Abyss Draconis

"New races climb up the hierarchy every day. In fact, it's a competition to climb higher and higher. But if there are three who are so strong, it's hard to think they'll ever fall off."

"The first would be the Luminarchs."

"Those guys… those guys are gods," Antares said, as Ryuk's gaze sharpened with interest.

"They are?"

"Yes. They are. They are literal gods, worshipped by most races in the Upper Realm. They're like royalty among all royal races."

"And of course, I've never seen a Luminarch before," he added, as Ryuk nodded.

"The second are the Dayborns."

"They're strong, but their strength isn't technically about brute force. They're very respected—if not as much as the Luminarchs. Some say the reason is because they possess the power to restore lost memories and purge haunted souls."

"There's a myth that they can even purge the aura of death from an already dead person, bringing him or her back to life."

"But of course, I've never seen that done before. But you get the gist of it?" he said, and Ryuk nodded too.

If they can purge death aura, then it's safe to say they could potentially cure almost all diseases or illnesses. Healers are all respected, no matter if they are weak or strong in combat.

"The third strongest guys are the Halowyrms."

"They represent all beastly races in the entire Upper Realm, and I heard that most of them are draconic in nature."

"You'd barely hear a Halowyrm's orders passed down in the Upper Realm, but when they do order… then the world must listen."

"So, the dragons, huh?" Ryuk mused, but was halted as Antares shook his head.

"No, not the dragons. The dragons are on the hierarchy—high, even—but they're not the Halowyrms. If there are dragons, then consider Halowyrms to be just above them."

"They could have the same form and the same draconic nature, but they're higher on the scale of life existence. Like their masters."

"But using that word on a dragon is absurd. Those prideful pieces of shit would rather die than take a master…" he said, as Ryuk chuckled.

"Seems like the pride of a dragon holds true even in the Upper Realm," Ryuk said, and Antares nodded firmly.

"It does. I've seen a couple of dragons before, and man, they are the incarnation of pride. I actually think they live off pride or something. Absolutely detesting anything and everything."

"And what's maddening? They don't even try to disdain you—they just naturally do it."

"They give you that look that makes you ask why you even exist in the first place. And they also just happen to be strong enough to show you that you're truly inferior to them if you ever wish to challenge that."

"Quite the special case, if you ask me."

"Have you ever thought of dragons being wiped out from the Upper Realm one day?" Ryuk asked as Anatare's eyes furrowed from the question, and proceeded to explain deeper.

"I mean, races get wiped out every now and then, no? And it's been 600 years since you last saw the Upper Realm."

"Would you think it possible to get back to the Upper Realm only to be told the dragons no longer exist and have been wiped out?" He explained, as Antares shrugged unbothered.

"Nah. I don't care. Wiped out or not, does nothing to me or for me."

"But whoever wiped them out definitely will think twice before doing that because I heard the Halowyrms love the dragons. They're the only lower race that they even interact with. So… if you lay your hands on a dragon and wipe them all out—"

"The third strongest force of the Upper Realm won't be sitting idly by and keeping quiet. And when such a force moves, the entire Upper Realm will shake."

"So really, everyone would avoid that."

"Well, everyone but the Evil Conquerors race, who are also on the hierarchy and just as strong. They might not mind messing with the dragons."

"But wiping out the dragons… It's hard to accomplish without massively upsetting the balance. If the dragons were indeed wiped out, then the news will be everywhere for sure..." he explained to Ryuk, whose brows creased before he nodded calmly.

'I hope they still breathe on...' he thought to himself silently.

"Anyway, Ryuk. You do know there's a search order on our head, right? With people being rewarded and all if they can find your location."

"Are you really sure this place is secure enough?" Antares suddenly asked, as Ryuk's expression grew still before he replied quietly.

"Nobody knows this place except for you and me… and well, the organization that sold this place to me."

"Chances of them ever finding this space are close to nil. Of course, unless the organization sold out my location to them."

"But 100,000 Star Coins won't be tempting enough for them to compromise a client's info."

"I'm confident they won't do it," he said, as Antares nodded his head.

"I'll keep an eye on things outside just to be safe. You can rest well assured on being alerted if I sense something abnormal," he said, tapping on Ryuk's shoulder before he rose up and jumped into the air, becoming a light beam that continued into the distance.

Ryuk looked into the distance where he had left, before turning away with a faint smile on his lips.

'It's good to have someone like you around, Antares… 'he silently thought to himself, closing his eyes before his lips moved.

"And for how long will you remain in hiding, Rakshasa…" he suddenly called out, and the world remained in silence for a while before Ryuk opened his eyes and stared to the left, his gaze on the empty space.

Or so it seemed—until the void rippled, and stepping out was none other than Rakshasa.

"Since when did you know I've been here? How do you even—?" she asked, as Ryuk shrugged his shoulders.

"A guess."

"That's a lie," she responded. If it were a guess, then Ryuk would not have looked in her direction.

"I can feel your existence. If you're close by, it's like suddenly lighting up a flame in the darkness. Very eye-catching," Ryuk said, as Rakshasa's eyes glinted with curiosity.

"So pretty much the whole time?" she asked, and he nodded.

"Yes. The whole time."

"Sneaking on conversations is a bad habit, though, don't you think?" he suddenly asked as he turned his attention to the brown-skinned Succutera whose gaze knitted before her response.

"Just trying to be safe..."