With a single attack, the 4 Leapers above him were sliced in completely in half. Blood drained from their open wounds like a waterfall, drenching Nick.
The resulting damage from his [Emperor's Slash] was enough to kill the rest of the Leapers.
He ignored the system's message telling him he gained experience. Blood was evaporating from his face due to the heat of his eyes.
Staring at the 6 Beastmasters, he felt nothing but pure contempt. Even as they watched him slice apart the Leapers, his eyes still worked on them. Such vile creatures could watch their comrades die like ants and still only view them as weapons.
"Vermin like you should die." Nick dashed through the artificial forest created by those who claimed to have dominated nature. Within nanoseconds the gap between him and the Beastmasters closed.
Though he was drenched in blood, the purple glow of pure rage emanating from his eyes could never be hidden or covered.
"Don't feel fear. Aren't you used to disregarding life as nothing more than a toy?" Nick sliced off the first Beastmaster's head without any expression.
His short burst of rage had quickly been replaced with the cold indifference of a killing machine. No cries of rage or defiance or fear from the surviving Beastmasters affected him. The surprised yelp of the one Beastmaster who didn't even know he was dead yet did nothing to him.
He continued walking, paying no mind to the blood that spurted all over his back. There was nothing on his mind except pure focus.
Blood ran down his arms and back before it dripped to the ground. Vakir were used to seeing this amount of blood, but only when they faced an entire herd of beasts.
For a single thing... especially a human...
A dirty human would make them bleed like this?!
THAT'S ENTIRELY UNACCEPTABLE!!!
A violent screech vibrated the entire earth as the last 5 Beastmasters summoned forth the greatest beast of nature– dragons. Because these Beastmasters were only of a Greater classification, it took their combined effort to summon it.
Still, even the weakest dragon would be at least a Legendary classification– several tiers above them.
When talking monsters, there were over 20 tiers in total, but anything above legendary was already irrelevant for most, as they would have no hope of surviving an encounter with a monster at that tier.
Essentially, even the weakest dragon would be at the pinnacle of what a civilized race could hope to defeat. If the dragon wasn't at its weakest, not even the greatest heroes could slay it.
Nick ignored the dragon completely. When he had killed the first Beastmaster he had gotten a skill.
[C-Rank Rearguard Passive: Durable – when you would lose more than 10% of your hp in a single hit, negate that damage and lose 5% of your hp. Cooldown: 60 seconds]
'This skill is pretty broken! I could face bosses much stronger than me with this... it's practically a get-out-of-jail-free card!'
As he felt the passive infuse with his being, he noticed the dragon.
A hulking, huge mass of pure destruction.
[Vakir Beastmasters summoned Common Dragon; Classification: Legendary; HP: 5,000/5,000]
[Status: Bound – currently, this weapon is bound to the Vakir Beastmasters' will, forced to do their bidding. However, if you exert more dominance on the dragon than them, you can claim it as your own pet.]
'These creatures are capable of binding even these beasts to their will? Kind of like me and Juliana, except I don't view her as a weapon. But what's this about me claiming it as a pet?'
The dragon understood Nick's superior status, so even though it was ordered to kill him it was still hesitant. Its heavy breaths were still enough to burn the few trees next to it to ash instantly.
Nick looked beyond the dragon with a smirk. He looked completely deranged, covered in blood to the point no feature of his face could be seen except for the purple glow of his eyes.
Using his [Farseeing Eyes], Nick focused on the Vakir Beastmaster's active skills. Then his smile turned into a soft laughter as his hunch was proven correct.
Each of them held a skill that allowed them to bind and dominate wild beasts. If Nick had needed such a skill, then the Vakir Beastmaster he killed would've dropped one.
But the truth was rather simple.
"You know, I do feel a little bad for you guys. I understand why you consider your own comrades as nothing more than weapons now. The insecurities you must have, to need a skill to dominate a dragon... well, I'd be ashamed too."
Nick paused for a moment as he tightened the grip on his sword, completely disregarding the dragon as it did the same to him. To the dragon, the Vakir were completely inconsequential. If it wanted to, it could break from their spell at any time.
However, the human was interesting to it. The dragon couldn't help but wonder if he'd grow into a good ruler. So, it ignored the fearful pleas of its 'masters' as the dragon allowed Nick to pass.
"All of you hide behind your weapons. First the Leapers and now the dragon." Nick tossed his [Fang of Finality] to the side, disabling his [Emperor's Slash] while it was unequipped.
He wouldn't need either of them anyway, as he was going to bash in their skulls with his bare hands.
"Why don't you fight yourselves for once?"
Before they could think to actually raise their fists or hide behind their angry screeches again, Nick had already pressed his fingers into one of the Beastmaster's eyes.
It screamed as the others watched, apparently paralyzed. Nick pulled on the skull from each direction, breaking it in half.
Huffing, Nick looked at the 4 remaining Vakir as he breathed heavily. His mouth drooled with anticipation and his saliva mixed with their blood.
Looking at the 2 halves of the Beastmaster's skull he now held in his hands, he thought to himself, 'Well, maybe you guys do make a good weapon.'
Then he threw them at 2 of the Beastmasters, decapitating both of them at once. Before their heads hit the ground, he ripped off the third Beastmaster's head. Nick laughed at the last remaining Beastmaster, saying, "Nice aim, huh."
The Beastmaster screeched, almost killing itself by yelling too loud. A single finger pressed against its lips made it quiet.
It gulped as the Vakir looked into the purple glow of royalty, knowing it should bow. However, like anyone else in its species, it only knew how to dominate.
Looking at the dragon, it demanded, "Burn him! I am your master and I'm telling you to burn him!"
Nick looked back at the dragon and said, "Well?"
The dragon looked at Nick with nothing but intrigue in its eyes. At the moment, it felt only one thing. If it joined his side, the dragon would have many great adventures.
"What's your name? Don't make me have to go around calling you Dragon 1." Nick continued, knowing the dragon would never incinerate him.
The Vakir knew it as well, but its pride still made it defiant.
Dropping to his knees, he begged the dragon, "Burn him! Burn him! Burn himmmm!!!"
Seconds later, the Vakir was charcoal. Nick tapped it once, and as it crumbled the dragon said, "I am Ugyr. Don't think that because I killed the nobody that I'm yours just yet."
Nick smiled as he looked at his hand, which became black from the charcoal. "I understand. After I kill Ethos, Apostle of the Remembered, and his army, then you will join my army."
The dragon snorted with laughter, turning the entire forest of the Vakir into ash in an instant.
Then it flew into the sky to get a better view as it watched the King of the Cosmos fight against the few remaining armies of this cycle.