought. The Mana particles trapped within the blood was his energy source, the more blood he amassed, he was collating a lot of Mana in the process.

Not only would the energy add impact to his Spells, but it wouldn't consume too much energy on his own power.

He could keep going on and on.

"I see..." The Dragon studied him with mild interest, barely seeming to acknowledge the threat. "I'm curious, though... What kind of Dragon did you defeat?" he asked with an amused smile beneath his mask.

He seemed to be scoffing at Phobio, as if disbelieving his words.

The mocking tone grated at Phobio as he scoffed. "How would I know or care what kind? Do you think I waste my time remembering every weak creature I've crushed? A Dragon is a Dragon,"

Phobio wasn't lying. He didn't care enough to recollect the kinds of enemies he had faced, especially if they lost. The defeated had no value in his eyes

"Ah, then you must've fought a weak Dragon," The Dragon replied mockingly, "I'm not like them. I'm a strong one, you know?"

Phobio's sneer vanished and his brow twitched as veins surfaced along his neck and forehead. No one had ever insulted him like this and he had never felt such blatant disrespect.

"What the hell are you trying to say?" he growled, and the sphere of blood at his side already began bubbling with energy.

What would happen next depends on the next word given by the humanoid Dragon.

"Haha! Sorry! It seems your brain can't comprehend what I'm telling you, so why don't I break it down for you," The Dragon chuckled, extending a hand toward him, "I'm telling you, it'll be okay for me. After all..." He gestured dismissively, a taunt in his posture. "You're weak."

"..."

Phobio's wide eyes took in the Dragon's humanoid form as he heard those words.

His eyes that were littered in darkness suddenly began to ignite a flash of crimson anger.

"Did you just... call me weak...?"

His irises turned a blazing red as Mana surged around him, and his long black hair began to rise in the air and bleached to silver under the incredibly dense layer of Mana radiating from his body.

The amount of energy generated caused distortion of the very air, but Phobio cared for nothing like that.

Now that his True Vampire bloodline awakened once more, Phobio simply wanted to show the ignorant Dragon in front of him who was boss and prove who held the true power.

'Those two fools must have known it was a Dragon... which is why they dared to wake me,' Phobio mused with a sardonic grin.

They couldn't leave his side since he had instructed them not to, so they'd resorted to the least severe option to summon him and for good reason.

'It made sense,' he thought, 'They knew I'd be able to beat the creature. That's why they fervently stayed by my side for protection rather than running off on their own.' The thought stirred a flicker of satisfaction in Phobio, though his smile was hidden.

'If only they'd explained faster... it's a shame they had to die,' he mused, as his gaze shifted back to the masked Dragon, his smirk returning. 'Well, they brought it upon themselves. Just like this fool here.'

The masked Dragon watched him, standing motionless and seemingly unfazed by the violent pulses of mana now surging around Phobio, as if his growing power meant nothing.

'You're not fooling me,' Phobio growled inwardly, and in a heartbeat, he activated his three other Skills in quick succession.

[Great Protection Cloak]. [Superior Self]. [True Detection]. [Bloodlust].

Each of these Skills had their benefits, and by using them at once, alongside his [Blood Magic], he was pretty much invincible, even without his usual arsenal.

'No need for my usual gear. I can compensate for that weakness with this amount of blood I've amassed here which is more than enough. It's not most times I get to have something like this...'

Though taken from expendable vermin and lesser beings, even the collective blood of theirs still carried mana had its uses as it could be wielded for lethal effect.

"Oi, Dragon!" Phobio's enraged eyes glowed a different shade of red compared to the Dragon. "Get ready to die!"

The Dragon only began to respond, "Oka-"

WHOOOSH!

Like a ghost, Phobio instantly appeared behind the Dragon in a blur with a blade already formed in his grasp.

Enhanced by [Superior Self], which heightened his physical abilities to the very limits, he'd formed a wickedly razor-sharp blade from blood that took little effort and positioned it to slashed the bare back of his enemy, intending to see the Dragon's blood stain his crimson blade before the enemy even realized what was happening.

As he swung, [True Detection] confirmed this was the perfect angle for a strike to his opponent's exposed back. And with [Bloodlust] now flooding the air, his opponent would be paralyzed and helpless to respond. Weaker minds would even see illusions of their own death and sapped any remaining will to resist before they experienced actual death.

Phobio's smirk deepened as he tightened his grip and combining all of these Skills in order to deal a decisive blow he'd put an end to this fool.

He'd save his questions for after, now was the time for action.

WHOOOOSH!

Phobio's strike was smooth and deadly, a brutal vertical slash slicing through the air in a perfect line that aimed to cleave his opponent in two. He expected it to cleave through his opponent from head to toe, shattering his skull and rending every organ he had inside.

Splitting him open would be like a hot knife running through butter!

The blade ascended.

Then-

CLANG!

A deafening sound filled the room as Phobio's blood-forged blade collided with the Dragon's head, not with the sickening crunch Phobio expected, but with the jarring impact of metal striking an immovable object, stopping dead in the blade's tracks.

It was as if the blade had hit an impenetrable wall.

Phobio took a few steps back in recoil as his brain tried to process the whole thing.

'H-huh...? What just happ-?!'

Before he could complete his line of thoughts, the blood blade that he now held in his trembling hand shattered before his very eyes like fragile glass and splintered into pieces.

'What?!'

The glass-like components of the blade dissolved back into blood and soon flowed toward the orb that hovered beside Phobio.

As a True Vampire, blood would always reassemble and return to him as long as he lived, a convenient privilege of his Racial Class. But at this moment, that meant little to him.

'How did he... break my blade?'

This wasn't ordinary blood. It was dense, infused with mana, and forged from the combined essence of hundreds of people.

'No visible armor... no Skill being used. Is he really this durable?'

Dragons were famed to be the strongest in this world, so it was a given that they would have tough skins.

That was precisely why Phobio went for a dense weapon specifically to pierce even the toughest materials, yet it had done nothing.

'To think even that wasn't enough to do any damage!'

Phobio's confidence began to crack, his assured facade giving way to doubt.

"Now it's my turn," came the Dragon's calm voice.

It scared him to his bones.

WHOOM!

The 'thing' closed the distance between them in a flash and lashed his arm out flying towards Phobio with terrifying speed.

"Euk!" Phobio barely had time to cover his face and step back in a desperate retreat, instinctively shielding himself as his reflex took over. In that moment, he knew he looked pitiful like a cornered animal, cowering against the approaching fist as it would have bashed his head at that very moment.

But-

BOOOM!

But just before impact, a dense blood-forged shield materialized between him and the Dragon's fist, absorbing the brunt of the strike and saving him at the last moment that would have surely blown off his head.

"Guh!"

Even so, the sheer force sent shockwaves through the barrier, which was enough to cause Phobio to stagger backward with his eyes wide in horror as he watched cracks spread across his shield, until it, too, splintered and dissolved back into blood.

"I'm not done." The Dragon's voice echoed past the crumbling blood shield as he rushed towards Phobio once more.

'Damn it! I have to evade!' The young vampire ducked to his side, barely avoiding the impact of the Dragon's strike that caused the very ground where he'd stood to shatter apart.

The Dragon moved with unimaginable speed and closed in at every turn, but Phobio used his agility to avoid the slew of attacks he was receiving with his nimble body that barely kept him ahead of each deadly blow. His long silver hair whipped around him as he avoided death-causing hits.

But even a True Vampire's luck has its limits.

WHOOSH!

Just as Phobio moved to a new position, the Dragon appeared precisely where Phobio fled, almost as if he had already known he would retreat there.

What happened there was no one's surprise.

BOOOM!

The punch carried so much weight that pain shot through every fiber of Phobio's body as his body was sent crashing against the nearest wall behind him, creating a crater upon impact

"Puack!" Blood spewed from his lips as he helplessly remained hanging in the wall with the crimson stain spreading across his chest.

"Do you understand now... why I called you weak?"

As the Dragon's voice echoed through the haze of Phobio's pain and in his ears, he could feel something heat up within him.

It was rising from his depths.

"You..." Phobio's eyes widened with rage. "You dare hit me...?!"

As his voice thundered through the vast expanse, the blood he had amassed began to rush toward him, drawn from every corner of the room and swirled in response to his anger.

"I AM THE DESCENDANT OF A VAMPIRE LORD! MERE LIZARDS LIKE YOU SHALL SUBMIT!!" he roared and decided to summon his ultimate trump card.

"[Crimson Valkyrie]!!"

The instant the sphere of blood touched Phobio, the crimson liquid exploded into a tidal wave that transformed into a powerful river of blood.

The river coalesced to form something massive, with Phobio in the center as the very ceiling trembled and the ground cracked as the thing that was forming had too much mass and power to be contained within the area.

"Looks like this place is too cramped. Let's take this outside," the Dragon suggested calmly.

Before Phobio could protest or say a single word, a pair of immense dragon wings burst forth from the creature's back, and he shot upward, tearing through the ceiling as debris flew in all directions.

"WAIT! COME BACK HERE!" Phobio roared in frustration, his bloodshot eyes burning with fury as he watched his prey escape. He would not rest until he had ended this beast's life.

His massive crimson construct was nearing completion, and with a rush of blood, he launched himself upward like a rocket to meet his prey.

And in no time at all, he broke out through the sheltered cavern of the Warehouse mountains.

That was when he saw the true reason his subordinates had been fleeing all this time.

'W-what is all this...?'

Even the darkness could not cover what he was witnessing.

Several layers of destruction were finely displayed all around the mountains, with some even tearing into the cliffs themselves.

Considerable damage had been done to the nearby areas as they lay in shambles, marked by craters and charred earth, and from the chaos he was witnessing, Phobio was convinced the Dragon he was facing was no ordinary foe.

Ordinary vampires would have disintegrated to ash under sunlight, but a True Vampire would only suffer a brief stun and a slight weakening of physical and magical abilities.

Even so, it wouldn't make much of a difference in battle.

'Would I have been able to replicate this...?' he wondered to himself, grappling with the sheer scale of the destruction. But he shook off the doubt. 'No! I can't let that rattle me!'

Just because the Dragon possessed superior firepower didn't mean he couldn't win. Every beast had a weakness, after all. Phobio just had to find it.

"Did you like my redecoration?" The Dragon's voice broke through his thoughts, materializing in front of Phobio as if it had always been there. Its mask remained in place, and its dark cloak danced in the cold breeze.

"YOU!" Phobio snarled.

At first, Phobio wanted to kill the Dragon simply because it was a threat to his group. But now, this has become personal.

In his current form where he felt an exhilarating power coursing through him, it was indeed possible, knowing it was more than enough, he had no intention of holding back any longer.

This battle would end here.

With a roar, Phobio willed his blood construct to its full glory, a towering warrior forged from blood.

The creature surrounding him had immense, blood-red wings and armor as deep as scarlet, covering every inch of its body.

It somehow resembled a woman who could pass as a battle-hardened warrior at any time, with long hair made from hardened blood, and an irresistible face both hauntingly beautiful and terrifying, dyed entirely in shades of red.

It stood at about fifteen meters, a colossal entity by all means.

In each hand, the blood construct wielded blades that gleamed with lethal intent, appearing pristine and battle-ready at the same time.

This was Phobio's ultimate technique, [Crimson Valkyrie]!

The very reason why he was granted the nickname "The Crimson Angel" was precisely earned because of this very form.

The Valkyrie was no living entity, but a golem-like construct that obeyed Phobio's every command without question.

The thing looked at the target just as Phobio did, peering through the thick armor that enveloped him with a viewing screen similar to the mirror in his room, allowing him to perfectly observe what was going on without exposing himself.

He would be simply going to be content to watch his foe reduced to nothing more than a smear of flesh and paste before his eyes. All from the comfort of his crimson fortress.

Nothing could be more satisfying.

"I see. So we're going for an epic final boss CGI battle, huh?" the Dragon called out with an odd amusement lacing his words.

Phobio frowned, confused by the term "CGI". Whatever that meant, he didn't care. All he wanted was this creature obliterated.

"Very well," the Dragon continued, his voice eerily calm. "I suppose it's time I show you my true form..."

Phobio's body tensed with a slight tremor running through him, but he stood his ground.

'Relax, Phobio. So what if it transforms? It's not like you haven't faced a Dragon before.'

With so much blood at his disposal, he was currently at an advantage and there was no possibility of failure.

Then...

VWUUUUUMMM!

The air thickened as the Dragon's true form took shape, and Phobio's wasn't so sure anymore.

The being was massive, perhaps even larger than the Crimson Valkyrie, and its monstrous shape sent waves of terror flowing through Phobio's veins as it stood over in terrifying glory.

It had three twisted horns that crowned its head, and its scaly body radiated an ominous power.

Its purple eyes glowed like portals to some dark abyss, and misty breath poured from its dragon-like jaws.

Of course, it had enormous wings that beat the air as it hovered, and its tail danced as if suspended in water in a serpentine rhythm.



As both colossal entities stared each other down, Phobio didn't know when he took a huge gulp of saliva and felt a chill settle over him as his body trembled, just slightly, but enough that he could feel it.

'No... No!'

He refused to accept this reality.

'That thing isn't stronger than me! It isn't stronger than my trump card!'

He pushed back his fear, locking his gaze on the monstrosity before him.

'I'll destroy it right here and now!'

And so, with determination, he issued a single command to his blood-soaked construct.

"Crimson Valkyrie... KILL THAT DRAGON!"

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(A/n: Sorry for the info dumps, but I just had to let you know how strong this character is. Who do you think would win between him and Polyphemus?

And I hope you notice, that Dragon there is the same guy at the nuclear submarine at the end of the chapter)