"The king is returning!"
Out on the streets of Luxuria, the people had come to a complete standstill when a familiar starry black portal opened up directly in front of the fountain of rebirth.
Normally, when in the same space with the king the citizens would just exchange respectful bows before going on about their day.
After all, both the king and his family spent a lot of time out in the city, and it would be quite a hassle to get on the ground every time any of them were sighted.
However, it was different when the king was returning home after an adventure or campaign.
Everyone immediately stopped what they were doing and bowed in reverence.
When Abaddon stepped through the portal, he was greeted by a resounding welcome from his citizens.
"Welcome home, my lord!"
"The king has returned!"
"Glory to Vovin!"
Abaddon had to admit, it was nice to be welcomed like this.
He'd lived his life as Carter without anyone caring if he lived or died, so it was pleasant to experience things like this as a measure of just how far he had come.
One by one, the rest of the vampire lords emerged from the portal and couldn't help but let out shocked gasps.
It was very common for those who saw Luxuria for the first time to feel like they had just stepped into the gates of the white city.
Albeit, a more sinful version.
The sky, the architecture, and even the citizens were unlike anything any of them had ever seen.
Everything and everyone were so excessively beautiful that it was criminally unfair.
"Thank you for the welcome, everyone." Abaddon said politely.
Taking that as a signal to rise, most of the adults went on about their business while a few of the children stood around, giving Abaddon longing looks.
These were the children that he had promised to give a ride to, and it seemed as though they had not forgotten.
Maybe it was because he had children of his own, but Abaddon was particularly week willed when it came to little kids.
Luckily, he was a man that was capable of multitasking.
[ Skill : Split Body, activated.
Abaddon split himself into a perfectly identical copy and sent his clone over to the group of waiting children.
"Come along, children. I believe I owe you a ride."
The children's eyes became brighter than all of the stars in the sky.
"Hooray!"
"We're going flying!"
As Abaddon watched his clone walk away with the small group of children, he felt seven intense gazes piercing his back.
Each of the vampires whom he'd brought to sightsee were staring at him unblinkingly with their jaws almost touching the floor.
"Why are you all looking at me like that?"
"Does he have no concept of just how absurd the things he does are...?" Isabelle asked.
"Absurd is a bit of a stretch, isn't it?"
"The new king is a monster among monsters..." Robyn muttered as she hid behind Alicia.
"Were I not a dragon, I would think you were trying to insult me."
"It took me a while to get used to him doing that too." Audrina said with a shrug. "Although now I want him to use it when we have se-"
Abaddon quickly covered his wife's mouth to prevent her from saying anything further.
"What are you saying in front of our subordinates?"
As a response, she merely shrugged before giving his hand a seductive lick.
The female vampire lords all endured subsequent nosebleeds when they imagined two Abaddons taking them at the same time.
Meanwhile, the two remaining male vampire lords gave the dragon looks of immense respect.
"The king's power seems to have no limits!"
"As expected of the king!"
Both of them seemingly had the same idea at once.
They had already made the mistake of going against Abaddon's rule but if they could show their sincerity through flattery, they may be able to find themselves in a more favorable position within the new regime.
"The abilities of a twoheaded dragon are certainly quite the spectacle."
"Haha indeed! I feel more certain about our future already!"
Abaddon took a single long look at his newest subordinates before releasing Audrina's mouth.
"What are your names?"
"This one is called Nacht."
"And I am known as Briar."
Nacht was a tall man with long dark hair and a youthful yet serious appearance.
Briar was a bit shorter, with tanned skin and uncharacteristic blonde hair.
"Then let me ask you this, Briar and Nacht." Abaddon moved directly in front of the two men and released a small bit of his pressure.
"Do I strike you as the sort of man who is in dire need of flattery? Your motives are painfully obvious."
"That's..."
"W-We meant no disrespect, sire..."
Both men bowed their heads as an apology and the dragon eventually released his pressure.
"Umm... excuse me, my king."
Abaddon followed the small voice to another of the vampire lords, she was a short, buxom woman with a pair of round glasses on her face.
Her name was Margot, and she was currently staring into the fountain full of blood with a noticeable hunger.
She stuck out a shaky finger as she pointed to some of the best smelling blood she had ever come across. "T-This is your blood, correct?"
"It is."
"C-Can I have some?" Even if this blood was watered down, she was certain that it would taste nothing short of divine.
Her question caused the ears of all of the vampires to twitch furiously as they too wanted a taste of the red miracle liquid.
"The time for that will come later." He assured.
He came to stand in front of Kirina and gestured to the city around him.
"You wanted to know what the future would hold, correct? Allow me to show you."
-
Even Abaddon and Audrina were surprised by how much the city had grown in their absence.
Valerie and her team of dwarves had been working around the clock nonstop.
New homes and businesses had been built or where nearing completion, but the biggest addition was a new entertainment venue.
There had been a few concerns about the potential for life to grow stale if the citizens consistently did the same old things.
While that was still a problem that would likely not surface for several years, it was better to tackle certain issues before they arose.
That school of thought led to Valerie developing Luxuria's very own coliseum!
As of now, construction had only just begun but it was already showing signs of being absolutely breathtaking when it was finished.
Abaddon, Audrina, and the vampire lords were flying high in the sky above the current construction project.
For almost two hours, the dragon had taken these vampires on a tour of the city while explaining in great detail his plans for expansion, how they would acquire resources, as well as steps that were being taken to keep the economy stable.
Although it was worth mentioning that the only one really paying close attention to his words were Kirina and Isabelle.
The rest were too busy ogling at the sights to really focus on what he was saying, but they heard bits and pieces.
Kirina was continually surprised by Abaddon's level of knowledge regarding every business in the city and had even claimed to have visited all of them at least once.
The more the two of them learned about him, the more they realized that they didn't understand him very well at all.
The dragon was not only kind, knowledgeable, and well mannered, but he was also humble.
At multiple points he referred to his already one-of-a-kind nation as 'not at it's full potential'.
Not because he was trying to demean the efforts of Valerie and her team, but because he simply knew that this was not even a fraction of what they were capable of.
His vision for the future were much broader and brighter.
'Seras has chosen so well... I could not imagine a more perfect man.' Kirina thought fondly.
'Is this what those girls meant...?' Isabelle kept thinking about that time a few nights ago when her young nieces had come to visit her covered in the blood of the men she had sent.
They had already informed her that she hadn't even come close to understanding their father, and she had to admit that they were right.
'I should apologize... What do kids like?' She wondered.
"My liege, may I ask a question?"
The source of the feminine voice was the last of the six remaining vampire lords.
Kristina was a tall woman with a very muscular body that was hidden underneath thick black clothes.
She had waist length brown hair, and her red eyes were burning into Abaddon's with a mix of genuine curiosity and respect.
"Go ahead."
"How is it possible that there are so many different demonic hybrids here...? Some of these have only been theorized but never thought to be capable of actually existing."
The dragon raised a sharpened claw and sliced open one of his wrists.
Exactly seven droplets of blood flowed freely before his wound closed up like it was never even there.
"As you know, high level demons are capable of creating others through their blood, and I am no different. However, I am capable of creating demons from any sort of race."
Using his hemokinesis, Abaddon levitated the drops of blood directly in front of the faces of the vampire lords, and they could not suppress the drool that was spilling from their lips.
"If you take this, you are swearing your loyalty to me in this life and the next. I will have access to your minds, though I will never abuse it. And as a tradeoff, you will receive a power much greater than any you could dream of."
The vampires were only briefly stunned by the knowledge that the demon king would be able to read their minds but once he promised them a boost in power, their hesitation disappeared almost immediately.
In a world where power dictates everything, no sane person would refuse a free boost to their abilities.
Strength was the measure of a person's worth, and it was also how one ensured that what they valued would not be ripped away.
One by one, all of the vampires bowed their heads and muttered a vow of allegiance.
Even Isabelle swallowed her pride and bowed before her brother in law, as a show of both sincerity and apology.
On this day, Abaddon would gain a new name amongst the people.
Taken from his old moniker that became famous when he was still a prince of Antares, Audrina couldn't help but find it rather poetic.
"The lords of Upyr swear their eternal fealty to you, The Red King."
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