It was a True Dragon.

  As if on cue, the proud beast stirred and started raising itself from its slumber, revealing more details about its figure. Compared to the female True Dragon they had met in the past, it was just slightly smaller but had a generally bulkier build, clearly pointing out at it being a male.

  An echoing chuckle reverberated through the chamber as it glanced their way. For some reason, the girls felt like they had heard it somewhere before, and Asterios furrowed his brows in confusion.

  The Dragon began walking towards them with a proud step. Black mist started covering its frame and they watched how it hid its entire body. Before the Dragon reached them, the dark smoke lost some of its intensity and swirled in circles around a person-sized shape.

  As it finally receded, everyone’s eyes went wide.

  Right in front of them, stood a man. His skin was gray. His pants were dark ash while his coat was slightly lighter but still somewhat dark. His hair and draconic eyes with white, vertical pupils were pure black. A prideful smile decorated the face they were all so familiar with.

  “Took you long enough.”

  It was Asterios.

  Chapter 43

  Battle of Personalities

  “Master has a brother?!” Miria gasped as confusion took over her face.

  “Who are you?” Asterios asked warily, recalling their past encounter with a shapeshifting entity.

  “What do you mean? I’m you,” the dark Asterios replied, pointing at himself. “Ah. I see. You don’t remember. Or rather, you can’t remember. They placed the seal after the operation. No wonder you are all this surprised even though there are literally no secrets between you all.”

  “It seems that you know a lot about me.” The normal Asterios frowned.

  “Of course I do.” The copy smirked, crossing his arms over his chest. “You and I are one. Connected through a single existence. Though, you’ve been unlucky enough to get affected by the spell Father put on your memories. Looks like it cut off your side of the connection almost completely. How amusing.”

  “Single existence? Does that mean you are the half Asterios is missing?” Tina wondered out loud.

  “You can say that.” The monochromatic entity nodded. “Although, you could also say that he is the half that I am missing. Why should we assume that the other way is right by default?”

  “Because Red and Kaguya pulled you out of Ast’s body,” Silvia replied, causing the fake Asterios’ brow to twitch. “We might have not seen the entire memory, but it’s obvious you are that something they removed out of his chest, considering the fact that you were locked here while he was taken away after the operation.”

  The right Asterios observed his mirror image attentively, noticing the faint change in his expression that had lasted only for a fraction of a second, ready to jump in and defend Silvia if necessary. But, the alter didn’t make any moves besides glaring at the princess slightly.

  “Then, if you instead watched all of it unfold, you would know that it could have been either of us. The fact that I got locked up in here is only true because of that crimson bastard’s open discrimination.” The black Asterios released a low, quiet growl. “It would make no difference which one of us they took but it was obvious that he would choose the half resembling his own lineage after miraculously cutting off the part related to his archnemesis.”

  “Black.” Selene nodded to herself in understanding. “How exactly are you related to that other Dragon? Isn’t he or she the one that injured Red in the past?”

  “Injured?” The copy sneered. “Black almost annihilated Red but that weasel was somehow able to run away with his tail between his legs. Even he wasn’t completely sure how the surefire lethal blow didn’t end up in his death. No matter what he tried, though, he could never completely get rid of the vicious energy eating at his Dragon’s Heart. Not even the divine healing chamber of the valkyrjas had any effect on him. What can’t be said about us.”

  “How do you know so much about Master’s parents?” Miria furrowed her brows at the other Asterios.

  She felt uncomfortable even just staring at the entity and she couldn’t find it in herself to believe he was her beloved Master too.

  “You’ve always been the slowest out of everyone, but seriously, how can someone be so dumb?” The fake Asterios sighed, shaking his head. “I have no idea what the other half was thinking when making such a weak idiot his first bond.”

  Miria started releasing low growls at the rude man. She was angry at him for insulting her, but a sharp pang of pain pricked her heart as his words struck right into her deepest insecurities. Before she or the true Asterios could say anything back, and he wasn’t going to let his other half go easily, the black-and-white clone raised a hand at them.

  “Listen closely you half-baked feline because I won’t benevolently repeat the same thing ten times over so that your lacking intellect can grasp the concept correctly without the use of childish allegories,” he continued with clear annoyance in his voice. “There’s no seal on my memories so I can clearly remember every single thing those two did, said, or even partially thought and felt since we share a faint connection with Red as our direct ancestor. And while he isn’t the talkative type, that vixen tried her best to pull him into a conversation to make their constant running at least slightly less boring. Additionally, since I and the other me are one, all his memories have obviously been entering my head too as we both grew up. I know everything he knows.”

  “I hate you! No matter what you say, you aren’t Master!” Miria shouted at him angrily. “Master would never talk to me like that even if it was true!”

  “The feeling is mutual, idiot. I would have severed our bond long ago if I was able to but I can’t do so from my current position.” He winced in disgust. “Imagine how hard it was for me to watch such a dumb mate stumble around like a blockhead for months. Your idiocy almost led to our death right after we summoned you. It’s such an embarrassment for a True Dragon to keep an utter failure like you by their side. But, you are right about one thing. The silly principles that bitch instilled in the other half turned him into a complete pussy.”

  “Enough!” Asterios roared, releasing his own, threatening growls afterward.

  “Ah, right. I forgot how sensitive you are about the human surrogate they picked that night.” The dark Asterios cocked his head to the back. “Really, I don’t know what was more annoying, watching you let that cat-eared idiot wrap you around her finger, or watching you play human while under that annoying female. You should have ripped her heart out right after learning that she kept secrets from you. A lesser being like her dares. She should have been killed for filling our head with that decency and kindness bullshit anyway.”

  “Not another word.” The real Asterios pointed a finger at his copy, growling even louder.

  “Or what? Are you going to kill me? Or rather, kill yourself? That would be fun to watch.” The clone chuckled. “You do realize that, even if you succeeded, you would be throwing away the half of the power you have been missing this entire time, turning yourself into a cripple forever?”

  “I don’t need to be whole if that means fusing with such filth,” Asterios snarled. “I’d rather remain like this forever than listen to your bullshit for even a day.”

  “Oh, you don’t have to worry about that. Only one of us can exist in this world. We are one in the end.” The dark half grinned maliciously. “And I’m going to make sure that the correct half comes out on top!”

  Before anyone could react, a powerful spiritual pressure burst out of the other Asterios and blew them all away. Selene quickly weaved her spiritual energy around everyone and stopped them before anyone hit the wall. They all looked ahead after regathering their wits and saw that the black-and-white Asterios was now in his dragonified form with wings, horns, and scales over most of his body. Naturally, instead of crimson red, they were pure black.

  The real Asterios wasted no time and brought out his features too, choosing to ignore all the limits he had usually been placing on himself in the past to avoid hurting anyone by accident. He knew that this was more than serious and he had to fight with all his power since his other half wouldn’t be pulling any punches. As far as he understood, there could be only one victor in this war, with one side taking everything from the loser, and the other disappearing forever.

  He noticed the dark alter taking a deep breath and hastily mirrored the motion, knowing well what was coming. Shortly after a wide, violent pillar of black, swirling flames shot their way, Asterios launched his own, crimson fire from his mouth. The two forces clashed about two-thirds towards him and the girls but the clear line didn’t move an inch further as both attacks seemed equal in terms of strength. The chamber was filled with flashing black and crimson lights as the vicious flames burned at each other.

  Then, Miria and Tina appeared right by the sides of the black Asterios with their respective weapons in mid-swing. The furious panthergirl had drawn out all the bloodline that she could, covering most of her body in shiny, black fur, and enhanced her blades to her limits. As for the blue-haired, petite, human lady, she had already borrowed spiritual energy from two of her strongest summons and protected her figure with armor made of azure water.

  The rude Asterios stopped his Dragon’s Breath to dodge their attacks. Unfortunately, the kind Asterios had to withdraw his fire too, or else it could potentially hurt his mates if his other half decided to use them as a shield. And, his prediction was spot on as the monochromatic copy jumped back to pull the girls between himself and Asterios, putting them on the path of any straight-lined spells or abilities.

  But, that was when a cerulean flash gleamed behind him and Selene appeared out of thin air, with her right fist already pulled to the back. Her external circuits were glowing strongly and she did her best not to roar alongside her punch so as not to give her target any easy ways to notice her empowered attack.

  Unfortunately, he sensed the upcoming blow anyway and twisted his body just enough to avoid the soaring fist which grazed his chest. The dark Asterios grabbed Selene’s wrist as she was passing in front of him and threw her at Miria, who was coming towards them with Tina by her side. He launched the fox lady with so much force that the panthergirl had barely any time to move her blades out of the way so as not to hurt her sister-mate before they crashed into each other.

  Tina didn’t stop her chase, though, and began swinging her water scythe while sprinting ahead, pushing herself forward with the help of her feathery wings. Sharp arcs of azure liquid shot forward, cutting over the floor like through butter and surging right at Asterio’s evil twin. Suddenly, a few more arcs joined them from above, this time made of pure amber fire, and about twelve blades of flames and liquid danced between themselves like shark fins coming out of the metal ground.

  Before they reached him, the dark half swung his arm from left to right and the fire ceased to exist. The flames literally died out midway, as if someone had just snuffed them out like a candle. The liquid ones remained on their path but not for long. He flapped his right wing with a lot of force and a wave of spiritually enhanced wind rushed ahead to meet the incoming arcs of violent water.

  Most of them lost their stability and consistency, splattering all over the floor. Only two persisted through the small storm he had created and looked like they would hit the mark. The black Asterios didn’t let them, of course, and skillfully redirected each blade with the back of his hands, sending them flying to the sides as they scraped over the tough black scales covering his skin.

  A round puddle of deep shadow pooled underneath his feet and ominous tendrils wrapped themselves all around his calves and thighs, locking him in place. In an instant, all the girls that had previously attacked him rushed in from every single direction, preparing spells or attacks on the move.

  Smirking to himself, Ast’s vicious half raised his arms above his head and spoke a few quick words in Draconic. His hands were set ablaze with onyx fire and he roared with trembling might while slamming his fists into the hard floor in front of him, using his entire body to put even more strength into the hit.

  The chamber shook heavily as a wide dent was created around his figure, reaching far enough to appear under everyone coming at him. Then, the black fire flickered at the point of impact and burst outwards in the shape of a swirling sphere, consuming all the girls in a flash. The intense fire whooshed menacingly for a good five seconds before receding.

  Four golden orbs of pure light were revealed around him and the girls inside them immediately jumped back, putting more distance between them and the dark Asterios. Bryn withdrew her technique, lowering her staff from the air as her bright halo stopped emitting a divine glow. The barriers she had created slowly faded away as she sighed softly.

  “The earlier you accept the fact that you have no chance of defeating me, the less painful this is going to be for you. I know everything about you and your moves. Each technique you use just creates an opening for me to counter. I would rather avoid damaging my toys before I’m even able to put my hands on them if that’s possible.” The rude half smirked confidently.

  “That’s what you want us to believe. If you really were as omniscient and powerful as you are saying, we would have been long defeated,” Grea shouted at him from the backline.

  “Ah, the rat-like slut with a severe case of PTSD after her one-sided crush died from her utter incompetence.” He sneered. “You should have stayed holed in that basement of yours like the coward you are. The outside world is not a place for fragile-like-glass decorations on the verge of breaking down.”

  “Have I ever told Asterios that men who are disrespectful to women outside of bed are the complete opposite of hot?” She scoffed at him with visible disdain.

  “I don’t recall but you tend to spout a lot of rubbish nonsense whenever you are around me.” He snorted.

  “Around you? I wouldn’t approach a jerk like you even with a twenty-foot, shit-covered pole.” She spat to the side. “Miria is right. You are not him. You are just an impostor. A piece of essence that gained sentience and is trying to convince itself that it’s the real deal because of how fucking pitiful its existence would be otherwise.”

  A powerful thud reverberated through the air and another soon followed. The black Asterios had disappeared from the place he’d been at just a moment ago and was currently standing in front of Grea with his fist extended forward. That fist was being held by the colorful Asterios, blocking his twin’s blow from reaching his beloved mate. An ugly expression was present on the clone’s twisted face.

  “Oh~? Have I struck a sore spot~?” The demon lady pressed herself into the real Asterios from behind and showed a playful, devilish grin. “It looks like I might have hit the nail on the head~”

  “I changed my mind. I’m going to gut you first instead of that brainless cat,” the vicious Asterios growled back at her.

  “Sorry, but only the real gentleman here has unlimited access to my guts.” She winked at him and placed a sloppy kiss on the first Asterios’ neck.

  Before he could respond, something caught his attention and he noticed a pinkish mist coiling around his entire body like a wicked snake. It suddenly sparkled all over the smoking path and a golden barrier rose between the two Asterioses. The rosy gas blew up with unimaginable intensity, shaking the core chamber with just the shockwaves.

  A loud, metallic gong resounded through the spherical room and the dark Asterios was gone from the spot he’d stood at a second ago. Only sizzling plasma remained splattered on the floor, eating at the silvery metal while melting holes and streaks in it. Bits of Aura’s immensely hot body could be spotted burning through the tiles a few meters from the point of the blast.

  ~You are the key to beating him,~ Asterios spoke mentally to everyone connected to him before his mirror image crawled out of the small crater in the wall. ~We have no idea how far his access to my memories or even head goes. I’m going to cut myself off so that you can freely talk between yourselves. I’ll limit our connection as much as I can too.~

  ~But Master, we won’t be able to cooperate with you properly like that,~ Miria expressed her worry.

  ~I will try to create as many openings for you girls as I can while acting fully on my own. I know you can do it. You have almost gotten me back during the War Games. You don’t have to hold back this time. Ignore the fact that he looks and sounds like me and hit him with everything you have,~ he reassured her.

  ~Master is right, Miria,~ Selene joined in. ~We are the variables that his other half doesn’t have in his arsenal. He can most likely do everything Master can but he can’t replicate our numbers or abilities.~

  ~Tina. Can I count on you?~ Asterios linked eyes with his charming, blue-haired girlfriend.

  ~Me?~ She swallowed hard. ~I mean, yes. Leave it to me. We’ll take him down no matter what.~

  ~I know you will. You are all the strongest girls I’ve ever met. I’m proud of having all of you as my mates.~ Asterios smiled warmly and they received his honest, affectionate thoughts before their link was cut off.

  The dark Asterios made his way out of the niche created by his crash. It took him only about three seconds but the entire conversation between the real Asterios and the girls had happened in the meanwhile thanks to their deep bonds. The rude copy sneered at them, possibly aware of it.

  Showing the last, kind smile at them, the caring Asterios launched himself forward while gripping his artifact sword firmly. The blade was already a mix of his and Silvia’s flames, condensed and shrunk to the size of the usual longsword but with a single sharp edge. Before it sliced into the evil half’s flesh, the other Asterios created a black blade out of his fire and blocked the attack with ease.

  “You can try as many tricks as you want, cutting me off from them won’t change a thing. I already memorized everything about them.” The black Asterios sneered.