~ Every 100 Power Stones = Bonus Chapter! Your votes keep this climbing. Thanks!
"ROOOAAAR!"
A monstrous Evil Dragon, scales black as midnight, plummeted from the sky straight toward Elmenhilde.
"Lady Elmenhilde, look out!"
Her ever-watchful bodyguard—a female vampire—leapt between them, frost swirling around her. In an instant, the dragon was frozen solid, transformed into a hulking ice sculpture.
Elmenhilde didn't hesitate. She snapped her fingers, sending a barrage of fireballs crashing into the frozen beast. The ice exploded, shards and dragon flesh scattering across the battlefield.
"Are you alright, Lady Elmenhilde?"
"I'm fine. Let's keep moving."
She waved off her servant's concern and scanned the war-torn city. The tide of Evil Dragons had stopped growing. Carmilla's soldiers were finally holding the line; civilians had been evacuated. Far above, the Queen, Elmenhilde's mother, and several elders tore through the enemy ranks with relentless fury.
For the first time all night, hope flickered in Elmenhilde's chest. Maybe—just maybe—they could win this.
But then—
"Look! What's that?"
"That's… that's another Evil Dragon, isn't it?"
"No—no, it's huge! Get down!"
A vampire soldier pointed at a black speck streaking across the horizon, moving impossibly fast.
It was an Evil Dragon, but grotesquely oversized, dwarfing everything they'd fought so far. And as it descended, landing with a seismic crash, every vampire on the field froze in horror.
The beast radiated pure malice. Worse, a distorted human face bulged from its forehead—a sick, mocking parody of humanity.
"ROAR!"
Its jaws opened wide, unleashing a tidal wave of fire. The flames swept across the town, devouring vampires and dragons alike—friend and foe incinerated in seconds.
"Lady Elmenhilde!"
"Ahhh—!"
Her bodyguard yanked Elmenhilde out of the way, sprinting for cover as the inferno raged behind them. Hundreds weren't so lucky; their screams faded as the flames reduced them to ash.
The next morning, Tepes Royal City—Embassy Building
"Gasper, are we really leaving for the outside world?"
"Mm-hmm! It's way more exciting than here, Valerie. You'll see once we're out there."
Valerie looked worried. "Are there bad people out there? Will they bully us?"
Gasper puffed up his chest. "Sure, there are some bad folks, but there's plenty of good ones too. And don't worry—if anyone tries to mess with you, I'll protect you!"
Valerie eyed him skeptically. "You? Protect me?"
"Hey, don't judge by appearances! I've trained with Lord Tenra, learned a ton from Azazel-sensei, and I'm a real man now. I can totally keep you safe!"
"But you still like wearing girls' clothes. Doesn't exactly scream 'reliable' to me."
Gasper flushed. "That's not my fault! You're the one who made me wear them in the first place!"
"Did I? I don't remember that at all."
"Quit playing dumb! It's all on you!"
Valerie giggled, her eyes twinkling. "Even if you dress like a girl, you want to be a man like Lord Tenra and Azazel?"
Gasper nodded fiercely. "No matter what I wear, I'm a man at heart! I've decided—I'll be just like them!"
Valerie snorted. "You? Like Lord Tenra? Dream on, Gasper. It's good to have goals, but maybe try a dose of reality."
Gasper groaned, clutching his face. "So mean…"
The girls in the hall burst out laughing. Xuelan nearly doubled over.
Tenra strode in with Yubelluna and Ravel, eyebrow raised. "What's so funny? Everyone ready? If you are, let's head out."
After a night's rest, Tenra and the girls were set to leave vampire territory. Yubelluna began prepping a teleportation circle.
Tenra stopped her with a wave. "No need for that. Let's walk. We'll join Tosca for a memorial to his fallen friends before heading back."
Tosca's eyes widened in surprise. "Lord Tenra… Thank you."
Tenra smiled gently, ruffling Tosca's hair. "Let's go. We can talk once we're out of here."
The group exited the embassy. Tepes Royal City was a wasteland now—ruins everywhere, a few crows circling overhead, their cries echoing through the empty streets. Just days ago, the city had been vibrant and alive. Now, it was a graveyard.
No one voiced any sympathy. The Tepes clan had brought this on themselves.
They reached the border quickly—just a stretch of fog separated them from freedom.
But—
"Wait! Red Emperor!"
A shout rang out behind them. Tenra turned, spotting a squad of vampires racing toward them. At the front was Elmenhilde, though she was almost unrecognizable—her face streaked with dirt, golden hair tangled and wild.
Tenra blinked in surprise. "Elmenhilde? What happened to you?"
She was panting, cheeks flushed with embarrassment as she tried to tidy her hair and brush off the dust, only making it worse.
"Our territory… was attacked by those dragons. We fought all night."
Tenra stifled a grin, then sobered. "We were just about to leave. Did you need something?"
Elmenhilde steadied herself, meeting Tenra's gaze head-on.
"Red Emperor—please help us!"
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
BOOK COMPLETED ON PATREON!
This story has reached its conclusion on my Patreon!
Full story available now
Exclusive bonus content & early access to new books
Join my Patreon community today!
p a t r e o n .com/GoldenLong
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━