Chapter 117: 113th Adversary: Message
Tertitus Dominion, Kirika's Oasis.
*Clang!* *Clang!*
The sounds of metal clashing resounded near the mercury waterfall. There was a stage where two persons were clashing with their swords. These two were Miko and Kirika.
*Clang!*
The two locked their swords together with neither of them moving an inch. Miko leaped back to create distance and then readied himself to attack again. But before he could, Kirika accelerated towards him.
She swung her sword so fast it blurred. Miko concentrated all of his senses and lifted his sword to block it. He spun around and blocked another attack coming from behind. The Kirika which was in front of him had faded away and a new one was standing in front of him.
"Heh."
She smiled and stepped back. She multiplied into five persons. All five Kirika charged at him all at once.
*Clang!*
He blocked the attack of one, ducked under the attack of a second one, and countered against a third one. The fourth and fifth came from his back thrusting at his neck. The world slowed down. Only Miko was moving normally. He spun around so fast he left afterimages. He popped up in front of his two attackers and cut them across the chest and returned back to his original spot.
All the Kirika's froze and disappeared leaving Miko alone on the stage.
"Not bad. You've improved faster than I expected."
Kirika walked on the stage and said.
"Am I finally ready to learn your sword styles?"
Miko's sheathed his sword and threw it to Kirika who caught it.
"I practiced with a normal sword like you asked and fought without using magic or Vita like you asked. Regis and Ishma are getting jealous because I'm not using them you know."
As if to prove his point, Regis appeared and took the sword that Miko was using. She broke it over her knee and spat on it after throwing it to the ground.
"See?"
Kirika nodded.
"But it's not like I did it without good reason. Your sword skills were good but you relied too much on your swords. That's the downside of having living weapons, they can dull the user's instincts because they will begin to rely on them for everything. I needed you to sharpen your instincts, otherwise, you'll never become a true swordsman."
Miko looked at Regis, who was stomping on the broken sword. Ishma was suggesting they melt it while holding a magic pot filled with lava.
"So now that I've sharpened my instincts, I can learn your sword arts using them?"
Kirika nodded.
"As you know, I studied one of the five Imperial Sword Styles from the Wakoku Nation; the Raging Dragon Style of the Ryukami Clan. Since it's from one of the Imperial Clans, it's hard to find a style that's better than it."
Kirika snapped her fingers and a huge boulder appeared near Miko and kirika. She stretched her hand out and a stone sword formed in her hand. This sword was made from alchemy.
"First, let me show you just what the Ryukami's Raging Dragon Style looks like."
She faced the truck-sized boulder and lowered her center gravity while gripping the sword. She positioned it as if it was in a sheath on her waist. Miko felt a gust blow past him. He saw it circle around Kirika's stone sword.
"Raging Dragon Style: Black Dragon Edition."
*Roar!*
Miko heard a loud roar coming from the stone sword.
"The fuck?"
The image of a black dragon appeared, entangling itself around Kirika, but it disappeared a second later. Miko didn't see it but Kirika's eyes flickered between blue and black for an instant.
*Crack!*
The ground under Kirika cracked open. She shot forward.
"Black Dragon Twister!"
Kirika disappeared from sight before reappearing in front of the boulder.
"Wha?!"
Before Miko could exclaim fully, the entire area was shaken by violent explosions.
"Uwaa?!"
Without him being able to react, Miko was blown away by strong shockwaves produced by the explosions. He bounced off the ground a few times before stopping himself. He quickly got up and his eyes peeled open. There was a huge trench that ran from Kirika's position to the spot next to where the boulder was.
But that alone didn't shock Miko.
When he looked up in the air, he saw a twister with rubble dancing around it. Miko realized the twister lifted the truck-sized boulder and ripped it to shreds. He tried to imagine what kind of scene it would be if the target was a person, and Kirika had used her real sword.
He couldn't help but gulp.
"Swift as a bird, but as overbearing as a dragon."
Kirika walked towards him and spoke.
"That is what people use to describe the Raging Dragon Style."
The stone sword in her hand crumbled after she finished speaking. It obviously couldn't handle the force it created.
"That's a crazy sword style…."
Miko mumbled.
"You don't want to learn it?"
"Hell Yeah! Do you know how much damage I could cause with something like that?!"
Miko was excited.
"I see. Depending on how compatible you're with it, I might have to teach you the other four styles."
"You know all five styles?"
"I know the basics. I only mastered the Raging Dragon Style though."
"I see. Who knows I might teach one of my comrades it to help boost their strength. Ace has a Swordsman character, so he might learn it."
"Speaking of comrades, I'm surprised you haven't chosen any Apostles yet."
"Ah."
"…..Don't tell me you forgot you could appoint Apostles?"
"Well, I've been busy."
Miko laughed awkwardly.
"Hurry up and pick them. Your apostles will have the powers of Tiamat on their side. It will make your comrades countless times stronger."
"I know. I'll do it once the trio leaves their training. I might make you, Momo, and Alec apostles too."
"Momo is enough. I don't want any Higher Being's power. I want to become strong with my own talents. Alec will probably deny it for other reasons."
"I see. Then it will be those 4 then."
Kirika nodded.
"Anyway, I need to get going."
"Where are you going?"
Kirika grinned.
"To join the others and send a message to the world."
The God Continent, this was a continent that was dominated by the descendants of heavenly beings, Gods. Most of the inhabitants were either gods, proxies of gods, or people who deeply revered and worshipped gods. Most of the world's most powerful God Empires were located here. On this continent existed a country that was ruled by the descendants of a former proxy of Zeus called Zeu. Because of the link proxies have with their god parents, these descendants inherited the powers of Zeus as well. The people of this country all worship Zeus and saw this family as holy and listened to every word they spoke to an abnormal point.
Outside the lands of Zeu. There was a tent pitched on the side of the road that led to it. Beside this tent was a motorcycle with a lion design. Behind it were dozen of luxurious black cars. Inside the tent was a man with golden hair with azure endings. He had a wild golden beard, a muscular build, and golden feline eyes. He was dressed in a gold and black leather jacket and pants and was playing a hand game.
"Lord Krox."
A man dressed in a black suit and wearing glasses walked into the tent.
"We've gotten word that everything is ready to start the operation."
"About time."
Krox threw away the hand game and stood up.
"Are the communications open?"
The man nodded and handed Krox a communicator.
"Ahem. Testing, testing."
He smiled and spoke in the communicator.
Meanwhile at Dragna City. The capital was in an uproar and tension was in the air. The reason was the three royal clans had gathered together!
The citizens saw vehicles belonging to the Saevus and Flameheart clans heading toward the royal castle. Some of these vehicles were trucks and buses filled with armed soldiers of the two clans.
"What's going on?"
"Could it be another conflict among the three clans?"
"But what could cause it now? Weren't the three clans united again?"
The citizens trembled in fear at the sight of all the weapons and people heading to the palace.
"There's no conflict among the clans."
Someone said while pointing at the crests on the soldiers' shoulders. It was a crest of a dragon and a Phoenix entangling together. It was the symbol of the Dragna clan.
"The crest…"
For the citizens of the empire, it was common knowledge that members of the three clans would normally wear their respective clan's insignia on their uniform. There was only one reason why all three clans would wear the empire's mark.
"The Empire is coming together to declare war!"
This news quickly excited the citizens. It's been a long time since the empire declared war on anyone. Which meant that it was a long time since the empire flexed its power. The citizens were excited to see their country remind their enemies of just who they are messing with.
"But who are we declaring war on?"
That was the question which puzzled countless citizens.
Inside the royal palace. All five of the Branch Leaders along with the leaders of the Flameheart and Saevus Clans were gathered around a table.
"It's been a long time since we've all gathered together like this."
Nero said.
"What are you talking about? Didn't we have the annual meeting just last year?"
Darwin said.
"Yeah, but it's the first time in a long while we've gathered and without plotting against each other."
"You're the one always plotting though."
Markus Saevus replied. He tapped his finger on the table.
"The very reason we're here is because of your scheming, you sneaky bastard."
"Hahaha!"
Nero just laughed at Markus's comment.
"Let's get to business already."
The Quintus Branch Leader, Andreas interrupted.
"You're always impatient when it comes to war."
The Quartus Branch leader, Ecko said with a sigh.
"We're all here for the same thing, so why are we beating around the bush?"
Andreas argued back.
"It's the only reason I would come here like this for sure."
Markus spoke with a serious tone while his eyes shone like the flames of hell.
"To slaughter the arrogant fools who dare to threaten the life of my blood."
"I'm here for the same reason. Miko is my clan's son-in-law and benefactor. All threats towards him must be eliminated."
Darwin added.
"It's good we're all on the same page."
A voice echoed in the room and the image of Krox appeared in the middle of the table.
"Krox, everything is ready to go."
Rouge said.
"So I've heard. The operation is a go. Tell everyone to move out."
Everyone saw Krox show a beastly smile.
"Since you've given me full authority, be ready to face major backlash because I won't be showing anyone any mercy."
"No mercy is needed."
Nero said.
"Just destroy all those who oppose us."
"With pleasure."
Back at his tent, Krox hung up the call with a wide grin on his face.
"Sir."
His subordinate approached him with a suitcase in his hand. He handed Krox the suitcase and stepped back. Krox stepped out of the tent and a spoke as if he was laughing.
"Alright, boys. Let's get to work."
"Yes, Lord Krox!"
Krox laughed and walked towards the country with his subordinates following closely behind him.
At the same time, something was flying above the demon continent with a speed which easily broke the sound barrier several times over. It was a large aircraft twice the size of a commercial plane. However, it didn't look like a plane or a jet. It looked like a mechanical dragon.
"This is Drago-1. We're entering the target's air space, so everyone begin preparations. I repeat, begin preparation!"
The pilot's voice came from the intercom and reached the ears of everyone being carried on the aircraft. The aircraft was filled with over 500 soldiers all wearing the Dragna empire's crest. From their characteristics, it could be seen that most of them were from the royal clans.
"A war huh? Not too long ago when I heard war, I thought that it would be among ourselves."
"I know right? To think we would come together like this again. The strangest part is the one we're fighting for was someone a lot of us wanted to kill."
"Life is funny like that."
The soldiers talked among themselves as they readied their weapons and checked if their powers were working as they should.
*Swoosh!*
That's when the automatic door which led to cockpit opened up and someone walked in.
"?!"
The noisy compartment became silent in an instant. Everyone watched the person who just entered, with surprise. Their steps resounded while everyone held their breath.
"No way…."
"I heard that she was coming but I never thought that it was true.."
"Are the higher-ups sure about this? Considering the nature of this mission, won't she go overboard?"
"It's exactly why it's a mission like this why she's allowed to take part. Can you think of anyone who would go harder than her during this mission?"
The soldiers whispered to themselves as they watched the person walked towards a soldier.
"Oi, we should be directly above the target right?"
"Yes, ma'am. We should begin lowering to land pretty soon."
"No, that isn't necessary."
The woman walked up to the exit and pressed a button.
*SWOOSH!*
"Ahhhh?!"
The soldiers started screaming when the doors leading outside opened. Strong winds rushed into the aircraft. The woman, however, was unfazed.
"Close it after I'm gone."
"What do you-?!"
Before the soldier could finish speaking, the woman jumped out the aircraft.
Down below existed a kingdom by the name of Andrix. It was a country created by the proxy of the demon Andras, who was a great and dangerous marquis in hell and was responsible for sowing discord among people. The people of this country was currently facing a crisis. Their king had gone missing. It's been over a month since his disappearance and the country still don't know what to do. There was talk of appointing a new king but this was difficult since the old king never got married or had any children. This caused his former supporters to fight against themselves to decide which one of them should take over.
While that was going on.
*BOOOM!*
Something fell from the sky and crashed into the capital city, blowing up dozens of buildings and instantly killing dozens of people and injuring hundreds more.
"What happened?!"
"Something fell from the sky?!"
The citizens started panicking as they stared at where the crash happened. There was a huge dust cloud blocking their view.
"Look!"
Someone pointed at a silhouette which appeared in the dust cloud.
"Someone fell from the sky?!"
The dust cloud slowly cleared up and the citizens could see someone standing on the edge of a large crater. She had long flowing purple hair, blue eyes, a stunning face and figure. She was dressed in a battle suit which consisted of a gray base which was made of an unknown flexible material, a pair of black gauntlets which had purple enchantments on them, thigh high black combat boots with strange purple runes, and a breastplate with purple flowers on it.
The woman, Sasha, looked at the surrounding citizens with a glare so cold it made one feel like all the warmth was being sucked from their souls.
"W-Who is that?"
"I don't know, but I can tell she's bad news."
The citizens sensing the dread from Sasha started backing off one by one.
"Anyone moves dies."
That was all she said, yet all the citizen hearts stopped and their bodies froze.
"My name is Sasha Dragna. A mother of three beautiful children. The king of your kingdom was stupid enough to target one of my children and is now fertilizer for the flowers in my garden."
Every word she spoke hammered down on the citizens' hearts. They all could sense it without exception.
Death.
The one standing in front of them was enraged to the point her very presence was like death itself.
"Your foolish king has already been killed, but that isn't enough. You see, I'm afraid people will continue to come after my child. I'm afraid I would one day lose him. The very thought drove me crazy and kept me up at night. I thought long and hard about what I needed to do and that's when it came to me."
A black aura started flowing out of Sasha's body. Everyone could feel the temperature around them fall drastically. They saw a twisted smile with a hint of insanity appear on Sasha's face.
"I just need to slaughter every single one of them, and show them what it means to come for my son."
*BAM!*
Giant icebergs appeared in the middle of the city, encasing countless citizens in them. Sasha swung her hand and the icebergs shattered along with the bodies of the people inside.
"I'll kill everyone that threatens my Miko's life."
She walked towards the castle with a cold smile on her face. People were running away the moment they saw her. She stopped and looked at the castle.
*Bam!*
She shot forward like a rocket. All the buildings she passed exploded one after the other. The explosions engulfed the fleeing citizens and robbed them of their lives. Sasha created a path of destruction while heading towards the palace.
"Enemy in sight!"
As she expected, a resistance was already formed to protect the palace. She stretched her hand to the side and black winds molded into a lance. She gripped the lance, stopped, and threw the it.
*BAM!*
The lance pierced through the resistance tearing hundreds of people apart. Black winds sucked the fluids out of the bodies and turned them into skin and bones, before reducing them to ashes. Meanwhile, the lance flew towards the palace.
*BOOM!*
The lance blew a large huge hole in the palace and then disappeared into the distance.
"You bastards of Andrix!"
Sasha started walking towards the palace while dreaded black aura flowed out of her body. The aura spread and stretched to every corner of the capital. Those who were still alive in the palace watched her slowly advance towards them in fear. They didn't know if it was because they were afraid, but they could swear they saw the world of the dead opening up behind her.
With her terrifying smile and insane look in her eyes, Sasha looked like she just walked out of their worst nightmare. Them being demons themselves quickly realized they were dealing with a woman that could scare even the devil.
"Let's talk about my son!"
That day, the country of Andrix crumbled after losing their capital to the Murder Princess of the Dragna clan.
Similar scenes were happening across the world. A country on the Night Continent.
"What's that?!"
People looked up and saw aircrafts flying over their countries. These aircrafts released an army into the sky before disappearing into the distance.
*Bam!* *Bam!* *Bam!* *Bam!* *Bam!*
Soldiers fell from the sky. They crashed into the earth causing mass destruction as if they were bombs.
"Attention, attention!"
Someone walked out of the dust clouds holding a gun in their hand. This person was the leader of the Parasite Demons in Renacido, Oden.
"You fuckers have been found guilty of not knowing where you stand in life and foolishly plotting against our Don."
He pointed his gun at the nearby people, and all the soldiers did the same.
"As such, you've been sentenced to death!"
The sounds of gunshots and explosions echoed throughout the country.
A country on the Day Continent.
*Bam!*
"Ahhh?!"
*Bam!*
Screams and explosions rang out as people were slaughtered without discrimination.
"Glory to the Dragna Empire!"
"Death to all enemies!"
The soldiers of the Dragna Empire shouted as they killed people and set buildings ablaze.
A kingdom on the Gold Continent. Alec Dragna sat on a cliff overlooking where a country once stood. All that was there now was a sea of scarlet flames.
"There's no going back now, huh?"
He stood up and put his hands in his pocket and smiled.
"Well, this world has always been a violent one. So this is nothing new."
He turned around and walked away.
"This too is just a page in this world's long history."
If one were to look at the sea of flames from a bird's eye view, they would be shocked to see the flames had formed the image of a dragon and a Phoenix entangling together.
On the Beast continent, Kirika was walking down the halls of a beast kingdom's palace with her swords and clothes soaked with blood. Her eyes were cold like the steel in her hands. There wasn't an ounce of sympathy in her eyes as she looked at the cut up body parts scattered about. She approached a door and it was sliced into the two. She walked into a room and saw a throne with a man sitting on it. The man had his decapitated head in his lap.
Kirika approached this throne and threw the corpse to the ground and sat on the throne and spoke.
"Long live the Dragna Empire."
Back at the country of Zeu. Krox was walking through the streets of the royal capital. Behind him, a palace was burning and corpses were scattered about. The streets that walked were filled with ruined buildings and scorched corpses.
"Hm~. Hm~. Hm, ~."
He hummed while walking with something in his hands. It was the head of a handsome man who was wearing a crown. He skipped through the streets while blood leaked from the head, forming a trail behind him. He eventually arrived at the borders of the country. By this time, all the blood had been drained from the head.
"Oh, you guys did pretty good."
He said to his subordinates as he placed the head on the ground.
He stepped back to get a better look.
"What do you think? Do you think they'll get the message?"
His subordinates stepped back as well and took a better look. In front of them were hundreds of heads lined off to write a sentence.
"The Dragna Empire says Hello."
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone