Chapter 59: Fighting Draco

Kairo and the others stood on their guard, eyes glued to the sky. With a flap of its wing, the figure in the sky made the entire submarine quake in shock. The winds dissipated everything in its path. The water in the corridors parted away in front of its power, revealing a monstrous figure.

"A... a... a... dragon," an engineer fell with his butt onto the water, the disbelief in his eyes so huge his mouth was left agape. He wasn't the only one—the prisoners, Kairo, and everyone present were startled by the display.

Darwing had turned into what looked like a dragon. But it wasn't exactly one. The creature's skin was rocky and calloused, far from the beauty and presence of what one might expect from a mythical dragon. It radiated with what felt more like raw fury and power. On its wings were strands of bones protruding from the sides, gleaming with an otherworldly sharpness. This was the Card Draco.

"This is why I hate this type of cards," Donsentos cursed loudly, his earlier composed expression gone, replaced by the sharpness of a warrior who had gone through numerous battles.

Kairo could understand his thoughts because these cards were a nightmare for everyone. Cards that could transform the human body were extremely rare and unique. This was because they brought with them massive power to the owner. Among the Card Mage circles, many dreaded meeting them.

The only one Kairo had seen—despite being in the Card Mage Police for over two months—was Jed's Bestial Wolf. And even that one had been terrible with its ability to dive into its prey's shadow. What special ability does it have this time? Kairo wondered.

"The first person to bring me Kairo's head will be safe inside the chamber. All the others will be burned by Draco—or drawn to death in this coffin. It's true I did gain my abilities through pacts, but who cares? I am stronger than all of you fools. Burn, Draco!" Rellion ordered.

Draco opened its mouth, sucking in a deep breath. Around his razor-like teeth, particles of energy were igniting. In less than a second, they had turned into flames, shining so brightly that they cast shadows in the area. With a cry, the flames burst forth in an arc, spiraling downward toward Kairo and his group.

Kairo and his group were swift to react. Stepping to the side, he evaded the diving flames. Kairo's expression was grim—it was like they had been transported into a furnace. Trying his best to stay out of the range of the flames, he kept his head low, sliding out of the way. "In the water!" Kairo cried out.

All the officers had evaded to the best of their abilities—some running backwards, others evading to the side—but everyone was running away from the flames, turning the place into an utterly chaotic storm. Nyx had dived into the water with Kairo and the others, allowing the flames to blast above them.

"The problem with Draco is not only his flame but the hot fire beds it creates. I've already fought someone like this with whom I had a grudge. Tell your people to stay away from the places already touched," a prisoner warned.

Kairo at first wasn't certain of his words. After all, this was a prisoner—he could not simply trust him like that. But at the rate at which his skin was turning red, he didn't hesitate to get out of that place. Scorching his body, he helped Nyx up and the duo fled out of the flame's range.

Running into flames, the duo dashed out, their uniforms charred by the rising temperature. With a desperate leap, they landed away from the hot bed, rolling several meters away before ending around a group of criminals.

Kairo rose back to his feet, keeping Nyx on his side while observing the criminals who had jackal-like expressions. He could not tell what they had in mind, and that made him uncomfortable. Draco is attacking everyone. We have lost Donsentos and the others in the chaos. We are alone, Kairo thought. For him, it wasn't the most advantageous of positions.

"Don't worry, they will follow my orders. If we want to survive, we will have to join hands. Call me Felix Honir," the prisoner said. Without any hint of malice in his voice, he radiated with a feeling of calm and almost what Kairo would call honor. The type of person one felt they could trust to their word. This was very strange for Kairo, however. Despite his angelic face, Kairo didn't respond immediately.

"We can't trust him," Nyx reminded from the side, her eyes sharper than daggers as she observed Felix. This was without doubt a grade four criminal, Kairo felt. He was way too calm for someone about to sink in a submarine, as if life or death was of little importance to him.

"Stay out of our way, and we will do the same," Kairo finally said. He wasn't going to collaborate with criminals. Although Felix had warned them about Draco's special ability, that was it. Felix smiled and said no more, and all returned their attention to Draco.

Because of how tight the space was, Draco had very limited motion and could only rely on his powerful breath and his special ability to create hot beds. This will be troublesome. If the hot beds spread all over this place, we will have no way to escape Draco's flames. We need to stop his next attack at all cost, he thought.

If it had been in a wider space, Kairo and the others could have managed Draco's ability to create hot beds with his breath and performed better evasive maneuvers. But in here it was difficult, and the water was rising—already at the level of their waist

…

On the other side of the battlefield,

Danzan and a group of officers were fighting hard to keep the doors of the chamber safe. Right now, most of the officers had already returned inside, and only Kairo, Donsentos, and the engineer were left. He wasn't duped—he knew at this rate, it was more likely that they would all die here.

At the forefront, a group of officers had formed a line to prevent the criminals from getting too close. The Circuitry of the Void was summoned every second, with abilities raining down one after another. An officer, surrounded by what felt like a golem of water, was tanking through the enemies, while the others summoned swords, laser beams, and ranged attacks to help him out.

"Captain Danzan, the front line is falling. Shouldn't we... close... close the chamber?" an officer asked in a low voice, clearly not proud of what he was proposing.

"I will be the one to burn you if Draco doesn't. Get back to the front and protect that line," Danzan cursed. He hated doing the job of a commander—this wasn't his cup of tea. For once, he was sincerely hoping to see the queen of annoyance to give him orders. Sigh. He was more the type to follow orders. But given how things had moved, he had no choice. Danzan was not ready for that, and Kairo was too young to handle such a chaotic situation.

"You two, keep the others in check. I will bring the engineers first," Danzan said, taking two aura boosters from his pocket. Unlike most people, his abilities consumed a massive amount of energy, except for him to use them efficiently.

Echo of Tears was perfect in this environment, for each time the droplet of water flowing down from the sky touched the ground, the ripple would transport Danzan to his target at a speed that defied any form of reasoning.

The ripples will be stronger and more potent in this environment, Danzan thought, getting himself ready. The Circuitry of the Void was called forth, with his card in hand. Danzan leaned forward. In the sky above him, it was like the void was crying—a droplet of water leaking down from the main source before falling onto the ground. When the ripple began spreading out, Danzan's figure was nowhere to be seen.

"One done," he said.

Camilla was startled, blinking in surprise. She looked back and forth, not understanding what had happened. Minutes earlier, he had been stuck in the chaotic fight on the other side of the defense wall created by the Card Mage officers.

"Get in the chamber and don't get out of it," Danzan said, leaning back again, waiting for the second tear to fall. The problem with Echo Tear was that Danzan had to wait for the tears to ripple outward before obtaining his almost divine-like speed. And the moment he stepped out of the ripple's range, he lost his ability.

"I will bring all those I can, but I need you to stay here, Camilla," Danzan said. When he saw Camilla still standing—she didn't want to be safe while the others were in danger—Danzan sighed. "Trust me," he added.

Only then did Camilla agree to get into the chamber. "Bring them all, including Kairo and Nyx," she said.