The silver-haired Devil, whose name was Zelken Leth Ailphostes, sneered at the Half-Elf as his strongest attack was about to collide with the red-headed teenager's body.
He had hated Lux since the first time the latter got on his way and had long been dreaming to kill him with his own hands.
Although things would be a bit complicated once he exited the Dungeon, he was certain that he would be able to keep Aur's body as long as he timed his escape properly.
However, before that could happen, he had to eliminate all the bastards who were getting in his way, and he would start with the one he hated the most first.
But, just as his attack was about to obliterate the Half-Elf, a ferocious Dragon Roar spread in the surroundings.
The Dark Energy Ball suddenly dispersed, shocking Zelken, who was already celebrating Lux's demise.
"How dare you?!"
A growl filled with intense rage reverberated in the surroundings, making the silver-haired Devil subconsciously shudder.
Hovering in front of Lux was a Dragon Token that was being enveloped by golden lightning bolts.
"I'll kill you!"
Keoza's hateful roar made the land shake, creating large cracks that extended in every direction.
Suddenly, the red environment shattered, similar to tens of thousands of crystal cups breaking at the same time.
The sky, which was clear a while ago, was covered with dark clouds, and golden lightning rained down from the heavens, instantly killing any monsters that were unlucky enough to get hit by it.
A few meters above Lux's head, a giant silhouette of a Crystal Dragon, who was at least a hundred meters tall, looked down at the silver-haired Devil that had possessed the Dragon Prince.
"H-His Majesty Keoza!" Piccoro shouted in both awe and excitement as their one true king finally made his appearance.
The other Saints shared the Black-Scaled Dragon Born's feelings, making them rejoice in their hearts.
They had been looking for their King for the past century, and they had exhausted every means at their disposal to find him. However, no matter how far their search extended, they were unable to find any clues about where they could find their King, who had disappeared without a trace.
As if sensing the presence of his mortal enemy, Zelken decided to flee.
However, before he could do that, a giant transparent dragon claw snatched him from the sky, holding him in a vice grip.
"Just where do you think you're going?" Keoza locked his bloodthirsty gaze on the silver-haired devil, making the latter cry out in pain.
The Crystal Dragon's claws were coated with divine power, which was very fatal to Abyssal Creatures.
The Crystal Dragon was directly attacking the silver-haired Devil's soul instead of Aur's body, making the Abyssal Duke scream in pain.
"I-If you kill me, I will make sure to kill this Dragon Prince's soul as well!" Zelken shouted in desperation. "I will take him with me to the afterlife!"
Keoza roared hatefully as he once again increased his grip on Aur's body as if squeezing the devil's soul out of it.
"You think you can trick me, you despicable creature?" Keoza sneered. "I wasn't born yesterday!"
The Crystal Dragon once again increased his grip with the intention of crushing the silver-haired Devil's soul inside Aur's body.
Lux watched this from the side with a calm expression on his face. In his eyes, Keoza was an easy-going Dragon whom he could depend on for advice when he needed it.
This was the first time he saw Keoza this angry as if someone had touched his reverse scale.
He didn't know what kind of relationship the Crystal Dragon had with the Dragon Prince, but seeing how enraged Keoza was, it was quite easy to tell that they shared a very close relationship with each other.
"Oi! Don't crush that soul! Why are you being so wasteful, you stupid Dragon?!"
Suddenly, an annoyed voice, which was similar to someone who had been forced to wake up in the middle of the night, reached everyone's ears.
Lux, Keoza, and everyone in the immediate vicinity glanced in the direction where the voice was coming from.
There, they saw an Undead Wyvern with an old Halfling standing on top of it, wearing an impatient expression on his face.
"It's very rare to get hold of a High-Ranking Abyssal Soul in this day and age, and you plan to crush it completely?" Gaap scoffed. "Stand aside, Amateur. I'll handle this!"
Keoza narrowed his eyes, but he didn't make any move to attack Lux's Master.
As someone who had accompanied the Half-Elf on his journey, it was impossible for him to not recognize those whom the Half-Elf deemed important to him.
An Undead, whose body was covered by a black plated armor from head to toe, appeared beside Gaap.
The Black Knight then opened its black angelic wings and flew towards the Crystal Dragon, who was holding the Dragon Prince in his claws.
"Hand him over," the Black Knight said. "My Master will take care of him."
Keoza narrowed his eyes as he looked at the Black Knight before shifting his gaze to the Dragon Prince in his hand.
A few seconds later, he passed Aur to the Black Knight, making the latter give the Crystal Dragon a brief nod of acknowledgement.
"Y-You! Stay away!" Zelken felt his soul shudder after seeing the old Halfling who was looking at him with a devilish smile, showing off the remaining three teeth in his mouth.
As a soul, he was very sensitive to those who had the potential to harm him.
Even though he had suffered a lot in the claws of the Crystal Dragon, he knew that his fate would be sealed the moment the Old Necromancer got hold of him.
In one desperate attempt, he decided to destroy Aur's soul, in order to have someone accompany him to the afterlife.
Although killing people inside the dungeon would just teleport them to the entrance of the Gate of the Fallen, having their souls extinguished would lead to permanent death, leaving only a living shell that housed their souls when they were alive.
Zelken could have succeeded in his double suicide attempt if he were dealing with an inexperienced Necromancer like Lux.
But in the face of a true Master like the Halfling, his attempts were futile.
Gaap had already anticipated that the silver-haired Devil would try to destroy Aur's soul, which he had sealed deep inside the Dragon Prince's consciousness.
The old Halfling had seen many who had attempted to do this in front of him, but none of them succeeded.
With a single wave of Gaap's hand, the silver-haired Devil's soul was instantly expelled from Aur's body.
In that brief period of time, Zelken knew that it was a do-or-die situation, so he immediately created a small dimensional rift in front of him that would allow him to escape to the Gate of the Apocalypse, where his true body was sealed.
"Ah… the final struggle of a corrupted soul," Gaap said softly as misty black tentacles shot out from his body. "Unfortunately for you, it's game over the moment I placed a mark on your body."
Zelken's soul had managed to enter the dimensional rift, but it was quickly followed by the shadowy tentacles that Gaap had unleashed to capture the Abyssal Duke's soul.
A few of the tentacles prevented the Dimensional Rift from closing, while the rest hunted down the fleeing Abyssal Soul who planned to return to its true body as soon as possible.
Half a minute later, a screaming and struggling soul was pulled out of the dimensional rift, which immediately closed as soon as he was successfully captured.
Gaap looked at the screaming soul in front of him with delight, as if he had found a new toy.
"Too noisy," Gaap chuckled before he slapped the soul with his wooden stick, causing the silver-haired Devil to go into a daze.
The Old Halfling then placed his wrinkled hands over the Zelken's head, making the latter writhe like an earthworm that had been sprinkled with salt.
This scene lasted for a full minute before the Abyssal Soul stopped moving completely.
Gaap then calmly took out a crystal ball from his storage ring, which he used to suck the unmoving soul inside it.
"Another one added to my collection." Gaap chuckled as he grinned from ear to ear, admiring the crystal ball like one of those wealthy collectors who were passionate about their hobby.
A moment later, the old Halfling stored the Crystal Ball back into his storage ring and looked at the still unconscious Dragon Prince, who was being carried by one of his servants.
"I almost forgot about you," Gaap muttered before pressing the tip of his walking stick against Aur's forehead, making the latter's eyebrows flutter.
Half a minute later, the Dragon Prince opened his eyes and looked around him in a daze.
This scene made the Dragon Borns, who had been beaten black and blue by Lux's subordinates who blocked their attempts to hurt their Master, cry out in joy.
Even the Saints who had been wanting to kill Lux earlier breathed a sigh of relief, seeing that their Prince was now safe from harm.
As if waiting for that moment, the Dragon Prince's gaze landed on the silhouette of a Giant Crystal Dragon, who was looking down at him with a conflicted look in his eyes.
The two stared at each other for a period of time before a sigh escaped Keoza's lips.
Now that Aur was safe, the silhouette of the Crystal Dragon disappeared, and the Dragon Token lost its radiance.
It then flew towards Lux and landed harmlessly on the palm of his hand.
The Half-Elf stared at the token in his hand before shifting his gaze back to Aur, who was looking at him with the same conflicted look that Keoza had earlier.
When Keoza had made his appearance, the Crystal Palace and those affiliated with it had finally been able to see their missing King, who had suddenly disappeared when the world needed him the most.
