章 44: Lucas Ciffer vs King Thomas: Part 1

During the night, in Elemental city, Drake and king Thomas floated above Elizabeth's house like two phantoms. They had been watching her for weeks, getting occasional glimpses of her in the flesh. As they knew Dorian was inside to protect her, they discussed their plans and decided to move in on her at daybreak.

"Are you ready, catboy?" Drake chuckled.

Dorian rolled his head from side to side, releasing a series of cracks and pops as he rotated his neck. His gaze shifted upward as he stretched.

"Don't you fucking call me that!" Thomas exclaimed in anger. Then he said, " Focus on the mission at hand."

"You worry too much." Drake laughed. "There's two of us. And Dorian is alone. I will keep him busy, while you pick up Elizabeth."

Thomas stared at Drake with a mix of terror and hope in his eyes. He knew all too well the kind of monstrous power Dorian possessed, and the thought of standing up to him again was utterly terrifying. Yet at the same time, he knew that he must find a way to challenge the monster and protect his kingdom. He couldn't just sit back and do nothing as the nobles' families fell.

"Well, I hope everything will go as planned," Thomas said but heard a huge explosion somewhere deep in the elemental forest.

"W-What the hell?" Thomas exclaimed and looked back.

Above the elemental forest, there was a huge fire straight from hell in the sky. Black smoke was covering the sky and the fire rained down on the trees. The whole elemental forest was burning.

"What is going on?" Thomas was shocked and looked back at Drake who was standing speechless. He asked again."What the fuck is going on?!"

Drake's gaze was transfixed on the horizon, a beautiful blend of scarlet, amber, and ebony, as the smoke billowed toward the heavens. He froze there, his expression unreadable, as the brilliant hues of fire lit up the sky.

"Drake?" Thomas quickly pushed his stunned friend's shoulder. "Not the time for daydreaming!"

"S-Sorry..." Drake's expression softened into a wistful smile as he gazed at the burning sky. "It's just reminding me of hell," he said softly.

"Get some help, dude." Thomas frowned. He couldn't understand Drake's attachment to the underworld. It was called hell for a damn reason.

"So... Are you going to check what's going on?" Drake asked while pointing his finger at the center of an unknown disaster in the forest.

"I... We..." Thomas stuttered as his gaze kept moving towards Elizabeth's house and the burning Elemental forest. "Dammit!"

"Some sort of rift might be open there and releasing a powerful monster. Or worse... A demon like us." Drake told him with a sigh. "As a king, it would be your duty to protect the kingdom from all types of disasters, not Dorian alone."

"Dammit!" Thomas shouted and a silverish-black aura engulfed him as he created a white portal toward the Elemental forest.

"Watch that house. If Dorian goes out, you know what to do." Thomas ordered telepathically.

"Okay, okay." Drake nodded a couple of times. When Drake looked in Thomas's direction, he was no longer there. "This timing though." He said as he watched the burning sky.

************

"Well, we did enough damage," Lucas said to his friend, dragon Alcides.

Lucas and Alcides were both patched up and, despite receiving some very serious damage to their bodies, they were ready to leave the forest. Their limbs regrew and they were healed.

A glowing, white light shone in the sky and an enormous portal slowly opened, revealing the enraged figure of King Thomas. His face was beet red and his eyes blazed with fury as he scanned the area. His gaze finally settled on Lucas and Alcides, who stared at him.

"You!" Thomas yelled so loudly that his cat ears twitched. He jabbed his finger in Lucas' direction, his face contorted with rage. "What the hell is your problem?!"

"Goddamit. This guy again." Lucas frowned. But soon his frown turned into a smile. "I heard you met Dorian. How was it?"

Thomas's eyes turned into dots as he took a step forward as stared at Lucas in rage. Alcides also widened his eyes from shock.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Thomas asked in disbelief and confusion.

"You really don't remember who Dorian is?" Lucas asked in a mocking tone.

"Of fucking course I do! He's that fucking weird demon, right?" Thomas asked, his eyes still full of rage. But then realization slowly sank in. "Wait... Wait... You knew what will happen if I went to assassinate him?!"

"Of course, I knew. I told you, didn't I? I was a big fan of this novel. There it happened with another demon though. Comatozed demon awoken after someone tried to assassinate him." Lucas smirked as he swept his arms out in a wide gesture around the charred remains of the forest.

"You see this? I'm responsible for this," Lucas said smugly. "The dragon gave me an idea on how to get Dorian to fight Drake on fair terms. One versus one."

Alcides' eyes widened, his mouth agape as Lucas' words sunk in. During the initial conversation, Alcides had shared with Lucas, not once had he mentioned wanting to duel; it was the other way around. 'Did he plan to burn down the forest from the very beginning and used me to speed things up?!' Alcides was dumbfounded — and a little scared.

"This angel is scary..." Alcides muttered.

Thomas's stomach dropped at the mention of Lucas's plan. Thomas knew that Drake was a formidable opponent, but Dorian's strength still gave him chills. 'Is Drake going to be alright?' he wondered. Then he gazed at Lucas with burning fury. His aura burst out, engulfing his body.

"I knew it..." Thomas said and spat on the ground. "I fucking knew that you were a danger to my kingdom."

Thomas's body started changing into a more demonic form as his silverish-black aura became even densier. Merciless crimson eyes were staring at Lucas with rage.

Lucas' gaze was intense and cold, his face emotionless. His head tilted to one side as he regarded the man, seemingly unfazed by the situation.

"You didn't change your transformation? What about your demon king form?" Lucas asked, but then he chuckled at the realization. "Oh, you can't use it, can you? Not yet at least. "

"How do you know about it?! Thomas's demonic eyes showed his surprise at Lucas's knowledge.

"You don't know how much information a reincarnated reader can have."

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