There was a man on the rooftop of a building close to where the fight between Zatiel and the Helltoxin Minotaur occurred. His ten-meter tall body had draconic and fiendish traits.
The Devil Lord was a Fiend Dragonborn named Dior, a member of the same team as Zatiel. He managed to hide his presence thanks to his laws, making it challenging even for a Rank 5 life form's consciousness to detect him.
The red fog was so thick that he could not see the battle, but he had a highly developed sense of smell that worked like a form of sonar for him.
Dior followed the Helltoxin Minotaur and was about to attack him when he detected another presence and chose to hide. He was surprised by Kenner's arrival and how he handled the Helltoxin Minotaur.
The Fiend Dragonborn could also defeat the opposing team's Devil Count, but he had reached the 3rd Engraving Stage and focused on body refinement.
'There is something odd about Kenner. His strength is higher than the last time I saw him, and his Law Avatar has changed. It would have been a hard battle if I took him head-on, but the stupid dared to enter the Helltoxin Minotaur's Breath of Death. Luckily he did not kill the Devil Count, so I have the chance to devour both of them alive.' There was hunger in Dior's face as he thought of eating his comrade.
The Fiend Dragonborn's primary goal in this mission was not to harvest resources from which he would only keep a fraction or search for a technique he had no affinity for.
The moment he set foot in this dimension, he began to hunt Devil Counts to devour them and increase the power of his devil bloodline.
Dior could see in his mind how Zatiel left the black gas after storing the Helltoxin Minotaur in his space ring and how his body had a horrible stench due to the poison that invaded his cells.
'It doesn't matter. Sometimes smelly foods are the most delicious ones.' Dior smiled as he prepared to take advantage of Zatiel's weakened state when he noticed this one running to a statue close to him and then, out of nowhere, make an underground passage appear.
'What is that?' The Devil Count was surprised. His nose could give him a perfect picture of everything around him, but he had no idea how Zatiel found that tunnel.
Zatiel descended the next instant, and Dior's perception began to lose him as his scent vanished.
The Fiend Dragonborn did not chase after Zatiel immediately.
He did not believe that the Neo-Demon could have set him a trap since he should not have been able to detect his presence, but the Blood Fortress was a strange and dangerous place, so he had to be careful.
Dior got closer to the passage and once again got hold of Zatiel's scent. He sensed the Neo-Demon going down the path for a long time and how nothing got in his way.
The Devil Count waited for a few minutes, and after discerning no problem, he also began to descend.
After a few minutes of flying, the red fog disappeared, but the tunnel had so many curves that his eyes were not very useful, not to mention that the pressure on his consciousness grew even higher.
The tunnel was very long. Even with the Fiend Dragonborn speed, he had to advance for almost half an hour before seeing the exit.
Dior had just left the passage, and what he saw shocked him. He found himself in the center of a giant tower, with devils tied up to the walls.
There were thousands of devils, and while most of them were Rank 3 life forms, there were plenty of Rank 4 life forms and even Rank 5 life forms.
They had metallic ducts connected to their spines that introduced red golden energy into their bodies, and another set of tubes came out from their hearts and sent blood energy and life force down.
'They are cattle!. Whoever built this and captured all these devils is a mighty entity. Those lesser devils should have died of old age a long time ago, but whatever those pipes pumped into them keeps them alive and allows blood energy and life force extraction.'
Fear was beginning to appear in the Fiend Dragonborn's eyes as he inspected the place. He followed the tubes from the devils' hearts and saw them gathering in a formation on the tower's floor.
Another thing that disturbed Dior was the fact he had lost trace of Zatiel. He had followed his scent all the way here, but now he could not find him.
Even though this place could be a treasure trove, the danger was too much for the Fiend Dragonborn.
The Devil Count had just turned around, ready to escape this place at full speed. However, his entire body froze due to a child appearing right in front of him.
"Where do you think you are going? It has been a very long time since I had someone with whom to speak. Besides, Blood Father would be very angry if I disobey his instructions."
The child's appearance was the same as the statue above this tower. He had no eyes nor ears, and there was a bloodthirsty smile on his face.
The Fiend Dragonborn was almost ten times taller than the child and an evil monster that had provoked countless atrocities, but right now, his instincts were screaming with utter horror.
Cold sweat appeared in his body, but as a cunning devil who survived thousands of years in hell, his mind was fast.
"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Dior, a Devil Count and faithful servant of Duke Krior. I came to the Blood Fortress following my Duke's commands to search for the Blood Duke and offer my assistance. How can I address your Highness." Dior kneeled in the air and adopted a submissive stance.
All he had said were pure lies, but from the child's words, he deducted a connection with the Blood Duke, and from there, he went with his gut.
The child touched his chin as he appeared to be thinking. Dior's words seem to have affected him, and his stance relaxed, but the bloodthirsty smile remained.
"How weird. Father told me none of you knew your true purpose for coming here. How did you find out?"
Dior's eyes narrowed when he heard that, and all kinds of thoughts crossed his mind. However, he could not make the child wait.
"I am Duke Krior's trusted lieutenant and an essential part of his organization. That is why I know things others may not."
"Why would Duke Krior send you here if you are an important part of his organization?" The child frowned as he spoke those words, but he talked to himself and did not hope for Dior to answer.
The child remained thinking for a few seconds, which felt like an eternity for the Fiend Dragonborn. In the end, he shrugged his shoulder and shook his head.
"It is not my place to question a Devil Duke. If he wanted to send a trusted lieutenant to assist Father, then I can only thank him. By the way, my name is Blood Child, son of the Blood Duke."
The tension diminished after Blood Child spoke those words, and the Fiend Dragonborn took the opportunity to ask a question that had been bothering him.
"Yor Highness, Blood Child, you say I am the first visitor you had in a long time, but I saw a person coming to this place a few minutes before me."
Blood Child immediately shook his head when he heard Dior's words.
"I am confident that you were the first one to come to this place. None of the sacrifices should have the strength or special abilities capable of hiding from me. The Dukes made sure of that when they picked you."
A flash of realization appeared in the Fiend Dragonborn's eyes when he heard how Blood Child referred to the devils that took part in this mission.
"I would like to speak a little more with you, but Blood Father would be very angry if I delay things too much. Now show me your back so I can begin with my work and you can fulfill the mission Duke Krior trusted you." Blood Child rose his palm, and pipes, like those piercing the devils' spine in the walls, emerged from it.
