Chapter 21
Meanwhile…
"YOU FAILED! HOW COULD YOU HAVE FAILED!"
Adonis was getting an earful from his elders, they were lecturing him on his lack of results as of late. No matter the effort, it appears it's not enough for them. He is the strongest of the divine users, they have even told him so. And yet, despite it, Adonis has yet to obtain the baby dragon. Worst still, their numbers are starting to dwindle down. Over sixty men were lost in this case, their divine energy drained when they chained themselves to the dragon. When they became trapped in a curse domain, they couldn't buffer or shield themselves from server strikes, leading to their deaths.
Yet, that wasn't the strangest thing.
The plan B put in place by the elders also failed. They sent some of their best recon divine users to obtain the dragon as everything settled down.
None have returned.
"They were the best, they could get in and out of any situation, even from a clone of Sukuna!" one protested. "How could they have fallen?"
No one had the answer, and yet here they were with the end results. "We have to try harder, we need to rid ourselves of this clone first!" Adonis protested. "We get rid of Suiryu, the dragon will be easier to obtain."
They room agreed, but how do you get rid of nearly a carbon copy of the King of curses?
"Could, I be of some assistance?"
Suddenly, everyone snapped to their feet, their summons called upon, but even then, the summons refused to move or engage in battle with this man. By the looks on their faces, whoever this person was… was too strong to contend with!
"Who… who are you?" Adonis demanded.
He wore a dark robe and hid his face, but one could see his mouth as he bore a devious and fanged grin. "I come on behalf of my master." He said in an oddly gentle tone. "For we have something in common do we not? The clone of Sukuna… needs to be destroyed."
Their guards lowered slightly. "Why would you help us? Who are you for that matter?" Adonis questioned.
He chuckled a little. "Oh please, he's an eye sore isn't he?" He walked a little closer to Adonis, all the while kept that big grin on his face. "It would be better for everyone if he was… done away with." He said in chuckled once more.
"It's no simple task…" Kazue began to say.
"Well… not for you perhaps. But for me, it's really simple. But… I feel rather generous today, and am willing to offer my assistance in the matter."
The room fell into whispers. "Why would you be willing to help us? What do you gain from this?"
He paused. "What do I gain?" he asked inquisitively. "Everything!"
Adonis froze. "What do you mean… everything?"
"Well… the one thing I do ask of you is this… I want the necklace around the neck of the clone… that is MINE!" he protested.
They got defensive, the eldest of the divine users Kazue stood and protested. "How dare you lay claim to a DIVINE artifact!" she scolded. "That is a dragon's fang!"
"I KNOW WHAT IT IS YOU BITCH!" he roared back. His voice alone made the walls quake and tremble, instantly she went white in the face. Adonis swallowed his fear to it all as this sorcerer stated. "I know… what it is… but when this is all said and done, you will have a fresh… dragon." He said in a slow and yet seething tone. "I want the necklace, no matter what. It belongs to ME!"
They exchanged glances among themselves. Adonis himself was getting startled to it all, this sorcerer is obsessed with having such an artifact, but why? They have been informed that the dragon within the demon vessel is gone, therefore the necklace is useless to the likes of him… and themselves for that matter.
"What use is it to you?" Adonis asked gently. "I don't see the problem in allowing him to obtain it, we have heard the clone of Sukuna state that the dragon is gone within the demon vessel, therefore the necklace has no use to us now does it? We will have to extract a fang from the new dragon to establish the same connection from the last one to the new one. Perhaps we can repeat the same results if we accidently kill this one."
"It won't work,"
Curious now, Adonis pressed him farther. "Oh? Why is that?"
"The dragon that was within the demon vessel… was one of the ancients. A descendent of the ancients, the process cannot be mimicked or duplicated unless it is part of such a precious bloodline."
The room was silent.
They stared at this sorcerer with utter amazement. "How do you know such a thing?" Hideki asked.
He smirked once more. "I have a lot of time on my hands for study. So… do we have an agreement then? I assist you. I obtain the necklace. You can keep the baby dragon, after all, the many… many uses you will have for it are just… too good for your to pass up isn't it?"
The offer does sound too good to be true, however, the fact remains, they have to take out Sukuna's clone. "Very well then, we accept. But you must help us take out the clone of Sukuna!" demanded Kazue.
He snickered once more, this all sounds like child's play to him if Adonis were to guess. "Agreed." He announced.
The room suddenly became heavy! The divine users froze as they found a black marking on their arms. Even Adonis had one. "Is this, a curse binding vow?!" he demanded.
"I always make certain I get what I want, and no one tries to swindle me… now… to take out the clone, you simply need… this." Out of nowhere, he took out an elegant bottle and left it on a table near by. "I strongly suggest none of you are the ones to give him such a gift, within is a poison, it's only harmful to the first glass it falls into. Ensure he drink the first pour!" he insisted. "After that, you merely need to wait, and the rest… will take care of itself."
The room was confused, uncertain if what he said was true, however with a binding vow in place, it must be so. "How do we…" Adonis was about to ask, but the sorcerer was already gone.
The room fell into whispers once more. "Who… or what was that?" whispered Mio. She was the palest out of all of the elders in the room.
Adonis didn't know, but there was something odd about that sorcerer, more so than any other he has seen. "How could he possess such knowledge of a dragon, knowledge that not even we knew?" he asked aloud.
"It matters not!" protested Kazuo. "We have the means, now, we need the opportunity."
"Give me time, I know one will occur soon enough" Adonis insisted.
"This better work, but we will no longer allow any more legions to die for this cause. This is all on your shoulders now, Leo." Warned Kazue.
