Instead of breeding, Manling Victor had adopted a full litter of new minions.

And already they proved useful. “Master Vainqueur, Master Vainqueur!” Yellow, the kobold with the best nose, pointed a claw at a bush, the dragon smelling a Scorcher manling hiding there. “I found another!”

Vainqueur let out a roar, raising the giant axe Ogron the one-eyed ogre had kindly given him…

Or rather, struggling, as he couldn’t keep the axe properly aligned even while wielding it with all his clawed fingers. How did the manlings do it?

Like a rabbit, the manling ran out of the bushes, only for Black, the biggest of the new recruits, to chase after him with a spear. Vainqueur followed, causing trees to fall as he moved through the woods; he constantly struggled against the urge to run back on all four, as a good dragon should.

How did that cyclops do it? Raise the axe up, and then down.

Vainqueur tried, the upward swing sending a pine tree flying, and he struggled to aim right at the escaping food-in-waiting. “Minion!” Vainqueur shouted. “MINION!”

“Yes, yes, I’m here!” Manling Victor emerged from the woods with his dagger toothpicks, barring the escaping prey’s way and forcing it to flee in another direction.

“This axe is not working!”

“Just swing it down when we have him immobilized! And remember, you meet the class criteria, but you have to impress your fans with a melee weapon strike, Your Majesty! Kill him with style, or you won’t access the new class!”

Style? Like a crushing display of superiority? “Dear mammals,” Vainqueur asked Dead Manling Running. “Do you know what dragons call pain?”

Kobold Red jumped from a bush, trapping the prey and forcing him to stop running. The mammal briefly turned his head behind, crying at the sight of Vainqueur’s majesty.

“A birth defect!”

And then Vainqueur swept the scorcher with the axe, smashing him into a crater of blood and broken bones.

“Argh!” The aftershock sent his entrails splatter on Red’s face, the poor kobold having to remove brain matter off his eyes. “I have human blood in my eyes!”

“Vainqueur, best dragon!” Black and Yellow cheered him up, as expected. “Vainqueur, best dragon!”

By impressing a crowd of fans with your weapon prowess and moxie, you gained a level in the [Gladiator] Class! You gained the [Arena Warrior] Perk!

+30 HP, +2 STR, +1 VIT, +1 SKI, +1 CHA, +1 LCK!

[Arena Warrior]: instantly gain medium proficiency in all melee weapons.]