Devouring Dragon Heir

Klaus's army stood before the capital of Lionhart. The towering walls that had defended the kingdom for centuries now looked fragile against the might gathered outside.

On one side stood the defenders, soldiers in armor, nobles' private troops, and civilians pressed into service. On the other side was the Messenger's army, a force that carried no hesitation and no weakness.

At the front stood Klaus. Behind him stretched the death legion, thirty-eight thousand beings created from corpses and bound by his will.

Their bodies were twisted, their skin pale, and their movements stiff yet unyielding. To their sides and rear stood ten thousand human soldiers of Riverdale, arranged in clean formations, their discipline a sharp contrast to the chaotic and nervous defenders inside the city.

Klaus raised his hand, and the order to attack spread through the ranks.

The death legion surged forward first.

Their rotten feet struck the ground with heavy steps. They carried crude weapons, broken blades, spears taken from fallen enemies, and shields made from stitched flesh. The sight alone broke the courage of the soldiers on Lionhart's walls.

Lionhart's archers loosed their first volley. Thousands of arrows rained down, striking the death legion.

Bodies staggered and fell, but within moments, many of them rose again. The wounds did not matter. Flesh tore, bones cracked, yet the legion continued to march.

The archers shouted in panic. "The arrows had no effect."

Commanders tried to rally them. "Keep firing! Do not stop!" But their words carried little effect. Each volley of arrows brought no real result.

For every monster that fell, two more advanced.

The death legion reached the base of the walls. Some carried ladders made of bones and wood. Others simply pressed their bodies against the gates, using their unnatural strength to push.

The defenders tried pouring boiling oil and rolling stones, but the legion showed no pain. They climbed, they pushed, and they tore at the gates with their bare hands.

Riverdale's artillery followed. Heavy launchers released boulders and metal bolts, striking the battlements.

One section of the wall cracked under the constant strikes. Dust and screams filled the air as defenders tumbled down with the falling stone.

Klaus gave another order. "Focus fire on the center wall. Break their morale by breaking this century-old wall.

The heavy artillery unit obeyed and concentrated all the fire on the single point at the central point. The central wall shook again, the stone wall finally cracking under the constant barrage of flying boulders.

A hole large enough for ten men to walk through opened, and the death legion poured inside.

The clash began in full.

Lionhart's foot soldiers rushed to meet them, their spears and swords shaking in their hands. The first collision was brutal.

Human soldiers stabbed, but their weapons sank into rotten flesh that refused to stop moving, as they did not feel any pain.

In return, the death legion swung heavy strikes, breaking bones and tearing limbs.

Within minutes, the ground inside the walls was covered with corpses, and those corpses rose to join the legion.

The defenders screamed in terror as their fallen comrades stood up again, eyes empty, weapons in hand, now fighting for the Messenger.

The line of Lionhart collapsed almost instantly. Men fled, throwing away shields. Others dropped to their knees, begging for mercy. The death legion showed no mercy.

Zero Division moved among the chaos. Lyssandra led a unit that infiltrated through hidden tunnels. They emerged behind defensive lines, assassinating officers before slipping back into shadows.

Another squad disguised themselves as Lionhart soldiers, then gave false orders that pulled entire units away from crucial choke points. Confusion spread faster than fire.

Inside the city, citizens saw the walls breached. Panic turned into riots. Fires spread across districts. The city that was supposed to be defended became its own enemy.

Meanwhile, the Riverdale human army advanced in disciplined ranks. They filled the breaches after the death legion, securing ground, raising banners, and ensuring no defender could regroup.

Every step they took was calculated.

As the capital began to fall, three radiant figures appeared in the sky. The princes of the Phoenix, Obsidian, and Titan empires descended, their auras pressing down like mountains.

The soldiers below felt their legs weaken, some even collapsing from the weight of that pressure.

Beside Klaus, two of his greatest subordinates stepped forward. Thunder Lord, his body covered with arcs of electricity, cracked his fists together.

Wind Lord, his expression calm, let the air bend and circle around him, wisps of invisible force gathering at his sides.

The Phoenix prince shouted, "Messenger! Your arrogance ends here. You have committed too many sins to be forgiven. This kingdom may fall, but you will die today!"

The Obsidian prince joined him, his black armor glowing faintly. "Your tricks cannot save you against us. We will end you and put your corpses on display."

Thunder Lord stepped forward, pointing at the Phoenix prince. "You will have to go through me before even trying to approach the lord." His voice was filled with confidence and reverence.

Wind Lord moved to intercept the Obsidian prince. "I might as well play with you; the rest are just weaklings not deserving my attention."

The princes sneered. "Do you think you can stop us? We are three transcendents, and you are two. Your lord will fall today no matter what."

After that, both of them nodded to the Titan Empire's prince and rushed towards their targets with supersonic speed.

Thunder Lord laughed, his voice booming over the battlefield. "You fools do not understand. There is a reason we follow him."

Wind Lord spoke colder but just as sharp. "You will see for yourselves why our confidence is unshaken."

The battles began. Thunder Lord and Phoenix Prince clashed in a storm of lightning and flame.

Wind Lord and Obsidian Prince collided with currents of wind and blades of shadow.

The sky turned into a battlefield above the battlefield, explosions shaking the ground below.

While the others fought in the sky, the Titan prince locked his gaze on Klaus. He smirked arrogantly. His armor gleamed, his body radiating strength, and in his hand appeared a massive axe.

He descended with speed faster than sound, crashing into the ground before Klaus. The impact cracked stone and sent shockwaves across the battlefield.

Soldiers on both sides stumbled, watching as the transcendent prince faced the messenger directly.

The titan prince's aura flared in the battlefield, either crushing or pushing away any soldiers nearby Klaus.

The Titan prince sneered. "So you are the one who dares call himself the Messenger. I expected more. You do not look impressive at all.

Do you think you can face me? I am a prince of the Titan Empire, born from power greater than anything you could imagine.

I will advise you to kneel before me and tell me the secret of possessing such a death army, and I might as well make you my slave, but at least you will be given a second chance to live."

Klaus looked at him calmly. His reply was cold and cutting. "You speak too much. Do you think words will do any good when you cannot even protect a small kingdom?"

The Titan prince's smirk widened.

"Arrogant to the end. When I cut off your head, your army will scatter like rats."

Klaus tilted his head slightly. His tone was sharp with sarcasm.

"Strange. You speak of cutting heads, but all I see is a spoiled brat waving an axe, pumping your self-esteem using your father's name or your artificial transcendent rank reached through an overdose of elixirs."

"Truly an insecure and childish heart you have there."

The Titan prince's face twisted with anger. "How dare you insult me!"

Klaus shrugged lightly. "If the insult fits, wear it."

The verbal exchange was short but clear. The Titan prince's arrogance met Klaus's cold sarcasm, and in front of thousands, the prince was defeated in words before the fight even began.

His pride, however, could not accept it.

"You will regret this!" The Titan prince roared.

His axe glowed with energy as he lifted it high. He charged forward, swinging down at Klaus with all the strength of a transcendent.

At that moment, Thunder Lord and Wind Lord paused briefly in their battles. The princes they faced laughed. "Look! Your so-called lord will be beheaded before your eyes!"

But Thunder Lord shook his head, his voice booming with certainty. "No. You do not understand; just wait and watch the reason he is the messenger."

Wind Lord added, "Soon you will learn that reason he is the chosen one, the only true lord of everyone."

Meanwhile, a few miles away…

The Titan prince's axe swung down with incredible force. The sound of the strike echoed across the battlefield.

Soldiers braced themselves to see Klaus cut in two.

But Klaus did not move. He did not draw a weapon. He simply looked at the approaching man.

Dragon's Might erupted from him, an overwhelming force that pressed down on everything around him.

The Titan prince froze mid-swing. His arms trembled. His knees buckled. His eyes widened in shock as the aura crushed him.

The axe slipped from his hands, crashing into the ground uselessly. Blood spilled from his mouth as he fell to his knees. His body shook violently, unable to withstand the pressure.

The battlefield went silent. Soldiers from both sides stared in disbelief.

Even if the Riverdale's soldiers had seen the lord using this weird force before, they were still thrilled.

A transcendent prince, heir of one of the great empires, was brought to his knees without Klaus lifting a finger.

The Titan prince gasped, his voice broken. "Impossible… This cannot be… you are not…" But his words ended in another cough of blood.

Klaus looked down at him, his expression cold. "You thought your rank made you invincible. You thought your status would shield you. But strength is not inherited. It is earned. And today you pay the price of your pride."

The silence of the battlefield broke into shouts. Riverdale's soldiers roared with renewed strength, their confidence surging. Lionhart's defenders faltered completely. Many dropped their weapons and surrendered on the spot.

The fall of a transcendent prince was not just a defeat; it was a declaration that the messenger was not affected by even the strongest people on the continent.

He was invincible.