Dragon's Awakening: The Duke's Son Is Changing The Plot-Chapter 166 - 165 - The Malformed King.

’Not all demons are evil.’

There was this line in Raven Tale that was said by no other protagonist of the story.

Why he had said that was because he had met this one demon who valued honor more than humans could ever do.

Unlike normal fighter demons who could use magic and aura like magic swordsmen, he couldn’t.

He was born unable to use mana. Even aura, which, in regular cases, was powered by mana, wasn’t the same for him.

His willpower powered his aura.

As long as he had the will to fight, he could use aura.

He was an excellent fighter of a demon race that the Demon Sovereign killed because of their unique power.

That race was called Drakshan.

They could shape their bodies into weapons, and they were all fighting geniuses. Their exoskeleton was known to be so strong that no blade could cut it.

Yet, one of them was left to live under the condition that he serve the demon sovereign.

Soon, that demon reached the rank of a demon warlord, yet he didn’t want any power.

He only wanted peace for his family.

That demon was called the Malformed King.

He was nowhere near as powerful as the real demon kings, yet he was called a king.

That was who Alex and Rufus were facing.

The Malformed King.

One of the strongest Warlord-Rank demons in the demon realm.

In the story, this demon was supposed to become Raven’s friend, but here, it didn’t seem to be the case.

His power was equal to that of a strong plate-nine magic swordsman.

The fact that Rufus and Alex were still alive was probably because of the Malformed King’s principles.

After all, that demon never killed people weaker than him. He wouldn’t even use his real powers before those he didn’t deem worthy.

Raven, however, could see the dark aura surrounding the demon as he held Rufus and Alex, so he knew that either they had made him use his aura or they were his targets.

But seeing that they were still alive—

’He wasn’t here to kill them. He wasn’t ordered to kill them.’

Thinking about it, Raven decided to walk forward while observing the surroundings.

Smoke curled around the crater’s rim like ghostly fingers.

The Malformed King stood still—an unmoving monolith of a nightmare.

Alex dangled in his left hand, half-conscious and half-melting, one eyeball twitching in defiance.

Rufus hung from the right, blood dripping from the corners of his mouth, still managing to scowl like a noble whose tea had been oversteeped.

The demon’s molten-oil form radiated quiet menace, but what made the group freeze... was the way he was waiting.

It was as if they were guests—the expected ones.

Soon, the group’s movement was noticed by the Malformed King.

The demon’s eyes locked onto him—glowing pools of ancient flame narrowed in slow recognition.

"...You’re here," he rumbled.

His voice was deep enough to cause pebbles to vibrate.

A few smaller rocks near Siris exploded from pure dramatic pressure. She clapped in approval.

"Whoa, voice modulation. Ten outta ten," she whispered, only because none of them had even scratched Raven.

If they had, she would’ve rushed forward to fight the Malformed King.

The other didn’t say anything.

Well, except Graye.

"So, it was his fart?" She asked Jessy, leaning closer to the girl, but Jessy couldn’t answer as her eyes were fixed on the demon, her iron dust hovering like razors behind her back.

Raven, on the other hand, nodded, ignoring the tension clawing up his spine.

He understood that he was the target here since the demon seemed to recognize him the moment their eyes met.

"Yeah," he said. "So, how about you let go of the two who aren’t worthy to be killed by someone like you?"

The Malformed King tilted his head slowly, like a god considering the ethics of squashing ants.

"They are worthy," he said. His grip did not tighten—but it didn’t loosen either. "They fought. They challenged. They made me bleed."

Alex, realizing that Raven was trying to rescue him, coughed up a spark and wheezed, "I also screamed like a small child at one point, so maybe reconsider?"

"Same," Rufus muttered. "I think my armor screamed too."

They weren’t scared of the Malformed King.

They lost, but they could still fight.

What they wanted was to fight along with the group, so since Raven was trying to help them out, they decided to play along.

The Malformed King, however, remained unmoved.

Raven’s jaw tightened.

He was calculating every angle, every second.

If he wanted to, he could kill the Malformed King.

His soul power had been upgraded by two levels, and at this level, Raven was sure he could kill any demon since their weakness has always been soul.

The problem, however, was that even if Raven used his soul attack and killed the demon, it could at least twitch before it died.

That twitch could be clenching his hands, and if he did that, both Rufus and Alex might die.

That was the last thing Raven wanted.

Just then, he felt Omni pulse on his shoulder.

"Yo, use me, man," Omni’s voice buzzed in his head, sharp and hungry. "Let’s slice them hands off first—clean cut—then boom! Hit him with that soul-shattering finisher. Easy clap."

Raven shook his head, eyes still on the demon. ’I can’t transform into the Voidborn form, and without it, I wouldn’t be fast enough to cut the Malformed King’s hands before he killed Alex and Rufus. I won’t be gambling their lives—’ freēnovelkiss.com

An idea suddenly sparked in his head.

It was insane. But just the right kind of insane that made him Raven Von Vaise.

He looked at Alex and Rufus, and then at the Malformed King, raising his voice.

"If they’re worthy," Raven said, "then they deserve to be killed by a sword... not like this. That grip is a disgrace."

There was silence.

Even Omni paused.

Alex’s eye twitched. "Okay, I rescind the brotherhood pact. This man is NOT my friend."

Rufus turned his neck slowly, his eyes wide as he stared at Raven with a what-the-fu— expression that was only 40% hidden by blood.

’I thought he was trying to help us live and not sign our death certificates!’

This was what they wanted to yell.

The Malformed King, however, to everyone’s surprise, paused. Contemplating.

Then... he nodded.

"You are correct," he rumbled.

"Wait, what?!" Alex squeaked.

The Malformed King set them down with a strange gentleness as if he were placing antiques onto a table. They both collapsed like soggy marionettes.

He wasn’t, in the least, bothered by the others’ presence.

He knew he was strong enough to defeat all of them.

Selena let out a breath. Jessy’s fingers twitched. Siris had already pulled out a bag of popcorn from somewhere (don’t ask me, I don’t know where it came from). "See? He’s not so bad."

But then—

The moment the demon’s palms were empty, Raven’s eyes turned cold. His pupils became slits of golden fury.

His posture didn’t change—but the very air did.

It pressed down.

Like a wall had suddenly formed above them.

Like the sky had decided to get closer.

The group felt it first.

They didn’t know what they felt, but it wrapped around their bones like invisible chains.

Clara blinked, stepping back. "The... air’s heavy."

Graye sat down, crossing her legs and covering her head with her armored hands. "Okay. Remember what father said. Whenever something strange is happening, sit down and cover your head."

Jake frowned, while Jessy and Lia blinked, trying to touch the air as it felt tangible.

Only Selena narrowed her eyes, sensing something deeper in that pressure—something ancient. Something vast.

But the one who felt it most was the Malformed King.

He straightened, then flinched. His knees buckled, bones creaking. His towering form sank one step, then another, until one knee hit the ground with a thunderous THOOM.

A groan escaped his throat—guttural and confused.

Raven didn’t move.

He didn’t have to.

The Malformed King’s face twisted—not in rage, but disbelief. His hand rose, trembling, to his horned brow.

"What... is this?" He growled. "Why can’t... I fight it back?"

Raven’s tone didn’t shift. It was still calm. Still cold.

"I asked you to let them go," he said. "You did. So I’ll let you die without pain."

The Malformed King’s hands dug into the earth.

His eyes locked into Raven as he asked, "Why... Do you want... to kill me?"

That question almost made Raven frown. "Because you are a demon, and because you tried to kill my friends."

Alex, breathing heavily and back to his human form, smiling. "Okay. I take back my words. Raven is my brother. No doubt about it."

Rufus nodded.

The Malformed King, however, seemed confused. "I... never tried to kill your friends. You... said that I should... kill them with a sword."

Everyone froze.

Updat𝓮d from freew𝒆bnovel(.)com