Chapter 13: Hunters
OMG guys, I'M BACK!!! YOU DON'T KNOW HOW GOOD IT FEELS TO BE WRITING AGAIN I MISSED THIS STORY SOOO MUCH!
Ok so first things first, let me answer some quick questions that many of you might be thinking AND questions that have been PM'd to me by a few people who've I've kept in contact with.
Q. Where have I been and why the fuck have you been an asshole and not updating, or at least announced an hiatus?
A. I've decided to take an opportunity I was presented with and go to college last year. I figured it would be better to start now than wait a couple years later. It wasn't a coincidence that I left this story off when college semesters were starting.
I've also had to change jobs to pay for well, life, as you all know how the world works. Combined with family, this pretty much sucked all the time I've had to pursue this story, so much time in fact that I forgot to put up a hiatus, and I'm genuinely sorry for that I know a lot of you loved this story enough to continue reviewing, following, and favorite, the story and I'm genuinely appreciate every single one.
Q. Since you are posting now, what is the near future for this story?
A. So this is a big update guys, I never did fully stop writing this, I've taken singular days to try to write for the past year when I had the time. Including this chapter, you guys are getting around 35,000-40,000 words or more of story coming out in a couple days-2 weeks time span. Next chapter will come later on today or tomorrow!!
Q. What arc are we in and how will the story progress/unfold?
A. This chapter and the next chapter will focus on expanding the DXD universe, with the elements of Solo Leveling. I've mentioned this before, but both stories leave a lot to the imagination outside their immediate plots. So I'm using real world elements to at least come up with a cohesive world. Then the 3rd chapter will move to the rating game. These 2 chapters will move fast so the pacing will seem fast because I'm starting to move the story along to DXD proper. Likewise there will be chapters that introduce characters and chapters that will focus solely on character development, as I admit that I'm lacking in that.
Q. After such a long break will the quality of writing be the same as before?
A. Nope, at least not now. Even I acknowledge as a writer that I'm extremely rusty and it will take me a while to get to my prime, but I promise that I will try to find my flow of writing as fast as possible as the story progress. Sorry for any typos, grammer, cuts, etc. Helpful criticism and advice is always wanted and accepted.
Q. Since you are busy, will you find the time to set up community/financial systems like Discord and/or ?
A. Yes, but not something big yet, especially with Discord or . I'm not at a point in life where I can reliably use both apps as they were attended to be used. I don't want to set up a discord and never be on it, likewise I don't want to set up a and not have anything worth buying or interaction with the consumer, that just doesn't sit right in my mind.
HOWEVER, I've talked to some people over the last year (BIG shout out to those, you know who you are!!) And I decided that cashapp will be the best way to start out, and depending on this goes, I can elevate to other heights and interact with you guys more. I made it last year when it was first suggested, I also know that life is hard for everyone, so donate as much as you want, and if you don't want to that's fine. Hell donate a dollar and that would make me happy for real!
$dragonmonarch77
Yeah yeah really inspiring I know, also largest donations (if any) will happily be mentioned in the next chapter as it comes out!
ALSO PM'S AND REVIEWS ARE OPEN! FEEL FREE TO CONTACT ME FOR ANY REASON!
And as always I hope you can at least enjoy my story, it feels good to be back!
To say Heaven was in scrambles is an understatement. Angels were buzzing around frantically, like a swarm of bees whose nest was disturbed, relaying information and preparing various expeditions to earth.
What was the cause of all this ruckus, you might ask? Well, this calamity is caused by none other than the Boosted Gear!
See, Heaven has this Sacred Gear system that identities and monitors sacred gears. Say, for example, a human has been blessed with a twice critical. Well, then the system will notify angels that a twice critical user has been born. They can also tell if a user has sadly perished, or even more tragically, entered a forbidden form like the dreaded Juggernaut drive. They can also tell if certain gears passed on to different users.
Considering this, you can understand the turmoil that this current user of the Boosted Gear has caused Heaven.
It started off pretty standard. On April 16th, a user was born with the Boosted Gear. Noteworthy since sacred gears can decide the movement of various factions. That was simple enough, something to keep a look-out for. However, years later, the system reported that the user was so close to death that the system actually glitched and thought that the user WAS dead. Ok, it doesn't happen too often, but it was an easy fix. Just restart and recalibrate it to resolve any issues. The user appeared again as alive seconds later.
This is where things went out the window. After some time passed, the system reported that during multiple instances, the Boosted Gear disappeared from the record. Completely, meaning that the gear has disappeared from Earth and its realms. The gear always returned in a couple of hours later alongside its user like the last incident. Now, this was a considerable cause for concern, but wasn't necessarily a major crisis that needed Heaven's direct intervention.
Now what really drew the line and what turned the situation into a crisis was one day it was reported that there were THREE BOOSTED GEAR users existing simultaneously. This is physically impossible. Gears can be fabricated. However, they would NEVER show up on the system. Likewise, gears can be split into multiple gears, but the system would label them as "fragments", as what happened to the Black Dragon Vritra. What this meant was that the Boosted Gear wasn't replicated, nor was it somehow fragmented, but was an original Boosted Gear, sealed Heavenly Dragon and all, with that being impossible since Ddraig was a singular being.
But then just like that, two of the three would disappear like they were never there at all.
Then suddenly a fourth one appeared and never disappeared, soon there were 5, then 6. But the sixth one was the one that made this crisis into a potential tragedy. The system reported that this new user of this Boosted Gear was in a constant state of Juggernaut Drive. It was felt on earth for a second before its presence disappeared.
Then later on, three more Boosted Gears were added. One regular user and two in the Juggernaut Drive state. Also, the original user cracked the seal on the gear, but the system couldn't identify it as Juggernaut Drive, only displaying an error message.
If the situation was unable to get any worse around the same time this strange anomalous Boosted Gear user started causing this predicament, multiple holy swords suddenly disappeared, both from Heaven and Earth. However, one was indeed proven stolen and Heaven already sent two humans to retrieve it.
Regardless, there was no way. The disappearances of the holy swords, except maybe the Excalibur, had to be somehow linked to this Boosted Gear user.
They needed to find The Red Dragon Emperor immediately.
Ddraig hummed enthusiastically as he watched the event happening from the gear.
{It's time to hunt}
Normally, that would be an order to Issei and Issei alone. However, things were different this time. Standing near the back wall separating the two staircases in the lobby, he was accompanied by Raynare, Kalawarna, Mittelt, and Asia. Along the back wall was a familiar crack.
{If one allies themselves with the monarch, they must be fully capable of taking part of the hunt!}
The innocent voice of Asia asked a question."Uh, Entropy-san, can I call you that? What do you mean by hunt?"
{Yes. And it's precisely what it sounds like, you all will participate in hunting soldiers who oppose the existence of tranquility. To make it simplistic for you all to understand, they are monsters like in games that need to be exterminated}
Space and time ripped apart as a gate formed, scaring the girls from the ominous black hole shooting out light blue sparks.
{This is what we call a gate, it connects this world to another and on the other side of this gate is where you will hunt. Understand?}
Everyone nodded.
{Now because you guys are mere beginners, I exclusively picked out the gates in which you will show me your performance. Listen closely, AND PAY ATTENTION!}, Entropy roared, startling Mittelt who was looking at her new phone.
{This is what I call an instant dungeon. Its purpose is to allow you to quickly gain experience conveniently, but at the cost of complexity and time}
Everyone watched the blue take an even lighter tone. {Since this is your first time entering a dungeon, the superficial nature will cater to your inexperience. It's simplistic, really, with only one expansive room with a boss at the end. I will explain more along the way as you all subjugate the monstrosities. With that being said, let us commence forth}
With a nod, everyone formed a line and entered the gate.
They all arrived in a dark room. It was seemingly featureless, with the only thing sticking out was the decrypted look and a set of stairs that led down into the darkness that was so thick they couldn't see through it. Soon a notification popped up in front of them.
/You Have Entered An Instant Dungeon\
{This is the system as you already know, consider it to be a guide. You should already be familiar with it as it gave you the tour of our dwelling}
Everyone peeked down the ominous staircase that had a faint smoke trail coming from it.
{This is where it all begins}
"Hey-hey, this looks a little creepy don't you think?" Mittelt mumbled.
Issei snorted and shook his head. This reminded him of his first dungeon way back. Lighting his hand on fire, he threw a fireball down the stairs to see how far it went. A couple of seconds went by before it hit what looked like the ground.
Nodding at this, he started to walk down with everyone else following him closely.
Reaching the bottom of the stairs, Issei heard electricity crackle as lights cut on, dimly illuminating the surroundings to reveal that they were in an abandoned subway station.
Not like they needed it, all of them could see fine in this amount of darkness anyway.
Issei took a long whiff of the air, after a couple of seconds a smile formed on his face. 'The strong stench…must be a beast type monster.' Issei chuckled at this, 'Just like old times.'
After walking for a couple of minutes they encountered their first enemy as a quadruped sprinted around the corner and lept into the air seeking to take a bite out of a victim. However, the attempt was futile when a light spear drilled right through it.
Raynare laughed as she prepared another light spear, her two fallen comrades doing the same. "Is this the threat Entropy warned of!? A bunch of dogs!? What is a mere puppy to a Fallen Angel?" Letting out a maniacal laugh as her superiority complex started to show, she charged forward, with the other two following behind.
"W-w-wait!" Asia sputtered. "You guys might get hurt!" Just as she said that, Kalawarna let out a howl, "OW YOU FUCKING MUTT, THAT HURT! HOW DARE YOU!?" The sound of something getting gutted bounced off the walls.
Asia gasped, "AH PLEASE ALLOW ME TO HEAL YOU!" Asia yelled, with a surprisingly courageous voice, as she started to run after her new comrades, seemingly ignoring the corpses in front of her. Something Issei took note off.
Ddraig answered for him. [She is getting desensitized to death and violence, at an astonishing pace as well]
Entropy weighed in.{As she should. She'll see a lot more in her lifetime from this point out. This is an aftereffect of our influence on her life. She should also get more courageous as well. Butterfly effect in action}
Issei followed close behind, yet far enough that he won't be a distraction. As he walked past bodies, his eyes twitched as he remembered something Entropy said long ago.
(Entropy talking to Issei after completing his first dungeon, Chapter 2: Press Start)
{I am impressed I must say, but I don't mean to get you down but, a low class devil could have easily blown through this. So take this victory with a lesson that you still have a long way to go}
(Present)
Ddraig snickered at the memory, it must be hard to watch something similar to a life or death experience be compared to a cakewalk for others.
After observing these guys he learned they were called steel fanged wolves, known for their, you guessed it, steel fangs.
To add insult to injury, these guys were way stronger than the cave wolves in his first dungeon. Still, he stayed behind as the three fallen massacred the wolves while Asia healed any wound they've got.
{While they do their thing, we need to discuss what happened the familiar forest}
"Well let's start from the beginning I guess, and by that, I mean the entropy and mana subject."
{Ahh yes, it is essential to learn how to imbue your attacks with entropy, not only will it enhance your attack power in all perspectives, but it can render defenses useless, this is why the shadow soldiers are so effective because their attacks are embedded with entropy of various amounts depending on their individual power. And alongside entropy, you need to learn how to absorb the mana in the world around you. Your battle with Tiamat showed that your major weakness is large-scale battles with an opponent with overwhelming strength that can sap your mana reserves. It is best to learn how to absorb mana among other elements, then absorb entropy}
Makes sense, hard to maintain an army whwn it's on fire, isn't it?
{First, you will have to process the mana and the surrounding entropy, luckily you naturally understand the fundamentals of it, like judging the strength of opponents, but you need to advance even further}
"And how would I do that?"
{I will bestow upon you a gift, consider it as a reward for taming Tiamat}
"What do you-" Issei was cut off when a mind - destroying headache dropped him to his knees. Issei had to control every muscle in has body go prevent himself from screaming in agony as he felt his brain morph into something fresh, something more advanced. An alternative form of evolution.
After a couple of minutes passed, the pain subsided. Still on the ground clutching his head, he looked up as the system gave him a message.
/You Have Acquired: Black Brain\
Your mind can process some of the minute existences around you.
• An additional 15,000 Mana has been added to your mana pool
• Basic mana absorption
/You Have Obtained The First Part Of The Black Set\
The Black Set:
Black Brain
Black Eyes
Black Lungs
Black Heart
Black Soul
Black Death
'Interesting… interesting.' Struggling to stand up, he used the grimy wall to steady himself. He also took notice of the galloping coming from behind him.
Mp: 49,320/64,320
Soldiers to be extracted: 403/2,000
Even though his brain evolved, he didn't feel any smarter, just more full and quicker to process things. Not only that, but he could feel things that he couldn't describe, he figured that this was mana in the air. Remembering why he was here, he backhanded a wolf that dared to attack him, almost decapitating it and killed it effortlessly.
{Another prospect that you need to take advantage of is your overwhelming potential}
Grunting from the backlash, Issei stood to his feet. "Doesn't that come naturally when leveling up?"
{While that is true, there is a completely different side to utilize. Adaptability and application}
"Care to expound?"
{Gladly. You see Issei, the Boosted Gear is not only ground breaking because of an almost infinite amount of potential. The tale between Ddraig and Albion isn't just about violence and wills, but of unforseen adaptability. The scale of the arms race that these two went through in the attempt to kill eachother is nothing but tremendous and still continues to this day. To make my spew of words shorter-}
"TLDR?"
{...Yes. Basically the Boosted Gear is extremely adaptable, meaning that it is susceptible to great amount of change, but that change needs to be enabled by the right host. Ddraig had a standard set that he slowly expanded, and that has barely changed since then. You, on the other hand, are powerful, physically and mentally, but not capable of enacting change rapidly. Finally, I'm me, and can do whatever I want, and is capable of quickly bending things to my will}
"So what you are saying is Ddraig is the material that can make any weapon possible with any ability, but needs to be forged. I'm the handsome, big dick, warrior that can't make a weapon to save my life but is powerful and skillful enough to wield anything. And you are the blacksmith that can make a weapon out of any material instantly, but don't have the desire to use it."
{That's an interesting way to put it, but that is precisely right. What I'm trying to say is let your imagination run wild! Hell, combine that knowledge with your skills and the skill of your foes for even greater effect! Me and Ddraig can take care of the rest as long as you have the capability to do it}
"Wow, that's a big thing to drop then and there. So what you are saying is if I wanted to, I can make the sacred gear release the energy of a nuke every time I summon it?"
{As long as you have the power to do it and still be capable of fighting at levels similar to your experience with Tiamat afterwards then yes}
Issie was suprised that the dragon didn't comment on the obvious downside of his proposal. "Well I can't do that yet... let's start smaller then. We can do that later though."
Jogging past the corpses of the dead wolves, he moved to catch up with the group who already traveled deeper into the decrypted memory of humanity.
Determining by the number of bodies, it looks like they were getting attacked by wolf packs in the dozens with no resistance, judging by the lack of their blood. He was genuinely impressed, since Issei had nothing to gauge the prowess of the supernatural. These wolves were stronger than the cave hyenas, but far weaker than the Ice bears, Ice yetis, and notably ice elves. Respectable, especially if the fallen could grow.
"The wolves seem to disappear after this point. Now there's only these Black Shadow Razans and Razor Claw Brigas, idiotic names in my opinion."
/Your Opinion Is Invalid\
"You know I honestly miss you, you bitch! By the way, don't forget that I heard you talk in the familiar forest. Your voice sounds real fuckable, you annoying narcissistic piece of shit!"
/Hmph, You Wish You Can Tap This Ass! You're Talking Big For A Virgin\
"Ennntroophhyy. Can you turn the system into a big tiddy goth girlfriend for your boy??" Issei sang in a raspy tone.
/You Wouldn't Dare!\
"I would, so don't test me!" He didn't get a response after that. Satisfied with that, he found it was very unfortunate that he couldn't summon the monsters around him. They were far too weak and wouldn't last against his weakest knights. Guess he'll have to be patient to fill up his ranks.
Catching up to the group, they looked like they were about to enter the boss chamber. Descending another flight of stairs, they appeared in a room that was noticeably flooded and was teaming with fauna, which gave it a swampy aesthetic.
Seeing that the boss is hidden somewhere in this bog, Issei released some draconic power to draw the boss out. This seemed to do the trick as the previously calm water was broken with rapid movement. Appearing from the waters, an enormous tail swung at them like a whip, destroying the structural integrity of parts of the station.
Grabbing Asia, Issei dodged, while the fallen did the same. Seeing its attack fail, the boss revealed itself as a gigantic blue cobra with orange highlights. The system rang out, signaling the start of the battle.
/The Boss: Blue Poison Fangs Rasaka: Has Appeared\
Sitting Asia back down, Issei yelled at his team, "What are you three waiting for? Kill it!", The fallen nodded and summoned light spears and threw it at the snake. Seeing the attack, it dove underneath the water and shot out for a counter-attack.
Going straight for Kalawarna, she laughed and simply dodged the attack and kicked the snake and the face harshly, cracking its scales. Mittelt sensing weakness, impaled the serpent with a light spear through its tough skin. Raynare came in with an attempt to finish it but was foiled by a tail that slammed into her, launching her body into the darkness, much to the surprise of the others.
The serpent's speed increased dramatically as it slithered circles around the group.
"Here's some advice from a hunter to a hunter!" Issei yelled as he moved Asia from the path of the snake seeking to consume her, with the serpent crashing through the area she stood a second earlier. "There are always three ways to end a fight against an opponent. Now you can always play the war of attrition. You guys have already shown that you could damage it in your current state. However, there are disadvantages. When fighting an unfamiliar enemy, especially one of this size, you must bleed it or tire it out. In doing so, you bet that you'll last longer in a battle of wills, intelligence, abilities, and stamina. Lose that bet, and you'll be getting killed before the battle is over!"
Raynare shot from the water enraged and launched light spear after light spear, successfully hitting her targets of its body, however it did little to stop the seemingly unyielding momentum it carried.
"Option two is only reserved for when you're 100% certain that you are not only stronger than your opponent but also any card they might hold will fold under you, merciless brute strength is always a reliable technique."
The snake swiped its tail, sending a torrent of rancid water onto the girls.
"Then there is the third choice. Precise attacks against your enemy's vitals should be taken with each given opportunity!
"Here, option 3 is the best! It's a big fucking snake, so take the initiative and aim for the head! And if that is too hard, then know that it's a snake, not a worm. It still has a skeletal structure, including a spine and ribs!"
The trio nodded to each other as they flapped their way up to the ceiling. This forced the snake to launch up out of the water to snatch one of the girls like a bird from the sky. However, the three were prepared for this and threw light spears at the head. They were successful as the searing hot spears bored through the serpent easily, it releasing a high-pitched shriek of pain, briefly disorienting the fallen.
"Don't let up!" Issei yelled from the ground. "Stay on its ass!"
"Let's kill this fucker!" Raynare yelled at the two, still enraged from her getting hit and flung like a rag doll.
Ears ringing slightly from the shriek, all three dove and let out a torrent of bone - crushing punches and kicks on its body and head, only pausing the assault when the snake, whose face was a bloody pulp at that point, slowly fell back to the ground. Before that happened, three spears pierced it, two through the eyes and one through the brain.
The snake let out one more weak hiss as the life drained from its eyes before it flopped to the ground.
Landing on the ground, Raynare ran over and gave the snake one last kick or several, angrily muttering curses and insults at the corpse.
"Ha!" Mittelt laughed, while pointing at Issei. "So how we do boss man? I'm sure you will find our, especially mine, performance to be above adequate don't you think?" She said smugly.
"You know you would look cute if you wasn't covered in snake blood and swamp water..." All three girls gag at their bloodied and wet attire, trying to wipe off anything they can.
"Well, you guys certainly did better than my first dungeon. I was only slightly mauled. I'll give you an 8/10 overall" Issei answered proudly before looking at the corpse.
"Arise."
{There is potential} Entropy's omnipotent voice sung out, bouncing off the walls, creating an echo. {I find your performance satisfactory, however there is still a lot of room for improvement and a desperate need for growth. You all are low-class beings, and a real opponent won't make the mistakes of an animal acting on instinct}
The snake reeled up and let out a low hiss at its new master, beford turning around and letting out a shriek at the fallen who killed it, causing the three to back away in fear. 'Huh I guess shadows could hold grudges, they're more complex than I thought..'
{You three aren't even at the level of challenging the Gremory girl, let alone anyone else in her peerage. Luckily, this can be rectified in time}
Entropy teleported everyone but Issei home.
"Alright you girls can clean yourselves up and relax until i get back."
"Indoor bath here we come!!" Mittelt yelled while running to the elevator. Issei chuckled at the lively girl.
"Alright Entropy, send me."
Issei materialized in a room that had gray crates stacked in the center of the chamber. Entering it, skeletons holding weapons spawned with flashes of lights. They were armed with a interesting set of weapons to say the least.
Most had short swords, others dorn armor, and others, for some reason, had rotating saw swords...
Where the fuck did they get saw swords?
Anyway, that doesn't matter. Issei hummed, "Wow I guess I can actually do this. Class Change.
/Switch Title To: Grim Reaper? (Y/N)\
"Yup." Issei whispered, remembering the first time he did this, he was getting choked and not in the kinky way.
"Title Change: Grim Reaper."
/Title: Grim Reaper\
Is only effective when fighting set enemies: Undead, Necromancers, and supernaturals that specializes or holds a title of power over the dead
• 70% damage increase against set enemies
• Damage taken will be decreased by 50%
Issie rushed down a skeleton and gave it a light kick which shattered the bones of the skeleton effortlessly. Issei clicked his tongue as he faced reality. This isn't exciting at all. Meticulously, going to each enemy and destroying them would most certainly be grating and a waste of energy.
Back during what Entropy nicknamed the "Left 4 Dead" dungeon, a single explosion could just about level a city block, and that's when the skill was at its weakest relatively speaking, and in his history of using this skill indoors has shown that it's fantastic at clearing out unwanted things.
Just like during what Entropy dubbed the "Job Change Dungeon", Issei rose his hand as he let out an a detonation, obliterating everything in the room. Surprisingly, another wave appeared, but just like the ones before them, they were all vanquished in a massive explosion.
The aftermath left him in a hole. He took note that the ground had been obliterated yet the walls reminded unfazed by the crater, probably to keep any people like him from cheering it. Jumping out, and continued to the next room, which had a different layout. This one had what looked like walls jetting out from the walls to form sections in a single room and from the look of it, these walls were the same as the main walls keeping him contained, then they would just nullify his explosion.
"Wow, two rooms in, and you're already making me do more work." A lone skeleton charged around the corner in a fruitless attempt to end Issei's life.
"Arise." A single shadow knight appeared behind him. "Let's see how you guys compare." Pointing at the skeleton, he gave an order. "Kill it! Or break it, or whatever."
Nodding at the command, the shadow stood there patiently as the skeleton charged at his new target. Once the skeleton was in range, the shadow knight intercepted the sword with its bare hands and backhanded the fuck out of the skeleton, destroying the structural integrity of the skeleton even with a headshot. The bones shattered and impacted the wall with a thud.
"Impressive!" Issei clapped at his soldier, "You're not strong enough to be named. All my shadows deserve one. That just means we have to stop fighting weak opponents and elevate ourselves to greater heights." Issei said with a nod and a smile on his face.
The shadow seemed to gush at the compliment and flexed, doing various poses to show his monarch that he was an asset he couldn't do without. "Haha, that's the spirit! Now let's go fuck them up!" Feeling pumped by his shadow, Issei pulled out Ascalon and charged around the corner, his shadow following close behind. They hacked away at the grand hordes of skeletons.
Not even a minute in, and they already cleared most of the room. Deciding to go around a corner to find more targets, the knight only found himself slammed against the wall by a massive hand as a giant skeleton donned in armor lumbered around the corner, with another close behind. Feeling his mana getting drained Issei hastily summoned another shadow, "Oi! Why don't you pick on someone your own size!"
A giant armored hand came from the shadows in the room and clamped around the face of the skeleton giant and caved it in. Slowly, Issei's own behemoth showed itself as his lumbering knight golem entered the battle. Seeing the other skeleton giant in front of him, the golem raised its giant axe and cleaved the skeleton in half, freeing the helpless shadow knight. By this time, Issei had already cleared the rest of the room.
"Nice work." Nodding at the monarch, the golem stopped when it felt a tap on its foot. Looking down, it saw the knight nodding proudly with his arms crossed, before giving the golem at thumbs up. Seemingly happy with this interaction, the golem let out a deep hum and slowly raised his own thumb up. Issei snickered at this interaction, it was easy to forget that every shadow was once among the living and each one has their own personality. It was refreshing, to say the least.
To make things faster, Issei called up soldiers from the Job Change Dungeon, so knights, Knight Golems, and magicians. "I want you guys to clear out all the rooms that you come across, after you're done, report back to me." With various presentations of confirmations, they went off to complete the monarch's order.
Tiamat opened her eyes for the first time in what seemed like centuries and was greeted by endless darkness. She was still in her dragon form, but she was noticeably healed from all previous injuries she had from the battle with her new master. Moving her wings, she felt like she was in a vast ocean with no knowledge of which way was up or down.
Suddenly a giant hand grabbed her and roughly start dragging her down what she felt was deeper and deeper. Much to her horror she couldn't even will her body to battle against this force, and was turned to terror when she realized that she didn't want to fight against it.
After a couple of minutes of getting dragged throughout the darkness, it slammed her down on to some kind of surface. Letting out a groan, she opened her eyes to see that she was still in darkness. This place has no smell, no sight, no hearing, not even mana or aura could be detected.
"Where am I?" she was answered by an overpowering eye that had opened from the depths of this place, {Welcome to the abyss, Tiamat…}
Tiamat just stared at the eye, she couldn't find the strength nor willpower to speak. How could she not? She only saw that haunting eye once.
{Yes, we have met only once, haven't we? All those years ago when you were on a rampage across the deserts of the world island, I watched you very, very closely, hahaha. I must have startled you tremendously!}
Tiamat remembered that encounter she hoped she would forget.
(Flashback to Ancient Mesopotamia)
Tiamat snickered as she flew away from another city she left in ruins and flames, serves them right for trying to kill her.
She growled in rage and irritation. How did she go from one of the most respected deities to being some kind of villain that needs to be put down? Well fuck them! She didn't need them, anyway. She was a dragon, not some kind of ragtag god that relied on followers to stay relevant.
With tons of gold on her back from the pillaging she did, she intended to fly back to her cave in the region until she paused when she felt eyes on her. Quickly surveying her surroundings with all her senses, she still couldn't find anything or one out of the ordinary. Suddenly, the sky turned black as if an eclipse was happening.
Looking at the sun, she saw it was completely blacked out. Another ethereal body took its place, or more accurately, a celestial size being.
A piercing eye stared at her.
Her instincts told her to not move.
The rest of the body materialized at a snails pace. Millions of kilometers of body seemed to bubble into existence. After a couple of minutes it's from was completely.
The eye kept staring at her.
Now the full form of the dragon was complete. A true titan of the great beyond was before her as it fully covered the sky and turned the day into black.
Even though the mythologies portrayed themselves as high and mighty and acted as such, most of them weren't dumb. They knew there were beings further beyond in the cosmos with power that could effortlessly trumpt even the mightiest gods. In fact, the only being in this world that could even come close is the God of Christianity, who was truly a being of power that could go on in the cosmos and thrive if he wished to, but stayed on Earth to tend to his creations and people and keep the other factions in check. Of course, there were others like the dreaded Apocalypse and Infinite Dragon, the mysterious Unholy Trinity, and Shiva of the Hindu mythology.
Regardless, even they all recognized that they weren't alone in this reality they called life, that there were bigger evils out there preying on earth, waiting to strike. Yes… they knew that a secret yet calm but also trivial arms race was naturally occurring. Luckily, they all assumed that this pocket of existence is quiet and that no one would find them, let alone disturb them. So far, they were right.
The pupil of the eye dilated as it stared more intensely at her.
But maybe they were mistaken, maybe today the world would end, and for real this time.
Space and time was being destroyed by the being just existing. Screams of millions of souls cried out at once. The earth shook as an ear-piercing ringing assaulted her. The gold horde she looted slowly melted, and the hot, searing fluid crawled its way across her body.
She heard legends of a being like this. A massive black dragon the size of stars with an eye you'll never forget. A being who would be there in a flash and gone without a trace. But, before that, it will just stare.
Observing.
Calculating.
Reading.
Scrutinizing.
Judging.
Finally breaking out of her stupor, Tiamat hastily retreated to a random region of the underworld to escape what she thought was judgment and the destruction of the earth. Now in the underworld, she needed a place to lie low and hope the being couldn't make its way to the realms the world is connected to. After taking a brief look around, she realized she made an error. In her rush to escape she didn't think of a destination and unfortunately she was in the territory of those gnats…. she meant bats. The concentration of demonic energy was nauseating.
Luckily for her, though, there was a devil of power in her vicinity, and it seemed to take notice of her presence. The presence soon presented itself to her.
"Greetings, Dragon King Tiamat, or should I call you Dragon Queen?"
Tiamat recollected her composure."Dragon Queen is fine devil."
The devil chuckled, "Where are my manners? My name is Ajuka Beelzebub."
(Flashback End)
Entropy laughed at the memory. Her reaction immensely entertained him even to this day.
{You are with us now. I don't need to worry since you have already pledged yourself to Issei, so your alignment is already settled. Now first you must be presentable in front of the monarch in a form he desires}
"I have a human form." She muttered softly with her head down.
{Then show me and let us judge!}
'Us?' She threw that thought away and switched to her human form.
{Hmm... unsatisfactory. A good human form, but it wouldn't satisfy Issei}
The eye now grown into an eyeball, which turned around but still had an eye on her.
{So, what do you guys think? Would this form please the monarch? Your monarch?}, he was answered by a choir of distorted screams, screeches, and roars.
In the abyss's darkness, life arose.
Or to be more literal, the dead arose.
On the ground and in the supposed air were countless beings that looked like typical angels clad in some sort of battle armor. But no, they simply weren't angles, they were entirely different. But they weren't alone.
Higher in the sky were beings that almost, emphasis on almost, fit the description of seraphim and ophanim. This is impossible, as the Seraphim, Ophanim, Cherubim ended their existence when God died. And no, not the 4 Great Seraphim or the 10 Seraphs, who took over as guards of God's throne while he was weak. These resembled the real beings of God at his peak.
And finally, there were the last beings that terrified her the most. They were fellow dragons, or at least she thought they were dragons. They had three heads and towered over her, even in her dragon form. And like the other two groups, there were countless numbers of them.
{This is the Immortal Army, or part of it, at least. Haha, Ashborn did a wonderful job even though his existence was unplanned. Be grateful Tiamat, for we are the reason life on Earth, and its associated realms haven't been annihilated or enslaved}
More screeches and distorted voices sang their demented song.
{Well, sounds like the answer is no… seems like you'll need a makeover}
Her vision blackened, and she passed out and slowly fell.
Another giant skeleton slowly fell to the ground before shattering. Issei discovered that despite him and his shadows destroying seemingly thousands of skeletons throughout this run he gained no experience, meaning that a fellow necromancer has all those juicy points.
Another group of skeletons ran away from him further into the dungeon. This is another anomaly, Issie discovered. The skeletons run away from him, or even sometimes bow to him. This started happening on the third floor of this dungeon run. On the first two floors, the skeletons attacked on sight with no remorse, however the deeper he went and the more expansive the dungeon got, he summoned most of his army, which made the undead panic which led them to run away or bow to him, anything that can get him to seize his aggression.
He wondered, was this the result of being a more powerful necromancer than the one that controls these skeletons.
Eventually, he did stop, as smashing them has been found out to be tedious now that they don't put up a fight. He summoned most of his army when the rooms git even more expansive but even his shadows got bored. The knights, golems, and magicians were the first to ignore them. The bears paid them no mind after destroying them because they were interested in flesh, not bone. Not even the most battle crazed of his Red Dragon Emperor's paid them any attention.
The only Shadow that kept attacking was Iron, but we don't count Iron.
Iron is a psychopath.
And now on the boss floor, the skeletons retreated further and further in. Sighing, he recalled his soldiers. Eventually, he made it to the boss room, which was a a gate with two glowing skulls on it. Issei was ready to open the door but paused when he heard yelling.
"YOU IDIOTS!" yelled a raspy voice.
"WHY DID YOU ATTACK THE SHADOW MONARCH! THAT'S A SIN PUNISHABLE BY DEATH!"
{Ah yes….}
Opening the door, he entered a throne room which had four gargoyles surroundings a throne. Sitting on that throne was a large skeleton around 30 feet tall. He was wearing a gold crown with matching gold shoulder guards and belt. On that belt were the sheaths carrying two broadswords. A staff was also present. Red eyes brightened at the sight of the newcomer.
The skeleton immediately got off his throne and surrendered, his crown falling off from the speed at which he bowed.
"E-Entropy! Oh the great Shadow Monarch blessed by Genesis, please forgive me! My lowly subjects did not know of your existence nor the knowledge of your arrival! I would never order them to attack you, my lord!" The skeleton continued to mumble apologies, his skeletons bowing and doing the same.
'Uh Entropy? What is this about?'
{You see, soldiers of monarchs have a certain theme to them and their armies, if you like to call it that. For example, what would comprise the Demon Monarch?}
'Demons, of course.'
{How about the Beast Monarch?}
'Some kind of animalistic creature."
{And what about the Monarch of Giants?}
"Obviously titans.'
{Good. So tell me Issei, what would be in the army of the King of the Dead?}
Issei gazed at the rows of skeletons in front of him.
'The deceased.'
{Exactly. But you see, Issei, monarchs rarely gain soldiers by making them themselves. They must conquer to add to their ranks. Similar to how you need to kill or recover something dead to get soldiers, they need to conquer to acquire more troops. However, sometimes you will find beings who are willing to join a monarch, but don't fit the bill. Take, for example, this guy}
{He is among the dead, yes, but your dead are among the shadows. This gives them everlasting life. Unlike your shadows, if a skeleton gets destroyed, they're done for! So, they can't join the monarch officially, but beings like him will seek to become allies instead, or at least acknowledge your supremacy}
Issei let a single dragon shot answer for him.
/You Have Cleared The Dungeon!\
{Meh, it was stale and bored me anyway. Just summon the corpse, all of his previous subjects will cease to exist, but you can use that as an opportunity for him to summon skeletons from beings of worth, and it won't count as soldiers in your army in the system}
Issei whistled at that, he can just use the poor bastard to piggy back units that don't make the cut.
{Let's just do a good old fashion dungeon}
Issei felt himself getting teleported. Now back in the lobby, Entropy told the fallen and Asia that they were going to do a dungeon alone, and not an easy one.
"But what if we need help?" Raynare asked.
{... I guess I can grant you some units from the monarch}
Issei walked over the sand dunes of Egypt searching for the dungeon he was hoping to enter.
"Are you sure it was a good idea to lend them EVERY Red Dragon Emperor, INCLUDING the Tyrants?"
{Meh, don't worry about it. I physically restricted the amount of power they can exert upon the world itself}
"Sounds like a clusterfuck waiting to happen."
{It's disorderly, it's fun like that}
Name:Issei Hyoudou
Level: 3,000
Passive Titles: Red Dragon Emperor, Hunter, Grim Reaper, Shadow Monarch, Ultimate Pevert
Current Title: Grim Reaper
HP: 30,756/52,520
MP: Mp: 60,000/64,320
STR: 5,532
STA: 5,534
DEF: 5,530
AGL: 5,531
INT: 5,529
SEN: 5,568
Fatigue: 4
Extra Stat Points: 110
Current skills: [Boost, Observe, Night Vision, Vital Strike, Will To Rehabilitate, Sword Master, Bloodlust, Explosion, Brawler, Sprint, Pyromaniac, Dark Blade, Doppelgänger, Invisibility, Shadow Extraction, Save Shadow, Dominator's Touch
Auto update: On
-Shadows to be extracted: 405/2,000