Demonic Dragon: Harem System-Chapter 532: Meeting a Dragon, and Capturing It.

The clouds were red, torn by the heat of the mountains below. The air trembled with the proximity of the center of Caelum, where the magical tension was so dense that each flap of wings caused echoes of energy. High above, four silhouettes cut across the sky like omens.

Suddenly, a roar cut through the air—sharp, desperate, animalistic.

A dragon with dark scales, streaked with greenish spots, burst from the clouds below like a missile of fury. Its wings were spread wide, claws extended, eyes filled with hatred. It flew straight toward Strax.

Scarlet and Ouroboros immediately changed formation, moving to intercept, but Strax raised a claw, signaling for calm.

"Leave it," he murmured with a half-smile.

The enemy dragon roared again, its mouth spewing a torrent of purple flames.

Strax didn’t even blink.

He opened his mouth.

A wave of invisible energy—silent but terribly dense—swept through the air in a second. It was as if the sky itself shook. The attacking dragon froze in midair for a fraction of a second... and then turned to dust. Its body was charred from within, in a sudden and absolute collapse. All that remained was a gray skeleton, which shattered as it fell into the void, carried by the wind.

Strax cracked his neck, as if shaking off a minor annoyance. "These things are pathetic," he commented wearily.

Tiamat, flying just above, turned one of her five heads toward him—the head of wisdom, with calm and serene eyes. "They are not pathetic. You are just too strong for any random creature to stand up to."

Ouroboros flew silently, his black scales blending into the dark sky, but even he nodded in agreement. "The difference between us and the common folk is becoming... abysmal."

Scarlet, with his glowing flames, let out a muffled laugh. "We are becoming beacons in the dark. They sense us from afar... but they don’t understand what we are. And they attack anyway."

"Desperation," said Ouroboros. "Or ignorance."

"Or madness," added Tiamat.

They continued to fly, crossing a ring of storm where lightning danced around them, instinctively dodging their divine auras. The sky recognized them—and yielded.

Strax looked toward the horizon, where the marble towers of Tharazal already rose like golden needles above the mountains. The capital of Caelum was near.

"These dragons... the ones trying to stop us," he said, "are becoming easier to identify. There’s a specific vibration... as if they’re being corrupted or... summoned."

"I agree," Scarlet replied. Her wings released embers as she flew. "Their auras are chaotic. Tense. Disorganized. There’s something wrong with the magical flows surrounding them."

"Possessed?" Tiamat suggested.

"Not exactly. But... manipulated? Perhaps," Ouroboros pondered. "Or drawn by a force they don’t even understand."

Strax didn’t respond immediately. He looked down—where rivers of lava snaked through the cliffs, skirting villages and fortresses with runic walls. The defenses were active. The skies were sealed. They were already being expected.

"They are afraid," he murmured.

"They should be," replied Scarlet. "Four unknown dragons, flying toward the heart of Caelum... I would fear them too."

Tiamat lowered one of her heads slightly. "They don’t even know the reason for our coming yet. But ancient memory warns them. Even if they don’t understand, they feel it."

Ouroboros looked into the distance, at a temple where the great sacred flame still burned—a sign that the Pact was still in effect. For now. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

"The city has already mobilized its defenses. I felt the silver bells ring. They are preparing for war... without knowing if it is necessary."

Strax took a deep breath, his golden eyes narrowing. "Maybe it is. Maybe it isn’t."

Scarlet turned slightly toward him. "Do you think we should prepare for war?"

"If they have any honor and pride, no. If they’re crazy... maybe they’re already preparing the walls to resist us."

Out of nowhere, like silent thunder, a burst of pure energy cut through the skies.

The first to be hit was Scarlet. A blue-white beam struck her squarely in the chest, exploding in a shockwave that momentarily extinguished the fire around her scales. She screamed—more in surprise than pain—and lost altitude.

Tiamat and Ouroboros tried to maneuver, but new bursts struck them with brutal precision. Tiamat was hit in the head of Fury, and her wings fluttered, destabilizing her entire flight. Ouroboros, hit in the flank, let out a low roar, more out of frustration than pain, but also began to fall.

Strax froze in midair.

He didn’t scream. He didn’t roar. He just stood still, hovering in absolute silence, while the three bodies fell like celestial meteors.

His golden eyes, once serene, now burned like blades.

In an instant, his form changed. The transformation was silent but overwhelming. His red scales darkened to absolute black, and his silhouette expanded like an exploding star—miles of pure draconic force materialized in seconds. His true form, his primordial essence, emerged. A titan among titans.

Without wasting time, he dove.

The sky tore around him. The atmosphere burned with his speed. In one fluid, perfect motion, Strax intercepted the falling bodies—Scarlet first, then Ouroboros, and finally Tiamat—catching them on his immense back with divine precision.

He landed violently on a clearing of black rock, creating a crater with the impact. The nearby mountains shook, and a wave of dust and energy swept across the surroundings.

Strax crouched down, allowing his companions to rise. They were wounded, yes — but alive. Scarlet coughed up a flame, Tiamat muttered something between her heads, and Ouroboros rose with a silent growl.

Strax then rose, his colossal form towering over the murky skies, and looked ahead.

There, hovering in the air with the arrogance of the gods, was a golden dragon, immense, shining like the midday sun, with translucent blue wings and a single crystalline horn in the center of its forehead. It descended slowly, like a deity alighting upon the mortal world.

Upon touching the ground, its body began to glow. The scales fell away like golden dust in the wind, and in place of the colossal beast appeared a woman.

Tall. Inhuman in beauty. Skin golden as sacred metal itself, eyes blue-clear as enchanted crystal. Her dress was made of threads of light and shadow, fitting her body like living armor. An ancient symbol glowed on her chest—a draconic sigil lost in the times of the Divine Age.

Strax remained in his draconic form, staring down at her with flaming eyes. But he did not attack.

She looked at him with cold curiosity.

"Who are you?" her voice echoed like ethereal bells. "And why are you killing the dragons of Caelum?"

Strax remained silent for a moment. Lightning flashed in the distance. Then his voice came, heavy as mountains:

"Those who attacked my Kingdom... were you."

The woman frowned, her eyes gleaming. She took a deep breath, then introduced herself with restrained solemnity.

"I am Elyssar. Guardian of the Silent Flame. Protector of Tharazal. Regent of the Seven Orders. And if you came here in the name of vengeance... you chose the worst place in the world for it."

Strax narrowed his eyes.

"I don’t care who you are."

That’s when Scarlet, without warning, disappeared in the blink of an eye and reappeared behind Elyssar in human form. Her clothes were singed, anger evident in her burning eyes. In a movement as swift as an arrow of pure fury, she grabbed Elyssar by the neck and lifted her into the air like a rag doll.

Elyssar tried to react, but Scarlet was already ablaze. Her hair floated like flaming serpents. Her strength was overwhelming, fueled by wounded pride and a thirst for retribution.

"How dare you attack me?!" Scarlet shouted, her voice cutting through the air like a sword.

Elyssar writhed, surprised not by the strength—but by the speed. By the audacity. By the legitimate anger that pulsed in every word of the dragoness.

"Scarlet!" Tiamat shouted, now in human form, already standing beside Strax.

Ouroboros remained motionless, eyes half-closed, observing, measuring, analyzing. Always the most calculating.

Elyssar tried to speak, but Scarlet squeezed a little harder, enough to make her understand: this was not just a symbolic gesture. She was dealing with something far above her usual level of power.

Strax finally approached. His form shrank to a size close to that of a human being—though still imposing as a titan in restraint. He stopped beside Scarlet, who was still holding the woman with her arm outstretched.

"Speak, before this lady blows your head off," he said with restrained contempt. "Who was the worm who dared to invade my territory and attack my people for no reason?"

Elyssar gasped, but her gaze was not one of fear. It was one of assessment. Cold, analytical. Even in that situation, she sought to understand who these creatures were.

"We... did not attack... your kingdom," she forced the words out, even with the pressure on her neck. "Ignisar... acted alone..."

Strax turned to Tiamat. "Is she telling the truth?"

Tiamat, who watched with eyes that saw beyond the veil, nodded slowly.

"She believes what she says. And she seems... confused. As if she doesn’t have complete control over her own political structure. I imagine they must use a very stupid political system, after all, she is clearly from the nobility."

Scarlet released Elyssar, who fell to her knees, gasping for breath. But instead of fleeing or retreating, she rose with dignity.

"You’re going to take us to that son of a bitch," Scarlet said, as several draconic runes began to appear on Elyssar’s skin. "Until then, you are a prisoner."