The Slane Theocracy.
The sacred capital, [Silksuntecks].
Within the dim corridors of the Central High Temple, only a handful of people were qualified to enter. Aside from the priests, the only others permitted inside were God-kin whose bloodlines had undergone ancestral awakening.
Yet today, an uninvited guest had arrived.
A figure wrapped completely in darkness moved quietly through the corridor.
Without drawing attention, he slipped past the warning magic and moved through the shadows.
A pair of deep eyes repeatedly scanned the surroundings, as if searching for something.
"Where is it?"
The Deep Darkness Dragon Lord felt increasingly irritated.
Recently, nothing had been going his way.
It almost felt as if someone were deliberately targeting him, with one misfortune after another piling up.
First, his ambush on that filthy subordinate NPC had failed.
Then the filthy he had spent three hundred years nurturing broke free from his control.
He had suffered losses on both fronts.
Of course, it was not as if there had been no good news.
Through the faint connection he still shared with the transformed filth, he had vaguely sensed the presence of what seemed to be a guild base before the information link was cut off.
That was one of the few pieces of consolation he had received.
It also allowed him to reconsider his previous plan and shift his focus toward another objective.
For example, seizing the guild weapon.
If he succeeded, then whether through threats or destruction, he would hold the absolute initiative.
It would effectively cripple the filth's greatest source of support.
However, the Deep Darkness Dragon Lord knew very well that thinking about it was one thing, but actually carrying it out would be extremely difficult.
On his side, there were only a few True Dragon Lords.
The Brightness Dragon Lord.
The Heavenly Dragon Lord, who maintained a close relationship with the other side.
And the Swordmaster Dragon Lord, whose whereabouts they had recently begun to trace.
That made only four True Dragon Lords in total.
"Damn that Elder Coffin. Who knows where he's hiding."
The Deep Darkness Dragon Lord cursed inwardly.
He and the Elder Coffin Dragon Lord had a good relationship.
Their views toward the filth were perfectly aligned.
The Deep Darkness Dragon Lord wanted to obtain the filth's various rare items to strengthen himself.
The Elder Coffin Dragon Lord simply wanted to kill Players.
Since their interests did not conflict, they had formed a secret alliance.
For that reason, the Deep Darkness Dragon Lord had even handed over his unique Wild Magic to the Elder Coffin Dragon Lord so that he could study it.
He had originally believed the other would become a valuable ally.
Yet despite trying to contact him repeatedly during this period, he had not received a single response.
What rotten luck.
At the critical moment, none of them could be relied upon.
No wonder he had once been frightened by the Eight Greed Kings and fled. What a useless fool.
Tsk. There were simply too few True Dragon Lords.
Such a small number was far from enough to deal with the filth safely.
As for the group led by the Primordial Mother, they had completely disappeared, so there was no point considering them for now.
After thinking it through again and again, the Deep Darkness Dragon Lord eventually set his sights on the Slane Theocracy.
Or rather, on the World-Class Item within the Theocracy.
Using the power of filth to fight filth.
That was his true intention.
After all, the filth's items were genuinely powerful.
Their various mysterious effects were impressive even to a True Dragon Lord like him.
If he could obtain the legacy left behind by the Six Great Gods, it would perfectly compensate for his current lack of combat strength.
And so, the Deep Darkness Dragon Lord came here.
"Where exactly is it hidden?"
He looked around repeatedly, searching for any possible clues, but still found nothing.
Just as he was considering whether to continue deeper inside, a figure had already appeared silently behind him.
"My old friend, it has been a long time."
"You seem to be looking for something. Do you need my help?"
The moment he heard those words, the Deep Darkness Dragon Lord reacted immediately.
He took a sudden step forward and opened up distance.
At the same time, [World Teleportation] was already prepared. His cautious personality made him ready to retreat at once.
But in the next moment, countless pale golden chains appeared out of the void, sealing the surrounding space.
[World Teleportation] failed to activate.
Realizing this, the Deep Darkness Dragon Lord's vigilance rose to its highest level.
He lifted his head and stared at the familiar undead skeleton standing before him.
Damn it, what is going on now?
The Deep Darkness Dragon Lord roared inwardly.
Had those filthy creatures already predicted that he would come to the Slane Theocracy and prepared a trap here?
"My old friend, don't you remember me?"
"I still clearly remember the first time we met six hundred years ago."
Surshana spoke again.
He had noticed that the Deep Darkness Dragon Lord seemed to have misunderstood something.
"You... you are Surshana!"
After a brief moment of panic, the Deep Darkness Dragon Lord forced himself to calm down.
He stared warily at the skeleton in front of him.
Earlier, because both of them shared the appearance of skeletons, he had instinctively mistaken Surshana for the filthy one from the Sorcerer Kingdom.
But after sensing him carefully, he quickly realized something was wrong.
This aura...
"I never expected you to still be alive. Back then, the rumor said you were killed by the Eight Greed Kings."
"Hmph. Looks like you only faked your death."
The vigilance in the Deep Darkness Dragon Lord's eyes didn't fade. If anything, it grew even stronger.
One of the Six Great Gods.
The God of Death—Surshana.
Facing this filthy being who had lived for hundreds of years, he dared not relax even for a moment.
Especially since this was the other party's territory.
This was troublesome...
"A lot happened back then."
"But what I'm curious about now, my friend, is why you've come to the Theocracy."
Surshana shook his head before asking.
As he spoke, a suffocating pressure slowly spread through the air.
His crimson eyes were filled with chilling indifference.
An intense sense of discord began to surface.
The Deep Darkness Dragon Lord vaguely sensed that something around him was staring at him without restraint.
Not good. Very bad!
"I… I…"
"I actually came to seek cooperation with the Theocracy."
The Deep Darkness Dragon Lord's gaze shifted slightly as his mind raced.
The situation had become extremely complicated.
The sudden appearance of the God of Death had once again disrupted his plans.
But after calming down and thinking it through, he realized this could also be an opportunity.
"As a True Dragon Lord, I can only move in secret. Originally, I planned to seek out the Theocracy's priests, but your appearance is truly an unexpected delight."
In less than a second, the Deep Darkness Dragon Lord had already fabricated his excuse.
He didn't need the other party to truly believe it.
After all, neither of them was foolish.
He only needed the other side to pretend to believe.
In the end, interests were what mattered most.
"Oh? Cooperation?"
Surshana paused slightly, surprise coloring his tone.
Cooperation?
Between a Player and a True Dragon Lord?
Interesting. Very interesting.
His gaze swept across several faint figures around him, phantoms visible only to himself.
Seeing them nod one after another, Surshana relaxed.
For now, he would hear what the other had to say.
"That's right. You should already know about the three Players in the Sorcerer Kingdom. They are a threat."
"The tragedy caused by the Eight Greed Kings is still vivid in our memories."
"I want to unite the other True Dragon Lords and eliminate them in advance, preventing another disaster in the future."
The Deep Darkness Dragon Lord's purpose was simple.
He wanted to invite the God of Death to join forces against the Sorcerer Kingdom.
"That reason isn't enough to convince me."
"I cannot gamble the entire future of the Theocracy on your words alone."
"Besides, the Theocracy and the Sorcerer Kingdom may not necessarily become enemies."
It had to be said, the Deep Darkness Dragon Lord was truly bold. What gave him the confidence to think the Sorcerer Kingdom was weaker than the Eight Greed Kings of the past?
He recalled the ring Naohara had been wearing earlier.
Forget now.
Even during the Dragon Race's peak era, they might not have been able to defeat that power.
"Hah. Do you even believe that yourself?"
"Avoiding problems solves nothing. In the end, fate must be seized by our own hands."
The Deep Darkness Dragon Lord let out a cold laugh.
His personality was decisive, any unstable factor had to be destroyed.
To be honest, the Surshana standing before him was also a threat.
After all, the only good Player was a dead Player.
"…You're right."
Surshana nodded calmly.
On this point, the Deep Darkness Dragon Lord wasn't wrong.
Avoidance would never solve anything.
He didn't trust Naohara. He didn't trust the Sorcerer Kingdom. That much was certain.
If given the chance, destroying them would be preferable to forming an alliance.
Unfortunately, the Deep Darkness Dragon Lord had arrived too late.
If he had come earlier, Surshana might actually have agreed.
After all, compared to the True Dragon Lords, Players were undoubtedly the greater threat.
What a pity...
Surshana sighed inwardly, though his expression remained completely calm.
"Very well. I can provide some assistance."
He held no expectations for the Deep Darkness Dragon Lord.
But if the other party was confident, why stop him?
Let this guy test the Sorcerer Kingdom.
It could at least count as putting useless trash to some use.
"Then let's sign a contract."
The Deep Darkness Dragon Lord waved his hand. Fluctuations of Wild Magic spread outward, and a translucent scroll appeared in midair.
After going through the motions of confirming that the contract had no issues and adding an insignificant additional clause, Surshana casually signed his name.
It didn't matter.
To him now, so-called contracts were nothing but scraps of paper.
No effect could influence him in the slightest.
After all, he was not the real Surshana.
"As proof of our alliance, old friend, you wouldn't mind doing me a small favor, would you?"
Once the contract was established, Surshana spoke.
"What favor?"
The Deep Darkness Dragon Lord frowned slightly but did not refuse.
"The Elf King. The son of the Eight Greed Kings."
"Capture him alive and bring him back to the Theocracy."
Surshana calmly spoke the name.
In his current condition, it wasn't convenient for him to act personally.
The Theocracy could still win on its own, but it would take far too long.
Fortunately, a free laborer had just appeared.
It would be a waste not to use him.
And surely he wouldn't refuse.
After all, the son of the Eight Greed Kings.
That identity alone was enough to drive every True Dragon Lord mad.
"…Very well."
Just as Surshana had expected, the Deep Darkness Dragon Lord hesitated only briefly before agreeing.
"Then, a pleasant cooperation."
Surshana and the Deep Darkness Dragon Lord looked at each other and smiled.