Dark Warlock in the Apocalypse

Although it had grown much larger and its form had slightly changed, Justin knew without a doubt that the black dragon soaring above was Fafnir.

"You're saying that dragon is Fafnir? Seriously?"

"Are you sure you're not mistaken?"

The frozen expressions on Justin's allies melted away as they turned to him, eyes wide in disbelief. But Justin nodded confidently in response to their questions.

"I'm sure. That's definitely Fafnir. There's something about the bond between a pet and its owner—you just know."

"Then..."

"No way!"

Their conversation was abruptly interrupted by Lucian's agonized scream. His eyes were practically bulging out of his head as he stared at Fafnir in shock.

"A true dragon!? Not a lesser one? At this stage!? No matter how twisted this system is, this kind of difficulty is ridiculous!"

Ah, now it made sense. Lucian didn't realize that Fafnir was Justin's pet, mistaking the dragon for some event boss the system had summoned for the quest. It was a laughable misunderstanding, but Justin didn't have the time to correct him.

"Graaaaah!"

"Dragon!"

Lucian's golden dragon let out a roar, clearly not happy to see another dragon suddenly appear. It ascended into the sky with a furious flap of its wings, despite Lucian shouting to hold it back.

"Kyahhhh!"

With a deafening shriek, the golden dragon unleashed a blast of fiery red breath from its maw. Even though the two dragons were far apart, the intense heat was palpable, radiating all the way to where Justin and his group stood. Fafnir, watching the oncoming attack, simply snorted and opened its jaws wide.

Fwoosh!

Unlike the golden dragon's red flames, Fafnir's fire was an icy blue. The two streams of flame collided midair, seeming to struggle for dominance... but there was no contest.

Fwoosh!

Fafnir's blue flames completely overwhelmed the red fire of Lucian's dragon, slamming into the golden dragon with ease. It was as if Fafnir's flames had swatted away the red fire like it was nothing.

Lucian's mouth hung open as he watched his dragon get knocked out of the sky.

"Dragon!"

Boom!

The golden dragon crashed into the ground with a thunderous impact, its body engulfed in blue flames. The shockwave sent pioneers scattering, some of whom were killed instantly by the combination of the falling dragon and the spreading fire.

"Krrrrr."

With a low rumble, Fafnir gracefully landed near Justin and his allies, looking smug as it exhaled through its nostrils as if to say, Did you see that?.

Justin chuckled, and despite the stunned silence around him, he casually approached Fafnir. His companions, Damian and Zeal, shouted in alarm.

"Justin! That's dangerous!"

"What are you doing!?"

"It's been a while, huh? How was your time in the egg?" Justin asked, affectionately patting Fafnir's head.

"Krrr."

Fafnir rubbed its head against Justin playfully, like a giant, affectionate cat. Both Damian and Zeal were left dumbfounded by the sight.

It wasn't just Damian and Zeal who were in shock. Everyone who had assumed Fafnir was a wild monster was completely speechless. Only Justin's subordinates seemed to have some inkling of what was going on.

"Wait, is that Fafnir?"

"The tiny dragon got that big?"

"What happened to make it grow like that...?"

"Oh, so that's why the lord hasn't had Fafnir on his shoulder."

Though the whispers were quiet, the eerie stillness in the air made their voices sound as loud as thunder.

At last, the rest of the pioneers began to piece the situation together. The quickest to catch on after Justin's subordinates was Damian.
Explore more at My Virtual Library Empire

"No way... is that the same dragon you used to carry around on your shoulder...?"

"Yeah, that's Fafnir. You remember him, right?" Justin responded, his voice calm.

"Krrrr."

Fafnir raised its head and snorted, baring its teeth at Damian, clearly remembering their previous encounters as enemies. Damian stiffened, bowing his head and speaking in a shaky voice.

"Justin...!"

"Relax. It's just playing around. You should know better—Fafnir wouldn't hurt an ally."

"Krrr."

Fafnir, looking bored, turned its head away, seemingly losing interest in Damian. Once again, the surrounding pioneers swallowed nervously. They had not only witnessed Fafnir's intelligence but also the fact that Justin had complete control over the massive dragon.

"This can't be... not to me... this is..."

Lucian, who had been staring blankly at Fafnir, muttered in disbelief. His mind seemed shattered by the realization that his status as the sole dragon tamer was gone. More than likely, it was the loss of his title as the one and only dragon master that had broken him.

Watching Lucian struggle to process the situation, Justin patted Fafnir proudly.

"What's the matter? Did you really think you were the only pioneer with a dragon?" Justin asked mockingly.

"...!"

"Sorry to disappoint you, but there's another one right here. And from the looks of it, I got mine before you did, seeing how your dragon hasn't even fully grown yet."

Lucian's face turned a deep shade of red. Having lost his unique status and now realizing he had fallen behind, his pride crumbled. With nothing left to hold onto, there was only one choice left for Lucian: prove his dragon was stronger than Justin's.

"Dragon!"

"Graaaaah!"

At Lucian's command, the golden dragon, still seething with hostility, rose once more and roared. Even without Lucian's order, it looked ready to attack.

But despite the golden dragon's fierce display, Fafnir simply raised its head and snorted dismissively, as if mocking its challenger.

"Kyahhhhh!"

Thud!

Infuriated by Fafnir's arrogance, the golden dragon charged forward. After losing the breath battle, it seemed to have decided that close combat would give it a better chance. With both dragons being similar in size and shape, perhaps it believed it could win this way. It wasn't a bad decision—if not for the fact that the black dragon, Fafnir, was considered the most powerful of all dragons.

"Grahh, Kaahhh!"

Wham!

The golden dragon lunged at Fafnir, aiming to sink its teeth into Fafnir's neck, but its head was abruptly knocked to the side. Fafnir had swiftly slapped the golden dragon across the face, disorienting it. While the golden dragon staggered, trying to regain its senses, Fafnir seized the moment and bit down hard on its opponent's neck.

"Kyahhhh!"

"Krrrrr!"

Fafnir shook the golden dragon by the neck, silencing its screams as if to say, Stay quiet. The helpless golden dragon flailed, but its attempts to escape were futile. Fafnir shook its head violently before tossing the golden dragon aside like a ragdoll and raising its body proudly.

Boom!

"Kaagh!"

With a thunderous crash, Fafnir pinned the golden dragon to the ground, pressing its front paws onto its body and head. The impact was so strong that dust scattered in all directions. The golden dragon, trapped beneath Fafnir's massive frame, couldn't even muster a proper scream, merely gurgling in pain as its neck and body were crushed. Its struggles grew weaker and weaker until, finally, they stopped altogether.

"Krrrr..."

An agonized whimper escaped the golden dragon's mouth—a clear sign of surrender. Fafnir, still pinning the dragon down, lifted its head arrogantly, scanning the surrounding area as if to boast of its victory.

"Shit... Shiiit!" Lucian cursed furiously, his face bright red from anger and humiliation.

At Lucian's outburst, Fafnir snapped its sharp gaze toward him, baring its teeth with a low growl.

"Krrrrr!"

"H-hurry, attack!" Lucian stammered, terrified, as he ordered his group to attack. But none of his pioneers moved. Instead, they all hurriedly backed away, hoping to avoid catching Fafnir's attention.

Lucian's face turned ashen as he helplessly watched the scene unfold. Fafnir's throat began to glow with the blue flames of its breath, but just before it unleashed its power, Justin's voice cut through the air.

"Fafnir, stop."

"Krrrk...?" Fafnir blinked in confusion, tilting its head as if asking why it had to stop. Justin gently patted the dragon's side and explained, "He's still useful. Don't kill him. And the golden dragon you've got pinned—don't kill it either."

"Krrrr...." Fafnir let out a low, dissatisfied rumble, its head drooping as if sulking. It had been looking forward to having some fun, but now it seemed disappointed.

Reluctantly, Fafnir ceased its breath attack and removed its paws from the golden dragon.

Fwoosh!

"Kyiiing!"

At that moment, the golden dragon, once formidable, shrank back to its original small size. The forced growth had worn off. The tiny dragon whimpered and immediately flew behind Lucian, hiding behind him. Lucian closed his eyes tightly, overcome with a sense of bitter defeat.

"...What are you planning?" Lucian asked, his voice trembling.

"I told you—you're still useful. If you die now, that would be a problem for me," Justin replied calmly.

"And you think I'll just follow along with whatever you want?"

"If you don't, I'll kill you."

"And if I do follow you, you're not going to spare me, are you?" Lucian snapped, his voice filled with bitterness as he glared at Justin.

Justin chuckled and answered, "You don't have a choice. All I want is for you and that dragon of yours to return safely to your territory."

"What?"

Before Lucian could question him further, Justin's gaze shifted toward Kane, whose face had turned deathly pale. It was clear that Kane couldn't comprehend how the situation had flipped so drastically in an instant. But when he noticed the flickering flames in Fafnir's mouth, he quickly snapped out of his daze and shouted.

"S-spare me! Please!"

"No."

"Wait! You need equipment, right? I have rare gear and mana stones! If you spare me, I'll give you whatever you want!"

"Fafnir, burn them all."

Fwoooosh!

At Justin's command, Fafnir unleashed its devastating blue flames upon Kane and his followers. The overwhelming heat left them no time to scream as they were reduced to ashes in mere moments. In an instant, all 20 of Kane's pioneers were gone.

But Fafnir didn't stop there.

Fwoooosh!

"Huh!? It's coming this way!"

"No! No! Please, spare us! Aaaagh!"

As Fafnir swept its breath across the battlefield, those outside the immediate range of the flames panicked and tried to flee. But no matter how fast they ran, they couldn't escape the dragon's fiery wrath.

"Aaaagh...!"

Their desperate cries were short-lived as their bodies were engulfed in blue flames. By the time Fafnir stopped its attack, nearly 80 pioneers had been incinerated. Lucian, staring in horror at the sight of his own men reduced to ashes, turned to Justin, his face pale.

"W-why!?"

"Why? I told you—I still have a use for you, but not your subordinates. Did you think I needed them?"

"What the hell does that mean!? You bastard!" Lucian shouted, tears welling up in his eyes. His pride, his comrades, and everything he had built were crumbling before him, and his emotions finally reached their breaking point.

Justin decided to stop toying with him and explain things clearly. "What do you think it means? If Fafnir killed your dragon, all it would gain is some experience. If I'm going to kill it, I might as well maximize the benefit."

"...No way."

Lucian's face twisted with realization. His expression changed rapidly as he struggled to grasp what Justin was implying. Then, as if begging for a different answer, Lucian looked at him with a pleading expression.

"That's not it... right?"

"You guessed it," Justin replied with a bright smile, confirming Lucian's worst fear. "Go home and raise your dragon. Later on, I'll use it as a sacrifice to unlock a hidden job for one of my subordinates—the Dragon Slayer."