I Regressed With a 10,000x God-Tier Multiplier-Chapter 61: Return back to the Citadel

The black-stone walls of the Citadel of Obsidian stood tall against the afternoon sun.

High Ranger Celeste paced the upper battlements. She had returned from the Scourgelands two days prior.

She had secured the southern perimeter.

She had sorted out the large supply of iron and necrotic bone the Warlord asked for. The fortress was running smoothly and with strict military order.

Then, the temperature plummeted.

It was not a natural chill. It was a sudden drop that instantly froze the dew on the black-stone parapets.

Celeste stopped pacing. She looked out over the dense forest surrounding the Citadel.

The forest was moving. Thousands of birds suddenly flew up at the same time, bursting out of the trees in a panicked swarm.

"Commander!" a Star-Kissed Elf shouted from the highest watchtower. The archer pointed a trembling finger toward the sky. "Incoming! Massive magical pressure detected!"

Celeste looked up.

The sun disappeared. A huge moving shadow covered the entire valley.

[System Warning: Massive Aerial Force Approaching.]

[Mana Density: Catastrophic.]

[Calculating Threat Level...]

Celeste drew her curved silver dagger. Her heart hammered against her ribs. She was a Level 35 High Ranger, but the sheer, crushing magical weight pressing down from the sky paralyzed her muscles.

The clouds parted violently.

A colossal Crystalline White Dragon broke through the cloud cover.

It was the size of a castle. Its diamond-hard scales reflected the sunlight like a shattered mirror.

Behind the colossal beast flew an endless, shifting cloud of white scales. Five thousand sub-adult Glacial Wyrms blotted out the sky.

They flew in a perfect, sprawling V-formation. Their icy blue eyes scanned the ground. Their jaws parted, venting trails of freezing blue mist.

The defenders of the Citadel stared in absolute horror. The Star-Kissed Elves drew their bows, but their hands shook.

Then, the system interface updated. The jagged red warning text shifted to a calm, glowing blue.

[System Update: Force Identified.]

[Entity: Crown-Tier Legion (Allied Sub-Faction).]

[Commander: Lucifer of Obsidian.]

Celeste exhaled a sharp, freezing breath. She lowered her dagger.

"Hold your fire!" Celeste roared across the battlements. "Lower your weapons! It is the Warlord!"

High above, Lucifer rode the sky.

He stood perfectly balanced between the massive crystal spikes at the base of Isolde’s neck.

The freezing wind high in the sky slammed into his dark leather armor, but his Void Arcanist power kept him from feeling the cold.

He looked down at his fortress. The black-stone walls of the Citadel looked like a miniature toy from this height.

"Bring us down, Sovereign," Lucifer commanded.

Isolde heard him. She angled her massive, horned head toward the main courtyard of the Citadel and tucked her colossal wings.

She dropped like a white meteor.

The five thousand Glacial Wyrms followed her lead. The sky turned into a diving avalanche of diamond scales and freezing mist.

Isolde flared her wings at the absolute last second.

The wind hit like a disaster. It slammed into the courtyard with hurricane force, knocking over weapon racks and flipping heavy supply crates across the stone floor.

The Star-Kissed Elves on the walls dropped to their knees, pulling their cloaks over their faces to shield themselves from the blinding mix of dust and ice.

CRASH.

Isolde landed in the exact center of the main courtyard.

Her massive, clawed feet shattered the reinforced stone pavement. The impact sent a tremor through the entire mountain.

She settled her immense weight, her long tail wrapping completely around the central keep.

The sky rained dragons.

The five thousand Glacial Wyrms landed seconds later. They swarmed the Citadel. They perched on the high black-stone walls.

They clamped their heavy claws onto the iron-reinforced battlements. They covered the roofs of the barracks and the armory.

Every single available surface of the fortress was suddenly occupied by a massive, white-scaled apex predator.

The Citadel of Obsidian was completely overrun by its own air force.

Lucifer stepped off Isolde’s neck.

He activated Void Step. He vanished from the dragon’s back and appeared flawlessly on the cracked stone pavement of the courtyard.

A moment later, Elara and Sarah landed gracefully beside him. The Fallen Valkyrie folded her golden wings, her silver spear resting easily in her grip.

The Star-Touched Oracle smoothed her white dress, leaning on her Scepter of Cosmic Alignment.

Lucifer turned to face the colossal dragon.

Isolde lowered her massive head. Blinding, pure white light erupted from her diamond scales. The light condensed, pulling inward with terrifying speed. The massive dragon vanished.

Isolde stepped out of the fading light in her human form.

She wore a glowing ice-crystal gown, with elegant crystal horns resting on her temples. Her long snow-white hair whipped wildly in the dying wind.

She did not look like a cold, emotionless statue anymore.

Isolde was flushed. A deep, vibrant pink colored her pale cheeks. Her chest heaved heavily. Her reptilian white eyes were wide, dilated, and burning with an intense, raw adrenaline.

She had just flown freely across the continent for the first time in a millennia. She had led an armada of her own brood. The sheer, overwhelming thrill of the flight was coursing through her ancient veins.

She looked at Lucifer. She tried to quickly compose herself. She straightened her posture and crossed her pale arms over her chest, attempting to rebuild her arrogant, Queenly facade.

She took a slow, steadying breath.

"That..." Isolde murmured, looking away slightly. She swallowed hard, trying to keep the massive smile off her face. "That was acceptable."

Lucifer stopped. He looked at the flushed, breathless Dragon Queen.

He didn’t give her a cold, Warlord command. He didn’t demand a status report.

Lucifer smirked.

"Just acceptable, Your Majesty?" Lucifer asked smoothly.

Isolde’s expression darkened. Her ice-crystal dress made a soft clinking sound as she moved. She avoided his swirling void-like eyes and instead looked up at her five thousand Wyrms perched along the black stone walls.

"The thermals over the human kingdoms are weak," Isolde complained.

She sounded defensive, almost embarrassed. "The air is thin, and the distance was very short. A true Royal Dragon needs to fly across continents to properly stretch her wings."

"Of course," Lucifer agreed, his smirk widening slightly. "Next time, we will take the long route."

Isolde finally looked back at him. The corner of her pale lips moved slightly upward. She couldn’t fully hide how excited she felt.

The dynamic between them had shifted. In the pocket dimension, he was her conqueror.

In the hatchery, he was her savior. But in the sky, they were partners.

He gave her the freedom to fly, and she gave him the power to rule it.

"See that you do, Warlord," Isolde replied softly.

Elara stepped forward. The Fallen Valkyrie looked at Isolde and Elara offered Isolde a rare, respectful nod.

"You hold the sky well, Sovereign," Elara noted.

"I am the sky, Valkyrie," Isolde countered proudly.

High Ranger Celeste ran across the cracked courtyard. She dodged the massive, sweeping tail of a roosting Glacial Wyrm and skidded to a halt in front of Lucifer.

She slammed her fist against her breastplate in a perfect salute.

"Commander!" Celeste reported, her eyes wide as she took in the five thousand dragons blanketing the fortress.

"The perimeter is holding. The shipments of Star-Metal and necrotic bone are fully unloaded into the deep vaults.

King Thrain has sealed the Aether-Forge. He requested absolute silence for the forging process."

"He will have it," Lucifer said. His smirk vanished, instantly replaced by the cold, absolute focus of the Warlord.

He opened his system interface.

[Base Status: Citadel of Obsidian.]

[Defenses: Cryo-Pylons (Ready to Deploy).]

[Garrison: 5,000 Aether-Steel Dragoons, 500 Arch-Seraphs, 2,000 Star-Kissed Elves, 5,000 Glacial Wyrms.]

Lucifer swiped the interface away. The pieces were all on the board. The ground was secure. The air was dominated. The forge was burning.

"Celeste. Take the Star-Kissed Elves. I want a five-mile absolute dead zone established around the base of this mountain," Lucifer ordered.

"No merchants. No scouts. If a Royal envoy approaches, shoot their horses and send them back on foot."

"Yes, my Lord," Celeste confirmed without hesitation.

"Elara. Sarah," Lucifer continued, turning to his core commanders. "Get some rest. The march was fast, but the real work begins tomorrow."

Sarah gripped her Scepter of Cosmic Alignment. "You are going to activate the tablet."

"I am going to plant the Cryo-Pylons first," Lucifer corrected her. "I will not lift this city into the sky without a permanent, automated defense grid.

When we rise, the entire world will see us. The King will not send diplomats. He will send an armada."

Isolde stepped up beside him. Her white, reptilian eyes locked onto the southern horizon.

"Let them send an armada," Isolde hissed, her voice vibrating with dark, draconic excitement. "My brood is hungry. We will freeze their ships and shatter them against the earth."

"We will," Lucifer agreed.

He turned away from the courtyard. He walked toward the heavy oak doors of the central keep. The Warlord had returned to his throne, bringing an army of myths and legends with him.

The Citadel of Obsidian was no longer just a fortress. It was the anvil upon which he would break the current era.