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Chapter 44: A Deal With The Gigantis Dragon
🕑 Added 2024-09-01 16:00:15 +0000 UTC10+ Advance Chapters: patreon.com/Accel14
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"Isn't this a little excessive for just myself and Raynare?" Takauji asked the Governor. The three of them stood outside what looked to be a three-story house, the exterior alone appearing exuberant enough to belong to a family of some silicon valley CEO.
"Maybe, but you may end up having more servants working for you in the future so it's better to have everything prepared sooner rather than later." Raynare's mood soured a little at the thought. "Also with the exorbitant amount of funding Grigori has at the moment, we're desperately looking for ways to put our money to use, rather than having it just sit around without purpose."
Totally not a subtle flex.
"Shall we?" Azazel held the door open, motioning for them to head inside.
I don't even want to ask how much this all costs, ignorance is bliss as they say.
The interior was just as, if not even more lavish than the exterior. Filled with all sorts of furniture and decor that were definitely not of the affordable range.
"Oh, and before you ask. I've already moved the underground training chamber from your old house to this one." He snapped his fingers, a section of the floorboard in the living room opening up to reveal a downwards staircase.
"You work fast." Takauji complimented.
"That I do. Raynare, you can go ahead and check out the rest of the house for the time-being. I have some business I need to conduct with Demon-kun at the moment."
Takauji gestured for her to follow the Governor's command.
"Come with me." Azazel led him down into the training chamber which looked the exact same as it did in his home in Kuoh. "Take Fafnir out."
"What for?" Takauji withdrew the lance-like gilded dagger.
"I'm about to tell you. How much do you know about Dragon-type Sacred Gears?"
"Only as much as you've told me." He shrugged.
"I see. Actually, there is a special type of deal you can make with such Sacred Gears, namely the ones with living Dragons sealed inside them."
All of a sudden, Fafnir started to speak openly from within his seal.
["Azazel. You aren't serious are you? What if he becomes a–"]
Now Takauji's curiosity had been piqued, leading him to listen more attentively to what Azazel was about to divulge.
"The host of the gear can make a deal with the Dragon, where they can exchange their body parts into a Draconic variant of them. Essentially rewriting their biology with that of the Dragon inside the gear they wield." The Governor continued without responding to Fafnir.
The Mage's mouth was left agape, his mind spinning as he quickly pieced together why Azazel was bothering to tell him this information.
"There are risks that come with this deal of course, if the host's body is too weak or unprepared, they will simply end up harming themselves with varying severity depending on the part exchanged. For example, if someone with Middle-Class strength tried to exchange their heart, it would simply implode and kill them."
Funnily enough, Takauji could feel his own heart start to thump as he continued to pay attention to Azazel's explanation.
"The strength of the Dragon they can make the deal with is also a factor, for example Fafnir's parts would be easier to obtain than someone like Ddraig or Albion's. Not that obtaining a Dragon's strength is ever an easy thing, but you get the point."
Takauji smiled, subconsciously increasing his grip on the Artificial Sacred Gear.
"You want me to make such a deal. Isn't that right?"
"Mhm. Only if you're interested of course." The question itself was redundant which Azazel knew full well.
"You already know how I'm going to respond to that." Takauji chuckled. "What kind of idiot says no to the power of a Dragon? What part do you want me to exchange? My arm? My leg?"
Azazel breathed a nervous chuckle as he scratched the side of the cheek.
"More like parts, plural."
"That's fine with me, name them." He said eagerly, the same greed he had in his eyes when obtaining the parasite radiating from him. "The more I give the stronger I'll become right?"
He already had the power of his parasite body; he could only imagine what kind of strength he'd obtain if he combined Fafnir's blood into it.
"Everything."
"Eh?"
Takauji deadpanned, blinking repeatedly as if he had misheard what Azazel just said.
"Sorry, would you mind repeating that?"
"I said everything. Your entire body." He clarified, not so much as an ounce of falsehood on his face. He meant it. "Just think about it, the exceptional mind the parasite granted you combined with the unwavering might of Fafnir. You'd be nigh unstoppable."
"If I succeed, that is." Takauji wouldn't fall for such sweet words so easily. "Azazel, be honest with me. What would be my survival chance if I attempted such a thing?" His attitude switched, turning significantly more firm than before.
He was fine with dying at the hands of a worthy opponent, but killing himself in a failed attempt to gain more power was not on the list.
"Without my assistance, roughly 5%." He said plainly. "And with my help, 15%."
Takauji exhaled, not as confident as before about the prospect of becoming a Dragon.
"Just for the record, you didn't hesitate when it came to assimilating with the parasite."
"And what was my success rate with that?"
Azazel groaned.
"Probably above 90%."
Takauji scratched his temple, his computer-level mind weighing the risk to reward ratio as he continued to deliberate.
"15% isn't great if we're talking about me possibly dying, Azazel. So you're going to need to be a little more convincing, just how strong would I become if I did succeed? Hypothetically speaking."
"Right now you're about Low to Mid Ultimate-Class in terms of raw strength, and honestly you'd probably reach Peak Ultimate-Class with enough time and training. However, if you succeed in obtaining Fafnir's body, you'd jump to that level of strength immediately, and have potential to go even beyond that."
In other words, the realm of Super-Class. A plain where only people like Sirzechs Lucifer and Ajuka Beezlebub were allowed to stand.
"That's enticing, I have to admit. But why are you even making this offer to me in the first place? If you've been sitting on this information for a while now, then why didn't you just ask me when I first assimilated with the parasite?"
Azazel took a breath.
"Do you remember when I asked you about your goal? You said that all you wanted to do was see how far you could go before you were struck down."
"I remember, and that still holds true."
"The thing is, I also share your curiosity. I want to see with my own eyes how high Ashikaga Takauji can climb before you meet someone who ends up taking you down. Sacred Gears have become my everything, and if one that I created can help you continue your journey then who am I to deny you that opportunity?"
Takauji scoffed.
"So you're doing this for me? Out of the kindness of your own heart?" He understood the Governor too well to believe such a thing.
"Of course not, like I said it is also a product of my own curiosity. I will do everything I can to make sure the process is as smooth as possible, but if you do end up dying I will shed no tears. Believe me."
Contractor and contracted, that was the basis of their relationship at the end of the day. Nothing more nothing less.
"I wouldn't expect you to, but tell me, what exactly are you going to do to help me through the process? If I do agree to this, I want to know everything."
"That's understandable. The thing is I already created a sort of dialysis machine for the transformation just in case Vali ever wanted to go through with it, it basically helps your body filter the changes as they occur, mitigating some of the strain on yourself."
"And that's where the 10% comes from?"
"Yeah, as much as I'd like to offer up more assistance, this is a deal between you and Fafnir. Not me. The help I can provide is very limited." Takauji's body would have to do all the heavy lifting, there was no way around that.
["So we're just assuming that I'm going to agree to this are we?"] Fafnir spoke up with a mildly miffed tone.
"Do you plan on refusing?" Azazel asked.
["Of course not, he's just a subcontractor. I could care less whether his greed kills him or not, he's not a toddler, just from reading his mind alone I can tell he understands the risks full well. If he dies, that's on him, no one else."]
"Great. In that case, all that's left is for you to give the final verdict, Demon-kun."
The power of a Dragon. A chance to go beyond even Ultimate-Class. And a chance to lose everything in the process. I guess it comes down to whether I value my greed over my self-preservation doesn't it?
Takauji breathed a dry laugh, his heart already having decided on the answer. The same went for Fafnir who was connected to his mind at the moment.
Very well. Issei, Vali, let me see what the world looks like through your lens. Or more accurately through Ddraig and Albion's.
"You're really quite shrewd, you know that Azazel? From the start you knew I would accept this deal anyways. It's just in my nature."
"That's rich coming from you of all people," the Governor grinned. "But I assume you want me to take that as a yes?"
"Yeah, let's do it. I'll give my entire body to Fafnir. If this ends up killing me then so be it, it just means I wasn't worthy of his strength to begin with."
["Damn straight."]
"Wonderful. Once you make the deal I imagine you're going to have another Mana explosion like you did during your assimilation, but it's probably going to be even more intense which is why I brought you down here."
Azazel summoned what looked to be a hospital bed setup, armed with a plethora of equipment Takauji couldn't even begin to understand.
"So do I just go ahead and do it now?" He corked his head.
"Yup. Don't worry, I'll make sure Raynare is updated on the situation as it progresses. And if you die she'll be taken care of at Grigori. I'll make sure your parents are also set for life."
My parents huh? I've hardly even thought of them ever since I awakened my power. But I should stay focused on what's in front of me now.
"I suppose I'll have to just take your word for it." He sighed. "Alright then, here goes nothing."
["I will exchange all of your body parts with that of mine. Do you accept this deal?"]
I accept.
BA-DUMP!
Takauji felt a sharp pain in his chest, his world going dark in a matter of seconds as Azazel caught him before his body could hit the floor.
Fiery Mana covered the entirety of the training chamber shortly after, Azazel needing to activate [Licht Vene] to protect himself from being burned.
["Don't blame me if you end up with an Evil Dragon. Azazel."]
The Governor didn't respond, hooking Takauji up to the filtering machine as veins started to bulge out of the latters skin. Golden scales starting to appear and disappear all over the Mage's body.
"Yasaka's probably going to have a lot of questions for me once he leaves this chamber. Haha, guess I'll cross that bridge when I get to it."
He didn't let his focus waver for even a second, making sure every monitoring system he had watching over Takauji was giving him positive readings. Everything needed to be absolutely perfect.
"Make sure you survive this Ashikaga Takauji, even though I'm the one putting you through it. I really don't want your story to end here. You still have much more to show me, I can feel it."
If he pulled through, then Takauji's generation truly would be one of Dragons.
