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As briefly outlined in the races section, the ryuzoku are dragons who serve the shinzoku. There are many different species of dragon in the Slayers world and not all of them are sentient; hence the use of the term ryuzoku to differentiate the sentient dragon species from the rest. Nearly all dragons are reptilian in appearance with claws, wings and can use breath weapons. In addition, ryuzoku are able to use magic and change shape into humanoid forms.

As servants of the shinzoku, the ryuzoku are sworn enemies of the mazoku. They exist to carry out the bidding of their shinzoku leaders and work to preserve the world. Due to their servitude, the ryuzoku have access to powerful holy magic that has been all but forgotten by human sorcerers.

ANCIENT

They're black in colour and are unique in that their wings are feathered rather than leathery. As Valgarv is the only ancient ryuzoku we see in humanoid form, we can only assume that the ancients have aqua-green hair colour. Why they are called ancient is anyone's guess; perhaps they were one of the oldest ryuzoku species.

Existing in the anime only, the ancient ryuzoku are the most powerful of all ryuzoku. Despite one ancient ryuzoku having the power of a thousand goldens, they lived generally peaceful lives and chose to remain neutral in the Kouma War. They kept to themselves and guarded Galveria, the most powerful of the five light weapons. They chose to seal away Galveria rather than use it, keeping it out of the hands of those who would use it.

When the golden ryuzoku asked them to join the Kouma War, the ancients felt that their participation would cause more harm than good and decided to stay out of it. The golden ryuzoku did not appreciate this and out of fear that the ancients would turn on them in time, decided to kill them all before they could. Every last ancient ryuzoku was murdered, from egg to elder. The bodies were brought to a temple in the frozen wastelands of the north, left sealed away and forgotten in the snow. Although dead, the spirit of some of the elders remained, ready to tell the truth of the crimes committed against them if anyone should stumble upon their lonely grave.

GOLDEN

Their golden scales are what give the golden ryuzoku their name. As the smallest of the ryuzoku in size, they have leathery wings, golden eyes, white horns and forked tails. In their humanoid forms, they typically have blonde hair that turns white as they age.

The golden ryuzoku are currently the most powerful of the shinzoku forces and are divided up into different groups based on whichever shinzoku they serve. In Slayers NEXT, Lina and her friends encounter the golden ryuzoku leader in service of the Aqualord, Milgazia. In Slayers TRY, Lina is approached by Filia Ul Copt, a golden ryuzoku priestess in service of the Flarelord. A magical barrier created over a thousand years ago trapped the Aqualord's forces and forced the Flarelord's followers to live outside. While the two groups were already divided by the shinzoku they served, the barrier cut them off from one another completely.

The golden ryuzoku in service of the Flarelord are featured in Slayers TRY. Before the magical barrier was erected, a massive battle known as the Kouma War was fought between the ryuzoku and mazoku that ultimately ended in the Aqualord's demise. Looking to fill the gap of power, the golden ryuzoku approached the ancient ryuzoku for aid. When the ancients declined, the goldens became paranoid. As the current leaders of the ryuzoku, the goldens feared that the ancients would use Galveria to take their seat of power. The elders decided that the only course of action was genocide.

When the horrific crime was done, the goldens tried to erase all knowledge of the ancients. They would claim that the ancients were a violent race that needed to be put down to ensure the safety of the world and its denizens, lying about the truth.