“Fight meeeee.”

“Eh, how about I give you some candy?”

“Stop being a scaredy-cat. You’re a dragon!”

“How about I show you some lovey-dovey dreams with the most beautiful goddess?”

“Don’t seduce a happy married man.”

Ophis listened to the conversation between her enemy and her ally with a dead look on her face. “Stupid Red, fight.”

Great Red shook her head. “I admit defeat.”

“Then leave the Dimensional Gap,” Asahi said. “You said it last time. 'Defeat me if you want this piece of land.' Your words, not mine, dear.”

Great Red bared her fangs with a grin. “So stubborn… Alright, have at it.”

Without wasting an instant, Asahi transformed into his fire elemental form. Great Red had great resistance to all things fire. But he wasn’t using this form for offense, but defense. It granted nigh immunity to physical attacks and the fire element.

 “Peculiar flames you have… need I say your whole body is composed of flames that I can’t fathom,” Great Red remarked and cackled. “Fighting a dragon with flames? My friend has courage. Come, I’ll show you how it feels to burn alive.”

In the endless mix of iridescent colors, a white domain bloomed. Asahi was teleported to a prison of flames. A draconic silhouette with menacing golden eyes looked down on Asahi in arrogance and sheer contempt. His body was that of flames, even so, the flames started a burning sensation in his veins.

Great Red’s domain turned reality into dreams and dreams into reality.

“Does it feel good?” Great Red’s sarcastic voice echoed. “Do you still want to beat me?”

(My love, you can do it! Show her who is the boss!)

Klyscha's encouragement brought a smile to Asahi’s face. He looked up with a grin. “Dreams, oh dreams.”

He touched the flames burning around him. The red flames turned white; rather than burning, they felt fluffy and cool to touch. He had no skill to manifest dreams, but his control over them was beyond Great Red, all thanks to living and breathing in Klyscha’s world every night.

The golden eyes above him flickered in shock. “How?”

She couldn’t control the flames or anything inside the domain for that matter. Her domain had been seized. She retracted her domain, returning them to the confusing yet mesmerizing scene of the dimensional gap.

Ophis rushed to Asahi’s side, her hands flailing in panic. A look of slight concern made its way to her face. “You… are okay?”

Her eyes softened once she saw his confident smile.

“You sneaky little. You got me this time.” Great Red chuckled. “I failed.”

Ophis looked on in surprise. A reasonable shock. She herself was trapped and bullied in Great Red’s domain for hours until she realized her snakes worked on eliminating Great Red’s domain. After that day, Ophis hadn’t provoked Great Red into a serious fight.

“You did indeed.” Asahi cracked his knuckles and grinned. “You can’t rely on your skills. Let’s settle it the old way.”

“What is the old way?” Great Red feigned ignorance, nearly convincing Asahi. “Is it through negotiation?”

“No, we sweat in the heat.” Asahi teleported in Great Red’s face and gripped the protruding from her snout. “Agree to me or I’ll tear off this horn.”

The red horn heated up within his grasp, glowing molten red like lava.

Great Red’s eyes widened. Whether the threat was genuine or a lie, she couldn’t know. Her sharp intuition couldn't work on Asahi—part of the reason she avoided engaging Asahi in a battle.

Great Red shook her snout, but Asahi’s wings kept his position firm. 

“Why are you so determined?” Great Red said, irked by the itchiness in her horn. “Ophis promised you something in return?”

“Nothing. I’m doing this for fun.”

“...”

“You can’t blame me for taking Ophis’ side. She is cute.”

“Cute?” Great Red muttered and turned her gaze to Ophis. “I don’t see that.”

Asahi realized the reason Great Red did not react to his increased charm. Her ideals for beauty greatly differed from the norms.

“You truly are Stupid Red. I’m talking about human standards, not dragon standards.”

“She is.” Ophis nodded along in agreement. “Stupid Red.”

Great Red spread her wings, and surprisingly, another set of wings emerged from her back. “You are insulting the protector of all realms.”

“What are you protecting the realms from?” Asahi asked, curious. Great Red hadn’t helped when Trihexa rampaged across the various pantheons. During the ExE invasion, Great Red died off-screen at the hands of an ExE god.

Great Red narrowed her reptilian eyes. “I don’t know. The Dimensional Gap is the gate to all realms, and I protect it. That does make me the ruler of all realms in existence. The Dragon God of Dreams!”

“Ah whatever. I don’t care about your status. I’m the Ruler of the Underworld and the Lord of Heaven. ”

Great Red couldn’t possibly be more childish than Asahi, the disciple of Shiori.

“I'm not trying to flaunt my status. I’m only giving you more reasons to not fight me.”

Asahi couldn’t believe this woman was the strongest dragon in the DxD world. She just wanted to avoid fighting him as if he was a plague. Her resistance only furthered his desire to fight her. He wanted her as his bonded pet. Who wouldn’t want an ultimate being like Great Red as their pet?

“Just why are you so scared?”

“It’s not fun to fight a small human like you. I’m big. You’re tiny. It’d be tough to hit you with your mobility.”

(My love, she likes them big.)

‘That’s a choice I respect.’

“Coward.”

“Coward,” Ophis repeated after Asahi.

Great Red sighed. “I concede to your stubbornness… Give me some time. I need to create a more suitable vessel to battle you the way you want.”

Great Red was proficient in creating bodies. After all, she and Ophis created a body for Issei Hyoudou. A body with infinite potential.

“What kind of vessel? Humanoid?”

“Won’t tell. The element of surprise will give me an edge in the battle.”

“You're the complete opposite of Ddraig.”

Ddraig was instinct-driven and hot-headed, furthest from Great Red’s more carefree and ‘wise’ demeanor.

(We have an emergency on our hands.)

“Asahi-kun!” Shiori’s voice boomed in his head. “A beautiful dragon milf came to meet Ddraig! Saeko is raring to go at her, with a katana… will killing her affect any political relation?”

Asahi groaned at the interruption. ‘Does she have blue hair?'

“Pale blue from what I see. She is thicc too. Not plus ultra thicc, but medium thicc.”

‘That’s Tiamat… tell her that Ddraig is coming. If she doesn’t calm down, do whatever you need to.’

“Did you say Tiamat…?” Ddraig’s quivering voice entered the fray. “I'll not be home for a week… goodbye, my dear master.”

Asahi sighed. ‘Aren’t dragons supposed to be uncannily vicious? Why is every dragon around me pussy?’

Ddraig laughed at his words. “Tiamat is Dragon King for a reason… Anyways, Master, forget about our bet until you fight Great Red… I’ll rest under Klyscha’s table. It’s cozy here.”

‘Tiamat must have sensed you when you came to confront Hades.’

“I got careless,” Ddraig admitted her mistake. “...Can you take care of Tiamat in my stead?” her voice was hesitant as she wasn’t used to asking favors from others.

‘The Heavenly Dragon is scared of her fellow dragon?’ 

Asahi couldn’t help but make fun of Ddraig. The woman, who challenged Great Red, looked so scared.

“I’m not scared! I’m… I promised to return her treasures… I lost them during my last fight with the White One. The legendary items are scattered across the world now.”

(My love, she is ashamed to show her face to Tiamat.)

“Yes…” Ddraig timidly agreed to Klyscha.

‘Okay, Scared Ddraig, how do you want me to handle her?’

“She wants her treasure, nothing else… What if you seduce Tiamat and become her mate? She will forget her treasures… it’s a well-thought-out plan.” Ddraig felt incredibly proud of her strategy.

Asahi deadpanned. ‘You’re seriously asking me to seduce Tiamat just for that?’

As much as he loved dragon girl, he wasn’t going after Tiamat for appearance alone. He already had his eyes set on two dragons.

“What else can we do? She won’t accept anything?”

‘Heh, I’ll find her treasures.’

Rather than asking Klyscha to create them, he took it as a challenge. Finding things was easy with his instincts and absurd luck.

“...Thank you,” Ddraig expressed her gratitude with two words. Tiamat’s treasures were legendary items she borrowed to surpass Albion’s strength. Most people who recovered these items would hide them as much as they could.

“That’s my little dragon.”

Asahi looked at Great Red. “I have somewhere else to be.”

“Ahaha, look who is running now.”

Great Red provoked him, knowing all well he had something urgent to do. He couldn’t stay here at any rate. Tiamat might be weaker than Ajuka Beelzebub, but a dragon nevertheless. Even if Saeko and others could handle an angry Tiamat, the end results would wreck his beloved castle.

“Something… happened?” Ophis questioned in her usually dull tone as she tugged his shirt for his attention. “Bad?”

“Nah, I’ll catch you later.”

“I’ll come,” Ophis said.

Asahi decided to take Ophis to instill fear in Tiamat. Even the proud Dragon King Tiamat wouldn’t be able to stand against the authority of the Dragon God.

Asahi teleported back to the floating castle. Ophis followed suit with her own teleportation. Asahi immediately sensed an unfamiliar cold aura in one of the chambers.

“That’s her… no doubt about it,” Ddraig muttered.

Asahi walked into the room with a faint smile. Saeko, Shiori, Aimi, and Rini all sat around a table. The center seat was taken by a beautiful but stone-faced woman with long, flowing pale hair. Her eyes were the same as her face, cold and inexpressive.

Tiamat, the Chaos Karma Dragon.

“You are Asahi?” Tiamat scrutinized Asahi. “You are different from my expectations.”

She had expected a grizzly old man that tormented weak devils, not a charming young man like Asahi. Her mental image of the new ruler of the Underworld was completely opposite of Asahi.

“Let’s not talk about my looks,” Asahi said with a chuckle and moved away from the door, letting Ophis step into Tiamat’s sight.

Tiamat flinched momentarily before her eyes sharpened. “Who are you?”

She couldn’t feel Ophis’ aura. All she felt was that the little girl was a dragon. A dragon whose aura Tiamat couldn’t remotely sense.

“Ophis,” the loli dragon god answered as she crossed her arms. “Don’t bother Asahi.”

“The loli cavalry!” Shiori yelled as she waved at Ophis. “Go, wreck her.”

“It’s not pokemon,” Asahi deadpanned.

“Ouroboros Dragon Ophis…?” Tiamat shuddered, rightfully so.  The Dragon God was a little girl. Any dragon would be shocked to see that. Tiamat forced herself to calm down and mustered a wry smile. “Ophis, I am not here to bother Asahi. I merely came to inquire about Ddraig’s whereabouts. She showed up here the other day…”

Asahi sat down on the seat opposite Tiamat and sent a telekinetic nudge toward Rini. “Ddraig and Albion were killed by the three factions. Why would I know about a dead dragon’s soul?”

“She isn’t dead,” Tiamat asserted. “I can feel her aura on you. What did you do to her body?”

“Sorry, I am not into necrophilia.” Asahi clenched his fist and summoned the Boosted Gear. “This is Ddraig… or what’s left of her.”

Tiamat approached Asahi and knocked on the Boosted Gear as if it was a door. “Ddraig, stop hiding. I can feel your soul inside.”

Of course Ddraig was too embarrassed to answer back.

Asahi smiled wryly and dematerialized the Boosted Gear. “As you can see, she is dead. But worry not. She and I had a heart to heart before she passed away. I know about your treasures.”

“Oh.” Tiamat glanced at him, her eyes full of hope. “Where is my stash?”

“Sorry, Ddraig lost everything.”

“...”

“Why the long face? I’ll return your treasures, okay? I promised Ddraig to do so...”

Tiamat sighed and reclined into a nearby chair. “What were her last words?”

Even though she didn’t show it, Tiamat was saddened by Ddraig’s death.

“She wanted to fight more,” Asahi gave a suitable reply.

Tiamat stared blankly for a few moments before she burst into a fit of giggles. “That crazy woman… I can imagine her saying it.”

“That’s Ddraig for you.” Asahi chuckled.

“This meeting has been enlightening, Your Majesty~,” Tiamat said, giving a playful smile. “I’ll hold you to the promise.”

Tiamat bowed to Ophis before she left. Asahi tended to the girls’ curious questions about Tiamat.

“Asahi-sama will be clashing against Great Red?” Saeko’s blue eyes glinted. “That might be wonderful…”

“Not if he knocks her out in one punch?” Shiori giggled. “That’s a high probability scenario. Saeko, why don’t you fight Ddraig for some training?”

Saeko shook her head. “Ddraig’s skills are very dangerous.”

“Oh yeah, it’s penetrate. What did she penetrate?” Shiori gave an oblivious smirk. “Asahi-kun, you got any ideas?”

Asahi raised an eyebrow. “Let me ask her.”

He nudged the dragon residing in his soul. ‘Ddraig, why the silence?’

“Nothing… just thinking of Tiamat.”

‘You two must be good friends or more than friends?’

“We used to fight a lot before I reached the Heavenly Dragon state… I couldn't have done it without those grueling battles. She is closest to me out of all dragons… Does this count as friendship?”

Ddraig’s delicate side surfaced after seeing Tiamat’s grief. Asahi wanted to pat Ddraig on the head for being honest.

‘It does, Ddraig. Otherwise, Tiamat wouldn’t give you her treasures.’

“Yes… dragons are very possessive of their hoard.”

‘Meet Tiamat next time. I’ll also be there to handle the situation, okay.’

“I will… try.”

Klyscha giggled at their conversation. (Don’t you worry, my love. I am gonna pat this sad dragon until she is cheerful again!)

“Noooooo!” Ddraig cried.

‘Haha, I’ll leave that to you.’