{Author's Note}
Hey everyone! I know that this chapter was delayed for about two months, but I do have a good reason for it this time: I was sick with COVID! Yeah, not exactly a fun time, and between the pain, the coughing, and the fever, I couldn't think straight enough to write.
But! I've finally got this chapter out!
So...
Continuez l'histoire !
***
{A Few Seconds Ago}
Now, most people might wonder why Kevin's reaction to the Dragon Seal being imprinted on his hand was so volatile. After all, for anyone else it would just be the equivalent of a tattoo that allows those of the draconic races to know that he has completed the trial. The only magical aspect in it was the way it was applied.
Unfortunately for Kevin, though, his body's reaction to the magic that applied it wasn't normal whatsoever. Instead of just receiving an involuntary mark on his skin that he could easily cover up to avoid the trouble it would inevitably bring in the future, he also received a notification from the Eeveelution System.
[Congratulations!]
[Due to the unique interaction between the Dragon Seal and the Host's body, a unique effect has appeared as a result! From now on, the Host will be twice as desirable to any Draconic race, regardless of whether or not they see the Seal! This effect with remain until the Host is able to remove the Dragon Seal]
[Warning: Dragon Seal cannot be removed by any normal means, or most magical means.]
Needless to say, this immediately pissed the short teenager off. It was already bad enough that merely being male gave every monster who came across him a reason to try raping him; but making him even MORE susceptible to being attacked by dragons?
"Remove it or I will gut you like a fish and display your bones and organs on the outside of this Pyramid like ornaments on a Christmas Tree," he growled.
Sphinx was rendered speechless. For the first time since she'd set up this trial a thousand years ago, she had finally imprinted the Dragon Seal onto a pair of adventurers. She expected happiness, gratitude, and any other number of positive emotions, all of which she WAS seeing in the woman she could tell was her descendent.
So, why was the boy walking toward her and radiating rage?
"What? Why?" she finally asked, trying to understand the sudden shift.
Since the Eevee was too consumed by his own anger, Sylph replied for him. "Oh, you poor nice lady," she sighed. "Kevin hates the constant attacks by random monsters trying to r*pe him. The seal you just put on him reacted badly with his body and made it so he's twice as attractive to dragons, even without showing the seal off. Do you see the problem?"
"I do see where the issue lies," Sphinx nodded in understanding. "But, I unfortunately cannot remove the Dragon Seal. The magic used to mark someone with it makes it nearly impossible to remove. Even if you were to completely remove the skin on the hand, or the hand itself, it would just move to a different part of his body."
Hearing this, Kevin stopped moving, merely continuing to stare at her.
"I'm willing to give you compensation as an apol-"
Sphinx's attempt at diffusing the situation was crushed, along with her windpipe, when the Eevee suddenly disappeared from his spot across the room, and appeared right in front of her face with his fingers wrapped around her neck. Looking into his eyes, she could see no mercy, compassion, or forgiveness. There was only an intense desire for murder.
[Extreme Speed - Normal Type Move]
[Description: The user charges the target at blinding speed. This move always goes first.]
"If it makes you feel any better," Sylph spoke again, still sitting on her host's shoulder as if he hadn't move faster than even a Queen-Class monster could perceive. "You won't be missing your dead husband for much longer."
The choking queen wanted to say that no, that wasn't a very comforting thought, but was prevented by the aforementioned hand crushing her throat. It would've fallen on deaf ears, anyway, as the Spirit retreated back into Kevin's soul.
Sphinx's self-preservation instincts finally kicked in around that time, resulting in her monster half trying to rid herself of the attacker. Between her massive lion half shaking violently, and the snakes coming out of her back biting the boy, she was able to eventually throw him off and take a few deep breaths.
This period of respite was cut short, however, by a blinding flash coming from where the teenager landed. Standing in his place was a completely different looking monster boy, this one taller, tanner, and exuding an aura that was almost identical to that of the Spirit of Water, Undine.
"I wanna say no hard feeling, brah," he stated, his expression a mix of frustrated and disappointed. "But you harshed all of the mellows I had left. Now, I gotta show you why you don't mess with a man's tan."
It was at that moment that, for the first time since acquiring it, the Ideal Weather function of the System activated. As a result, a collection of rainclouds suddenly materialized at ceiling of the room. They remained motionless for only a second before letting loose a deluge of rain, immediately drenching all three of the room's occupants.
Sphinx, with her high magical aptitude, was immediately able to see how the sudden downpour of water had started to power up her opponent even more. She knew she only had mere seconds to come up with a plan to either protect herself or run away.
Considering how much magical energy she could see concentrating around the boy's arms, she decided that escaping had a higher probability of her surviving. As such, she quickly tapped into her magic and teleported the fuck out of there.
A millisecond after her sudden disappearance, the space she was previously occupying was blasted by a devastating torrent of water. Where the attack originated, Kevin was standing with both hands extended, each releasing its own pressurized jet of water, which merged together to create the deadly Move.
[Hydro Pump – Water Type Move]
[Description: The target is blasted by a huge volume of water launched under great pressure.]
While his target had managed to avoid the Move, the same couldn't be said about the large door behind her...or the wall behind it...or the wall behind that wall. The high-pressure blast of liquid cut through the ancient stone like butter, even bypassing all of the defensive enchantments in the process. If one were to look through the hole that was left behind, they'd be able to see that the attack had stopped just a few walls short of breaching the outer wall of the Pyramid.
Lowering his hands after the Move was finished, Kevin frowned. He had felt the moment that she'd pulled her vanishing act, and was disappointed that she hadn't been reduced to a pile of waterlogged body parts.
"Do you really think you can just run away after what you did?" he asked out loud, certain that the monster could still hear him. "Nah, brah. Let me tell you how this works: I show up, do my thing, and inevitably get all of my good vibes washed away by some overhyped monster dudette. Then, I crash down on them like a tsunami, dragging them to the depths where they belong. You feel me?"
From her hiding spot in a deeper part of the Pyramid, Sphinx felt a pit form in her stomach. She had hoped that removing herself from the area, and thus removing the source of his anger, would allow the boy to calm down enough for her to maybe speak calmly with him again. Instead, it seemed to have pissed him off even more, and her instincts were screaming at her to vacate the Pyramid altogether.
A sentiment which she immediately broadcasted to the minds of every monster inhabiting the building with her.
Back in the central chamber, Sara was looking at her bodyguard with a mixture of awe and fear. She knew that he was strong, as was evidence by how he had defeated the monsters that had stood in their way; but to be capable of terrifying the Sphinx and tearing a hole through dozens of stone walls in a single attack? No wonder he never appeared to be even the least bit winded after she woke up from being defeated.
"Hey, bronette?" he suddenly called out to her, snapping her out of her daze. "You might want to get a little closer to me. That is, if you don't want to be swept away when I bring out the big waves."
Instincts the princess didn't even know she had flared within her, urging her to do as the teenager said. Not wanting to know what being 'swept away' would entail, she immediately dashed across the room to stand beside him. She would've held onto him for good measure, but those same instincts that told her to close the distance between them simultaneously warned her against laying even a single finger on him in his current state.
Once he was sure his source of chocolate was secure, he proceeded to take off his backpack and bring it in front of him. While he could easily unleash a plethora of Moves on his surroundings in an attempt to flush out the Sphinx, he decided that that would be too time consuming, Instead, he was going to make some waves in another way.
"You ever been to the ocean, brah!?" he shouted as he started to unzip the Bag of Holding compartment. "Because I'm about to bring the ocean to you!"
Upon fully opening, a flood of water immediate burst forth from the bag with the force of a raging river. What he was setting lose was the thousands of gallons of sea water that he'd stored in his attempt to kill drain the ocean and kill the Kraken. If he was in his Eevee form, he might've internally marveled at the irony that he was using the same sea water to try and kill another Queen Class monster, but that wouldn't occur to him until much later.
He specifically aimed the horizontal-waterfall, which was getting faster the longer he held the bag open, at the hold he'd made in the wall, just to make sure that every hallway would be flooded as fast as possible. And it was working. The maze-like passages throughout the Pyramid were rapidly filling with more water than had even touched the building since its construction, and the monsters were rushing to escape.
Only a few dozen monsters inhabited the twisting halls of the Pyramid. With the size of the structure, they would hardly encounter each other more than once a week, considering their patrol routes and the separated hidden rooms they rested in. Now, though, an entire crowd of them were running for their lives for the exit, desperate to not be the first monsters to somehow not drown in the desert.
Sphinx, knowing that it was unlikely that the majority of them would make it out before all layers of the Pyramid were underwater, made the executive decision to teleport both the large groups and the lone individuals to the exit. It took more than a few trips, as she had to be standing next too someone to teleport them, but within a few minutes she was able to successfully evacuate the Pyramid. All that was left inside were their belonging, the treasures they'd gathered over the years in the vault, and the murderous psychopath who was trying to kill them all.
Alice, having been relaxing and enjoying the sunlight in combination with her cooling magic, was more than a little surprised when the first monsters left the pyramid. As far as she knew, from lessons she'd received in regards to all of the major monster locations in the world, no monster had left the Pyramid in the entire 1000 years of its existence. All inhabitants of the building were either the original monsters who'd taken up residence in the Pyramid all those years ago, or were born and raised in there.
Needless to say, ANY of them leaving was odd. The sheer number of them that were running/slithering out of the front doors was even more evidence that something was definitely not right. And finally, the last nail in the coffin was that the majority of them looked as if they had just been pulled out of a river, with their hair and clothing soaking wet and a fair number of them coughing up water from their lungs.
This had Kevin written all over it.
It was when the enormous form of the Sphinx finally burst through the doors, followed closely by a torrent of water, that the Monster Lord finally let out a sigh and slithered forward to find out what happened.
Sphinx was too focused on the Pyramid itself to notice the approaching lamia. Instead, her mind was completely set on sealing the building. As such, she turned around at speeds much faster than one would expect from someone of her size and place her hands on both of the doors. Forcing them shut, she chanted out the activation phrase for an enchantment she'd set up years ago when the Pyramid was first constructed.
Countless lines of magical power spread out from her hands, outlining a plethora of runic formations set into the stone of the structure. They continue to spread out until the entirety of the Pyramid was glowing brightly, before a loud clicking sound echoes through the arid air.
With a sigh, the Queen Class monster slumped over. "There," she huffed in relief. "That should hold him back, at least until we can all get away from here."
"And who might you have just locked inside?" a voice came from behind her.
Whipping around, Sphinx was met with the sight of none other than the Monster Lord herself. After being visited by the incredibly powerful lamia a few years ago after she had taken the position, the former Queen of Sabasa couldn't mistake her for anyone else, as even the purple skinned woman's magical presence was exactly the same.
"Alipheese Fateburn XVI," she acknowledged the lamia with a respectful bow. "Unfortunately, you've come at a terrible time. As much as I would love to welcome you to the Pyramid again and prepare a feast, I must ask you for your assistance instead."
Despite knowing almost exactly what was coming, Alice crossed her arms beneath her breasts and acted as if she didn't. "Oh? And what would a Queen Class monster such as yourself, the mighty Sphinx, need?"
Taking a deep breath to calm herself down further, Sphinx replied. "As you know, the true purpose of the Pyramid is the Dragon Seal Trial, which I set up a thousand years ago. After hundreds of would-be treasure hunters, adventurers, and Heroes had tried and failed to plunder the treasures stored in our deepest vault, I finally encountered someone who actually braved the Pyramid for the trial itself.
"It was one one my descendants, and though she was not physically powerful enough to defeat any of my subordinates, she was intelligent and truthful enough to pass the final challenge of my riddles," she continued. Although, she paused here, as if trying to decide how to broach the next topic.
Still acting the part of the unaware bystander, Alice raised a hand to her chin. "Interesting. If I remember correctly, the purpose of the trial is for the human to receive the Dragon Seal on their hand and make them eligible to marry a member of the dragon race, rather than just be raped and tossed aside."
"It is indeed," Sphinx nodded. "I'm happy that you remembered."
"Although, there is a hole in your story," Alice continued. "If she wasn't strong enough to defeat any of your guards, how did she make it to you?"
The Queen Class monster's shoulders sagged. "That...is where I require your help, my lord. My descendant was accompanied by a boy. A male monster with a level of power that could rival the Four Spirits, which I can confirm to you due to the fact that he is already accompanied by Sylph, the Spirit of the Wind.."
"Was he about five feet tall, had fox ears and a tail, and always looking like he'd rather be literally anywhere else?"
"...Yes. I'm assuming you've met him?" Sphinx questioned. "He did mention you stopping him from killing one of the Four Heavenly Knights."
Alice nodded. "Indeed, I do know him. He's usually pleasant to be around, as long as you don't attack him or overstep any boundaries." She then sighed in exasperation. "Despite that, I've not only had to save Granberia from him, but also two other Queen Class monsters that somehow managed to earn his ire."
She then looked directly into Sphinx's eyes. "Judging by the fact that everyone is out here, and you in particular look roughed up and scared, should I assume that you, too, did something to anger him?"
Sphinx hunched over even further in shame. "Yes, I did. When my descendant passed the Trial, I decided in the moment to extend the reward of the seal to the young man. He was the one who brought her through the Pyramid in the first place and kept her safe, despite his stated opinion that marriage is a mistake. If nothing else, it would be proof that he had braved the trial and give any dragon a higher opinion of him."
"The logic is sound," Alice agreed. "What went wrong?"
"According to Sylph, the boy's body reacted to the seal in a way that makes it so he is now twice as attractive to any member of the draconic races, even if they are unable to see the seal itself. When I told him that I do not have the ability to remove it, as it's meant to be a permanent indicator of one who has passed the trial, he immediately grabbed my throat and tried to crush it.
"As you can see, it only escalated from there," Sphinx concluded, gesturing to the state of her subordinates and the glowing Pyramid.
Alice was unable to resist the overwhelming urge to face-palm using both hands. This was one of the only Queen Class monsters whom she trusted to NOT cause an incident with Kevin. Hell, the lamia had even told the boy she'd go on a DIET if such a situation were to occur!
'Dear First, please don't let him remember that,' she thought with dread, a shiver traveling from the base of her neck all the way to the tip of her tail. 'I just know he'll reduce my portions at every meal if he does. I can already feel the hunger pains.'
Unable to hear the thoughts of the Monster Lord, Sphinx was left wondering what kind of encounters the woman had had with the overpowered monster boy for such a shiver to pass through her body. How hard were the battles she'd fought to protect the others who were unfortunate enough to anger him? What kind of pain had she felt?
Before the former Queen of Sabasa could pose any of these questions, an explosion was able to be both heard and felt from the Pyramid, drawing all eyes to it. Sphinx's eyes widened at the enormous hole that was now visible near the top of the structure, with rubble falling into and around it.
A second later, another explosion sounded off, this time with everyone's eyes on its location. This time, they were able to see what caused the hole: a massive beam of pillar of light punching a hold through both the stone and the sealing formation. This repeated twenty more times, in rapid succession, until the top of the Pyramid finally collapsed inward, leaving a gaping opening in the once-inescapable building.
[Flash Cannon - Steel Type Move]
[Description: The user gathers all of their light energy and releases it at once. This may also lower the target's Sp. Def stat.]
From that opening, something leaped out at a high enough speed to be a blur, even to the eyes of a more powerful monster. Upon landing in front of the gathered group, it was revealed to be Kevin in her Galveon form, holding a very startled Sara in her arms.
After not being able to think hard enough of a move to break through the runic formation in his Vaporeon form, he'd shifted back before electing for a more...destructive evolution. All it had taken to escape was a few calculations, several [Flash Cannons] to utterly decimate the ceiling, and a powerful application of upward thrust in her legs.
Setting the princess down gently on her feet, the Galveon snapped her attention to Sphinx, "Who gave you permission to leave?" she asked, her emotionless voice sending chills through almost everyone present.
"I...uh...um..." Sphinx stuttered nervously. Her own eyes briefly shifted to look at Alice, her expression begging the Monster Lord to save her.
Seeing this, Alice once again audibly sighed. "Fine. Kevin, you know the drill by now. I can't just let you kill one of my most powerful and loyal subordinates."
"Your concern for the life of your subordinate has been noted and filed away for future review, alongside the new diet you are to be put on for the failure of said subordinate," Kevin replied, her gaze not even slightly shifting away from her intended target. However, due to the previously observed pattern that had been established between them, the Galveon didn't immediately start attacking; instead, she waited for whatever offer her traveling companion was about to make.
Alice, on the other hand, instantly froze, her whole complexion becoming much paler. This was shortly followed by rage encompassing her mind; not at Kevin, but at Sphinx. The lamia was planning on bargaining for a complete hands-off ending to this encounter, but this reminder was enough to make her choose something MUCH more vindictive.
"Okay," she nodded, her usual neutral expression back in place. "This time, our deal will be a little different. As long as you don't kill Sphinx, I will have the chefs at my castle prepare and deliver an equal amount of chocolate to that which is being offered by the King and Princess combined."
A moment of silence passed, with Sphinx holding her breath, before Kevin replied again. "Analysis of your proposal has resulted in the conclusion that you have no problem with me beating, maiming, and/or torturing your subordinate, as long as she does not perish as a result. Is this correct?"
"It is."
Sphinx gaped at Alice. "Lord Alipheese! Why!?"
Alice gave the large monster a glare that would even paralyze a dragon. "Because I had guaranteed that you wouldn't piss the boy off before he went in, even stating that I would go on a diet if you did. This is what you deserve for ruining my meals for the foreseeable future. Now, take your beating like a woman."
Just like that, all hope of making it out of this situation without any further injuries was lost. Sphinx knew, just a much as any other Queen Class monster who'd encountered the current Monster Lord, that Alipheese Fateburn XVI had crushed the bones of people who had so much as taken a single piece of food off of her plate. For Sphinx's actions to have resulted in her going on a diet? Suffice to say, she was lucky that the lamia herself wasn't doling out any additional punishments.
Her moment of acceptance was interrupted when a metallic fist planted itself firmly into the ribcage of her lion half, the force of which sent her slamming into the outer wall of the Pyramid. This was quickly followed up by a kick to its stomach that launched her into the sky, with shouts of agony and surprise escaping from both of her mouths.
With her victim now suspended in the air, Kevin reached into two opening that suddenly appeared on either side of her torso. From within them she pulled out a pair of unassuming gears. However, when she threw them at her target, they went from small and harmless, to large enough to crush most monsters present flat. Upon reaching the airborne monster, the gears positioned themselves on either side of her body, leaving just enough space for her to not be COMPLETELY crushed, and proceeded to rapidly spin upward, keeping her from falling back down.
[Gear Grind - Steel Type Move]
[Description: The user attacks by throwing two steel gears at its target.]
The Move only lasted for ten seconds, but it was possibly the longest ten seconds of Sphinx's life. The pain of having her fur torn out, her bones broken, and her organs crushed was almost too much for her mind to bear. By the time she was finally allowed to fall back to the desert sands, she looked like she'd gone a few rounds with a dragon.
Staring at her, Kevin wanted to use one last move. It was one from his Eevee form that he still hadn't tested out. So, shifting back to his base form, he flipped the Sealing setting in the System and prepared to unleash an attack that only our Lord and Savior, Arceus, should normally have access to.
[Judgment - Normal Type Move]
[Description: The user releases countless shots of light. Its type changes to that of the last evolution the user has devolved from.]
From his spot a few yards away, the Eevee held out his right hand and unleashed the attack. When the description said there were 'countless shots of light,' it wasn't being hyperbolic. The amount of beams of pure energy that came out of the boy and bombarded the downed monster was so numerous and rapid that they actually could not be counted. All the onlookers could see were near-infinite streaks of Steel-Type energy blasting Sphinx until she had more holes in her than a siev.
Her body, after receiving so much damage, glowed brightly before being sealed into the form of a small lion cub. She was rendered unconscious from the amount of pain she was experiencing; otherwise, she would've just unsealed herself. Although, that might not have been better, as at least her sealed form didn't have any injuries at all. Changing back might just bring back the wounds she'd received before the sealing effect was turned back.
***
{Author's Note}
Sooo...What did you guys think?
I think it was good, and next chapter we will have them return to the castle before setting off to find Gnome.
Just like with the scene with Sylph, the [True Bonding Ritual of Earth] is another scene that I've been DYING to write. I really can't wait!
Anyway...
DISCORD LINK: https:/ /disc ord.gg/3 CBazz8 C4H
As always, comment on the paragraphs and the chapter itself. Try not to be a dick, memes are appreciated, and correct my grammar so I can fix it for future readers!
See you later!