Dragon Kingdom, ten thousand meters above the clouds.
On a massive floating carpet, three figures sat cross-legged, engaged in an intense duel.
"My turn. Draw!"
"I activate the Magic Card [Reality Slash]! Remove all monsters on your field from play!"
Momonga slapped his Magic Card onto the table. Though his face was nothing but a skull, the excitement in his voice was impossible to hide.
Two phantom slashes appeared above the table, streaking toward the two monsters on the opposite side.
At the critical moment, Herohero gave a sly grin.
"That's not so certain."
Under Momonga's stunned gaze, he flipped over a long-set card.
"I activate the Item Card [Dimensional Transfer Device]!"
"I voluntarily remove the monsters on my field from play. They'll return next turn."
A phantom teleportation device emerged from the card. In a flash of light, Herohero's monsters vanished first.
The slashes from [Reality Slash] struck nothing but air.
"I was ready for that."
"Haha, Momonga, I've already figured out your playstyle."
Herohero wagged a finger at Momonga in a deliberately irritating manner.
Then he glanced at the absentminded figure beside them.
"Heavenly, your turn. If you don't activate your set card, your monster's getting destroyed."
"Oh… right."
The Heavenly Dragon Lord nodded. For a True Dragon Lord, shifting forms was effortless.
Even as he played halfheartedly, most of his attention remained fixed on the vortex overhead.
It had been quite a while since Brightness entered that vortex. He had no idea how the battle was going.
The Heavenly Dragon Lord sighed inwardly.
He looked at Momonga and Herohero, who were clearly having a great time, and the corner of his mouth twitched.
What was with these two? Was he the only one worrying? They did not seem concerned about that Naohara fellow at all.
Although he also believed Brightness would lose, fighting a True Dragon Lord should not leave someone completely unscathed, right?
"I say… aren't you two at all concerned about the battle over there?"
Unable to hold back his curiosity, the Heavenly Dragon Lord finally asked.
After spending some time together, he had formed a rough impression of them.
Momonga, though an Undead, was surprisingly easy to talk to.
Herohero, on the other hand, had seemed quiet at first, giving off a slightly gloomy vibe. But once he joined the conversation, he would chime in from time to time. He was unexpectedly straightforward and decent.
They might not compare to the Six Great Gods, but their personalities were far better than those arrogant Eight Greed Kings.
At the very least, the fact that they were calmly playing cards together showed that things were going fairly well between them.
"Concerned about what? What's there to worry about?"
"Relax, Heavenly. Naohara knows his limits. He won't kill the Brightness Dragon Lord."
"Besides, his opponent's a dragon. There's no way that guy's losing."
Momonga and Herohero exchanged a glance, then casually waved a hand as if it were no big deal.
Their confidence left the Heavenly Dragon Lord momentarily stunned.
Was the gap in strength really that large?
He opened his mouth to press further, but suddenly his expression shifted. He snapped his head toward the vortex.
"It's coming out!"
Unlike him, Momonga and Herohero calmly gathered up the cards on the table before finally looking up.
Without a sound, a figure slowly emerged from the surface of the vortex.
"Finally. Took a little longer than I expected."
As expected, the first to appear was Naohara.
"Where's the Brightness Dragon Lord?"
When he did not see Brightness follow, the Heavenly Dragon Lord asked.
At the same time, he silently prepared himself to revert to his true form and enter combat if necessary.
"I'm fine, Heavenly."
That familiar voice reached him, and before he knew it, the Brightness Dragon Lord had already stepped out of the vortex.
Seeing his old friend safe, with the worst outcome avoided, made the Heavenly Dragon Lord finally breathe a sigh of relief.
The battle had been the Brightness Dragon Lord's own choice, but they had been friends for centuries. If anything had really happened to him…
The Heavenly Dragon Lord knew he would have attacked immediately, no matter what, to avenge him.
"Huh? Brightness, how are you not even hurt? And… did your Dragon Soul get stronger?"
Looking closer, the Heavenly Dragon Lord realized something was off.
The Brightness Dragon Lord looked far too well. If anything, he looked even better than before the fight, to the point that it was hard to believe he had battled at all.
The Brightness Dragon Lord did not answer. He only glanced at Naohara and remained silent.
"Ahem… so, are we still fighting?"
Noticing the Brightness Dragon Lord's look, Naohara gave an awkward laugh and turned to the Heavenly Dragon Lord.
Brightness had said the Heavenly Dragon Lord felt the same way he did, which meant there was supposed to be another round.
"Then let's…"
The Heavenly Dragon Lord began to return to his true form, ready to agree, but a dragon claw pressed down on his shoulder and stopped him.
The Brightness Dragon Lord let out a sigh. His eyes were deep, strangely calm, as if he had already seen through life and death. In a grave, earnest tone, he said,
"Heavenly, do it for me. Don't go."
"You'll thank me later."
"Brightness… what's wrong with you?"
Something was wrong. Very wrong.
Staring at the Brightness Dragon Lord, the Heavenly Dragon Lord felt a strong sense of unease.
What was with that look?
It was just a fight, so why was he acting like this now?
Was this really the Brightness Dragon Lord he knew?
The Brightness Dragon Lord only shook his head and looked toward Naohara in the distance.
"No need to fight anymore. We concede."
The Brightness Dragon Lord slowly lowered his head, taking on a posture of submission.
He had lost, and so he would offer loyalty. That had been the agreement from the start.
For some reason, he even felt relieved.
"Brightness… fine… I trust you."
Seeing this, the Heavenly Dragon Lord shook his head, his expression complicated, but he did not press for answers.
If the Brightness Dragon Lord chose this, then he must have had his reasons.
Besides, he was a laid-back dragon by nature and had no great obsession with fighting. If Brightness said to stop, then he would stop.
The Heavenly Dragon Lord lowered his head as well.
"My King! ×2"
From that moment on, the two True Dragon Lords successfully pledged themselves to The Great Tomb of Nazarick.