A man walked through the streets of the beautiful kingdom of Paldes. The buildings of the kingdom were tall and adorned with vines cascading from them. Soon The man arrived at a huge castle. At the top of the castle there was a beautiful red rose with vibrant red petals. This was the famous castle known as Crimsom Bloom. Standing in front of the castle, some guards bowed to him, and the man continued with firm and confident steps towards the room where the king of Paldes was waiting for him.
"Oh Lombardo, you are here! You bring good news, right?"
In a large, finely decorated room, a man of medium height and black hair, wearing a royal ceremonial uniform under a black feathered cloak, bowed to the figure who spoke to him from a throne surrounded by many guards, under great pillars.
That man in the throne, the king of Paldes, a very corpulent person with an orange walrus mustache, wore a big, confident smile while he carried the smells of wine. On this occasion, the king had on each side two young girls of very young appearance dressed in an unchaste manner.
"My Lord, I bring important news." Announced Lombardo, after bowing, looked around to make it clear that he required privacy to communicate the great news that King Jamis was so expectantly waiting for.
"Oh, I understand, guhehe," King Jamis, who seemed to be drunk as usual, signaled for everyone to leave the hall.
However, before one of the girls beside him left, the king gave her a spank.
Slap!
"Kyaaa"
"....."
It is said that King Jamis was the mentor of very famous heroes; as a young man, he was very talented. Everyone praised him; at certain point he was the strongest person in the kingdom. However, one day King Jamis lost his way and slowly but surely stopped being the respectable person he once was. Instead of a self-disciplined individual, there was a vicious and undisciplined mass.
"Now hurry, Lombardo, what did you find?" Come on, tell me!." The king said with an anxious grin as some of the finest wine escaped from the edge of his lips.
Lombardo, without giving much importance to the King's disgusting image, answered with a calm and confident voice as a great hero would. "I finally found the location of the legendary Seres, Control Kingdom."
"!!"
Seres were powerful beings, sometimes mistaken for gods, that granted power to the people who tamed them. There were different types, and some were more powerful and rare to obtain than others. Knights used them daily; they were great companions in adventures and fierce in battles.
Control Kingdom was one of those many Seres, and all the kings and kings of the world, including King Jamis, longed to have it in their possession.
"I expected nothing less from you, Lombardo! Guhehehe! Tell me how many men you need to catch this creature."
"I'm sorry, my Lord, but I can't give you any more information on the matter."
"Lombardo, what do you mean?"
"Such power cannot be entrusted to a disgusting man like you, your highness."
"Eh?"
Lombardo unsheathed his sword, and in the blink of an eye he positioned himself behind the King, placing his blade on the neck of the half-drunk man.
"L-Lombardo, what does this mean? Guards!! Treason!! Catch the traitor!!!
Many guards entered the king's room, but upon seeing the scene, they did nothing; on the contrary, they put away their weapons and all bowed down to Lombardo.
"Traitors! Traitors!!" The King, seething with rage at his helplessness, came to understand what Lombardo's plan was.
Lombardo was a very respected knight. He was someone he held in high regard and became his right-hand man. No, he became a brother. The King always listened to his advice, and his word became the highest authority in the entire kingdom.
On the other hand, the king's undisciplined behavior became more annoying every day; even the guards looked at him with disdain, and gradually the respect for him became more noticeable. The King, due to his drunkenness, never noticed it until now.
"Why Lombardo!! All your success is thanks to me! You ungratefull!!"
Lombardo chuckled. No one had ever heard him laugh before. His laughter made the king feel even more fear.
"I am very glad that you always followed my advice, your majesty; I mean it. If not for that, getting rid of you would have been difficult.
The king widened his eyes as many memories came to his mind. The memories of Lombardo's advice. Those were to relax, enjoy life and wine in the company of women, and forget about his obligations "because why he had to bother training? After being in possession of Control Kingdom, all that will be useless." Things like that Lombardo told him. That recommendation little by little was sinking into the king until he became what he is.
It is said that if one possessed Control Kingdom, one wouldn't need to study to achieve knowledge or training to become stronger. In addition, Lombardo proved to be very capable in achieving this task for the king; that's why King Jamis found those tips from Lombardo useful.
"D-damn youuu!!!" The angry King with trembling lips realized that he didn't have much time left in this world... And not only that, he would never see his dreams and goals come true.
Slash!
Lombardo cut the King's face and kicked him in the back. The King fell down the stairs of his fine palace.
"Haa, haaaha" At first King Jamis was confused, and after laughing, he thought under his breath, You fool! An attack that weak won't kill me! It's true that I'm not in the best shape, but I'm no weakli—"
Before the king could move a muscle, Lombardo chanted, "Blood theister rise and slay, eliminate the enemy before me.".
Booom!
The room lit up with a blinding light; the king covered his face while blood poured from his cheek.
He was stunned for a few seconds, but once he regained his senses, he paled at what he had in front of him.
A dragon, or rather the skeleton of a dragon with flaming eyes.
[Skeleton Drake]
[Power: ☆☆☆☆☆ Stars]
[Skill: ?????]
"A f-five star, Seres?? H-how!!! During which moment he tamed such a deadly beast?" King Jamis couldn't believe what he was witnessing. A five-star seres was only obtained by legendary warrios in history. Such an achievement had never been seen in modern times; not even King Jamis could do it in his best form.
The dragon roared mightily, making the king tremble in terror.
Roarrrr!!!
"Hiiii!!"
The bone dragon, after roaring terribly, remained intact for a few seconds, looking menacingly at King Jamis.
"Hiii?"
King Jamis, confused by the behavior of the beast, thought he had a chance. However.
Thud thud...
Both of his arms fell from his body in an advanced state of decomposition, while the skin on his body also began to decompose.
"Ahhh!" King Jamis screamed in terror but died immediately.
Lombardo with an expressionless face approached the palace stairs, ignoring the king's corpse, and sat on the throne. "So this is the sight that your majesty was observing" he muttered.
Having said this, he asked one of the guards to come over, and Lombardo whishpered something to him.
After hearing what Lombardo wishpered, the guard became uneasy and quivered. The disturbed guard said, "Sir, are you sure about that? I mean, that's too mu—"
Lombardo, now king, glared at the guard dangerous enough to make any man hesitate.
"Yeah, my Lord, it will be as you say," said the soldier and retreated.
Lombardo was a man who went unnoticed during his youth. No one knows the family he belongs to; he only stood out when he became a knight. But there was something strange about Lombardo. Although many saw him in person for some reason, no one recalls how he looks; although many heard him speak, no one remembers the tone of his voice; he won many battles performing great heroic feats, but strangely enough, no one remembers having seen him fight.
The only thing people remember about Lombardo are his large crimson eyes, staring menacingly.
All who ever met him or talked to him confessed they had to look away the moment they met those menacing eyes.
Now, that mysterious man is the new king.