When Damian arrived at the Draconian Duchy, over five hours had past.
The truth was, this shouldn't have taken so long. With his current stats, it should have taken an hour at most. However, Damian spent most of the short journey fighting Spheric Beasts non-stop.
As a result, although physically, he was still fit and strong, mentally however, he was exhausted. He felt a nice and quick relaxation would be proper for the Quest.
Speaking of the Quest though, Damian seemed to be stalling. He could have started several hours ago, however, there were two reasons he hadn't.
Firstly, in the case he would need to escape if matters went south, he wanted to survey the lands around the Draconian Duchy to better acclimate himself to the new environment. The second reason was more obvious. He needed strength to increase his chances of completing the Quest.
Damian took a breath and examined his surroundings.
For a moment, he didn't seem to know how to react. When he saw the Quest, he had been expecting the Nevermore Territory to take a medieval setting, but, it appeared the Spheric Towers could be quite surprising.
A car horn snapped Damian back into reality as he quickly moved out of the way. He stood at a corner and took in the familiar blarings of moving vehicles, the high-rise buildings that seemed to stretch to infinity, and the plane that streaked across the sky.
There was no doubt about it. The Nevermore Territory was a modern world.
*
Damian sighed as he shook his head. After walking around the Duchy, taking in the theatrics of its inhabitants, he seemed to realize something.
The Humans here were treated worse than slaves.
To he, who was also a Human, this was absolutely unacceptable. But, what could he do? The current world wasn't rosy. Only those with the greatest fists could rule it.
The Humans of this Spheric Tower could only blame themselves for being weak. Although he has his doubt regarding the credibility of their existence, this was a universal rule that applied to all, both natural and unnatural.
Damian's gaze suddenly grew sharp. He looked over to his side, his eyes beholding a hulking figure walking towards his direction pompously.
Following behind this figure were four Humans shivering as though they had been forced under sheets of ice for hours. Clearly, they were his servants. If servants could be used to describe individuals treated worse than slaves.
To his sides were female humanoids of clearly non-Human origin, each hugging his arms as they looked at him with loving and adoring eyes. Although it was especially hidden, how could the proud glint in their gazes escape Damian's eyes?
The male who took the center stage was none other than a Draconian. However, unlike the Draconians Damian had been seeing since he arrived in the Duchy, this particular one was a head taller, standing at an impressive 7 feet.
His scales shone a crimson sheen that seems to radiate invisible waves of heat, a glaring difference to the common brown scales of the other Draconians. From his temple jutted two imposing crimson horns. And just between his legs, Damian could make out the long and scaled tail that trailed behind him.
Draconians were just what their names meant. They had the features of a Dragon but they weren't really actual Dragons. In fact, the creature they had evolved from was a secret they had kept tight for obvious reasons.
Without even needing to read his mind, Damian already knew he was up to no good.
"You puny Human! Who do you think you are to hoard a table all to yourself? Scram!"
The voice of the Draconian was particularly deep and commanding. And were it directed to another person but Damian, they would have obeyed almost instantly, but who was Damian?
He had lived, cuddled and played among those who could shake the whole existence ten times over… for years. How could the presence of a puny draconic existence faze him?
"Scram? But I got here first." Damian's voice came out slow and steady, and lying within was an ingrained arrogance that was impossible to replicate.
Almost immediately, a collective gasp echoed all around him.
The Draconian was shocked, so shocked he momentarily forgot to breathe, but then, his shock turned into anger.
"You hoe-man! You worthless animal! What do you think you are?!" The Draconian bellowed.
He was angry, so angry he couldn't wait to pounce of the puny human. In addition, the fact that the human hadn't even deign to raise his head to look at him seems to reinforce that anger.
However, if the fact that Damian questioned his authority had angered him, then the next words spoken by the human immediately sent him into a frenzy.
"Worthless animals? Last I checked, isn't your kind more animal than us? No, scratch that. I seem to remember your kind evolved from an animal even we humans consider beneath us, no?" Damian's voice wasn't rushed or slow. It perfectly portrayed his calmness that was particularly odd in this current situation.
The Draconian's eyes grew red. His lips curled into a terrifying smile that revealed his pristine white fangs. Perhaps, if he had been in his right mind, he would have questioned how Damian was able to know a secret they had thought they kept tight.
"I'm going to enjoy breaking you."
At that moment though, Damian finally looked up, his golden eyes boring deep into the crimson pair of the Draconian. And for a moment, the Draconian shivered. However, he shook his head, a frown creasing his hand features as a strange glint flashed in his eyes.
His instincts rarely flared. The only individual capable of triggering that was his mother, and even then, that was only if she was angry.
However, the human in front of him had clearly not a change in his expression, and yet a casual glance from him had set off alarm bells. He was dangerous, immensely so.
Unfortunately, his current state of mind wouldn't allow him to understand that. He charged towards Damian, steam rising from his scales as he brandished his claws, ready to cleave the puny human.
From the sidelines, several Humans and non-Humans stood, each with varying degrees of expressions. The Humans shook their head in pity, already seeing the end result. The end results of those who had tried that before.
The non-Humans however, had sneers tugging at their lips. They couldn't believe how a Human could be daring, if he didn't have any strength to back it.
But what they couldn't believe was the next word that came out of the human's mouth.
"Fool."