The dragon's harem

Thud! Keno stood before the fortress's gate, "Open up!" He shouted.

"I doubt they will," Meimei sighed behind him, "You can hear them fighting in the forest, and whoever Alphonse sent us to hunt must be messing them up inside."

"You might be right," Keno looked at Gura, "Smash it,"

Thud! Thud! Gura walked forth, and Amolis and Jogan cried, "Wait! Who's going to pay for the damage?"

"The soldiers we're going to save," Keno patted Gura's back, crushing it.

"ARAAAAAAA!" Gura screamed, swinging her fist at the door. The steel frame bent and twisted as the portcullis snapped from its hinges, falling on the ground with a loud crash.

As the A-ranks walked into the fort, a guard rushed toward them, bleeding from his shoulder.

"A-ranks!" He cried, "Thank the gods,"

Amolis rushed to heal the soldier, "What's going on? Who's the monster behind the attack,"

"Un...Undead..." The soldier started twitching, and his eyes rolled back. A bone spike rushed from his throat toward Amolis's head.

CLANG! In the blink of an eye, Keno swung his katana, slicing the bone with ease and beheading the soldier. "The whole place is infected," He growled.

Meimei closed her eyes, "I sense a huge lump of magic coming from below, but something is off,"

"What is it?" Jogan asked, "Don't tell there is a whole nest of those rotten bastards below."

"I can sense Arad's magic inside," Meimei said, sweating.

"Did he? That was a fast response. I expect nothing less from an S-rank." Keno smiled, sheathing his katana.

"That means there is no need for us here, right?" Jogan sighed, "We should go assist the soldiers in the forest,"

"No," Meimei cried, "His magic is unstable. I sense a necrotic aura wrapped around his soul. He's in trouble," She glared back at them, and they started sweating, "We have to move," Keno growled, running toward the cellar's entrance as everyone followed him.

"I should be able to exorcise the necrotic aura from him if that was all it is. Just get me close to him," Amolis said, "He stopped me from raging. I won't let him die to such a thing."

"I still can't sense the nature of the necrotic magic from here. Don't get your hopes up. He might be behind all of this," Meimei growled.

"That can't be true," Amolis growled at her, "He won't do such a thing."

"Be practical," Meimei glared at them, "We have to assume the worst,"

"I certainly love to be powered with hopes and dreams," Keno sighed, "Fighting that man again couldn't be anything but a nightmare come to reality."

BAM! As they rushed across the hallway, the ceiling shattered, and a massive humanoid being landed, growling with smoke gushing from its mouth.

"A monster?" Jogan cried but soon realized that was false.

"Gojo, hurt." Gug growled, "Gug kills everyone,"

"Wait! You're Gug, from the white guy's party." Amolis remembered once seeing her train in the training ground. He knew her name as she usually got adventurers to use weight, but he had no information about her party. Besides that, their leader was a guy with white hair and blue eyes.

Gug stared at the A-ranks, sniffing the air.

CRACK! Gura stepped forward, glaring at her in the eyes.

The other A-rankers backed away. It never ends well when two barbarians face each other. It's like putting two wild animals in the same cage.

"Forward, bad guy, Gura kills," Gura growled.

"Bad guy? Harmed Gojo?" Gug stared back, veins bulging on her forehead.

"Bad guy," Gura nodded.

"Gug Kills!" Gug growled, and the two barbarians stared forward, their rage directed deeper into the fort's dungeon.

Keno poked Amolis, "Whoever is down there, they are going to have a shitty night."

"I wouldn't want to be in their place," Amolis replied.

***

Vars stood still, the dagger in his hand as he focused on channeling its magic into his body. Getting attuned to it would grant him the power he seeks, and it should be enough for him to survive the raging monster behind.

VRAAAAAAAAA! The cube behind him rumbled, vibrating so hard that the ground beneath it turned into sand.

"You know, that thing kept a Djinn sealed for decades. How is it that it can't contain you for an hour?" Vars turned back at glared at the cube.

He could see the cube failing slowly, and the beast inside grew angrier by the second. With each passing moment, he grew stronger in a blood rage directed at the betrayal.

"Gojo, you're a real monster," Vars smiled, "But soon, even the likes of you would die with a simple word. The game ended for you the moment you got sealed in that box." he closed his eyes. Attuning the artifact.

"You brother, on the other hand, I only had one sealing cube, so I had to get creative. Instead of sealing him, I thought mind-controlling him would be efficient." Vars giggled, "But that witch inside his head was a problem. Luckily, there was a simple solution."

He turned again, "She now thinks that Arad himself is shutting her out from his mind. And I'm betting on it," He giggled, "On how malevolent she can get."

"What is it? She's an evil witch?" Vars pretended to listen to Gojo, "No, read some history. Doma only retaliates when she or those around her are harmed. I failed to find one instant when she started trouble. She will respect Arad's will to shut her out of his mind, and she won't even try to pray into his soul."

"She's the kind of woman to skin you alive if you looked at her the wrong way, but otherwise, a peaceful soul. Her goodwill is his downfall," With a smile on his face, Vars sends a command to Arad below.

[A-rank adventurers are coming toward you. Kill them, and after you finish, head to the city and kill the paladin general Alphonse. He's hurting my armies a lot.]

****

CREEEEEK!

Keno pushed the door to the main room in the dungeon open, and it creaked. Two purple eyes flew in the darkness, sending an eerie feeling toward the adventurers.

Meimei waved her staff, [Light] With her magic, the faded candles in the room lit one after the other, slowly revealing Arad standing in the middle of the room, holding two blades in his hands.

Meimei's teeth started cracking as she felt pressure builds in her chest. her knees shook as she gasped, "He's...controlled..." At this distance, a simple glance allowed her to get a vague understanding of Arad's situation.

BAM! Gura lunged forth into the room, roaring like a monster as she swung her battleaxe down at Arad's head.

CLING! Arad swung his adamantine sword, cutting her triceps one move as his second blade dropped toward her head.

Thud! CLANG! Gug lunged between them, kicking Gura back and blocking Arad's strike with her great sword. Her knees bent as her feed dug into the ground. She grunted, feeling her bones crack as she gasped, "Heavy!" His blade slowly cut into her skull.

SWOSH! Keno rushed in, swinging his sword at Arad's arms and cutting his triceps. CRACK! But his Katana cracked, losing its edge from one strike.

[Grease] Meimei cast a spell to make the ground beneath Arad's feet slippery as Jogan jumped and touched his side [Force Blast]

CLAP! With a thunder wave, Arad flew back several meters before landing back on his feet.

Alphonse rushed to heal Gura and help her recover faster while the rest stared at Arad, sweating like they were drenched in water.

As Arad stared back at him, his arms healed instantly.

"We're fucked," Keno giggled, a terrified smile on his face.