The antiheroes teleported into the dungeon underneath the heart of the Dictatorship, arriving to witness a bloody mess.
Inside one of the cells sat a black king cobra.
His eyes had been removed from his own sockets and then healed, and his entire face was covered in blood which had hardened.
His mouth too seemed to have hardened blood that had dripped from each side.
"Who... who is there!?!?!"
The cobra looked over in anger to witness the antiheroes as they entered the dungeon.
Trevor put his hand to his own forehead in disappointment.
"I thought I said before to never allow us to hear your voice again? Or have you forgotten so quickly?"
"Why you.... you think you can get away with this!?!?!? I will kill-"
"Ah shut up."
The snake fell to the ground, his own body accelerating with such magnitude that the floor cracked when it came into contact with the body.
Holding out a hand with a face of delight stood Ashley, her hair drooping so that one eye was completely covered.
The snake let out a few groans and choking noises, but she ignored these noises and reached into her own pocket dimension, taking out something which was ethereal and pure white, aside from a single spot of black.
The iron gate creaked open as the girl pulled a finger, beckoning the gate to obey her command without so much as coming into contact with it.
Walking into the room with a blissful expression, the messy hair of the girl seemed to cover her entire face as she approached the cobra, sticking her spiritual hand inside his own chest.
Yanking her hand out, she now held yet another ethereal form- this one an exact inverse.
It was pitch black with a single spot of white.
"You know..... I wonder.... manipulation of souls.... this implies a lot of things... hehehe..... so maybe I can do something like this....."
The girl then shoved both of the souls into the body of the snake.
Forcing them in so that they both fit, she looked over to Samantha with a grin.
"Hehe..... I wonder what will become of you now?", she giggled.
The snake looked around, excessively confused.
"I'll never forgive you!! I will murder you if it's the last thing I do!!"
"I'll convince you to turn from your evil ways if it's the last thing I do!!!"
These two statements were made simultaneously, and the snake seemed to be filled with an even greater confusion.
"What!?!?"
It seemed as if two voices were talking, and they exclaimed similar yet slightly different words.
"What's going on!?!? My mind..... there's.... another voice!!!"
The snake grabbed his own head as if he had a headache, closing his eyes in pain.
"What is this body!?"
"Why is someone else speaking!?!? Get out of my head!!! You insolent spirit.... did you do this!?!"
"What have you done to me, antihero!?!"
The two voices shouted out in confusion at odds with one another, but once more Ashley held out a hand and pressed the snake to the ground.
"Hehehe.... you wanna know? I put two souls in one body. A hero so kind that he would forgive even the most heinous of villains, and the most heinous villain himself.... what would happen if they had to share the same body? Well.... I suppose we've already seen an example of this before, but here's the difference..... the Determined was split into two, yet the two are both undoubtedly one. They exist as herself, and yet they exist separate from each other. This is completely different. This is two completely different people, now sharing one body.... one mind.... and two souls."
Ashley began to laugh as she turned over to Trevor.
"I think it's time to combine our skills."
"Oh? You have an idea?"
"Hehe.... of course...."
With a smirk Trevor stepped forward and the two both put a hand each on the bowing head of the snake.
[Combination skill. Simulation of the Mind]
Power flowed from the hands of the two into the brain of the snake, and Trevor could not help himself from grinning upon realizing what Ashley was doing.
"You truly have the mind of a fiend. Even I would not have thought of something like this."
"Of course. After all, I am the very origin of darkness itself.", Ashley responded.
The two laughed yet the body of the snake in front of them seemed to go limp.
On releasing the pressure which Ashley exerted on the being, the eyes of the snake were closed and he seemed to be twitching and turning as if he was having a bad dream.
"No.... what are you doing....."
"Why aren't you letting me go?"
"Are you an idiot!?!?"
"Agh!!!!!"
Screaming to himself, he appeared to be in a great amount of internal anguish.
The antiheroes looked at each other and with the snap of Trevor's fingers, the scenery around them changed from a dark dungeon to an exquisite bedroom with four beds in a 2x2 arrangement.
In front of the four was an ectoplasmic screen, and with another snap of his fingers, the four seemed to be dressed in pajamas and ready to sleep.
"Since the visions which those two are experiencing are something which has been created through my own simulations, I am able to broadcast it directly to the television."
As Trevor lay down in his own bed while folding his arms, he closed his eyes and began to speak to the other three, who likewise made themselves comfortable.
"Our tasks for today are finally over. We have taken over two villages, and destroyed a third. Among that third, we have taken 100 snakemen into our own fold, and we have spread both our flag and our name throughout the monster realm. Without a doubt, the monster kings and those who serve them must be plotting against us, and I am already trying to prepare for whatever movements they will make. We have done everything necessary thus far today. Now we can sit back and enjoy the entertainment created from those two fools."
With a smirk Trevor opened his eyes and switched on the television, which showed a scene that looked like a modern day city in America.
Holding out his own hand, he reached over and grasped the hand of Samantha, gripping it tightly.
In turn, Samantha held it back as she smiled, watching the television with interest.
Ashley laid on her stomach with her head at the foot of the bed and kicked her spiritual legs back and forth with a smile, and Garett put his arms behind his head as he laid back.
"It's a lot of work, but I live for these little moments at the end of the day. I never imagined a career to be this rewarding.", Garett commented.
On the screen it showed a snakeman who was standing at a crosswalk with a confused look on his face.
A young child began to walk across the crosswalk without paying attention, and the snakeman looked to the side to see a truck barreling forward at the child.
The snakeman made an attempt in order to go and save the child, rushing out to grab him and save him from the truck.
However, as if part of him wanted to go and part didn't, he seemed to be slowly dragging along as if he was having a tug of war.
"No.... what are you doing.....", the snakeman asked himself, confused as to why his other side was trying to jump out, risking his life for the sake of the child.
"Why aren't you letting me go?", the other voice asked while shoving himself forward into the road.
"Are you an idiot!?!?"
"Agh!!!!!"
Because of the indecision of the snakeman he ended up moving too slowly.
Instead of grabbing the child and rushing out of the way, he was stuck not moving in front of the truck, which smashed into both the snakeman and the child, sending an explosion of blood and guts.
"Uwah.... it sure must be scary to have two opposing forces within you.... one side wants to do one thing and the other wants to do another, so you end up messing up either way. And these two will be going through situations like this all night long... heh heh...", Ashley snickered.
"Indeed.... I wonder if the Determined is doing all right? After all, things might get a bit crazy if the ratmen village is targeted by an enemy....", Trevor added.
"She'll be fine.", Samantha said with confidence. "The last time I saw her, I knew this for sure. Her eyes had changed. She wasn't just a young girl trying to save people. She was a leader, sending forth orders to those under her for the sake of our nation."
With a light laugh, Samantha seemed to close her eyes and open them.
"If you ask me, it's almost as if becoming a mafia boss was what she was born to do."
----
Two days passed.
Over the course of these two days, the antiheroes, the Determined, and all those who served them worked hard at uniting the villages which they had overtaken.
Tunnels were constructed connecting the slime village to both Porta and the insectoid village, and a tunnel then continued on from the insectoid village to the ratmen village. As such, all six villages which had been annexed by the antiheroes were now connected through highways.
The tunnel which connected to Porta ran underneath the wall, deep enough to the point where it would never be discovered by any humans who were stationed at the wall.
Coran and Alicia lived peacefully within Porta during these two days, teaching their children their respective duties and rebuilding the city so that it functioned as a proper village.
Farming was reestablished, and irrigation was improved. Furthermore, Veronica used her own business connections to promote trade within the village.
During times in which traders visited, there were no questions as to why there were so few people in the village.
Of course, everything was blamed on the monster, which was commonly known to be dead.
The story which was spread was that the monster was so powerful that Slith had to fight to the death, and received fatal wounds in the battle. He died shortly afterwards, essentially making the battle a draw.
The death of Slith was shocking to everyone in the Empire, and filled the people with fear of the monster, however they were relieved to hear that such a monster had been killed.
In the fishmen village, the salt trade had been reestablished. With the advancements of the antiheroes, the shell and coral materials which their cities were built from were improved upon and the village became a center of trade within the Dictatorship.
The Capital of the Dictatorship grew rapidly as a center of both trade and political power. It's own factories began producing metal and other materials, and it's farms produced enough food for the entire nation, which was being distributed to any areas which there was a shortage.
The ratmen village was still split, and those who believed that there was a hero coming to save them began gathering in the Southeast sector of the city. Claire, who was stationed in the center of the city as the leader of the mafia, ignored this collection as per the orders of Trevor.
"We must wait and see if a hero appears among them. It will then be your duty to take this 'hero' on in whatever way you please. Only after doing so will you be truly known as the one and only Dictator."
The former leaders of the mafia showed her the utmost respect, and everyone and anyone among the ratmen who feared for their lives would obey her.
Still, there were many who truly believed that a hero existed- the person who rebuilt the factories.
There was no effort made to clear up this rumor.
Many of Claire's subordinates who found out about this were confused and questioned as to why they would allow the credit to go to some unknown hero, however Claire merely smiled in response.
"We need to show the people that the hero they are looking for does not exist. The only person who can protect them is myself... and I am no hero."
Those in the Capital of the Dictatorship formed a military unit with Melody as it's commander. Under her served her own companions, as well as Thomar, Arlo, and the birdmen.
They prepared themselves for war, training their new abilities and learning how to use them in battle.
As for the insectoid village, Berith became the beloved queen of the people quite quickly.
While they were terrified of her at first, there was a certain adorable aspect of her.
After seeing her trip up on her own dress, they were instilled with the strange desire to serve and protect her as their new leader.
Those who were infuriated with the removal of their new leader had already been removed from the village, and as such the only ones who remained were those who were simply too terrified of the antiheroes to so much as consider complaining.
They gratefully accepted their new positions, and even though their new leader appeared to be demented and somewhat out of place, they could not help but wish to serve her to the fullest- whether this was by the order of the antiheroes, or simply because they came to see her as their beloved queen.
"Uh.... her excellency told me to wear this.... but I don't really know how...."
Berith held a large bow to tie her hair, made from her own bandages in her dressing room, surrounded by three female insectoids- a butterfly, a ladybug, and a bumble bee.
"Oh don't worry about that, Lady Berith!!"
"We will help you!!"
"We'll make you look adorable for the people!!"
Berith was filled with great confusion at what these people wanted, but she knew that she was not allowed to kill them, so she instead took their word and listened to their advice, allowing them to dress her up.
"Now get out there and show those people your adorable smile, Lady Berith!!"
With a light push, Berith exited onto a large balcony that opened up to an enormous plaza within the insectoid village.
Once again almost tripping on her dress, she stumbled forward and caught herself on the guard rail of the balcony, dizzy.
'Ugh.... your excellency.... what am I doing wrong? Why can't I seem to fulfill your orders this time?'
However when she looked around, she saw the cheering faces of all the people of the insectoid village.
"Lady Berith!!!!"
"Our Queen!!!!"
"We love you, Lady Berith!!!!"
Berith looked around with concern before showing the people an evil smile, though with the outfit she wore her grin ended up looking more innocent than evil.
"For the queen!!!!"
"We will do anything for you!!!"
"Just say the word, Lady Berith!!"
With the wave of her human hand, Berith let out a sigh of exhaustion.
'I really don't understand how to be a ruler..... brother was able to take the spot as a ruler before, but why is what I am doing here so different? It's so confusing..... I wish I could just slaughter everyone..... ah.... I shouldn't think like that.... after all, their excellencies allowed me to kill everyone in that legion just before.... I only have to follow their orders....'
With this thought, Berith grinned, squinting all four of her eyes.
As she continued to wave to the people, she stood up straight.
'Yes.... that is right.... my one and only purpose in life.... I live for their excellencies. Brother has succeeded in his own village, and now I must succeed here. I will rule over these people as their excellencies command and think nothing aside from succeeding in this mission. Watch, insects. You too are now the property of their excellencies. And I will do everything I can to mold you into valuable assets.'
However, with the passing of two days, a number of events had occurred elsewhere around the world.
While Oscar was still fooling around in the Empire in an attempt to experience all the women in the capital, he eventually came to the decision that it was time for him to head off to the Asarith Sultinate and perform the duty which the young Emperor had assigned for him.
Oraguth and Troy kept a close watch on the movements of the Emperor, and on the evening of this second day, a certain disturbance made it's way to the Capital.
"My Liege!!! An urgent message from Tirius of the 3rd Legion, who has been stationed at the wall. There has been absolutely no contact with the 5th legion for two days now!!! They have simply vanished!!! Nobody knows where they have went, and it is believed that they were somehow attacked!!!!"
The young Emperor was sitting now not on a bench of women, but on what seemed to be a recliner made from the women who served him, with his arms resting on two women, his legs resting on two others, and a small pyramid of three which his back lay on.
The Emperor looked up at this report with annoyance and responded plainly.
"Attacked, you say? How on earth could they have been attacked? They shouldn't have left our nation. Are you telling me that they were attacked within our own borders? An army of 10,000 men? Who on earth in their right mind would attack such a group? And to defeat them? Hah! Absurd. It is more likely that they became lost or that the messengers have been targeted."
The man standing on his left hand side, the minister Longitudinas, spoke up as the Emperor said this.
"My liege, but is it not strange enough that they have ceased contact? For what reason could an entire legion be distracted from their orders made by yourself? Their orders were to head to the wall, so unless there was something of urgency, then surely they would have made it to the wall with all haste."
"That's right, Longitudinas. Why haven't they followed my orders then? What do you say messenger?"
"That is.... forgive me my liege, but as all contact has ceased, I have no way of knowing."
The Emperor seemed to snarl with disappointment.
"Useless. Whatever. Send a message to Tirius then. Tell him that he is to begin a march on the monster realm immediately. We have to attack them before they attack us. I heard that there have already been some attacks by monsters recently. We cannot allow them to become confident and believe they can take on our legions."
"My liege!!!"
Longitudinas was standing calm at first, but at hearing these orders he spoke up.
"With all the respect, my liege, the third legion has always been stationed at the wall to defend our country from the monster realm. If we were to mobilize them, then we would be left defenseless-"
"Longitudinas. Take a look at this crown on my head."
The young Emperor, Percius V, pointed to the crown of leaves which adorned the golden hair that flowed on his head.
"Which one of the two of us is the Emperor? Me? Or you? Well?"
"It is of course yourself, my Liege. However-"
"Then zip it. As I said, messenger. Tirius is to march into the monster realm and begin to destroy any and every monster which is encountered. We will be sending reinforcements as soon as the war with the Kingdom has been settled, but he is to make as much progress as he can until then."
Longitudinas quieted himself, but he was clearly bursting with objections.
One legion had been eradicated.
Another had contact completely cut off, and the outlook was grim.
And yet the young Emperor intended on having all three of the remaining Legions mobilized.
Furthermore, for multiple purposes.
They were now fighting a war on two fronts with split forces.
It was a recipe for disaster.
"I will do as you order, my Liege."
With a quick reply, the messenger ran off.
Longitudinas watched with concern as the orders which could very well bring this Empire to ruin left this throne room.
The only thing he heard was the clicking of the messengers sandals after he had left the room, and silence overcame the two who were left alone- the women who the young Emperor sat on aside.
'If only his father were still here.....'