AN: This is a double update so don't forget to read ch 21 first
The explosive release of energy in the very heart of Tempest was more than enough of a distraction for her to perform her next step for growth and likely still remain unnoticed by the bigger fish of the world. The All Seeing Eye had given all the necessary information Toltecatl could ever need to know what path she should take to achieve her goals. Since hunting monsters was out of the question at this point, her only other option was to awaken as a demon lord and become a fully spiritual being, which could be easily achieved by consuming enough human souls.
For that purpose, her thralls had taken over one of the more notable cities in the former Ruberios territory with an approximate population of twenty-seven thousand people, including both the remaining soldiers and civilians. With her cult spreading, the sheeple could easily be convinced that she was a prophet of Luminous who would perform a ritual to send a plea of the people directly to the Goddess and restore the Holy Empire to its former glory under a new pope, and they would be none the wiser.
The eager crowds stood in the central plaza, packed like sardines in a barrel, surrounded by her thralls posing as holy knights from all sides and numbering four thousand in total. In mere moments, the streets would overflow with blood, with her loyal followers feasting on their corpses as she would feast on their souls. It would take place in the evening after the day's last meal had been consumed by most, and then the last supper would commence.
Knowing beforehand that she would enter a sleeping phase, a brilliant sarcophagus was prepared for her to rest under the first cathedral she took over, constructed by the wealth of the entire city combined.
"It is time to begin. Rejoice oh the faithful ones, today you will witness our Goddess Luminous turn her face back to these misfortune-filled lands. Look up in the sky, open your hearts, and see your Goddess smile upon you!" Toltecatl looked down from the podium, her face twisting into a toothy smile as the sheeple grew euphoric. "Your goddess will join you soon enough. BEGIN! Bring their souls to me!"
Her servants all moved as one. First, the sheeple were being cut down like the wheat of her old nation. Their souls started to fill her heart, enriching her soul. The stench of blood filled her nostrils like the sweet smell of freshly cut roses. The shocked screams were like a beautiful symphony composed just for her, filling her ears with their delightful cacophony.
The death toll rose at a staggering rate, the thralls grew increasingly frenzied as they continued cutting down the defenseless, barely resisting humans. Seven thousand souls had already been absorbed. More came in with each heartbeat. Eight thousand. Nine. Just a few more and there it was, the sleep came.
"Feast upon them my darlings. I will be back soon!" She shouted over the chaos of screams and teleported right to her resting place, falling unconscious in the heavy granite tomb made just for her.
In her dreams, she saw her father, and she turned away from the pathetic God who hadn't helped her. Never again would she offer sacrifices to that failure of a God, who had left her. No, she needed someone else. Someone who would be a manifestation of her longings, and she reached.
Her evolution demanded the very best. As a true demon lord, she would be near the pinnacle of the world's power structure. It would be her unique skill The Chosen of the Gods that would invite a deity to guide her, to push her to greatness. And there it was. The skill started to evolve as well, reaching ever closer to its absolute limit and becoming an ultimate one, the pinnacle of what she knew. The name of a Dark Goddess attached itself to it, reaching an intrinsic agreement within her as the two agreed to cooperate. The Chosen of the Gods evolved into the Ultimate skill Lilith, Goddess of Freedom and Self-actualization.
Never again would she be a prisoner. No summoner, no containment, no prison would ever hold her against her will. Her power levels spiked again and again, pushing her to the same level her dreaded summoner and his precious daughter were, a power that she had craved for centuries. If no one else took Luminous' head, she would be the one to kill the arrogant mockery of a vampire and feast upon her blood as part of the final ritual before she fled from this insane world.
She finally awoke, a small smile on her beautiful face. "It's time to go have a meal, my darlings would need their Goddess to look after them as they grow. So much blood, so much flesh was left behind," She spoke to herself as her bare feet touched the cold stone floor.
The plaza was a piece of art painted in her image. The walls of the houses were painted blood red up to the second floor, covered in gallons of the delicious compound. The piles of corpses stood as mountains of delicacies, inviting others to feast upon them.
Without the need to hurry, she walked down from the podium where she reappeared moments ago. Her soles were stained with blood from the sheer amount of it coating the ground. The remains of a young handsome man lay just before her feet, his heart pierced by a spear. He was one of those who generously provided his soul for her awakening, serving her even in his death.
Toltecatl crouched down and picked up the corpse by the neck. Still warm and inviting. "Too bad I couldn't have enjoyed everything you can offer." She smiled, unhinged her jaw, and bit into the human flesh alongside her many thralls.
X
Velzard rose from his lap and shifted her dress, fixing it as a lovely blush decorated her pale face as Guy pulled his pants back up. With him promising to give all of his attention to her, she sure as hell was doing her part and practically demanded sex every moment they were alone. Entertainment was little in this world, after all, few could keep up with a true dragon as he could.
"I'll go check on a few things." She planted a kiss on his lips and walked off, her ass swaying with the icy wind.
He surely couldn't complain; she intended to make sure he didn't even have time for other women, but at the same time as a hunter and collector at heart, it was more interesting to chase new prey than to enjoy the same cake every day.
Their original agreement was that he wouldn't be monogamous, but things seemed to change over time. Her jealousy had grown stronger with each year with every new female that he approached. Just recently, one of the younger demon girls whose butt he slapped on the way to get breakfast disappeared without a trace.
But that's not what was on his mind at the moment. Velzard had already confirmed his suspicion through her moans in bed that someone from Tempest had been reborn as a true dragon, and since the aspect of this new dragon was death, the most likely culprit was Momonga Tempest, the one supposedly spearheading the Tempest Hegemony.
Soon after that, a new Demon Lord was awakened in Tempest alongside a divine human. And just recently, another energy spike had occurred in Tempest, signaling multiple Demon Lord awakenings in quick succession. There was an agreement that he wouldn't get involved in Ramiris' and Milim's dealings, but what was happening there went far beyond anything he would ever agree to overlook.
After all, he could always repair the relationship later.
If the last talk with the dragonoid girl revealed anything, it was that he couldn't trust her anymore as she might have decided to join up with Momonga, whatever that entity was planning. Same for Ramiris by association, and that made two of his oldest friends stolen from the prideful man, the ruler of Demon Lords and enforcer of the world's status quo.
With Walpurgis starting in just a few days, he needed more info in order for things to work for him.
However, that was where problems arose.
Milim couldn't be bullied into revealing information, plus if she and Ramiris had teamed up and broken the ancient covenant then he couldn't force information out of the fallen elemental queen either. The other demon lords under his command were either too far away or weak, too weak to hold off an enraged Milim.
He still remembered the spiritual scars that had taken centuries to heal from holding off the rampaging Milim when she had first awoken, and he had no intention of reawakening those old phantom pains with real ones to boot.
'I could at least talk to them and see where it leads. Hmm, I think Velzard will have to join in on this one. If my gut is right, this Momonga is likely preparing to face all of the demon lords at the same time.' Guy always keenly trusted his instincts since they usually proved to be correct, honed over thousands of years of existence and fighting.
He touched the demon lord's ring, opening a three-way communication between him, Milim, and Ramiris.
"You two have been very busy these days. Mind filling me in?" he started in his usual casual tone, starting with an inquiry.
"Hey, Guy. Long time no see. How have you been?" Ramiris responded in a cheerful tone, completely ignoring his question.
"I asked you a question." He was having none of it. "What is going on in Tempest? Why are there multiple demon lords awakening like it's a damn group event!?" Guy raised his voice just enough to show that he was done playing around, knowing they would be able to tell.
"Not much. I already told you; I'll invite my friends to Walpurgis. You'll meet them all. They're nice people!" It was Milim who responded, seemingly a bit too peppy compared to their previous interaction.
"Oh, really now. Then you won't mind if Velzard and I come and personally take a look at all of these fine people?" Guy openly threatened the only person he wouldn't want ever to face in combat again, determined to force her hand.
For all the unreasonable power Velzard possessed, she could eventually be reasoned with. The same could not be said about Milim. If she entered a stampede and there was nothing to calm her down, then it was basically the end of the world scenario unless someone on par with a true dragon held her down.
At best, he could fight her to a standstill and keep it that way for a while until he would eventually lose. Milim, as Veldanava's daughter, was an entity no one could defeat in an all-out fight.
For they all knew Velzard was just itching for a reason to off the one offspring of her oldest brother, patiently waiting until she had a semi-justifiable reason to do so.
"What are you worried about? I said we would come to Walpurgis, have a nice chat, probably kill Luminous and maybe Leon, and then go back to our merry ways. No big deal!" Milim hastily explained.
"Milim!"
Guy's tone dropped to one that pretty much screamed: "I am sending everything I have towards Tempest if you do not tell me EXACTLY what I want to hear!"
"Fine, Momonga was spending the souls left over from Falmuth's invasion. You know, it won't hurt to have stronger people around with stupid bitches like Luminous causing trouble. If you don't plan to protect her, Walpurgis will be quite fun. I'll bring over games and manga and introduce all my friends to you too." Milim quickly said.
'He knows how to awaken demon lords from people serving him. He knows it! Well…' Guy smirked. 'It seems it'll be so much fun squeezing that information out of him. If my estimates about the requirements are right, then I could make at least three dozen demon lords, if not more.'
"Deal. I'm looking forward to meeting them in person. But you know the rules. No fighting from the get-go. We can at least sit down for ten minutes like civilized people before chairs start flying." Guy's tone returned to a casual one as he leaned back in his seat.
"I can behave! Right? Ramiris!" Milim screeched back.
"Indeed, Milim has become a much calmer and well-rounded person since spending time with her uncle!" Ramiris joined in.
"I'll need to see it to believe it." He laughed out loud. "Milim the Civil One." He offered her a mock title.
"Ha! Ha! You're such a joker, Guy!" Milim clearly puffed her cheeks even if the ring didn't provide visual communication, knowing the girl. Even if her allegiance had… changed these days, he still knew her personality inside out.
"You need to have a title that reflects your personality. But enough joking around. I'm looking forward to meeting you both. Our last meeting was far too short, Milim and Ramiris, was it a hundred and twenty years…? How time flies indeed."
"I think so, something along those lines, it was before my rebirth I believe. I'm looking forward to seeing you again. So much to show you and the others. Oh, and say hello to Rain and Mizeri for me," Ramiris said her goodbyes, cutting off communication.
"See ya Guy." Milim also ended the call, leaving Guy alone once more.
'So, what are you up to Momonga? Becoming a true dragon, creating demon lords. Luminous didn't scare you so much as to require such actions, did she? She is nothing to worry about in the grand scheme of things after all. You… are preparing to face me, aren't you?' Guy slumped to one side, putting the ankle of one leg over the knee of the other and holding up his head with his right hand, pondering.
Whoever this Momonga was, he wasn't someone he could take lightly. The man was clearly smart and cautious, exploiting everything about this world in such ways he hadn't seen since Rudra had begun sacrificial lamb attacks on Veldora. Sitting under his radar just long enough to come into the scene in such an explosive way. With Milim and Veldora on his side, he held enough power to threaten the world order as is. For that, he couldn't be left to his own devices any longer.
In a few days, he would see what Momonga had planned and stomp out those plans with extreme prejudice if they were against him. What worried him the most was that Ramiris the Arbiter had picked a side. She was supposed to stay neutral and ensure that the game didn't get out of hand and threaten the integrity of the world. For her to openly side with a third party meant that she was fully behind whatever the new true dragon was planning, and that meant this world was polarizing beyond what it had ever done before.
Editing by aidan_lo.
Proofreading by aidan_lo, NuggetLover, clagan, Cay, Sluethen, CakeEight, KieraKieraARTS, Working_Stiff, Nervy, and Stac.
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