Tens of thousands of meters above the ground, a platinum dragon fled at full speed.
Magic wrapped around its body, cutting through air resistance as it pushed itself faster and faster.
The Platinum Dragon Lord glanced back repeatedly, urgency written plainly in its eyes.
"Faster. Faster!"
"As long as I reach that place. As long as I reach that place!"
It drove its magic harder, forcing more speed from its exhausted body.
The moment it escaped this sealed region, it would immediately activate Wild Magic [World Teleportation] and return to the Argland Council State.
Seeing no pursuer behind it, the Platinum Dragon Lord quietly let out a breath of relief.
It could feel it. It was almost out of the spatial lockdown.
Then, in the next instant, a chill shot straight through its mind.
It looked back.
A tiny black dot had appeared in the distance, closing in at a terrifying speed.
The distance between them was shrinking, visibly and rapidly.
And soon, the Platinum Dragon Lord saw clearly what it was.
A dragon.
A jet-black dragon it had never seen before.
Its immense body, its savage appearance, and the black mist coiling around it all radiated overwhelming power.
"It's him!"
Though the appearance had changed, the aura was unmistakable. It was the Dragonoid Player who had fought it before.
How a Dragonoid could transform into a true dragon was a question it had no time to consider.
It activated Wild Magic again, burning its Dragon Soul to squeeze out even more speed.
It could not be caught. It absolutely could not be caught.
But to its growing despair, even that was not enough. The distance continued to close.
Naohara had three pairs of wings.
The Platinum Dragon Lord had only one pair.
No matter how hard it pushed, one set of wings could not outrun three.
"Ah! Don't come any closer!"
With a terrified roar, the two massive dragon bodies collided midair.
In that instant, the Platinum Dragon Lord felt an overwhelming force crash into it. Its once-proud dragon body was completely suppressed, unable to break free.
"Haha! Got you!"
Amid Naohara's roar, the two dragons lost balance and plummeted from the sky, crashing straight down from tens of thousands of meters.
"Boom!"
The earth split apart. The forest was reduced to ruins. A massive cloud of dust and smoke surged into the sky.
Magical beasts that had been living peacefully in the forest did not even understand what was happening before they were knocked unconscious by the shockwave.
From within the smoke, a sacred breath burst forth, tearing open a path. The Platinum Dragon Lord, battered and disheveled, shot upward again, trying once more to escape into the sky.
But just as it left the ground, a black dragon emerged from the smoke.
A scaled claw reached out and seized the Platinum Dragon Lord's tail in one swift motion.
A terrifying force dragged it back down.
What followed was a brutal sight.
The black dragon tightened its grip and swung.
The Platinum Dragon Lord, caught by the tail, was hoisted up like a toy and slammed violently into the ground.
Half its body was driven straight into the earth.
The damage itself was not devastating but the humiliation was immeasurable.
"Run. Go on, keep running. Why'd you stop?"
The pitch-black dragon parted its jaws slightly and let out a low, rumbling chuckle. Then it yanked the Platinum Dragon Lord forward and hurled him away with brutal force.
Boom! Boom!
The air twisted under the shockwave. In an instant, several small hills exploded, shattered stone and Dragon Blood spraying in every direction.
The Platinum Dragon Lord's massive body skidded hundreds of meters across the ground before finally grinding to a halt.
"Cough… I…"
The Platinum Dragon Lord struggled to rise, but Naohara gave him no opportunity. He was already there in the next instant.
Fists wrapped in black mist rained down relentlessly, one blow after another crashing into the Platinum Dragon Lord. The sheer recoil forced him flat against the earth.
Each punch made the ground roar, driving the Platinum Dragon Lord deeper and deeper into it.
He lashed out with claws and wings in desperation, yet attacks that once could slice through the hardest metal now did little more than scrape sparks from Naohara's body.
Transformed into the Catastrophe Dragon Lord, Naohara's attributes had risen dramatically. With hundreds of Passive Skills layered on top, his defense had reached a terrifying level.
"My friend, your attempt to run has made me very angry."
"Disobedient children must be punished."
Naohara opened his maw. A brilliant magic array flared into existence as magic power gathered in the air, erupting into a devastating breath attack.
[Demonic Dragon's Roar]
A jet-black pillar of light engulfed the Platinum Dragon Lord. Amid his agonized screams, the beam tore relentlessly through his flesh.
Scales melted. Flesh vaporized. Dragon Blood soaked into the earth.
Perhaps it was the Dragon Lord Transformation, but Naohara could feel his emotions running hotter than usual. Even so, he still knew where to stop.
Once the Platinum Dragon Lord's presence had weakened to the brink, Naohara cut off the breath. If it continued any longer, the Platinum Dragon Lord would die again.
"Much better."
Naohara let out a long breath. Letting it out really did help. Holding it in only made it worse.
Below him, the Platinum Dragon Lord forced his eyes open and looked up at the colossal black dragon overhead.
A faint scent of roasted meat lingered in the air. A tear slid from the Platinum Dragon Lord's eye. That smell… was his own flesh.
Why?
Why had it come to this?
This wasn't how it was supposed to be.
The Platinum Dragon Lord felt only despair.
He was a True Dragon Lord. And not just any, but the Platinum Dragon Lord. His strength was far from weak. Facing top-tier players would be difficult, yes, but not hopeless.
Unfortunately, this time he had met Naohara—a player who had spent twelve full years preparing to slaughter dragons.
"You… what do you want from me?"
The Platinum Dragon Lord spoke weakly, his voice barely holding together.
"You can still talk?"
Naohara sounded mildly surprised. The massive dragon's expression softened into something almost gentle, his tone turning warm.
(It's honestly hard to imagine how a dragon that size could look kind or sound gentle…)
"Don't worry. I'm not going to kill you. On the contrary, I'll provide you with good food and drink. You'll enjoy VIP treatment in The Great Tomb of Nazarick."
"But everything comes at a price. Dragon Lord of the New World, I need you to assist in my growth."
"And if you could contribute a few body parts along the way, that would be even better."
The moment Naohara finished speaking, the Platinum Dragon Lord began trembling violently.
"No… no… please… just kill me."
Tears of humiliation streamed down his face. He could not imagine what kind of existence awaited him. At that moment, he only wanted to die.
The Dragon Race never serves as slaves.
"Haha, you really do love your jokes."
Naohara laughed, grabbed the Platinum Dragon Lord by the tail, and spread all three pairs of wings. Flight magic activated.
Dragging the half-dead Platinum Dragon Lord behind him, Naohara went off to find Momonga and Herohero so they could return to The Great Tomb of Nazarick together.
What Naohara did not know was that the massive disturbance caused by his battle with the Platinum Dragon Lord had already drawn the attention of many.