?A desert kingdom made of sandstone materialized around Agent X. The heat from the brutal sun bathed his demonic form. As his eyes focused, he saw a lizard beastfolk standing in front of him, clearly the summoner. Agent X felt the familiar impatience and demanded the recall crystal. The lizard took a step back, startled by the sheer presence of the towering demonoid.

  ?From behind Agent X, someone shouted, "You can't speak to him like that. Besides, who are you to try taking hold of the crystal as soon as you're summoned?"

  ?Agent X whirled around to see the source of the voice. His energy surged outwards as he laid eyes on a muscular man. In his rush, he hadn't seen this wasn't a solo situation; he assumed this must be another Incarnate.

  ?With a booming voice, Agent X replied, "Stay out of this. Your help is not needed here."

  ?The man, clearly angered, yelled again. "If my help isn't needed here, why was I summoned?"

  ?Agent X, his voice utterly monotone, stated, "You will just get in the way. I came here to let off some steam."

  ?The muscular man explained the situation, his tone laced with disbelief. "Yeah, right. This group was summoned to kill a pack of crimson red dragons. All except two are Disaster-Class. The remaining two are Calamity-Class Crimson Dragon Sovereigns. In case you didn't know, pal, Sovereign creatures are only one step away from their final stage in power growth. You're nuts to think you can solo this. I'm Rank A and still wouldn't dare approach any of them without backup."

  ?Agent X replied simply, "That is exactly why I said you would just get in the way."

  ?Feeling that this demonoid Incarnate was trying to overshadow him, the man became furious and yelled, "Don't act so tough. What's your name and rank anyway? I am called Stone Solid! Who are you?"

  ?"I am Agent X. If you question my strength, challenge me to a duel. Don't hide behind troops. If we duel you'll fight me directly," Agent X stated, growing impatient with the man.

  ?The other two Incarnates standing silently nearby exchanged glances, a slight smile on their faces as if Agent X had made a major mistake challenging their powerful companion.

  ?Stone Solid began, "You dare challenge me while in that form? That's what, a warrior rank demon creature? You must have used one of your universal loadouts so you can use that creature anytime. But even still, that creature is only considered at the Advanced-Class."

  ?Agent X, completely fed up with the conversation, boomed, "Less talk. More action. Duel me for rights to lead this team or shut up and sit down."

  ?The man crossed his arms and said, "Fine. Let's do this then."

  ?The demonoid contacted Cosmo using a telepathic link with the system and commanded it to start their duel.

  ?The vision of all four blurred as they were moved to their proper places for the duel. The two Incarnates who remained silent went to a room similar to that of the lobby, except it had comfortable chairs to sit in and two large screens side-by-side. One screen showed the perspective of Stone Solid, who was standing in a small clearing in the middle of a forest. The other screen showed Agent X's perspective. He was a few miles away in the same forest.

  ?Cosmo had the two active in the duel locked in place. They could only move in about a three-foot circle where they were teleported to. Their powers temporarily sealed. Cosmo's voice was heard from above for the two in the duel and from the screen for the Incarnates in the spectator room. His voice was loud and clear as the event began.

  ?"Legend Stone Solid versus Agent X. This duel is set to be a death match. Last Incarnate alive wins! On the count of three, you will be free to move and begin the fight."

  ?Stone Solid thought to himself: I'm Rank A with nearly enough clears to become S Rank. I've focused most of my time raising my defense. On top of that, I've completely mastered earth manipulation. A smirk went across his face with the thought that Agent X couldn't possibly overcome his defense, which was over one hundred thousand.

  ?As his thoughts were wrapping up, Cosmo's voice could be heard. "Thred. Two. One. Duel!"

  ?Stone Solid instantly began to pull the earth up and onto him, creating a suit of armor. After the armor was formed, he continued pouring energy into it, condensing and reinforcing it.

  ?Agent X sensed the surge of power and looked toward the direction of the energy. He extended one arm out and opened his hand. A massive greatsword made of pure obsidian formed rapidly, its hilt settling perfectly into the demon's hand. As the sword finished forming, he grabbed it and pulled it across his body horizontally. In a swift motion, he flipped his wrist and threw the sword straight at the energy signature. Upon leaving his hand, the sword was instantly engulfed in his dark royal fire, drastically boosting its speed.

  If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

  ?Pure devastation was left in the path of the sword as it created multiple sonic booms while it tore through the forest towards its target. Before Stone Solid even realized an attack had been launched, he saw trees thrown high into the sky, burning with a purple fire. Then, the sword flashed past. It barely missed the man, but the force and the fire alone were enough to completely dismantle the whole left side of the man's body. He slowly fell as his vision faded to black.

  ?Cosmo's voice was heard again. "Winner: Agent X."

  ?With that, all the Incarnates were back in front of the summoner. Stone Solid gasped for air before speaking, his voice ragged. "What happened? How is that even possible? What ability did you use?"

  ?Agent X, well past tired of dealing with this man, explained, "There was no ability. I just threw my sword at you and you perished. Now, get out of my way."

  ?Agent X turned back to the lizard summoner and told him, "I'm here to do what you want. Give me the crystal and leave your worries to me. I've come to hunt some crimson dragonoids, and you want some dead. There should be no argument here."

  ?The summoner thought for a second before nodding and nervously handing over the crystal.

  ?Agent X turned back to the three Incarnates and stated, "I will hunt this pack by myself. While I do so, make yourself useful to this settlement and fix any minor issues they might have." Before any of them could protest, Agent X disappeared from his spot with blinding speed, leaving a small crater where he had just stood.

  ?The Crimson Quarry

  ?Agent X appeared on a barren, obsidian spire overlooking the ruined landscape. The air here was heavy with heat and a thick, metallic scent of ozone and blood—the characteristic aura of a dragon pack. He didn't waste a moment. With the recall crystal safely tucked away in his Stash, Agent X began to focus his highly tuned senses.

  ?His instincts were like that of a true beast. With his heightened senses, he could not only detect energy signatures but almost categorize them, allowing him to discern accurate threat levels instantly.

  ?The pack was roughly ten miles away, nestled deep within a massive, volcanic crater that still smoldered from recent activity.

  ?Crimson Dragonoids (Disaster-Class): 6 in total.

  ?Crimson Dragon Sovereigns (Calamity-Class): 2 in total.

  ?Six Disaster-Class dragons were a warm-up, but the two Calamity-Class Sovereigns were the main attraction. Agent X felt the familiar, low-thrumming vibration of anticipation in his chest, a feeling far more satisfying than the fleeting rage of the Crimson Dragonoid he'd faced as Dawn.

  ?He pushed off the spire with ease, launching himself into the air. He didn't fly; his simple gesture launching him, a blur of shadow and obsidian streaking low across the desert, leaving trails of superheated air.

  ?He approached the crater from above, hovering briefly at the rim. The view inside was apocalyptic: jagged black rock, plumes of smoke, and the huge, muscular forms of the dragons scattered across the floor, resting.

  ?The first six were massive, scaled monsters, but it was the two Sovereigns that commanded attention. They were even larger, their scales a deeper, more iridescent crimson, and their horns looked like crowns of jagged lava rock. They were sharing a meal the mangled corpse of some enormous, elephant-looking beast, while the others rested.

  ?A smirk played on Xander's face. They're complacent. Too easy.

  ?He needed to eliminate the distractions first. Six Disaster-Class dragons could be annoying, even if they couldn't hurt him.

  ?He didn't need to engage them all at once. He chose his first target: One of the Disaster-Class dragons resting near the edge of the crater, its head tucked beneath a wing.

  ?With a focused, mental command, Agent X drew a fresh Obsidian Greatsword from thin air, identical to the one he had used to dispatch Stone Solid. But this time, he didn't throw it. He plunged straight down like a meteor, channeling his dark royal fire into his sword for propulsion straight down.

  ?The speed of his descent created a focused pressure wave as he crashed directly onto the spine of the sleeping dragon. The impact alone was devastating, crushing several feet of the creature's vertebrae and driving it into the volcanic rock with the force of an extinction event. The dragon's spine was contorted, looking similar to the letter 'V' with its head lifted off the ground.

  ?Agent X drove the Obsidian Greatsword further, impaling the dragon through the skull and staking it to the ground.

  ?The sound of the impact, the dying, muffled shriek, and the subsequent purple inferno of Agent X's fire igniting the corpse from the inside, immediately woke the rest of the pack. Their heads snapped up; the five remaining Disaster-Class and the two Sovereigns had stopped eating and stared at their intruder.

  ?One of the remaining Disaster-Class dragons, reacted faster than the others, launched itself at Agent X, its maw wide, ready to unleash a torrent of flame.

  ?Agent X looked up, letting go of the sword still impaled in the first kill, and simply raised his hand toward the charging dragon. From his palm, a sphere of swirling black and purple energy materialized and shot out like a cannonball. It didn't just hit the attacking dragon; it passed through it, vaporizing the entire central mass of the creature's body and leaving only smoking, useless limbs to crash to the ground.

  ?Four more of the small ones to go, he thought, his bloodlust beginning to rise, feeding on the destruction. Then, the real fun begins. Agent X, roaring with a torrent of his purple fire, threw both of his hands out to his sides, his fingers spread wide. Two more of his greatswords rapidly formed. But this time, instead of grabbing them, he pulled his hands inward, folding his last two fingers while extending his index and middle fingers on each hand. These four fingers served as conduits for his concentrated psychokinetic energy, allowing him to control the massive blades with effortless precision.

  ?Two of the Disaster-Class dragons began to tear through the terrain as they sped toward their intruder. Agent X thrust both of his arms forward, his fingers aiming at the swords' targets. Without delay, the two greatswords became engulfed in flames and blasted toward the charging dragons. Just as the swords were about to collide with their targets, the dragons ducked under the attack and continued making their way toward Agent X.

  ?A maniacal laugh escaped Agent X as he thought to himself, Good, they aren't so weak after all. Then, with a quick slide back of one foot, he pulled his hands, still pointing back at himself. The two greatswords, doing as instructed, turned in mid-air, lining back up with their targets.

  ?But which would reach their target first? The dragon's jaws, or the swords' lethal return path?