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[You have entered the Dragon's Cave – Tiamat]

The warning echoed in his mind, as clear as the touch of the blade on his soul. The sword, made from a long, curved bone like a fang, seemed alive, shimmering with an energy not belonging to the human world. Strange runes covered the blade, flickering in harmony with the yellow glow, and an aura of ancient power emanated from it.

Strax observed the sword carefully. He already knew what it was about; Xenovia had told him everything before the expected event happened. Even so, his breath caught for a moment when the voice echoed through the void, the cave vibrating with its resonance.

"A human."

The voice was like muffled thunder, reverberating in a distorted tone that was impossible to identify as either male or female. Strax felt a tremor in his body but forced himself to stare at the blade; he needed to show that he was more than just a mere human.

"So the human dares to stand before a King," the voice echoed again, carrying an intensity that made the cave tremble. The darkness around seemed to contract and expand with each word, as if the very space was alive and responding to the presence of the sword.

Strax planted his feet firmly on the rocky ground of the cave, forcing himself to maintain his composure. "Tiamat," he said, his voice echoing through the vastness. He expected a different reaction when he directly addressed the sword's name. The darkness around him began to move, nebulous forms swirling around the sword, and he felt a hot breath coming from above.

The light of the sword revealed a massive skeleton of a dead Dragon.

"Yes, I was Tiamat," the voice responded, each word reverberating like a whisper in Strax's mind. "King of Dragons, the one who sees all and governs all in the shadows."

[You are in the presence of Tiamat's Spirit, the Dragon King]

"Why did you bring me here, Tiamat?" Strax asked, directly questioning the Dragon. Despite trembling from its aura, he was not afraid of a skeleton, nor should he be. "Prove yourself worthy," Xenovia had said, and so he would, treating the Dragon King as an equal.

"Because you, human, carry within you a power that many fear and few understand, the physique of the Demonic Dragon," Tiamat replied, the voice hissing through the darkness. "You are a flame in a world of shadows, a force that can be shaped for great deeds... or destruction." Tiamat spoke like an old sage, but Strax couldn't see him that way. It was as if...

"Don't think about things like that now!" he snapped himself out of his thoughts.

"Survive my will, and I will let you wield this sword," Tiamat said as the skeleton began to transform. Ancient bones moved, cracking with renewed energy. The sword's light intensified, molding itself around the skeletal structure.

The air around Strax crackled with power, and he saw, with a mix of terror and a bit of fear, the skeleton gaining real flesh, golden scales appearing and expanding like lightning. Tiamat's eyes ignited with a light that seemed to burn with the intensity of a thousand suns, and in a few seconds, the Golden Dragon, majestic and terrifying, stood before him, completely alive.

"Prove yourself worthy, human," Tiamat roared, his voice reverberating through the cave, the force of the sound shaking Strax to his core. "Face me and prove that you are deserving of my power."

Before he could process what he had heard, Strax felt a devastating pressure.

Tiamat's aura enveloped him like a whirlwind, and every fiber of his being screamed in response.

The invisible force of Tiamat's aura was overwhelming, crushing, and he was thrown to the ground with a brutality that shattered all his bones in mere microseconds.

Strax could barely breathe. Physical and mental pain struck him like lightning, rippling through his body in relentless waves. He was shattered, left in a state of utter uselessness.

[You are under Tiamat's Intention – Dragon King]

The message flashed in his mind, but he felt powerless. The agony was so overwhelming that he didn't care at all about the System's messages. He was now struggling to maintain consciousness, but even breathing had become a monumental battle. He felt reality unraveling around him, the cold floor of the cave blending with the darkness that threatened to swallow him whole.

"Beatrice..." he thought.

"So, this is what you are?" Tiamat roared, his voice filling the void with an intensity that seemed to shatter Strax's very existence. "Just a fragile human, unable to withstand the true essence of power? A being who succumbs at the slightest glimpse of my true might?" Tiamat's words cut like blades, each one slicing deeper into Strax's consciousness.

He felt a rising anger, a hatred burning through the pain. This was not the end he would accept. This was not the moment where he would surrender. He still needed to save Beatrice, he still needed to kill the three fools who dared to intimidate him, and finally...

"Be the Strongest of All," he remembered.

"I... am not weak," he whispered, his voice hoarse and broken, but charged with fierce determination. "I... won't be destroyed by... a ghost of the past, an idiot who doesn't even know who I am."

The anger began to merge with his pain, transforming into a burning fuel that ignited something deep within him.

He felt a growing heat, a strength that emerged from his very essence, an indomitable will to fight, to survive, to destroy everything before him.

[You have activated the Will of the Demonic Dragon]

A faint light began to glow from within him, a red flame that grew in intensity. The aura around him shifted, the heat of the red flame expanding and pushing back against Tiamat's crushing force.

Strax began to rise, each movement an agony, but he did not allow himself to be deterred. The red flame transformed into an invisible armor of fire, wrapping around his broken bones and reconstituting them with vibrant energy.

He stood, trembling but firm, his gaze fixed on Tiamat. The cave seemed to vibrate with the clash of their energies, Tiamat's yellow glow contrasting with Strax's burning red.

Tiamat observed with renewed interest, the intensity in his eyes increasing. "Then show me, human. Show me the true power you possess. Prove that you are more than a fleeting flame."

ROOOOOOAAAAARRRRRR

Tiamat roared, amplifying his aura, but Strax focused all his strength, his red aura exploding into a blinding brilliance. He charged forward, the sword still floating before him now responding to his call, filling the cave with a power that resonated with his very soul.

Strax grasped the sword in front of him, disregarding the Dragon's aura pressing down upon him.

ROOOOOOAAAAARRRRRR

Tiamat's roar reverberated through the cave, but Strax did not retreat. He fought with everything he had, each invisible blow dealt by Tiamat's pressure leaving a worse expression on his face. Strax was furious as his aura intensified. The ground cracked beneath his feet, the cave around them crumbling under the pressure of their combined power, but Strax continued advancing.

Strax struck with the sword against the center of the Dragon's force, a vertical blow carrying all his aura, all his will, all his essence. Energy exploded in a blinding flash, and the entire cave was enveloped in light.

When the light finally dissipated, Strax stood panting, using the sword as support. The spirit of Tiamat stood before him, a look of respect in its ancient eyes.

[You have defeated the Dragon King]

"I misjudged you, you are not human," Tiamat said. "The sword is yours. Use it well." Tiamat began to fade into the air, but Strax intervened. "No! I don't want a sword without will," he said firmly. "Make a contract with me!" He shouted, driving the sword into the ground to halt Tiamat's disappearance.

The Dragon turned to face him, and though Strax couldn't see its expression, he felt a tremor of power approaching.

"It's not me, stupid boy. That bitch is here," Tiamat said, with a tone that seemed to be disdainful.

The air around Strax was suffused with overpowering energy, causing him to fall to the ground as another devastating aura manifested.

"How dare you ignore me, insolent human like you," a female voice echoed, radiating anger, fury, and disgust.

Once again, the System sent a message before him as the tremors intensified with each passing second.

[You are before the Spirit of Ouroboros, the Abyss King]