Last Egg: Reincarnated as a Dragon in a Game

As the intensifying energy circled within his chest, the world gradually turned still. With his power of time, Vesuvius now had all the time he needed to think.

'What element should I choose?' He had already spent countless hours contemplating this question while meditating inside a black hole and absorbing gold to build up his divinity, but he still hadn't found an answer.

So Vesuvius pondered, analyzing the facts he knew from his inherited knowledge. The soul of a king-level being could contain only a single high-tier affinity, an affinity that would become the cornerstone of his authority and rule.

'No, there are exceptions to this rule, like Satanael's authority over both fire and wrath. But how? Can it be the corruption of his original fire into some demonic fire? Fire of wrath? Possible, flames and anger sound like compatible powers.' When Vesuvius thought about it, he realized he had two souls, which meant he could safely rule over two aspects.

'In that case, which two elements should I pick?'

Of all the elements within his power, only four were the ultimate ones: space-time, gravity, stars, and apocalyptic storm. Each was powerful, destructive, and potentially cataclysmic.

'Satanael used fire and Yormungandr used water.' Both were fundamental elements. As far as Vesuvius knew, one of the benefits of becoming a king was that, unlike lord-level beings with their lordly affinities ruling only over specific elements, the rule of royal affinities extended their full might to every single affinity that contained them or was contained within them, albeit to a lesser degree.

'Satanael's control over fire extends to volcanoes, heat, plasma, magma, possibly stars, and who knows what else.' When he thought about it, this was what a king was meant to be—not just ruling over their territory but also over the territories of their vassal lords.

However, the more it overlaps with the domains of other gods, demigods, and other high-tier beings like dragon kings, the more conflicts it creates, competing for the same faith and authority.

'That shouldn't be an issue for me, as the authority of the five races doesn't come from something like faith; it is our own power, and so it isn't affected by the powers of others.'

The dragon scoffed, almost chuckling, not caring about offending some pesky gods of faith, since they were already trying to kill him at that very moment.

Vesuvius glanced at the crawling scenery outside of his small bubble of frozen time and noticed the massive form of the dragon god still moving in the sky, as if unaffected, shielding the world from endless waves of energy attempting to smite him.

However, even setting aside the anger that seizing authority over overly broad aspects might provoke, there were additional costs to consider. Though Vesuvius was uncertain about the progression after becoming a king, he understood that the more encompassing and complex the authority, the more challenging and slower his future advancement would be.

'If I simply take space-time, as always nudged by the god of knowledge, then the path forward would be easy and straightforward.' He could already imagine being the sole authority over space and time. However, he wanted more power.

'Yes, space-time is an amazing and versatile power. But I want authority over one more aspect.' With the first element chosen, Vesuvius looked once more at the three remaining highest-tier affinities: 'Gravity, star, and apocalyptic storm. Or maybe I could use a simpler affinity. As long as it is at least primary, then it should be usable. I can still create a new one by merging them with gravity.'

Vesuvius couldn't help but feel a headache at all the possibilities.

(AN: As always, I will welcome your ideas and suggestions. In the comment is the full list of his affinities.)

POV A player named PoopyFart:

With a flash of light, a player appeared in the middle of a shattered marble plain. Thick fumes filled the air, so scorching that his skin felt like it was on fire. All around him, more lights flashed as tens of thousands of players materialized, each staring with resignation at the devastation.

"What in the nine hells is that thing? Look up!" someone shouted. PoopyFart looked up, his eyes immediately dilating. An enormous golden dragon, so vast its silhouette seemed to envelop the entire sky—yet even that wasn't enough to encompass its full size—stood roaring into the sky, flapping its golden wings.

Ding!

//

Analyze result:

Name: ??? [True God] [Miniboss] [Hand of Genesis]

Level: Almost as much as that of the smartest god of knowledge!

Danger level: big... but smaller than that of the greatest god of knowledge!

//

'This... is this some kind of joke?! Miniboss?' His eyes filled with desperation, and he realized the level of the being he had foolishly become an enemy with. Then he burst into mad laughter and said, "Right! This entire system is rigged! The fucking god of knowledge is toying with us!"

Only a ding snapped him out of his stupor.

Ding!

//

New objective: Block the path of the enemies!

//

'Right! I can still work hard, and maybe, when this mess ends, everything will be back to normal!' Without wasting even a second, he leaped up, the ground exploding beneath his feet, launching him like a human rocket toward the nearest portal from which angels were pouring out.

Like shadows of darkness, dark red portals formed in the sky, and demons poured out, their black wings blending with the dark clouds.

Then a chill ran down his spine, all his instincts screaming at him as if he faced death. Terrified, he glanced down, noticing an elderly man in a black suit walking slowly, radiating the chilling aura he felt.

'Angels, demons, reapers...' Without hesitation, the player did not falter, knowing he had to sacrifice himself to buy at least a few seconds, hoping his actions would prevent the quest from failing.

The angelic formations quickly approached, so he ignited his spear with flames. A tear in the ground blocked his path, so he leaped up, the world blurring once more. However, the moment he jumped over the crack, his heart almost stopped, feeling emptiness—below him was nothing, only such deep darkness meant the absolute absence of light, and there he felt something stir.

Something was in the crack of darkness.

'Even the void monsters are here.' He couldn't help but feel even more regret for sticking his nose into the conflict between monsters.

Suddenly, blood sprayed over him as hundreds of players to his left exploded into a bloody mist, a six-winged angel in armor forged of weird silver electricity and light now standing where they had been. Its body of light menacingly shone amidst the blood.

'This is not a war for mortals.' He was terrified when the realization finally dawned on him. The sheer number of monsters initially dampened his expectations of their strength, but now he has realized that the entire battlefield was filled with minibosses, bosses, and even countless raid bosses.