A Tier-5 Powerhouse

The next morning, Enzo decided to inspect his Castle. He wandered through the main floors and gazed at the seven spectacular vaulted ceiling rooms.

He noticed that each room, made of large limestone blocks and decorative brick, had large stone fireplaces that warmed each room.

The surrounding of each fireplace was the open mouth of either a dragon or a phoenix and the flames from the fire were exactly like the dangerous flames of Enzo's warriors.

Continuing his exploration, Enzo gazed at frescos recreating battle scenes with dragons and phoenixes conquering beasts of all different shapes and sizes that covered each room.

In the largest room, a golden-red dragon snaked down one wall and at the end of the room, the dragon's head jutted out of the wall looking menacingly at each person entering the door. Enzo thought he saw a flash of intelligence in the eyes, but his mind must still be messed up from his new circumstances.

The far side of the wall had an equal-sized red and gold phoenix trailing down the wall, its head also curving around the corner and protruding from the front. Like the dragon, the phoenix's eyes held a threatening gaze for any oncomers.

The interior courtyard, which connected all seven rooms, was filled with lush trees and flowering plants. Hearing soft snores, Enzo noticed a large nest in one of the trees, holding a sleeping Chua and Kai.

As he stood in the courtyard, he looked up at the round towers, climbing high into the sky.

On the outside wall, small windows outlined the top of the wall. Narrow staircases ran up the wall in several areas of the courtyard. These staircases lead to strategically placed lookout points on the castle walls.

Finally heading to the Pavilion he suddenly received a prompt.

[Dragon Phoenix Pavilion (Unique Arms)

Level: 1

Energy: 24/24

Use: Create low-ranking Dragon Phoenix troops

Upgrade Requirements: 20 Azure Orbs, 2 Azure Crystals]

[Note: Upon higher levels can have a low chance of producing epic or mythic level Dragon Phoenix warriors]

Enzo was elated! He never would have thought that Chua and Kai were only considered low-ranking warriors of the Dragon Phoenix family.

If Flame Dragons and phoenixes were considered low ranking in their family, then what were high ranks?

Could he possibly recruit Space Dragons? Time Dragons? Or even Luck dragons?!

He couldn't wait to have an army full of dragons and phoenixes covering the sky.

Putting away his fantasies, Enzo selected the option to recruit his new patch of troops.

He went to the same dragon and phoenix carvings which yesterday swirled and gave him Chua and Kai, but nothing happened.

Enzo scratched his head. He decided to stand in front of another Dragon and Phoenix carving.

This time, the images were carved with a bright sun surrounding them.

The Dragon and Phoenix carvings began to swirl around the sun. Swirling and slithering like a snake.

Suddenly, two eggs spiraled out from the wall and floated over Enzo's head.

Like the day before, small cracks in the egg appeared.

Enzo was overcome by a hot blanket of wind caressing him. A peaceful smile decorated his face and a feeling of peace overcame him. He felt like he was laying on the hot sand at the beach, listening to the waves and relaxing in the rhythmic beat that only nature can provide.

"Master." They bowed their heads in a serine manner. Enzo felt as though he was looking at nature's exquisite beauty. Their every motion was filled with natural grace and harmony.

[Young Nature Dragon

Tier: 3

Loyalty: 100

Growth Potential: Nature Dragon King (Peek of King-Tier)]

[Young Nature Phoenix

Tier: 3

Loyalty: 100

Growth Potential: Nature Phoenix Queen (Peek of King-Tier)]

Enzo was slightly disappointed. These two didn't seem like the ferocious dragons he was expecting.

Having seen his Lord's look, Chua took the initiative to explain, "Lord, Nature Dragons are very powerful and even are slightly higher in the family hierarchy than us flame dragons." Kai also gave her affirmative with an enthusiastic nod.

Having heard the explanation, Enzo was still slightly skeptical but more optimistic about his two new recruits.

"I shall name you Tormu. And you, I shall name you Arvu." He said indicating at the dragon first and then pointing to the nature phoenix.

"Thank you, Lord!" They both replied happily accepting their new names.

Enzo decided to share his plan, "Now that we have five members in the Dragon Phoenix Nation, it's time to start to branch out. We need to take down some tribes today!"

Yesterday while scrolling through the regional chat, he had discovered that lower-level tribes had been attacking and killing other Castle Lord's troops, and even more than one rumored Castle Lord fell victim to their onslaught.

Enzo rechecked his logs from the previous day and discovered that Chua and Kai killed 127 Kobolds out of the 196 total beasts slain for the day, which was a vast majority.

Common sense told him that there must be a nest or tribe of Kobolds lurking somewhere inside his protective translucent dome since no creatures could get inside the dome from the outside.

"What did you notice while hunting yesterday?" Enzo asked, "Did you notice where the Kobolds were gathered?"

"Yes, Lord!" Chua and Kai bowed and Chua said, "Yesterday we mainly hunted in the Southern region of our territory."

Kai continued, "We came across mainly scouts from the Kobolds, but we believe that the large forces are most likely in the Southern region. While flying, we were able to see an entrance to a cave but sensed a Tier 4 power so, following your order, we dared not to get close."

As Chua and Kai continued to report about yesterday's findings, Enzo quickly realized he would need an infrastructure to handle information as his team and land expanded.

The low recruitment count of his unique building was just too low to scout an entire region.

He remembered about an Epic troop called the Double-Headed Eagle, which appeared in the region.

Enzo decided he needed to either form an alliance with this Castle Lord or force them to submit.

Either way, he was getting his hands on these troops.

Enzo selected to attack the Kobolds because both Chua and Kai had leveled up to Tier-4 and they had Tormu and Arvu for backup.

This gave him a degree of confidence even going against a Tier-5 Kobold, needless to say, one Tier-4 Kobold could no longer put up a fight against his might.

He was also upgraded to Tier-2, which gave him a certain degree of safety with his four higher leveled bodyguards.

Enzo also wanted to see just what this new world was outside his big castle.

Departing from the castle, Enzo hopped on Tormu's back. He thought about riding Chua but while Tormu's aura was welcoming, Chua's was fiery and had a hint of bloodthirst in it.

After all, Enzo still felt like he was the dishwasher back on Blue Star. He had only been here a day, and he knew that he was not yet accustomed to the bloodshed and war this world was sure to offer.

"Let's go!" Enzo yelled to his crew and grabbed tightly to Tormu's scales as they ascended into the sky. The flight reminded him of riding in the front car of his first terrifying roller-coaster experience.

Sensing his fear, Tormu unlocked several side scales and wound them around Enzo's legs. Suddenly Enzo felt secure and began noticing the green hills and valleys that made up his five-kilometer perimeter around his castle. Just as he was taking in all the beautiful scenery, Tormu dove after Chua and Kai.

Laying flat on Tormu's back, Enzo was able to hold on as Tormu followed the dive and rolls of the dragon and phoenix crew as they flew in and out of the trees, spying on the entrance to the cave. Kai and Arvu flew past Enzo and Tormu monitoring Kobold scouts trolling on the ground within one kilometer of the cave.

Chua flew straight into a clearing surrounded by a thick grove of trees. Kai, Arvu, and finally Tormu and Enzo followed him floating easily to the ground.

After landing, Enzo was still ecstatic. Until that ride, he hadn't truly appreciated that he had actually come to a fantasy world.

That ride was something he definitely had to do again. Maybe next time Tormu wouldn't have to protect him with scale locks.

Having sensed a powerful presence, the Kobold's leader was instantly alerted by the scouts and was already waiting for them at the entrance of the Kobold's cave.

"Warriors, why are you trespassing on our lands?" The Kobold graveled through its long pointy teeth, his voice quivering with rage. This made his grotesque face even uglier.

Enzo was shocked at the frightening figure standing in front of them. Large black rubbery ears covered in warts stuck out at weird angles from the beast's skinny rat-like head.

Grey wiry hair splayed out in patchy random areas over the death-colored skin flaps layering its body. Large red eyes protruded from the beasts narrow face and with every blink, a thin layer of skin covered the red, hiding the eyes, but not the red glow.

"You dare!" Shouted Tormu while Chua sent flames from his tongue, singeing the Kobold's sparse hair.

Enzo was shocked to silence by Chua and Tormu's sudden outburst. He was about to explain that there was no way for the Kobolds to know about their arrival, but right as he was about to speak, Chua continued his barrage.

"You dare say the Dragon Phoenix Nation's lands are yours?!" Chua shouted getting louder with each word spoken. He was so loud by the end of it that Enzo's ears rang with a faint dragon roar.

Meanwhile, the Kobold was desperately patting out the fire burning the few ugly hairs it had.

"Who's causing all this racket?!" A booming voice shook the rocks that surrounded the cave.

In a cloud of dust, a tall Kobold emerged from the cave, his aura frighteningly fierce, and his red eyes blazing daggers at the newcomers.

"Master, you should step back." Tormu's solemn voice sounded in Enzo's ears.

"That's… that's… a Tier-5 powerhouse!"