Devouring Dragon Heir

Klaus woke from his deep slumber after many days.

His eyes opened slowly, his body stretching against the soft sheets of the wide bed. The chamber was quiet, the heavy curtains still blocking most of the sunlight, but Klaus could tell that the world outside had not waited for him.

Nobody had come to disturb him.

Nobody had dared to knock on his door. That in itself was a good sign. It meant the Nero lord was efficient in handling everything during his absence.

The city had not collapsed, the castle still stood, and Riverdale remained under his rule.

Even if the Necrolord was bad at it, Klaus would not have cared too much. Everyone was given only one chance to feel his mercy. After that, there was no second chance.

Andrea and Caesar had already lost that chance when they had lied to him and tried to manipulate him before.

Klaus had not forgotten that. He had chosen not to implicate them further only because their crime was not great enough to warrant their destruction.

More importantly, his mission here was to protect the queen. If he created unnecessary trouble, it might complicate the task, especially since he still did not know what other hidden conditions the king had placed upon him.

Andrea and Caesar might be keeping some of those conditions away from him; he was suspicious of that.

It was not that Klaus could not detect lies. He had the Dragon God's Sight, an ability that could pierce through falsehoods as easily as tearing paper.

But the repercussions of using that ability were far greater than even using Dragon's Might. It might consume more than just mana.

It might consume his life force if the skill doesn't get enough mana since his realm was too low for the use of that skill.

Why would he waste such a power on small figures like Andrea and Caesar? If he truly wanted the truth from them, he could use force.

He knew for a fact that everyone, sooner or later, breaks under unbearable pain.

Klaus stood from the bed, walked to the balcony, and pulled the curtains open.

The light of morning filled the room, bright and clean. The air outside was cool, carrying the faint scent of dew. He stepped onto the balcony and looked down at the capital.

The city below was unusually quiet. Streets that were normally filled with the voices of merchants and chatter of citizens were now still.

People moved slowly, carefully, as if unsure of what would come next. Perhaps it was because the shadow of his victory still lingered. The citizens knew the Duke was dead. They also knew that Klaus had killed him.

Klaus rested his arms on the cold stone railing and asked inside his mind.

"System, tell me. Should I absorb the Duke's powers or make him my subordinate?"

The system responded instantly, its voice mechanical and calm.

[Host, I have analyzed the Duke's core. His ascension was mainly built upon the thunder element.

The thunder element is more commonly available than transcendents in this land and even your previous world, which lowers the value of absorbing it directly.

My analysis suggests it is better to make him your subordinate. Even if his powers are revived at only seventy percent of his original strength,

He would still be a powerful addition to your legion. A warrior wielding both the thunder element and death energy will be a destructive nightmare for your enemies.

[This will also greatly assist in your fights with watchers or other paragons. With just one transcendent subordinate, you will no longer need to concern yourself with most of them.

On this planet, even one such subordinate allows you to rule without opposition. And even in the broader star land, your position will be much stronger.

plus the issue of fighting multiple transcendents will be resolved to some extent]

Klaus smirked faintly. "Okay. If you say so."

He turned away from the balcony and walked back into the chamber.

Finally, he entered and reached the sanctuary.

The sanctuary was his personal space after fusing multiple subspaces together.

The air inside was cold, so cold that mist formed with each breath.

The sanctuary could preserve the souls of the dead and prevent them from escaping. This removed the usual limitation of needing to absorb a soul within twenty-four hours.

Klaus stepped inside, and his gaze fell upon the frozen corpse of the Duke. His body was encased in thick ice, with black chains wrapped around him to suppress any remnants of power.

His face was pale, frozen in the same expression of shock he had worn when Klaus had slain him.

At first, Klaus had considered absorbing the Duke's core for himself. But now he was here for another purpose, to turn the once mighty transcendent into his subordinate.

Klaus extended his hand, and death energy seeped out from his body. The dark energy spread across the ground like a shadow, slowly creeping toward the frozen corpse. The ice cracked and melted as the energy enveloped the body.

The corpse began to change.

The skin lost its natural tone, turning black and matte, like burned stone.

The veins beneath the surface glowed faintly with streaks of pale blue. The eyes, once dull and lifeless, glowed with an eerie sapphire light.

Klaus narrowed his eyes. This was different from what he had seen before. His previous subordinates, when revived, had not shown such minute and strange transformations.

He turned his gaze to the monsters standing guard in the sanctuary.

Their appearances were twisted in their own ways, but now that Klaus paid close attention, he noticed that each of them had different kinds of changes, unique to their origin and strength.

The Duke's transformation was more refined, almost regal, compared to the others.

The air grew heavier as the corpse continued to absorb the death energy. The Duke's body twitched, his chest rising slightly as if drawing in a breath.

His fingers curled, sharp nails forming at their tips. Sparks of faint thunder danced across his blackened skin, merging strangely with the death aura surrounding him.

Klaus stood silently, watching carefully. His expression was calm, but his eyes were sharp, observing every detail.

Minutes passed, then more. The transformation continued, and the corpse grew more alive, though clearly no longer human.

The presence it gave off was heavy and unnatural, a blend of thunder's violence and death's chill.

The monsters guarding the sanctuary shifted uncomfortably. They could feel the pressure rising in the room, though none dared to move without Klaus's order.

Finally, the Duke's eyes snapped open. The glowing sapphire light in them was sharp and unnatural, staring straight at Klaus.

The silence in the sanctuary deepened.

Klaus did not speak yet. He only observed, waiting to see what would emerge from this transformation.

Albrecht's deathly form rose slowly from the icy coffin.

The ice that bound him snapped apart one by one.

His body no longer resembled the proud duke of the Falcon Empire. His skin was black and cracked like cooled obsidian, with veins of pale blue lightning running beneath the surface.

Sparks jumped between his shoulders and hands every time he moved.

The glow in his sapphire eyes fixed upon Klaus. For a moment, silence ruled the sanctuary, thick and suffocating.

Then, in one smooth motion, the former duke dropped to his knees.

"My lord," his voice echoed, calm yet heavy.

"This soul is at your service."

Klaus tilted his head slightly, studying him.

His surprise did not show much on his face, but in his mind, he noted the difference.

Unlike the pseudo-transcendents he had raised before, who followed him with blind obedience but lacked personality, Albrecht's words were clear, his tone deliberate, and his intelligence intact.

But the necrolord being at a lower rank still showed similar sentience to the transcendent he just raised.

The system's cold voice answered his unspoken thought.

[Host, sentience should be expected from a transcendent. Below that level, it is rare, almost impossible. The case of the Necrolord is exceptional. He was not a normal entity to begin with.

Klaus remembered that. When he had given Riverdale's defense to Necrolord, the system had hinted that he was a unique creation, far beyond the other subordinates.

But now, with Albrecht kneeling before him in this half-living, half-dead form, Klaus saw that even a fallen transcendent could keep his mind and speech.

"Well… I'll ask him later." Klaus spoke quietly, dismissing the thought for now. His attention shifted back to his new servant.

"Good. Stand up," Klaus ordered, his voice steady and commanding. "You will be a valuable subordinate. I expect much from you."

Albrecht obeyed without hesitation. He rose to his feet, towering yet bent slightly forward in respect. Sparks of thunder crawled over his shoulders as he bowed his head.

"Of course, my lord," he said, his voice steady, unwavering. Then he paused, lifting his gaze to meet Klaus's eyes.

"But before I serve in full, I want to ask for one thing. Please give me a name."

The request made Klaus pause. He had not considered this yet, but he understood why Albrecht asked.

A new existence required a new name. To serve under Klaus meant abandoning the past identity of Falcon's proud duke.

That man was gone. What stood here was something new, something Klaus had created.

He folded his arms, his thoughts moving quietly.

A name… Necrolord had his title, one fitting for his domain of death. The monsters he had raised before never needed such a thing, for they were nothing more than mindless monsters.

But Albrecht was not the same. He was intelligent, and he controlled thunder. Transcendent, even in death.

The name should carry weight. Authority. Something that would mark him as both a weapon and a commander.

Klaus considered several possibilities. His mind turned naturally to the title of Necrolord, the one who was proficient with necromancy and darkness.

If that one stood as the master of death, then this new being, infused with thunder, needed something that reflected his element.

Finally, Klaus's lips curved faintly into a smile.

"Thunderlord," he said firmly. "From today, you are Thunderlord."

The sapphire glow in Albrecht's eyes pulsed brighter, as if acknowledging the new name. He knelt once more, bowing his head low.

"Thunderlord accepts, my lord. This name shall be carried with pride, in your service, for as long as this soul exists."