First Demonic Dragon

Chapter 559 The Annual Euphrates Exam!

It\'s atmosphere was unpredictable and unfriendly, and the environment is a harsh one.

There are sections of the planet that see near-endless thunderstorms, tornadoes, hailstorms, deserts that beat down on the body with blistering heat, and even an indescribably large jungle.

Along with some... minor magical alterations made by Abaddon himself to make this place feel unwelcoming to even his apex creatures.

If he weren\'t consciously protecting himself and his companions in a magical bubble, little Courtney likely wouldn\'t even survive the temperature or the gravitational pressure.

"How are you liking Ke\'el, my friends? Is it comfortable?" Abaddon asked with a grin.

The dragons below grimaced as they smiled wryly.

The air on this section of the planet was hot and humid underneath the world\'s hopeless black sky, so it was no surprise they elected for silence as an answer.

Abaddon dragged his eyes over every applicant present and noted the attendance of a few familiar individuals.

"You are all worthy of commendation for even making it this far, but for those of you who are undergoing this examination for a second time, I am especially pleased to see you here.

It does my heart good to see that you haven\'t let last year\'s set back derail your determination. Such a quality is more admirable than you know."

Next to Monica, Adeline Argrona felt her eyes sparkle as she heard those words.

She was usually quite the icy and serious woman, but on the inside she was fawning all over her emperor like a schoolgirl at a Justin Bieber concert.

\'H-He looked at me, he acknowledged me! My heart feels like it is going to burst from this feeling! No matter what, I will become a Euphrate and earn your acknowledgement and affections!\'

*She would only earn one of those things, but whatever.*

"Now, I hope you all rested properly last night, kissed your loved ones, and even ate a filling breakfast. Because that will be the last time you get to do those things for two whole months."

At this, the applicants sucked their teeth as they tried to stop their eyes from bulging out of their heads.

Abaddon smiled evilly, slightly enjoying this look. "When you arrived at your bases this morning, you all should have received a storage ring from whoever checked you in.

Inside of it, you should find a single week\'s worth of rations, a sleeping bag, and a flask. Nothing else will appear no matter how much you wish for it."

The dragon held out one of his hands and gestured to the lands around him.

"For a full sixty days, any resources you require must come from this world itself. As you can imagine, this world is harsh so the creatures living here are just as fearsome.

If you want to eat, I guarantee you that it will not be as easy as simply taking something out of the fridge at home.

Forming small cooperative parties between each of you is permitted, but I warn you that it will severely affect our criteria for grading, so I would avoid it if I were you."

The applicants listened to every word of Abaddon\'s decree, and once they got over the initial shock of it all, they realized that it wasn\'t quite that bad.

Sure they had limited resources to work with but if it was just living out in the wild... they were still dragons.

They were pretty sure they would be fine.

"Alright, I think that about covers the basics..." Abaddon had to check his fingers to ensure that his notes were right before he continued.

"Now, let\'s get to the main challenge."

A large hole suddenly opened up in the middle of Abaddon\'s hand.

Turning his palm downward, he allowed his golden and black blood to fall until it hit the ground underneath him.

From those first few drops, a massive pool suddenly formed.

Just as monsters come out of his flesh; from his blood a trio of enormous abyss walkers appeared.

Each one of them were over one hundred meters in height; slightly bigger than the largest dragon taking the examinations.

"Woahh, kaiju monsters..." Courtney whispered to herself.

Abaddon was amused by his daughter\'s cuteness, and yet slightly disturbed by the fact that she was staring at literal void horrors with no reaction in her face.

"Some of you know these beasts well, some do not, but these are Abyss Walkers and this is the last time you will see them so tame.

They are just as strong as you.

They are just as fast too.

You cannot run from them, and you cannot hope to hide because I have explicitly designed these variants to make them a bit more frightening than their predecessors.

And though they cannot kill you... they do all have a diluted version of my venom in their teeth. So I can ensure you that exposure will be agonizing."

This revelation caused most of the applicants to step back out of instinct.

Some of these soldiers had been present during the battle for the abyss, and they knew these creatures like the back of their hand.

But these abyss walkers weren\'t like the ones from before.

They were bigger, more ferocious looking, and just like Abaddon they were decorated with bright gold tattoos.

The small advantage they may have had just went right out the window.

"Ah... A small word of advice..." Abaddon began. "Avoid sleeping too soundly for too long, as they are quite adept at tracking."

All: \'...Why does it feel like the Emperor is taking delight in torturing us?\'

\'It\'s just your imagination.\' Abaddon thought, though his smile would confirm there was a morsel of truth to it.

The dragon held up his hand and more of his accursed blood floated into the sky.

It generated a cloud that continued to build and expand in size until none of the applicants could see the end.

In under a minute and a half, Abaddon had covered the entire planet in a thick rain cloud.

\'Just how many of those things… is he planning to populate this planet with?\' They wondered in horror.

Finally, Abaddon gestured to the crowd of individuals floating around him.

"I promise I\'m almost done, but there is just one last stipulation left…"

\'There\'s more?!\' They cried internally.

"Myself and everyone behind me will be watching all of your progress carefully and going over every single detail.

And at some point, they may find themselves so moved by your display that they may decide to come down and test you personally.

If that should happen… you have to survive their \'pop quiz\' for a total of four minutes.

Should you lose your head, heart, or remain on the ground for longer than ten seconds, you will automatically fail the examination."

The collective sound of over 3,000 jaws falling open all at once was not only jarring, but amusing too.

Abaddon smiled as he snapped his fingers.

Instantly, 3,000 portals opened up over he heads of every single applicant; each leading to different places.

"This is your last chance, my Nevi\'im. If you decide you are ready to go home now, none of us will belittle you for that decision."

Though Abaddon had leveled an extreme challenge at their feet, none of the applicants looked like they had ever even considered backing down.

If this was what it took to be the best, they would happily take the plunge and make their ultimate dreams come true.

After seeing that none of them were intending to give up, Abaddon\'s smile was the largest it\'d been all day.

"Well then... I\'ll see you all in two months."

Since none of them took the portal above their heads, a new one opened up right underneath their feet; and sent each of them to a different corner of the world.

Finally, Abaddon waived his hand and the thunderclouds above finally released the deluge of his blood that he had been keeping stored away; signifying the start of the exam.

"Right, now we should... Hm?"

Abaddon looked down to where Mira was tugging his hand and wearing an anxious little look on her face.

"Daddy... can I pleaseee join in too?? It sounds so fun!"

\'Sister Mira is a nutcase…\' Courtney realized. \'…She\'s so funny!\'

Abaddon shook his head as he took Mira under his free arm. "Afraid not, dear. You\'re already a member of the Euphrates, and the vice captain I might add.."

"S-So? I-I\'m not cut out for all this administrative stuff, I can just leave it all to Aunt Kanami!"

Kanami: "Hey!"

"See, she agrees!"

Abaddon smiled as he took his daughter underneath his arm. "Mira darling, I think you\'re forgetting something. This is the wilderness, so there are no home-cooked meals out here, or pastries of any kind."

Mira took a moment to think about it before she lowered her head in understanding. "O-On second thought maybe I\'ll just sit in the viewing room with you guys..."

"Speaking of a viewing room, can we go there now??" Belphegor suddenly asked impatiently. "I was promised something important to me and it\'s time you delivered, nephew."

"Yes, yes."

Abaddon summoned his largest portal yet and swallowed everyone present with it.

The moment that they all left, the unified roar of billions of abyss walkers coming into being was heard throughout the entire planet.

-

Abaddon and his companions suddenly appeared in a room that looked like an upper echelon style country club.

In side of a space with handcrafted hardwood floors, there were several deep leather couches seated in circles around at least ten magical monitors.

A team of maids were already waiting inside; bowing respectively and awaiting to be of service.

The head maid was an older woman with vibrant purple hair and warm olive skin. "Emperor and esteemed guests. Please make yourselves comfortable in this-"

*Whoosh!*

A large gust of wind was created as Belphegor rushed past the maids to head directly for the breakfast bar.

He ignored all of the cooked food and fruit and instead focused on one thing.

The coffee.

"Which one of these is triple shot?"

"T-The one on the far left, General."

Instead of using one of the little coffee cups that was already available, Belphegor summoned a thermos into his hand and pored every drop of dark roast into the pot.

Throwing his head back, audible gulping noises filled the room as he downed every drop in concerning fashion.

Once he was done, he wiped his mouth and let out a satisfied sigh before turning to the head maid; obviously in a much better mood than before.

"Thank you for that, my dear. If it\'s no trouble I\'m going to need another pot in around an hour."

"I shall ensure that there is a constant rotation, General."

"Good lass."

Abaddon rolled his eyes before turning to everyone else.

"As you\'ve just seen, you should all do your best to make yourselves comfortable. We\'re going to be here for a while."