VIP Chapter 470: Before the Journey
Before confronting Carver head-on, everyone in the Tenth Demon City was undergoing “training” according to Will’s words.
“I understand. If we only defend, we can’t stop him directly… Okay. I’ll practice in that direction next!”
For Iaar, Will assigned her practice in direct offense. Training against a simple wooden post in a room by herself proved to be quite effective.
“Alright. You’re right. If the opponent is her… she’s not that foolish, so I need to intensify my training—in other words, I need to strengthen my defense?”
For Liya, Will instead assigned her training to complement defense through offense. In front of a completely randomized machine lent by Lucifer, Liya precisely broke apart the objects, just like how she attacked leaves falling from trees back then.
“…Next, it’s my turn…”
Will spun the staff in his hand and walked into the level of the dungeon where he was training.
…
…………
The hands of the clock moved from morning to evening, and the intensive training ended. Will stood in place, clutching his aching left eye. A trace of blood-tears remained on his released palm, and he could clearly feel his vision becoming more blurred from overuse in his left eye.
“Hoo… hoo… As expected, even in this dungeon with its ties to demons, it’s still difficult to unleash this power.”
He stood in the room, holding his black and white staff, and as he attempted to heal himself, he suddenly realized someone was standing behind him. And they had entered suddenly. He became extremely wary and turned his head.
“You seem very familiar with Carver… is that his name? The training you assigned them, and your own training, are all aimed at his subordinates, aren’t they?”
The person who walked in was Iaar. She was wearing clothes with a distinct “Tenth Demon City” style. After she arrived here, Lucifer couldn’t stand her robe anymore and changed her into a school uniform like that of a kindergarten child, specifically choosing a short skirt so her tail wouldn’t have anywhere to go. Every time Will saw her in that outfit, he wanted to burst out laughing. She looked like a little student who would be blown away by the wind on her way to school. However, she herself seemed quite fond of it. As someone who could move freely, she seemed to have observed everything everyone had been doing today.
“No. I’m not familiar with him personally. I am, however, more acquainted with his subordinates.”
“You really look like you want to kill him?”
“Carver himself will definitely appear this time, so it’s the best opportunity to kill him. Because they fought a fierce battle in the Zero Demon City, it’s hard to imagine winning without his personal support.”
“Hmm… A kid whose head is filled with revenge.”
“What about you? Aren’t you rebuilding your Flame Dragon Number Two here for revenge against Carver as well?”
“Correction. Firstly, the target isn’t him. Secondly, it’s not revenge; I just want to seek justice from a competitor who engaged in unfair competition.”
Iaar wrapped her clothes tighter around herself. The large dragon tail she swished caused the skirt to flap, and a draft blew between her legs.
“It’s the Empress of the Death Hall. Not only did she destroy my Flame Dragon, but she also used means from outside the dungeon, which is truly despicable. Since she’s so underhanded, I have no choice but to use underhanded methods as well.”
Uncharacteristically, Will felt a murderous intent from this dragon girl who usually had a very “Zen, elderly lady” disposition—an intent not to lose. Her conical eyes lit up, as if she could kill instantly.
“Senior Iaar~ You wouldn’t come to me for no reason. You must have made a new discovery, right?”
“I’m here first to relay a message. Lucifer said she has created the ‘Dreamscape’ that you wanted, but whether it can be grafted will depend on you.”
“If there’s a first, there’s definitely a ‘second.’ What’s next?”
“The entrance to the Zero Demon City that you wanted, I’ve found it. It took a lot of effort because no one knew the name of the Emperor of the Zero Demon City back then.”
“!”
Will showed a look of shock and grabbed Iaar fiercely.
“Thank you so much! Senior, you’re simply a superhuman!”
“What is a superhuman? If you mean surpassing humans, then perhaps I have been for a long time… You can call me ‘Super Dragon’ now.”
“So, if you found the entrance, you must have also found the portrait of the Empress, could it be that…”
“That portrait is…”
Iaar was about to speak but stopped.
“No, if I say it, you won’t be shocked when you see it in person. I’ll keep you in suspense. You’ll know when the time comes.”
“When did you learn to do that too!”
After speaking, Iaar glanced at his staff. A staff with a black and white crystal orb that could convert between White Magic and Black Magic was a rare item, even five hundred years ago. She gently reached out, as if adding a blessing to it.
“Accept this small gift for now. In any case, if the situation is truly this urgent, you can depart as early as tomorrow evening.”
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“So, you’re leaving tomorrow, my dear? Woo!”
Iaar let out a mournful cry from her throat upon hearing the news.
“The sooner the better. It can reduce the probability of the Zero Demon City actually being cleared.”
“Lucifer mentioned it to us today, and we had already guessed.”
Liya, while spearing a small cake on the bar counter, pulled out a beautiful bottle of red wine from under the counter.
“This is a rare opportunity, we can open a bottle to celebrate.”
“Hey, hey! That’s… that’s the wine old Grandpa Jack from the village gave me. I’ve been cherishing it and reluctant to drink it.”
“When he gave it to you, didn’t he tell you it was about to expire?”
Liya silently turned the wine bottle around, letting Lucifer see the “best before” date printed on it. Clearly, this was a mass-produced wine from a winery, not particularly special.
“Huh? I thought he brewed it himself! Old Jack—he tricked me again. I haven’t even settled the score with him for cheating at cards last time.”
“Have you become the village’s public granddaughter, Empress?”
Even Will couldn’t help but tease.
*Pfft.*
With Liya’s skilled movements, the wine bottle was opened. Although it was mass-produced wine, it smelled exceptionally fragrant. Perhaps Old Jack had specifically bought the best wine in town to give to Lucifer.
“One cup for everyone—”
Iaar, wagging her tail, poured wine for everyone. Although her alcohol tolerance was average and she still disliked drinking, she could now at least have a glass with everyone during gatherings. However, when it came to Lucifer…
“…Children can’t drink.”
“We all look about the same age, why am I automatically a child, and she’s an old person?”
Lucifer pointed to the side, where Iaar was holding a cold wine glass with both hands, mimicking drinking tea, and sipping the wine.
“Because she truly is an old person, and you are indeed a child.”
Iaar’s invincible sophistry skills were activated.
“Gulp.”
After she said this, Iaar beside her took another sip even more defiantly.
“Unfair—completely unfair—!”
Lucifer was on the verge of rolling on the ground.
“See, what did I say? Look, this is a child. If I take Senior Iaar’s wine, she definitely won’t…”
Liya tried to reach out, but found she couldn’t… take it! Iaar, her eyes slightly red from drinking, raised her head and glared at Liya angrily.
“I-I’m sorry, Senior, I won’t dare to do it again.”
