Chapter 754: Cassius’s Imperial Palace

Anzeta Wasteland.

Ember Imperial Palace.

"As expected of His Majesty Cassius’s residence." Dracaryss lifted her head and gazed at the magnificent palace, sighing with genuine admiration.

"If only I could claim it as my own..." Gazing at the resplendent, extravagantly luxurious palace complex, the female couldn’t help licking her lips, golden eyes filled with greed.

This was the nature of dragons.

But the thought merely flashed in her mind without taking root. If this had been the palace of some mortal king, Dracaryss would’ve already started burning, looting, and pillaging.

But she knew she was about to face the supreme ruler of northern Feanso, one of the most powerful dragons on the Material Plane—the Ember Emperor, Cassius.

If the first impression of this palace was splendor—

Then the second impression was sheer scale.

Everything in the palace was enormous—doors, stairways, seats, even the buildings themselves were absurdly oversized.

Just the heavy metal doors engraved with the emblem of the Ember Empire stood fifty meters tall, and the palace structures loomed even higher—ordinary folk wouldn’t see the tops without craning their necks to the limit.

Even the massive-bodied red dragon seemed small before this towering imperial palace.

As she drew closer, the air around her grew increasingly hot, as if about to combust. Mortals wouldn’t survive more than a few minutes in this area.

Hence, the palace guards were all half-red-dragon humanoids with extremely concentrated dragonblood, and of course, atavistic wyverns.

"Raaawr——"

Roars rang out from above. Over a dozen wyverns perched atop watchtowers, howling as they raised their heads, brimming with menace.

Even when facing a red dragon whose bloodline suppressed theirs, the wyverns showed no fear, glaring down with bared fangs.

And the soldiers stationed at the palace were also on high alert.

They patrolled the walls, mobilizing arcane cannons, with dozens of dark muzzles trained on the red dragon, ready for a sudden assault.

"Lowly wyvern reptiles, mongrel humans, demon-spawned scum... truly don’t know their place." Dracaryss raised her head, her gaze contemptuous, a cruel smile creeping across her face.

She took to the air, flapping her wings, looking down arrogantly on all the life below.

The red dragon almost instinctively wanted to teach these insolent lesser beings a bloody lesson—murderous intent surged in her eyes.

Under that intent, even the wyverns trembled.

Yet they did not retreat, still doing their best to maintain their posture, letting out restrained growls at the red dragon.

These wyverns knew very well that behind them stood the Ember Emperor—no enemy dared act unruly in his presence.

Their primary role was to uphold the empire’s dignity, to give petitioners a proper sense of oppression.

Seeing the red dragon’s muscles twitching, face twisted, seemingly on the verge of losing control—

A tiefling guard captain stepped forward and said in a deep voice, "You must be Lady Dracaryss. You are authorized to enter the palace."

"However, be aware that flying within the palace is prohibited. No one but His Majesty Cassius may fly here. Violate that, and... bear the consequences."

"Remember, this is the Ember Empire’s Imperial Palace."

"Even gods must follow the rules here and obey the orders of the Emperor." At the end, the tiefling deliberately emphasized his words.

At the same time, a pressure of divine law emanated from him—that was the power of [Divine Mandate from the Emperor].

Only then did the red dragon calm down and reevaluate the situation.

"That’s... a legendary spellcaster?"

Dracaryss was startled but quickly shook her head. "Impossible. Why would someone like that stoop to being a mere guard?"

She looked at the wyverns again. These lowly reptiles were surprisingly large and powerful, averaging over ten meters long—nearly matching adolescent true dragons.

"They’re far stronger than their kin... they’ve practically become a new species." Dracaryss was shocked.

"As expected of His Majesty Cassius—his noble bloodline even strengthens his vassals." She felt heartfelt admiration again.

The female red dragon descended from the sky, striding toward the palace gates with her chin proudly raised.

With a heavy rumble, the palace gates slowly opened. Dracaryss stepped inside, heading directly for the main hall in the distance.

——According to Tinia, Cassius would be waiting for her audience there.

The palace’s main hall was utterly massive—over a hundred meters tall, like a colossal pillar holding up the heavens.

Dracaryss walked the road leading to the palace door. The closer she got, the more she felt the overwhelming pressure, an involuntary urge to prostrate filling her heart.

"This level of draconic might..."

Dracaryss closed her eyes, focusing on the intense pressure. Her heart pounded, her emotions soared.

After all, she was a noble-blooded atavistic red dragon, born with ancestral dragon blood. Not even ancient dragons could suppress her with their bloodline.

Yet now, she felt a terrifying pressure that seeped into her very soul—unprecedented.

"Boom——"

With a deep rumble, the main hall doors opened. A wave of searing heat and oppressive draconic might burst forth.

Dracaryss stepped through the doors.

Lining both sides of the palace corridor were massive oil paintings.

Beneath them stood statues forged of pure gold—so lifelike they seemed alive, depicting vampires, silver dragons, angels, demons... even divine avatars.

These were the glorious feats and mighty deeds of the Ember Emperor.

Dracaryss ascended the stairs step by step, raising her head—finally seeing that mighty figure once again—

A red dragon as vast as a mountain lay sprawled on a golden throne, its posture lazy yet exuding unshakable authority.

The dragon’s form was immensely muscular, its body like molten rock hardened into form.

Its deep crimson scales shone with a metallic luster, faint streaks of dark gold resembling magma flowing beneath cracked stone.

Atop its massive head, four horns swept backward like a crown. Pale gold slit pupils glowed like lava, filled with arrogance, disdain, and contempt.

This was it.

That feeling of being looked down upon, treated like garbage!

Dracaryss’s face brimmed with manic ecstasy, her eyes full of yearning, her burning dragon heart pounding violently—her whole body trembling.

"Your Majesty Cassius, I... I can finally meet you again... I am Dracaryss."

"Do you remember? Not long ago, in Avernus... your majestic form shook me to my core," Dracaryss said excitedly, her words tumbling over each other.

"Avernus..."

Cassius lifted his gaze, saying flatly, "So, are you the Dragon Queen’s Divine Vassal? Here by her divine edict?"

Unexpectedly, Dracaryss shook her head resolutely: "No. I am not. That one is unworthy of my loyalty."

Now Cassius showed a hint of interest, raising an eyebrow. "Why?"

"You’re a red dragon—Tiamat’s most beloved child. By nature, you should be her faithful follower."

"Aren’t you the same?"

Dracaryss smiled faintly and said, "That majesty is far too greedy. Those marked as divine vassals will one day be devoured—bones and all."

Hearing this, Cassius laughed. "Heh. You’ve got her figured out."

"But... don’t you want the power of a divine vassal?"

Dracaryss snorted. "Only the weak beg for blessings from gods—seeking illusory power. True strength comes from within."

"I admire you because you possess the might to stand against the Dragon Queen. You know I always call you ’His Majesty Cassius’—never ’Dragon Prince.’"

Cassius narrowed his eyes, staring down at the female red dragon. His pale gold eyes shimmered, deep and piercing, as if seeing into her very soul.

He could tell—she wasn’t faking. Her soul bore no trace of Tiamat. She wasn’t one of the Dragon Queen’s spies.

Still, divine tricks were notoriously unpredictable, so he couldn’t be entirely certain.

"Dracaryss, not bad—you even defeated Tinia and came before me."

Cassius gazed at the female red dragon, voice calm. "So—why are you here?"

Dracaryss’s eyes were fervent, nearly obsessed: "What I want most—of course—is to mate with you!"

"Those crawling blue and green dragons are unworthy. Only the noblest red dragons deserve to be your mate—like me."

"Your Majesty Cassius, our bloodlines combined would produce the perfect offspring—a natural king among red dragons—he would become..."

Sulfurous smoke puffed from Dracaryss’s mouth, her eyes blazing, as if envisioning a glorious future.

Cassius twitched slightly at the corner of his mouth.

——And you say you’re not Tiamat’s undercover agent!

"That’s not happening."

Cassius shook his head coldly. "I don’t trust you. Everyone knows that one has always coveted my bloodline."

"Even if you’re not her follower now, I can’t rule out the possibility of you taking my blood to earn her favor."

"I expected that, Your Majesty," Dracaryss lowered her gaze without much disappointment—it seemed she anticipated this.

"But I’ll prove myself with actions—I am the most suitable partner for you. I alone on the Feanso Continent am worthy to bear your offspring."

"But for now—I have another request. May I ask it?" Dracaryss lowered her head, her voice filled with rare humility and respect.

Her posture was low—a gesture of respect to a stronger being.

Cassius looked down indifferently. "What are you willing to give?"

"I can act as your undercover, providing intel on the Dragon Queen’s descent plan," Dracaryss folded her wings and spoke softly.

"Not bad."

"Then... what’s your request?"

A flicker of curiosity appeared in Cassius’s eyes.

Even as the Ember Emperor, he couldn’t guess what this ambitious female red dragon truly wanted.

Power? Wealth? Strength?

It didn’t seem to be any of those.

Power meant nothing to a dragon like Dracaryss—true power came from strength alone.

As for the Empire’s wealth—yes, it was endless. But every dragon knew: this Dragon Emperor would never hand over his hoard.

And strength? Forget it. Dracaryss even scorned Tiamat’s divine blessing—she wouldn’t accept Cassius’s either.

"I’ve always wanted to know... just how far I am from an existence like the Dragon Queen. How far I must grow to surpass all beings. So..."

Dracaryss raised her head. Her golden eyes blazed with irrepressible madness, her fighting spirit overflowing.

"Your Majesty Cassius—I want to fight you! I challenge you to a traditional draconic duel!!"

"Please go all out! Show me the power that rivals the Dragon Queen!"

For a moment, the air froze.

A strange awkwardness filled the palace.

"You..." Cassius looked down at the red dragon barely half his size, comically small in his shadow.

He paused for a long moment before saying expressionlessly, "What a lunatic."

"But... I accept your request. You may begin your so-called duel at any time."

"Thank you for the compliment, Your Majesty." Dracaryss nodded with a smile, responding softly as if she’d truly been praised.

Challenging the Ember Emperor—this was truly a mad notion.

He was widely regarded as the strongest dragon alive, the cruelest tyrant, the most domineering emperor—able to contend with even divine avatars!

Anyone who said such a thing would be deemed insane across the Feanso Continent—and even much of the multiverse.

Dracaryss was less than thirty meters long. Cassius’s body alone exceeded sixty meters.

A thirty-meter size gap—enough to fit an ancient red dragon in between!

In length alone, he was only a bit over twice her size. But in weight? The difference was monstrous—over tenfold!

In human terms, this was like a toddler challenging a grown man—utterly unwinnable.

And that was just size. Add breath weapons, magic, physical prowess... Dracaryss would be utterly crushed.

This wasn’t a duel—it was one-sided slaughter.

No wonder Cassius was baffled by her request—he couldn’t figure her out at all.

Could it be...

That this red dragon, like Tinia, had... some secret fetish?

Cassius frowned slightly, feeling like he’d stumbled upon the truth.