Both time-traveled characters ended up as villainous henchmen.

Chapter 100 Dragons and Demons

The silent flame of desire ignited instantly in the hearts of all creatures in the dark swamp.

It cannot be ignored, it cannot be avoided.

It seems that within the ruins of the ancient castle in the center, there exists some supreme spiritual object that can fulfill the deepest desires of all living beings.

Power, lust, dreams, truth—all are within the ruins of the ancient castle, and readily available.

And so, all the creatures in the dark swamp, whether they were inferior demon creations, normal magical beasts, or dark guild mages who were still hiding and watching, began to stride toward the ruins of the ancient castle in the center of the swamp.

Even the plants that cannot be moved have collapsed and become disturbed to varying degrees.

This adds an unknown and sinister touch to the already eerie and gloomy dark swamp.

At this moment, all living beings were driven to madness without realizing it.

Except for one person.

That was Henia, the closest to the Dragon Slayer Magic Crystal after it was modified by the ritual.

After being modified by an ancient ritual, the magic crystal did indeed undergo some unknown and strange changes. In fact, judging from the bewitching aura it exudes, it has already surpassed the scope that ordinary magic can reach.

But all these anomalies were completely ineffective when passing through Henia and when facing the thin layer of black mist attached to his soul.

Even the magic crystal that had given birth to a trace of life did not notice that Henia had not been bewitched.

Henia's expression was somewhat strange; he seemed to have witnessed the immense power of the Black Mist Space once again.

Moreover, the Dragon Slayer Magic Crystal, which clearly exceeded the scope of normal magical items, gave him an incomplete guess.

The strange changes in the previous magical ritual were not an accident.

There may have been other mysterious entities that intervened and altered the normal course of that magical ritual.

Henya naturally thought of the gods in the Fairy Tail world who seemed to exist only in the background, and who could do this so quietly.

Zeref, by researching forbidden resurrection magic, touched upon the realm of the gods, thus angering the god Ankhseram and incurring a terrible curse.

So, did Richie, who also desperately craved abundant vitality, also get marked by some god during his years of research, destined for a painful and tragic end?

Henia couldn't make a judgment, since Richie's areas of expertise and research were too diverse.

Ancient lost magic, the power of demonic curses, the dragon-slaying power of dragons, coupled with some even more mysterious life force, causality, and alchemy research, all contributed to Richie's madness and chaos.

Such a complex and chaotic study left Henia with no way of knowing how Richie had angered a certain petty god.

However, now that Richie has died from the backlash of the ritual, the new curse caused by the magic crystal cannot affect Henia, whose soul is protected by the black mist.

It seems he has become the ultimate winner in this game?

Thinking of this, Henia looked once again at the Dragon Slayer Magic Crystal that contained a strange life force.

At the same time, his mental perception also sensed a large number of creatures rapidly approaching the ruins of the ancient castle.

Even the three Ghost Elementals who had previously been freed from the control of the Thunder Seal were struggling to make their way here, their bodies nearly lifeless.

"What a terrible curse."

Henia said that, but he didn't give up on the idea of ​​the strange magic crystal at all.

On the contrary, after sensing the dragon-slaying power that was strangely intertwined and fused with demonic power inside the magic crystal, he wanted it even more.

Dragons and Demons —

Henia approached the fallen magic crystal, a smile appearing on her face.

This combination reminded him of someone, a Fairy Tail mage who was also the protagonist of the Fairy Tail world, Natsu Dragneel.

He is not only a Dragon Slayer Mage personally trained by the Flame Dragon King, but also the strongest demon in the Book of Zeref—END.

"No, that's not right, it's not just the power of dragons and demons—"

Henia bent down and picked up the Dragon Slayer Magic Crystal that radiated an invisible flame of desire, feeling the intense heat emanating from it that struck straight to the soul.

Upon closer inspection, he also sensed a trace of primal, ancient magic remnants within the magic crystal.

And a faint, almost imperceptible, dark divine aura.

"It truly is a priceless treasure!"

A hint of surprise appeared in Henia's eyes. The Dragon Slayer Magic Crystal in his hand not only contained other powerful forces, but also, under the previous magical ritual and the covert influence of the gods, had unified these complex and opposing forces together.

It is not a brutal combination, but a transcendent power that creates a completely new order!

Of course, ordinary mages are not qualified to come into contact with such magical items that possess terrifying curse power.

If not properly guarded, it could trigger a terrifying catastrophe that sweeps across the entire continent.

"Therefore, it is only right that I, who am protected by the black mist, should control this thing."

Henia smiled slightly and accepted the magic crystal with a clear conscience.

Just then, seemingly realizing that it had been obtained by someone, the intensity of the desire curse emanating from the magic crystal suddenly increased dramatically!

Is this an attempt to use the negative emotions and bloodshed generated by the struggle of living beings for desires to drive its own further growth?

It does have a somewhat demonic feel to it.

Henia paid no attention to this and did not waste her effort in applying a magical seal to the magic crystal.

Instead, he slowly gathered his own magic power and looked at the large number of mages and monsters that had arrived around the ruins of the ancient castle.

Among these ordinary-looking mages and monsters, a few purple-robed mages wearing bull horn and skull masks stood out from the crowd.

It wasn't just their outward appearance, but also the intensity of their magic and the rich aura of necromancy emanating from them.

Clearly, these individuals were the mages from the Dark Guild Necromancers, who had been hiding in the shadows, controlling and supporting all of Richie's research activities.

"Kid, don't even think about taking away the treasures of our Undead Weavers Guild. Put down that magic crystal, and I might be able to give you a quick death."

The leading horned skull mage spoke; judging from the strength of his magic and the unique decorations on his horned skull, he should be the guild master of the Necromancers Guild.

Despite the other party's efforts to maintain his dignity as the chairman, Henia could still sense an uncontrollable fanaticism and greed in his trembling, excited tone.

"Stop talking nonsense, let's all come at me, I'm in a hurry."

Henia spoke calmly, and bolts of lightning containing high-density magic appeared around her.

Just then, a shout filled with anger and joy broke the tense atmosphere in the ruins of the ancient castle.

"Get out of my way, you bastard!"

A boy with cherry-pink hair and a scarf resembling dragon scales suddenly appeared in the murderous crowd.

"Where is it?! Where is Ignir's magic crystal?"