Stolas"s [War] has begun.
Under normal circ.u.mstances, this would have been a sure win for Stolas.
Her opponent could only make B rank medals whereas she could make A rank ones; she clearly had the advantage.
However, right after the start of the [War], 10 A rank monsters appeared and attacked her dungeon, thus throwing her plans out of the window. To stop these enemies, she immediately brought out her Emerald Dragon, an A rank monster that had the [Berserk] ability.
For a time, her side regained dominance. But soon thereafter, another 10 A rank monsters appeared, turning the tides once again.
After putting her Emerald Dragon—which was teetering on the brink of death—back into her [Storage], Stolas retreated.
"It"s a good decision. To stand a chance against this much of a difference in war potential, she has to make full use of her geographical advantage."
To make adventurers feel great when venturing into her dungeon, the early floors were made to be easy. They were what"s called the welcoming floors.
For that reason, Stolas intended to retreat to the dungeon rooms where her monsters could make full use of their abilities and thus truly excel.
That being said, the enemy side"s war potential was so dangerous that just retreating was a gamble itself. Employing her and her monsters" [Wind] powers, and even the traps she had set, she bought time for her forces to retreat.
I should contact Stolas as soon as possible.
Stolas—like all other Demon Lords through our Demon Lord powers—could grant to up to 10 monsters the ability to communicate with her within her own dungeon. However, it seemed like such a monster was not deployed here in the crystal room.
If that"s the case, we"ll just have to contact her ourselves.
Thinking that, I called out Aura and Duke from my [Storage].
"Phew, finally out. I guess it can be said that I have a dislike for [Storage]. Although time stops flowing for my body, it"s not the same for my mind; I"m still fully aware. It makes me feel gooseb.u.mps."
"I can"t quite get used to this sensation."
Aura and Duke said so after appearing.
"Sorry. I knew you didn"t like being put in my [Storage], and yet I still asked you to."
"Oh no, it"s your request, master, so I don"t really mind. Besides, if the child who dislikes it the most has steeled herself, I can"t very well complain, now, can I?"
"For your sake, my lord, I"ll happily jump into a pool of magma."
Until the very last moments, that child was contemplating whether to stay or come and be put into my [Storage]. After waving her hand to send me off, she suddenly hopped on the griffon and said she was coming along after all.
To be honest, that bravery of hers made me happy.
"It"s sudden, but I have a favor to ask you, Aura. Can you deliver a message to Stolas using your wind abilities?"
"Even though my wind can cross dimensions, sending sound is not possible; only the intent of the message is. However, that all depends on the receiver being able to perceive and understand the message in the wind."
"It"s fine then. She is the [Wind] Demon Lord, after all."
Stolas was a wind expert. So long as it could reach her, things would work out.
"Oh, how silly of me. Now, she"s my parent too, so I guess I should put in more effort."
Her [Jade Eyes]—the world"s strongest magic eye—sparkled. Soon thereafter, jade-colored wind blew.
Essentially, each dungeon room in a Demon Lord"s dungeon was located in a different dimension. And magic that could cross dungeon rooms was exceedingly rare. It was for that reason that I thought Rozelitte"s telepathy was a cheat ability.
Also, even though I could make communication devices using my [Creation], since the radio waves wouldn"t be able to cross dungeon rooms, its use was limited within one room.
"I can now send a message. Master, please tell me of the message you wish to send."
She said so as the jade-green wind violently flowed outward.
"There is definitely someone acting behind the scenes. I am prepared to help, and there is no need to hesitate to accept it; the enemies certainly are not hesitating to cooperate with one another."
If I a.s.sisted her, turning the situation around would be easy. A mere 10 or 20 A rank monsters would be nothing to worry about.
I could say that with confidence since the experience points my S rank monsters have gained from all the campaigns we"ve been in—from the war with the three Demon Lords to the campaign to rescue Marcho—have made them reach the levels they would have if they were born with a static level. To put it in another way, they have gained their original strength.
As they were, even an A rank monster with a progressive level would be a match for them.
"Understood. Attaching the intent into the wind and sending it."
The jade wind that can go anywhere—even across dimensions—blew.
"Aura, it"s great that we can send a message, but how will the receiver reply?"
"I have made the wind circle back here. Stolas-sama should be able to put her own message into the wind… Oh, here it is! Give me a sec, I"ll decipher it."
Aura said so and then closed her eyes.
In the meantime, I looked at the crystal. When I did so, I saw that although Stolas lost a few, her fighting force was able to come to the second dungeon room of her second floor.
That place was a ravine. It had narrow footholds where a tiny misstep could send one headfirst to death. It also had a seemingly endless blue sky. In other words, it was a very advantageous battleground for her monsters.
It was more than likely that she intended to engage the enemy forces there and reverse the tide of battle.
"Master, here is Stolas-sama"s message. I"m happy for your offer, but even though the enemy is being conniving, this is my [War]. I"m just going to have to try a little harder. I"m not as weak as you think I am."
Her answer was utterly unexpected.
Amidst such grim circ.u.mstances, she still wanted to fight with her own strength.
"Pfft. Ahahaha. I see, how amusing. I guess I have been underestimating her. If that"s what she wants, I"ll stick to being moral support for a little while longer."
Instead of bluffing, perhaps the reason she was saying such things was because she was still seeing a way to win.
"Aura, tell her this: Understood, I"ll keep on watching. However, I"ll do so from nearby."
"Understood. Sending the message."
Using the jade wind that was still flowing, Aura sent a new message.
I had no intention of wounding Stolas"s pride, but since there was a possibility of her enemy preparing something other than the large number of A rank monsters, it was more convenient to move to a nearer location where I could act quickly to help her.
"Aura, Duke, we"ll now be heading to where Stolas is. Make sure to not lose track of her location."
Aura nodded when I said so.
Once we exit Stolas"s crystal room, we would no longer be able to rely on the crystal to know where Stolas was. In that regard, Aura and her wind would be our guide.
I then called out from my [Storage] the one I could rely on the most, and ordered her to protect the crystal.
With that, I don"t have to worry about the crystal being crushed.
Without waiting for Stolas"s reply, Aura and I set out to leave the crystal room to go and watch Stolas"s marvelous performance from an excellent position.
As for Duke, however, he remained where he stood.
"What"s wrong, Duke?"
"A young dragon is weeping. While cursing at its powerlessness, it desperately wishes to protect a person important to it. There is so much pain in its voice… along with earnestness and sincerity. Is it because I have leveled up and awoken as a [Dragon Emperor] that I could feel this connection even though we"re separated by dungeon rooms? My chest, it feels so tight. It"s the same feeling I had when I was held by my lord. I can"t leave it alone. I"ll send it a little of my dragon-form"s cheeringroar."
For a mere moment of time, Duke activated his [Berserk], and increased his magic power and draconic Qi until he was in his true form.
It was such a frightening amount of power. Even Aura had cold sweat flowing.
I didn"t know what he did, but after returning to his dragonewt-form, he gave a satisfied-looking smile.
If he"s choosing to not tell me anything, he must have a pretty good reason.
After that, we resumed our travel toward where Stolas was.