Ember Dragon

On the towering and white altar, the Red Dragon Emperor cast his gaze down, giving people a great sense of oppression.

Under the shining sun, the emperor's eyes revealed an inexplicable sacredness and solemnity, which made Adrian vaguely feel awe as if he was facing the incarnation of the sun god.

"You're finally here, Adrian."

A majestic voice came from the red dragon's throat, as heavy as the roar of thunder. The moment it opened its mouth, a hot breath of sulfur rushed to his face, almost suffocating him.

"I, Count Adrian of Forna of the Seleucid Kingdom, am here to see His Majesty Cassius, the legitimate monarch of Anzeta and Thrace, the monarch who rules the north of Feanso, and the supreme emperor of the Burning Empire."

Adrian hurriedly half-knelt on the ground. He originally wanted to perform the standard aristocratic etiquette of Fadlan, but in panic he used the internal etiquette of the Church of the Sun God.

Rolf behind him was horrified when he saw this, but he immediately came to his senses, knelt down and saluted the most powerful monarch in the material world.

At this moment, Adrian lowered his head, watching the sweat dripping from his chin onto the white stone bricks. A huge wave of emotion was already rising in his heart, filled with shock, excitement, and even inexplicable surprise.

The emperor actually knew my name?

He was just an inconspicuous earl of the Seleucid Kingdom. In front of a behemoth like the Burning Empire, his territory couldn't even make a splash.

Moreover, in front of this emperor who was comparable to a demigod, the strength of his extraordinary holy warriors, which he was proud of, was not worth mentioning and could be easily crushed like an ant.

Adrian really couldn't figure out why this red dragon emperor would pay attention to him and even summon him here in person.

"No courtesy, get up."

The Red Dragon Emperor's words interrupted Adrian's thoughts.

Before he could react, Adrian felt an unstoppable force lifting him up, without even a chance to resist.

He raised his head slightly, but saw that the Red Dragon Emperor in the distance had a calm expression, with only one of his claws slightly raised.

Adrian's face was filled with astonishment. He stood there at a loss, speechless for a moment, unable to utter a word.

What a power!
If the Red Dragon Emperor became hostile to him, he would probably only need to press down that claw, and the invisible force would crush him into a meat patty.

The paladin couldn't even muster the thought of resisting.

Because the gap is so huge, it's like a tiny ant facing a tall giant, they are not on the same level at all.

"Adrian, I know you must be confused about the current situation."

Cassius said calmly, "But don't be nervous. You can tell me any questions you have. Don't worry, I won't take your life like those five-colored dragons."

Adrian hesitated for a moment, but still asked the question that he was most concerned about and must know: "Your Majesty, why do you want to help us fight against the Dragon Worship Church? After all, your identity."

"After all, I am also a five-colored dragon, and there are even rumors that I am the 'Dragon Prince'. According to common sense, I should be a follower of Tiamat, right?" Cassius chuckled and took over his words.

"Your Majesty, please forgive my offense." Adrian lowered his head nervously, sweat on his forehead. Especially when he heard the nightmarish name "Tiamat", his breathing slowed down a few beats.

"Don't worry, I won't care about this little thing. I just want to ask you - how do you feel in the empire? What kind of place is Istalia?"

Adrian recalled the scenes he had just witnessed and said seriously, "I have never seen such a prosperous and large city. The new things here are amazing."

"It is incredible to me that so many mutually hostile races can live together in peace and order."

The Red Dragon Emperor nodded in satisfaction and then asked, "What about the areas ruled by the Dragon Worship Church?"

Adrian thought of the tragedies of the Seleucids and could not help shaking his head. He said with a serious and compassionate look, "It was horrible."

"There, the five-colored dragons are superior to other races, and the dragonborn are superior to all races except the five-colored dragons. The so-called laws and rules are just empty words."

"There, an adult dragon can stuff humans walking on the street into its mouth without any scruples. It can also break into the mansions of wealthy merchants at will, loot all the treasures, and slaughter all the humans living there. I once witnessed a green dragon falling from the sky and swallowing a half-elf girl in her teens."

"But the Dragon Worshipers won't care about this kind of thing. They will take care of everything and slander the victims and witnesses as sinners who blasphemed the gods."

At this point, Adrian's tone changed from sorrow and sadness to anger, and his throat trembled slightly.

"And the Dragonborn are also rampant and do evil. They only charge three silver coins to kill a human, and if a human offends them accidentally, it is common for them to dig out eyes or chop off arms."

"Every seventh day, the followers of the Dragon Worship Church will hold a sacrificial ceremony, throwing the so-called 'sinners' into the altar or dragon beast breeding ground, making them sacrifices and food.

People wailed and cried, but it was all in vain. They could only pray that they would not be chosen by the cultists. Some even took the initiative to join the cult in order to survive.

At the end, he took a deep breath, and a hint of despair appeared in his eyes that were filled with sadness and resentment.

"I think hell is just like this."

Cassius was well aware of the ruling level of the five-colored dragons. In the narrow vertical pupils of these cruel, tyrannical and short-sighted lords, these weak humans were not even livestock, but at most a piece of moving fat meat.

When I'm hungry, I'll take a bite, not to fill my stomach, but just to taste the wails of the weak and the pleasure of destruction.

Tiamat is not such a short-sighted god, but it is difficult for her to control these evil five-colored dragons. Moreover, for her, the most important thing is always only one - to escape from hell and descend to the material world.

In this way, He will be able to reign over Feansor with the body of a god, become the supreme monarch here, and restore the glory of the ancient dragons.

Cassius tapped the ground lightly with his claws and said in a clear voice: "This is the difference between me and Tiamat. I want to build an empire with strong national power and prosperous people to realize the great blueprint in my heart.

Whether it is humans, dwarves, elves, tieflings, or ogres, regardless of race or faith, as long as they can bring benefits to the empire, I will treat them as my subjects. "

"And Tiamat? He just wants to be the god who rules over everything, to take the five-colored dragons as his subjects and all other races as slaves. No, if the benefits are great, he can even easily abandon any five-colored dragon." Adrian was moved by his words and exclaimed, "Your Majesty, I have never seen a red dragon like you."

With a slight tremor, Cassius supported his body with his strong limbs and slowly stood up from the altar. His broad dragon wings that covered the sky and the sun spread out, shining brightly.

Adrian and Rolf only felt that a majestic mountain rose from the ground and pressed towards them. A huge shadow enveloped them, giving people an indescribable feeling of oppression.

Cassius looked down at them and said in a deep voice: "I will never become a slave of Tiamat, and the Burning Empire will never become a hunting ground for five-colored dragons.

Therefore - I have no choice but to be the enemy of the Dragon Worship Church and the Five-Colored Dragon Queen! "

Looking at the red dragon with a proud face, Adrian already believed in his words.

There is no doubt that His Majesty Cassius is indeed a proud, noble and ambitious emperor, and his determination to become an enemy of the Five-Colored Dragon Queen and the Mother of Evil Dragons is evident.

During this brief conversation, Adrian also deeply felt the charm of the emperor.

If he had not converted to the Church of Amaunator long ago, he would have raised his sword on the spot, sworn allegiance to the other party, and become a glorious citizen of the empire.

But now, his mood was fluctuating and he was quite excited.

At least he confirmed one thing—the Burning Emperor really wanted to go all out to deal with the Dragon Worship Church!
In this way, Seleucia finally had a glimmer of hope and could escape from this tragedy filled with wailing, crying and blood.

Taking a deep breath to calm his depressed mood, Adrian raised his head and carefully asked the second question he wanted to know:

"Your Majesty, why me?"

Not only Adrian, but also his companion Rolf was puzzled by this and had many discussions about it before coming to the Burning Empire.

The reason is simple. In front of a behemoth like the Empire, their strength is simply insignificant.

Not to mention the Empire's invincible Burning Legion, which has a great reputation on the continent, they were no match for the fully armed Tiefling patrols outside the city.

What on earth did the Burning Cinders want to do with them? It couldn't be because of Adrian's earldom, could it?

In response to Adrian's question, Cassius raised his dragon claws and pointed them at the body of the holy warrior.

In an instant, a golden light was awakened, and the holy emblem of the sun with a face in the middle appeared on Adrian's forehead - that was the holy emblem of the Church of Amaunator.

"This is."

Adrian lowered his head in surprise, and felt a warm current flowing into his blood vessels. His body was wrapped in a hazy golden light, becoming light and floating in the air.

"Amaunator! Is this the will of the sun god?" Adrian's expression became excited, and golden light surged in his eyes.

Cassius's voice came slowly: "Under the folly of the arrogant, the Sun God has fallen into a long sleep, and you have been chosen by the angel who now controls the Castle of Eternal Glory to become the savior of the church - or one of the saints."

In the original history, the paladin Adrian was honored as "the fearless knight clad in sunshine."

In a battle, all his comrades were killed, and he was surrounded by hundreds of cultists and dozens of dragon beasts. Facing this life-and-death situation, Adrian awakened the power of the sun god and fought his way out on his own.

From then on, Adrian led the resistance army to fight against the Dragon Cult for several years, holding high the banner of the Holy Fadlan, gathering forces such as the Metal Dragon Clan, Mount Heaven, and the Kingdom of Cassander, and once became the biggest obstacle to the advent of Tiamat.

However, what Cassius is best at is turning icing on the cake into timely assistance, and getting the greatest benefit while winning over key figures.

The golden light faded away, and Adrian half-knelt down with excitement on his face, saying: "Your Majesty, thank you for awakening the seed of divine power in my body, allowing me to feel the gift of Your Majesty Amaunator again—"

"His Majesty."

Suddenly, he seemed to realize something was wrong, and his tone suddenly paused.

The Burning Emperor in front of him personally destroyed the Thracian Kingdom, occupied the City of Sunrise, and even killed the "Angel King" Wilham. What is his attitude towards the Church of Amaunator?
Cassius shook his head, smiled meaningfully, and said softly: "You want to talk about the Thracian Kingdom. It seems that the slander and misunderstanding of me by the outside world are really difficult to eliminate."

He lowered his head slightly, looked at Adrian with a scrutinizing gaze, and asked in a deep voice: "Do you really think that it was me who destroyed the Thracian Kingdom?"

"I have lived in the South for a long time and have not seen the real situation, so I dare not speculate." Adrian lowered his head nervously, and sweat flowed from his forehead again, dripping down his chin to the ground.

The Red Dragon Emperor snapped his fingers, and a magnificent magical image appeared in front of Adrian.

In that image, a black sun hung high in the sky, and countless armored demons gathered like dark clouds. The ground was cracked, and chains wrapped in flames emerged from the cracks.

His Majesty Wilham appeared before the blasphemous black sun, his wings were pitch black, his face was hideous and hideous, and his scarlet eyes revealed endless madness.

Opposite him, the Red Dragon Emperor held his head high and chest out, spreading his broad wings. Behind him hung a red sun, as if held up by the red dragon, and shining golden light on the earth.

At this moment, it seems that Emperor Burning Embers is the side of justice and the true incarnation of the sun god, while the King of Angels has become a devil from hell and a sinful fallen angel.

"This, how is this possible?"

Looking at the scene in front of him, Adrian was dumbfounded and couldn't help muttering to himself.

——In his mind, Wilham was the second son of Aragon I, a being with divine blood flowing in his veins. How could he become so ugly?

Cassius sighed with regret: "I have been friends with His Majesty Wilham for a long time, and our two countries have been at peace for several years. It's a pity..."

"He was bewitched by Hell and made a deal with Zariel, using the lives of millions of his people in exchange for his own power, in order to turn the entire August into a soul pasture in Hell."

"I couldn't bear it, but I couldn't sit idly by and watch such a tragedy happen. I had to endure the pain in my heart and lead the imperial army to punish the mad monarch who was confused by power on behalf of His Majesty Amaunator." (End of this chapter)