Chapter 521
Arthur Draker.
The name of the once-feared overlord, long thought dead, was spoken, and the priest turned to Baron.
“Baron Draker, your sense of humor has taken a dark turn.”
“Why do you assume I’m joking?”
Baron continued, his gaze steady on the priest.
“The conditions are the same as Abel Draker’s, if not better. Arthur Draker has reached the level of a transcendent. With Zeus’s heart, he could harness the full power of the dragon.”
The priest frowned, realizing Baron knew more than he should about these matters.
“Arthur Draker is dead.”
“You know that’s not true.”
Arthur Draker, the overlord believed dead across the continent, was in fact alive, merely hidden from sight. Baron Draker’s bold declaration left the priest silent for a moment before he spoke slowly.
“Arthur Draker intends to become the vessel for the demon king? That’s hard to believe.”
“I never said Arthur Draker wanted to become a vessel.”
The priest’s aura darkened ominously.
“If you’re toying with me, you’ll pay dearly.”
Baron waved a hand dismissively.
“Calm down. Hear me out before you decide.”
The priest hesitated, then reined in the swirling darkness around him.
“Speak.”
Baron nodded.
“Arthur Draker is in a comatose state.”
“A comatose state? The overlord?”
“Yes. He ventured into the uncharted polar regions, a place no human should survive.”
“Explain further.”
Baron’s eyes gleamed as he spoke.
“The Black Star.”
The priest’s dark aura wavered at the mention.
“Arthur Draker crossed the giant mountain range into the land of beasts and returned with the Black Star.”
“I never imagined he would go there.”
The priest knew of the Black Star’s existence beyond the giant mountains, but even the abyss couldn’t penetrate the heart of that frozen land. They had once attempted to conquer the Forest of the Forgotten, deemed more accessible, but failed due to Zeke.
Yet, if Baron was to be believed, Arthur Draker had ventured alone into the polar region and returned with the Black Star.
“Arthur Draker sought the Elder Dragon’s relics for years but failed. So he changed his approach.”
“He chose the heart over the relics?”
“Precisely. But there was a problem. The Black Star can’t be implanted in a normal human body.”
The priest was aware of this. Implanting a dragon’s heart in a human was already a near-impossible feat, only made possible by the unique Draker lineage.
“Arthur Draker realized he needed to implant a dragon’s heart first to fully absorb the Black Star.”
“So he took the heart of the Light Dragon.”
The priest recalled a recent secret communication from Baron, offering a meeting because they possessed Zeus’s heart. Baron had even sent a recording of extracting the heart from Abel Draker’s chest.
The priest had possessed a wizard’s body to meet Baron, knowing the risks.
“You waited for Abel to awaken the Light Dragon’s heart, neutralize its madness, and for Ramon Siemens’s power to imprint on the dragon’s heart.”
Baron smiled.
“It wasn’t intentional, just how things unfolded.”
The priest found it hard to trust Baron’s words. The Black Stage, under Arthur Draker, had orchestrated countless schemes to control the continent. For Baron, the head of the Black Stage, devising such a plan was challenging but not impossible.
Baron continued, “Arthur Draker implanted Zeus’s heart and absorbed the Black Star. With his transcendent status, he believed he could handle it.”
Baron smiled darkly, and the priest spoke.
“He failed to absorb it, didn’t he?”
Zeus’s heart and the Black Star, a fragment of the Elder Dragon’s heart, had only been successfully absorbed by Zeke Draker. Even he had been trapped in a deep world for over two centuries before escaping.
Arthur Draker, already a transcendent, would have created an even more formidable deep world. His soul was now trapped, unable to escape unless he overcame his own limits.
The priest pondered Baron’s words.
“You propose using Arthur Draker’s unconscious body as the demon king’s vessel?”
“The ideal vessel, wouldn’t you say? A transcendent body with Zeus’s and the Elder Dragon’s hearts, but no consciousness.”
If true, it was a far superior vessel than Abel Draker, potentially even stronger than the past vessel of Siemens Apollyon. But the fact that Baron brought this deal was troubling.
“Drakers are as untrustworthy as they come.”
Even the ancient priest knew to be wary of the Drakers’ cunning. They could betray at any moment, and their cooperation might be part of a larger scheme. Dealing with the Drakers was riskier than dealing with demons.
“What do you want in return for offering Arthur Draker as the demon king’s vessel?”
Baron replied seriously, “I want the Draker family.”
He wasn’t after wealth, power, or territory, but the Draker family itself.
“You want to become the head of the Draker family?”
“I was born a branch member of the Drakers. Though I was a pureblood awakened, I wasn’t strong enough to become a knight.”
Baron suddenly tore off his mask, revealing his true face—scarred, with missing features, more grotesque than a lich.
“Despite being a pureblood, I was sent to the Black Stage. This is the result of a lifetime of loyalty to the Drakers.”
Baron Draker’s hidden resentment and anger were laid bare. He had lived as the overlord’s shadow, handling the Drakers’ dirtiest work. Despite bearing the Draker name, he wasn’t considered a true Draker, not being a knight.
Baron’s eyes glinted with malice.
“After Arthur Draker fell, I realized this might be my chance.”
Baron had long shared secrets with Arthur Draker, knowing the details of the demon king’s descent. He also understood Arthur’s intentions—letting the abyss run rampant until the right moment to eliminate them before the demon king’s arrival.
Arthur had allowed the abyss to act because a certain level of instability made other kingdoms more reliant on the Drakers. Too much peace would lead to dissent, so Arthur maintained a delicate balance.
But variables arose.
The first was Zeke Draker. As the savior knight, Zeke’s actions began to disrupt Arthur’s plans. The abyss needed to create chaos for the Draker knights to intervene, but Zeke resolved major issues himself.
The second was Ramon Siemens. The Siemens, once the Drakers’ greatest allies, betrayed them. Ramon Siemens became the avatar of the evil god Azitahaka, attempting to summon him.
With the abyss and the Nostra family involved, and Zeke at the center, controlling the situation became chaotic.
Yet, Zeke’s unexpected success led Arthur to change his plans. He stepped back, letting Zeke handle the abyss and Siemens, while he focused on the polar expedition.
While Arthur faked his death and embarked on his expedition, Baron filled the power vacuum.
The priest realized Baron had tasted the power Arthur wielded, even indirectly, in that short time. It awakened or perhaps rekindled Baron’s desire to possess the Draker family.
Baron asked the priest, “Priest, what does the abyss truly want by bringing the demon king into this world? Do you really wish to lead it to destruction?”
The priest hesitated, knowing his answer could either forge an alliance with Baron or sever ties. After a moment, he spoke slowly.
“To break the stagnant order. That is the purpose of summoning the King in Yellow.”
“Breaking the stagnant order? What do you mean by that?”
“Baron, do you believe this world is normal as it is?”
[The current state of the world is twisted and distorted. We live within a stagnant order created by someone else, like sheep trapped in a pen or fish confined to a tank.]
“So, the purpose of resurrecting the Demon King is to break free from this confinement?”
[You could say that.]
“Then who are the ones who built this cage and framework that hold us?”
In response, the priest raised a finger to point towards the sky.
[Those above.]
Baron’s eyebrows twitched.
“Surely you don’t mean… the celestial beings? But they left this world long ago…”
[Just because they are unseen does not mean they don’t influence our realm.]
The priest spoke in a low voice.
[This land is still the playground of the gods, and we are merely their toys.]
Baron pondered for a moment before nodding.
“Very well. As long as the goal of summoning the Demon King isn’t the destruction of this world, I have no objections.”
He continued, looking at the priest.
“The terms are simple. Hand over Arthur Draker’s body, help me become the head of the Draker family, and stay out of Draker territory thereafter.”
The priest considered Baron’s words briefly before nodding.
[Agreed. However, we have one condition as well.]
Baron grinned.
“I expected as much. What is your condition, Dr. West?”
A soft crackling sound filled the air as the body the priest had possessed began to crumble.
Possessing the body of an ordinary mage, rather than an apostle of the abyss, required immense karma.
As the body disintegrated, the priest looked at Baron.
[Zeke Draker. I know he is not Arthur Draker’s true heir.]
The priest had once attempted to curse Arthur Draker using Zeke Draker’s blood, but the curse had failed because they were not blood-related.
With a sharp voice, the priest continued.
[We need all the information on him that remains within Draker.]
“All the information on Zeke Draker…”
Baron contemplated the priest’s words before slowly nodding.
“Agreed. I accept your condition.”
[Remember, Baron Draker. Breaking a deal with the abyss comes with a heavy price.]
“I could say the same. Don’t take your deal with Draker lightly.”
The priest did not respond, and soon the mage’s body completely disintegrated.
Where the priest had stood, only gray ashes remained.
Baron watched this, then slowly lifted his head.
A soft crackling sound echoed again as Baron’s grotesque face shifted, transforming into another.
A middle-aged man with ash-gray hair slicked back—Arthur Draker, the fallen overlord who had lost consciousness after failing to harness the power of the black star.