10:24 PM…
Clyde and the party were grouchy, frustrated, and tired. Those feelings melted away like butter when they noticed an impossible scene ahead. The young man almost rubbed his eyes to make sure his brain wasn't fucking with him.
Beneath a shining street light, Ming sat on the sidewalk, just a short distance from the hoody-wearing attacker and the minotaur girl he rescued. They were tied up with strange purple magic, which reminded the young man of a lightsaber, that is, if it was incredibly bendable. He felt her magic, strong magic, jolting around the captured duo like an angry hornet.
"This magic," Airi said, being careful not to touch it, while inspecting with a connoisseur's eye.
Clyde nodded and smiled.
"Once again Ming, you show just how impressive you are. Meanwhile, we—"
"You mean it?" Ming said, hopping up, and nearly diving into him. "I'm not useless?"
The young man gave her a skeptical look.
"Whoever said you were useless?" he said.
"This is an indefinite, self-producing, form of magic," Alice said as she knelt to inspect the binding. "Good work. It would've been a disaster if this one remained free. He almost killed our Harumi from a distance."
Ming's eyes glistened and lit up. A compliment from Alice is as rare a legendary item in this world. Maybe even rarer. She stepped back, one eye red, one eye blue, sparkling.
"I probed his mind but can't get through the block," she said. "And I'm not touching that hoody after he… Gross. I put them both to sleep to stop the bickering. The minotaur girl declared him husband. And she's probably going to be pregnant. I don't know how monster girl seeding works."
Clyde's eyes widened.
"Okay, back up, back up," Clyde said. "Tell us from the beginning."
Ming did. Afterwards, the group had thoughtful expressions on their faces, some nodding. Clyde made a mental note to level the shit out of his prophet. The prompt smacked him in the face with a dose of Satovian reality.
[Warning: you have not met the relationship requirement to rank up your prophet. She needs to be at friend closer level one or above.]
Of course. Ha! Did he expect this shit to be easy? Of course not! Oh, but it is.
"You're on your way to being the greatest prophet ever," Clyde said truthfully. Had Ming not caught the sniper, they wouldn't be able to step outside without fear of getting an arrow to the head. "This is where Tear will come into play. Ming, do you mind if I let her take over the interrogation?"
"Of course," she said.
Alice dialed her before Clyde's hand was halfway to his pocket. He narrowed his eyes a little. She stuck her tongue out then smiled.
Clyde walked over to the hoody guy and against Ming's protests, pulled it back. The young man looked to be his age, with pointy ears and light-blue hair. Just, who the hell was this guy?
**
After showering and dressing, Clyde wasted no time heading to where Tear and the others held the captives. A delayed prompt sitting at the corner of his mind's eye finally caught his attention.
[Your Ki has increased!]
[Tear's crests are: Spirit, Passion, and Love.]
[Life: 2. Lightning: 2. Heart: 3.]
[ Strength:1. Passion:2. Energy: 1.]
[Soul: 4. Command: 5. Radiance: 4.]
[Vitality: 5. Speed: 5. Aura: 5.]
[Mystery: 1. Power: 1 Ambition: 1]
[Submission: 1 Unpredictable: 1 Spark: 1]
[ Rain: 1 Spirit: 1 Love: 1]
[You have started the learning of Area sense 1. You will be able to detect all enemies within a vicinity. You will gain a Mini-map to accompany your mental navigation system. Your foes will show up as red dots. Level this system up and you'll gain more details and range. Example: yellow dots indicating tougher enemies and much more. Requirements: Energy: 2 Love: 2 Focus: 1]
Energy from Kitome, Love from Tear, and… Focus? He'd need Maki to help him locate this mystery Ki. And have sex with her once more to unlock Dragon's breath. A feeling deep within his gut told him that ignoring Ki-based skills would be the biggest mistake of his life. Why? What's the true difference between Ki and magic—besides the fundamentals? Clyde tucked that question in the back of his mind to focus on the matter at hand. He will get that answered.
"Find out anything?" Clyde asked Tear.
"This isn't good," Tear said softly. "I thought I recognized the face. Ashard's the son of Titania, the fairy queen. The only non-male monster with a human form, besides the extinct incubi."
"You've got to be kidding me," Alice said. "Why is he here?"
"Do you really want to know?" Tear said.
"If Titania shows up, we may be in some trouble," Melody said. "That's like having my father appear."
"I heard Titania isn't that bad," Ruri said. "People who've met her says she's kind and sweet."
"The old Titania," Yuki said. "Have you been living under a rock, hound? The fairies were turned into monster girls. Titania is no longer same person, which is probably why he's here."
"I don't know about that," Tear said. "He calls himself the defender of women." She paused, hand still on his forehead. "Oh. I see. He was caught by the cult, taken in for some kind of sermon, then he signed a contract. This idiot didn't take the time to examine it."
"So he signed a magical contract and is now defending the minotaurs?" Ruri said. Alice facepalmed.
"Well, what are we supposed to do with him?" Clyde said. "I'm not getting involved with this shit."
They all looked at him, staring blankly. The system intervened.
[Quest: Break the contract. This quest is mandatory and cannot be refused. Warning: he will not return home. The fairy servants demand an impossible amount of stamina—to the point that the violations were no longer enjoyable to him. Other than hating his own kind, Ashard carries no ill will.]
[Let it be known that the demon lord of this city personally knows Titania.]
"Fine, let's start with breaking the contract," Clyde said. "After that, he's free to go."
"I've tried to brute force it," Tear said, "but it's just not budging."
"Breaking it is simple," Yuki said. "Find the grand master contract, which acts as a command center to any within the vicinity, and destroy it."
"Which means—"
"You'll have to storm the cult's headquarters," Yuki finished for Clyde. He grimaced.
"Well, there's tomorrow's tasks," he said. "Goddammit."
Everyone laughed.
**
Demon lord's skyscraper…
Leon facepalmed as his great master continued to loudly blast her anime-themed music. Piles of Loli Saga light novels, manga, and even games were all over the place. This was a disaster.
"My lady," he said. No answer, she ignored him while reading. This had been a one hour wait. Rage bubbled through the veins of the demon, but he did his best to hold his temper. "My lady, this is important."
Ignored.
Leon wanted to die. He'd rather reincarnate into a pathetic human than deal with this… this… he didn't know how to classify her. "Fuck this." He turned to go, but a voice spoke. The music flipped off by itself.
"I certainly don't remember giving you permission to leave, Leon," she said. "You've never been a bad knight. Don't make me sad."
He gulped and remained in place. While her seemingly good-natured tone didn't change, there was something deep within that he didn't want to test. She was a demon lord after all. "You may report." Her manga book was closed with a bookmark slid in between the pages.
"There is a nagging rumor being spread in the servants quarters," Leon said.
"Oooh, gossip," the demon lord said. "As if I care." She didn't bother getting off the couch, eyes still on the TV.
"My lady, apparently the cultists have enslaved two very important figures. One of them goes around fighting for those pathe—the minotaurs. The other once called herself a maiden of the Viper."
"Don't care," the demon lord said. "Oooh, get him Honaka-chan! Whack him!"
Leon grimaced. Why did he have to put up with this? His vast magic was… just being wasted. No one attacked the skyscraper—who would? She was under the guise of being someone who controlled the mayor from behind the scenes. Not that the woman actually did anything but watch anime, drama shows, and read those goddamn books. This type of laziness was unacceptable! "Go away Leon, your grumpiness is boring me now. But if it makes you feel a little better, you have permission to investigate this so-called Viper maiden. Anyone calling themselves a maiden of the world destroyer is probably sick in the head and needs healing."
"You mean killing, my lady?" Leon said, a little hopeful.
"No, you meanie," she said. "Healing. I'll take away her loyalty to him and make her my anime buddy. Maybe we can enjoy tea and cake together in the afternoons like they do in the shows."
Leon facepalmed. Fuck this idiot, he thought. He wouldn't be following that absurd and ridiculous order. For the safety of House Necro, he'd do whatever it took for its continued success.
"By your leave, Great Lady Necro," he said, ignoring the mental pain in his tongue for giving this moron the respect that only true demon lords deserved.
"Bye!" she said then opened her manga. She took a swig of soda.
Leon stormed out, disgusted. Something had to be done about her.
10:24 PM…
Clyde and the party were grouchy, frustrated, and tired. Those feelings melted away like butter when they noticed an impossible scene ahead. The young man almost rubbed his eyes to make sure his brain wasn't fucking with him.
Beneath a shining street light, Ming sat on the sidewalk, just a short distance from the hoody-wearing attacker and the minotaur girl he rescued. They were tied up with strange purple magic, which reminded the young man of a lightsaber, that is, if it was incredibly bendable. He felt her magic, strong magic, jolting around the captured duo like an angry hornet.
"This magic," Airi said, being careful not to touch it, while inspecting with a connoisseur's eye.
Clyde nodded and smiled.
"Once again Ming, you show just how impressive you are. Meanwhile, we—"
"You mean it?" Ming said, hopping up, and nearly diving into him. "I'm not useless?"
The young man gave her a skeptical look.
"Whoever said you were useless?" he said.
"This is an indefinite, self-producing, form of magic," Alice said as she knelt to inspect the binding. "Good work. It would've been a disaster if this one remained free. He almost killed our Harumi from a distance."
Ming's eyes glistened and lit up. A compliment from Alice is as rare a legendary item in this world. Maybe even rarer. She stepped back, one eye red, one eye blue, sparkling.
"I probed his mind but can't get through the block," she said. "And I'm not touching that hoody after he… Gross. I put them both to sleep to stop the bickering. The minotaur girl declared him husband. And she's probably going to be pregnant. I don't know how monster girl seeding works."
Clyde's eyes widened.
"Okay, back up, back up," Clyde said. "Tell us from the beginning."
Ming did. Afterwards, the group had thoughtful expressions on their faces, some nodding. Clyde made a mental note to level the shit out of his prophet. The prompt smacked him in the face with a dose of Satovian reality.
[Warning: you have not met the relationship requirement to rank up your prophet. She needs to be at friend closer level one or above.]
Of course. Ha! Did he expect this shit to be easy? Of course not! Oh, but it is.
"You're on your way to being the greatest prophet ever," Clyde said truthfully. Had Ming not caught the sniper, they wouldn't be able to step outside without fear of getting an arrow to the head. "This is where Tear will come into play. Ming, do you mind if I let her take over the interrogation?"
"Of course," she said.
Alice dialed her before Clyde's hand was halfway to his pocket. He narrowed his eyes a little. She stuck her tongue out then smiled.
Clyde walked over to the hoody guy and against Ming's protests, pulled it back. The young man looked to be his age, with pointy ears and light-blue hair. Just, who the hell was this guy?
**
After showering and dressing, Clyde wasted no time heading to where Tear and the others held the captives. A delayed prompt sitting at the corner of his mind's eye finally caught his attention.
[Your Ki has increased!]
[Tear's crests are: Spirit, Passion, and Love.]
[Life: 2. Lightning: 2. Heart: 3.]
[ Strength:1. Passion:2. Energy: 1.]
[Soul: 4. Command: 5. Radiance: 4.]
[Vitality: 5. Speed: 5. Aura: 5.]
[Mystery: 1. Power: 1 Ambition: 1]
[Submission: 1 Unpredictable: 1 Spark: 1]
[ Rain: 1 Spirit: 1 Love: 1]
[You have started the learning of Area sense 1. You will be able to detect all enemies within a vicinity. You will gain a Mini-map to accompany your mental navigation system. Your foes will show up as red dots. Level this system up and you'll gain more details and range. Example: yellow dots indicating tougher enemies and much more. Requirements: Energy: 2 Love: 2 Focus: 1]
Energy from Kitome, Love from Tear, and… Focus? He'd need Maki to help him locate this mystery Ki. And have sex with her once more to unlock Dragon's breath. A feeling deep within his gut told him that ignoring Ki-based skills would be the biggest mistake of his life. Why? What's the true difference between Ki and magic—besides the fundamentals? Clyde tucked that question in the back of his mind to focus on the matter at hand. He will get that answered.
"Find out anything?" Clyde asked Tear.
"This isn't good," Tear said softly. "I thought I recognized the face. Ashard's the son of Titania, the fairy queen. The only non-male monster with a human form, besides the extinct incubi."
"You've got to be kidding me," Alice said. "Why is he here?"
"Do you really want to know?" Tear said.
"If Titania shows up, we may be in some trouble," Melody said. "That's like having my father appear."
"I heard Titania isn't that bad," Ruri said. "People who've met her says she's kind and sweet."
"The old Titania," Yuki said. "Have you been living under a rock, hound? The fairies were turned into monster girls. Titania is no longer same person, which is probably why he's here."
"I don't know about that," Tear said. "He calls himself the defender of women." She paused, hand still on his forehead. "Oh. I see. He was caught by the cult, taken in for some kind of sermon, then he signed a contract. This idiot didn't take the time to examine it."
"So he signed a magical contract and is now defending the minotaurs?" Ruri said. Alice facepalmed.
"Well, what are we supposed to do with him?" Clyde said. "I'm not getting involved with this shit."
They all looked at him, staring blankly. The system intervened.
[Quest: Break the contract. This quest is mandatory and cannot be refused. Warning: he will not return home. The fairy servants demand an impossible amount of stamina—to the point that the violations were no longer enjoyable to him. Other than hating his own kind, Ashard carries no ill will.]
[Let it be known that the demon lord of this city personally knows Titania.]
"Fine, let's start with breaking the contract," Clyde said. "After that, he's free to go."
"I've tried to brute force it," Tear said, "but it's just not budging."
"Breaking it is simple," Yuki said. "Find the grand master contract, which acts as a command center to any within the vicinity, and destroy it."
"Which means—"
"You'll have to storm the cult's headquarters," Yuki finished for Clyde. He grimaced.
"Well, there's tomorrow's tasks," he said. "Goddammit."
Everyone laughed.
**
Demon lord's skyscraper…
Leon facepalmed as his great master continued to loudly blast her anime-themed music. Piles of Loli Saga light novels, manga, and even games were all over the place. This was a disaster.
"My lady," he said. No answer, she ignored him while reading. This had been a one hour wait. Rage bubbled through the veins of the demon, but he did his best to hold his temper. "My lady, this is important."
Ignored.
Leon wanted to die. He'd rather reincarnate into a pathetic human than deal with this… this… he didn't know how to classify her. "Fuck this." He turned to go, but a voice spoke. The music flipped off by itself.
"I certainly don't remember giving you permission to leave, Leon," she said. "You've never been a bad knight. Don't make me sad."
He gulped and remained in place. While her seemingly good-natured tone didn't change, there was something deep within that he didn't want to test. She was a demon lord after all. "You may report." Her manga book was closed with a bookmark slid in between the pages.
"There is a nagging rumor being spread in the servants quarters," Leon said.
"Oooh, gossip," the demon lord said. "As if I care." She didn't bother getting off the couch, eyes still on the TV.
"My lady, apparently the cultists have enslaved two very important figures. One of them goes around fighting for those pathe—the minotaurs. The other once called herself a maiden of the Viper."
"Don't care," the demon lord said. "Oooh, get him Honaka-chan! Whack him!"
Leon grimaced. Why did he have to put up with this? His vast magic was… just being wasted. No one attacked the skyscraper—who would? She was under the guise of being someone who controlled the mayor from behind the scenes. Not that the woman actually did anything but watch anime, drama shows, and read those goddamn books. This type of laziness was unacceptable! "Go away Leon, your grumpiness is boring me now. But if it makes you feel a little better, you have permission to investigate this so-called Viper maiden. Anyone calling themselves a maiden of the world destroyer is probably sick in the head and needs healing."
"You mean killing, my lady?" Leon said, a little hopeful.
"No, you meanie," she said. "Healing. I'll take away her loyalty to him and make her my anime buddy. Maybe we can enjoy tea and cake together in the afternoons like they do in the shows."
Leon facepalmed. Fuck this idiot, he thought. He wouldn't be following that absurd and ridiculous order. For the safety of House Necro, he'd do whatever it took for its continued success.
"By your leave, Great Lady Necro," he said, ignoring the mental pain in his tongue for giving this moron the respect that only true demon lords deserved.
"Bye!" she said then opened her manga. She took a swig of soda.
Leon stormed out, disgusted. Something had to be done about her.
