Keoza's visage stood behind Lux with his wings spread wide.
His angry features looked down on the Dragon Borns, who were about to capture the Half-Elf, intimidating them into stopping their actions.
"A Crystal Dragon?" the Mayor frowned as he looked up at the giant apparition. "Wait, you look a little familiar."
As the Mayor was trying to recall where he had seen Keoza's form before, a gust of wind suddenly blew from behind him.
"It's been hundreds of years, Keoza. Have you been well?"
A humanoid golden dragon with golden eyes gazed at the Crystal Dragon with a smile.
"Y-Your Majesty!" The Mayor, as well as the other Dragon Borns, all knelt down as they paid tribute to their High King.
Keoza ignored the Dragon King and simply glared at the Mayor of the City of Pygmalion, making the latter flinch due to the concentrated anger and hostility that the Crystal Dragon directed at him.
Seeing that the Crystal Dragon was ignoring him, the Dragon King glanced at the blazing crater in the distance, as well as the black smoke rising up in the air, before frowning.
"Cethus, what happened here?" the Dragon King asked.
Cethus respectfully pressed his hands together as he narrated exactly how the events transpired. As a member of the Royal Guards, he had sworn an oath not to lie to the Dragon King, so he reported everything, without missing a single detail.
The Dragon King listened to Cethus' full report before shifting his gaze to the red-headed teenager who had caused the incident. He never thought that the one that Keoza chose would be so bold as to openly cause hardship for the city that turned his territory a garbage dump.
The Mayor listened to Cethus' report and frowned. However, he wasn't too worried. It was the Dragon King that had told him that it was fine to throw garbage on the third floating island, as long as it wasn't on the mountainous region that belonged to Lux.
Since that was the case, the Mayor ordered that all the wastes of their city be dumped at the foot of the mountain, surrounding the Half-Elf's domain with filth.
However, he didn't expect Lux to retaliate in a manner that would cause a city-wide pollution outbreak and make his citizens suffer.
"This is our first meeting," the Dragon King said to the red-headed teenager who was standing with his arms crossed over his chest. "So, why aren't you kneeling?"
As if making his point, he released a pressure that forced the Half-Elf to kneel, making Lux's head touch the floor.
"You're still the same. Whenever you don't get your way, you don't hesitate to use force to make others submit. How childish."
Keoza snorted as he gazed at the Dragon King, whose lips rose slightly after hearing the Crystal Dragon's words.
"Feel like talking to me now?" the Dragon King asked.
"Your attempt is quite laughable," Keoza replied. "Wouldn't it stain your reputation if rumors start to spread that the King of All Dragons visited a garbage dump to take a piss?"
The Mayor and the Dragon Born were surprised because the Crystal Dragon seemed to not have a single shred of respect for the Dragon King. However, what surprised them more was that the Dragon King didn't seem to be offended by how the Crystal Dragon treated him.
In fact, from their perspective, the Dragon King even seemed amused that the Crystal Dragon was mocking him.
"It pains me to look at you, dear Brother," the Dragon King stated. "The undisputed genius of Dragonkind, reduced to a spirit without a real body. It seems that Fate wasn't kind to you."
"It also pains me to look at you." Keoza sneered. "The reigning Dragon King and still needed to play these childish games to get my attention. What's wrong? Your wife doesn't pay attention to you and makes you sleep on the floor? Wait, don't tell me… you can't get it up anymore? How pitiful. This is what you get for being vain."
The Dragon Borns at the scene almost choked after hearing the Crystal Dragon's reply. No one in Karshvar Draconis would dare ridicule the Dragon King because this would result in capital punishment.
Although the Dragon King was very strict and ruled with an iron fist, he also made their kingdom prosper, preventing anyone from breaking the order of the Dragonkind.
"You still speak brazenly without considering the consequences," the Dragon King's tone was still calm, but his gaze became sharp like a sword about to decapitate his foe. "Did it ever cross your mind that I might punish this Half-Elf in your stead? It has been a while since we had a public execution. Maybe you want to commemorate this day with his head getting chopped off?"
Keoza chuckled before giving the Dragon King a look of ridicule.
"A public execution?" Keoza smirked. "Do you dare?"
The question "Do you dare?" reverberated in the surroundings, making all the Dragon Borns feel a chill run down their spine. They knew that their King didn't like to be challenged in an arrogant manner, and those who had dared to do so in the past found themselves dying before they even knew what hit them.
'This Half-Elf is dead.'
That was the general consensus of the Dragon Borns and the Dragons who were at the scene.
The Dragon King and Keoza stared at each other with contemptuous gazes that lasted for several minutes. Everyone remained silent. They didn't know the consequences of making a sound, disturbing them and suddenly creating a spark that would light a bomb.
Finally, after several minutes, it was the Dragon King who broke the silence first.
"Can we not really talk in a civilized manner like we did hundreds of years ago?" the Dragon King asked. "If you wish, I can help you gain a new body that will restore your former glory."
"We have nothing more to talk about," Keoza replied. "As for a new body? I don't need your charity. Also, one last thing…"
The Crystal Dragon gave the Mayor a side-long glance before shifting his gaze back to the Dragon King who was waiting for him to continue his words. He could tell that the golden dragon who ruled the Dragon Kingdom didn't think much of Lux, but he didn't care.
In time, he will understand. But, that time was not now.
"If you think you can bully this child, then I hate to disappoint you, but he's not the type that takes things lying down," Keoza stated. "He's the same as me. I won't take things lying down. If you don't want your precious city to fall from the sky, make sure to handle this properly."
The Crystal Dragon's body turned into particles of light before returning to the Dragon Token that was now lying on the ground beside Lux.
The Half-Elf was still subjected to a powerful pressure, so he remained in a kneeling position, with his head touching the ground.
The Dragon King remained silent and stared at the Half-Elf, as if trying to understand what Keoza saw in him, making the Crystal Dragon defend him so much.
"Y-Your Majesty," the Mayor said a minute after the Crystal Dragon disappeared. "In what manner should we handle this situation?"
The Dragon King glanced at the blazing crater that was still spewing flames high up in the air, as well as the dense black smoke that was rising towards the sky.
"Handle this matter peacefully," the Dragon King replied. "I believe that you have what it takes to resolve this simple issue, yes?"
"O-Of course, Your Majesty."
"Good."
The Dragon King then shifted his gaze to Cethus, making the latter very nervous.
"After this incident is resolved, return to the capital to give me a full report," the Dragon King ordered. "You are to continue to supervise him, and make sure that this incident does not happen again, understood?"
Cethus patted his chest resolutely before giving his answer.
"Yes, Your Majesty!" Cethus vowed. "I will not let you down!"
The Dragon King nodded and gave Lux one last glance before disappearing from where he stood. Since Keoza refused to have a proper discussion, he would wait until the Crystal Dragon's rage was pacified.
For now, he decided to pay a little more attention to the Half-Elf that the Crystal Dragon was nurturing. He wanted to know what Lux was truly capable of.
As soon as the Dragon King disappeared, the pressure that pressed on Lux's body also vanished without a trace.
"Are you okay, Eiko?" Lux asked the baby Slime, who had hidden herself inside Lux's robes the moment the Dragon King appeared.
"Pa!" Eiko replied as she crawled out of Lux's robe and returned to her rightful position, which was on top of the red-headed teenager's head.
The Half-Elf then casually dusted off his forehead and pants to remove the dirt that stuck to them after he had been forced to kneel.
A moment later, a sigh reached Lux's ears as the Mayor of the City of Pygmalion approached him with a serious expression on his face.
"We need to talk," the Mayor said.
Since the Dragon King ordered him to resolve this matter peacefully, he had no choice but to converse with the Half-Elf, whose true origins were not known.
If possible, he wanted to restart their relationship from scratch.
After seeing the Crystal Dragon up close, the Mayor finally remembered who he was.
The Crystal Dragon, Keoza.
The one who should have been crowned Dragon King but vanished before the coronation, leaving the throne to his older brother, who now sat on the golden throne and ruled the entirety of Karshvar Draconis.
