We live at the foothills of Dragon Peak.
The next battlefield is the Necropolis.
“Good. Discard all mercy. The residents of the Necropolis are false beings—pathetic spirits bound to this world by a curse even in death.”
At the foothills of Dragon Peak. We spent several days in the Forbidden Territory, a sacred mountain with a thousand lakes.
While I fully recovered my strength, everyone discussed Orta in detail. However, we couldn’t come up with any effective solutions.
How can we defeat Orta?
There are no Dragon Race individuals who can use sealing dragon arts as powerful as Lord Laza’s. There’s a method of layering multiple spells, but it seems impossible to maintain for a long period. In fact, it seems Lord Laza stayed in a shrine continuously for a long time to maintain the sealing spell against Orta.
That is to say, if we ask a Dragon Race individual to perform the sealing, it means that person must dedicate their life to maintaining Orta’s seal. That’s unacceptable.
But then that leads to the question of whether there is a method to defeat him without sealing him. Even severing his arms and legs doesn’t stop Orta’s movements. According to Mistral, like the necromancer Goldoba, he can potentially revive as long as even a small piece of his flesh remains. In fact, three years ago, they managed to decapitate Orta. Yet, he did not die.
So, do we have a decisive attack that can defeat him in one blow? Mistral’s ultimate technique. The dragon art I used in the Demon Lord’s Castle. The Twin Princesses’ ultimate destructive dragon art. It’s worth a try. We could also activate them simultaneously. But, can we really defeat him with just that? An all-out attack must have been attempted three years ago. And not with a small group like us, but surely with a large number of Dragon Race and Dragon People. But they couldn’t defeat him, could they? Even Mistral, while saying “it’s worth a try,” did not say “we can defeat him.”
There is no sure method. We can’t think of one. We continued to seek advice, but couldn’t find a single clue for a solution. And we can’t just stay in the Forbidden Territory pondering. All we could think of were a few reckless plans, bad ideas, and unrealistic methods.
Did the Demon Lord feel disappointed? In the end, we couldn’t find a means to reliably defeat Orta. And with time running out, we decided to return to the Demon Lord’s Castle of the Northern Demon Lord Kusharilla.
“It is a time of struggle. Few things go according to plan. The worries you have now will become a foundation for the future.” The Demon Lord said with a smile.
And upon our return to the Demon Lord’s Castle, new information was brought to us. One piece of news was unfortunate. The whereabouts of Demon Lord Kusharilla are still unknown. In the worst-case scenario, she might be among the demon race army that invaded Dragon Peak. If so, Dragon Peak would suffer far greater damage than we currently anticipate. The other piece of news was good. The Dragon People who went missing in northern Dragon Peak have been located. Their location is near Dragon Peak itself.
The Necropolis. A cursed city inhabited by the undead, ruled by the Demon General Goldoba. It seems that Dragon People are being held captive there.
“However, please be careful. Besides the undead, cursed Dragon People are in charge of its defense.” At Charlotte’s words, we steeled ourselves. Even if they are cursed, we may have to kill Dragon People. We can’t leave this to others. We can’t turn back. The prisoners are also Dragon People. They are likely stronger than demons, but they cannot escape perhaps because their own kin, companions, and families, though cursed, are their guards, and they cannot bring themselves to fight them. Therefore, if we don’t go, we won’t be able to save the prisoners. Even if we save the prisoners, we might be hated for harming their family members. But we are prepared for that. To resolve the problem of Dragon Peak, rescuing the captives is absolutely necessary. This is the only way to stop those who are still hostile in northern Dragon Peak. We decided to launch a surprise attack immediately. Before confronting Orta, we will first solve the problem in front of us. Lily and Revalia split up and headed towards the Necropolis.
There is no way to save those who are cursed. We will have to fight the cursed Dragon People. What about the residents of the Necropolis, the undead? They say they live as they did in life. They are undead and are inherently cursed beings. It might be better not to engage the undead if possible. However, as Miko Ruiseine, I cannot just leave the undead alone. Purifying them and sending them to the Goddess is part of my duty. Just then, the Giant Demon Lord spoke.
“The ghosts in the Necropolis are all forcibly bound to this world by Goldoba’s curse. Fight without hesitation. Do not hold back; destroy the entire city.”
It feels a bit complicated to have the Demon Lord’s words as backing, but if it’s Goldoba’s curse, we can’t hold back. As we sped towards the Necropolis, a creepy city shrouded in gray mist appeared before us. From a distance, its outline flickered like a heat haze. Lily entered the Necropolis at low altitude. She landed with momentum in the plaza in front of a sickening castle made of bones in the center of the city. Descending from Lily’s back were me, Ruiseine, Laira, and the Giant Demon Lord. The Giant Demon Lord followed, but he seemed uninterested in taking action. In the sky, Revalia let out a mighty roar. Mistral, who had transformed into a dragon person, leaped from Revalia’s back. The rescue operation begins! From the start, I fused with Ares-chan and unleashed the power of the Dragon Jewel. Then, I performed the Dragon Sword Dance alone. In sync with the Dragon Sword Dance, dragon veins emerged from the ground and began to swirl. I transformed the dragon veins into my own power and spread them throughout the entire Necropolis. From the Spirit Tree jewel still embedded in the hilt of my white sword, magic power began to flow into my body. I desperately tried to block it. The Giant Demon Lord’s magical power is immense, but it’s useless if cursed. I suppressed the magical power within the jewel. Our sudden intrusion caused the undead residents to flee in panic. They truly are undead living ordinary lives. It pains me a little, but my resolve does not waver. Ripples of dragon energy spread to cover the entire Necropolis. At the same time, I began to sense several ominous presences. “Here they come!” I alerted Laira, who braced herself, and Revalia, who entered a combat stance in the sky. The Giant Demon Lord created an area of dark miasma beside him. From within it, Ruilala and the Black Winged Demon Race emerged. The Black Winged Demon Race scattered into the sky. And then, from all over the Necropolis, an undead army began to emerge. The battle began! From within the Necrotic Castle and throughout the city, skeletons and ghost soldiers advanced upon us. “Are there any worthy fodders?” Ruilala drew the magic sword at her waist and charged towards the undead soldiers approaching from the city. “Leave this to me!” Laira headed towards the Necrotic Castle. The battle had also begun in the sky. Winged demons made only of bones attacked Lily and Revalia. They were repelled by flames and dark energy beams. As Lily flew at high speed above the Necropolis, a large explosion occurred on the ground. The Twin Princesses remained on Lily’s back. Revalia had young girls riding on her back, but they were kept quiet this time. With Nimia present, a powerful blessing enveloped Revalia and the others. I want the young girls to stay in a safe place, and they can also protect Revalia from intangible spirits. It’s killing two birds with one stone! Mistral defeated the approaching spirits with his faintly glowing one-handed club. Mistral’s holy-attribute attacks could easily dispatch spirits that were intangible to physical attacks. Then, Mistral calmly released a serene dragon energy into the surroundings. Merely by coming into contact with the holy dragon energy, the undead army either vanished or slowed down. “Now then, I shall begin reciting the incantation.” Beside me, as I continued the Dragon Sword Dance, Ruiseine began to move. She stood upright with good posture, hands clasped in front of her chest. Taking a deep breath, she slowly imbued it with her heart and began to utter the incantation in ancient words. As Mistral released his dragon energy, a connection of magical power was formed between him and Ruiseine. Power also flowed from the Spirit Tree wooden sword in my left hand through Ruiseine’s naginata. As Ruiseine received power from me and Mistral, a sacred atmosphere formed around her. The undead, perhaps fearing Ruiseine’s sanctity, did not approach. I began to stir the dragon energy that had spread throughout the Necropolis. The dragon energy, which had initially flowed slowly, gradually intensified and began to swirl. The vortex’s influence began to appear not only on the ground but also in the sky. The gray mist that had covered the entire Necropolis began to swirl at high speed, fiercely. This time, I was mindful of Lily, Revalia, Mistral, and the Black Winged Demon Race in the sky and made sure not to involve them. Unlike during combat, as I was performing the Dragon Sword Dance alone, I had room to spare. The storm of dragon energy I created gradually gained momentum. Then, it began to draw in Mistral’s sacred dragon energy that had been diffusing while he flew around. Furthermore, it stirred up the sacred atmosphere of Ruiseine, who continued to recite her incantation beside me. Thus, the storm of my dragon energy, Mistral’s dragon energy, and Ruiseine’s magical power mingled in the sky. For some reason? I felt like I could incorporate everything and use the power as I envisioned. As the three powers mingled equally in the sky, a pure aura began to spread through the fierce storm. However, the undead army in the sky and the approaching undead on the ground were still being tossed about by my dragon art. A strange storm, a blend of ferocity and pure sanctity, appeared. It was strangely akin to the flow of dragon veins. Before I knew it, our power gathered in the sky, becoming infinitely shimmering crystals. I rained them down upon the ground like falling rain. Strangely, within the raging storm, the particles of light showered down upon the Necropolis with the gentleness of a light rain. “Aaaah…” The undead, struck by the particles of light, stopped moving. Then, they sighed as they looked up at the sky. The demon army in the sky. The residents and soldiers of the Necropolis on the ground stopped moving and received the rain of light particles. The undead, bathed in the rain of light particles, gradually faded. “Ah, ah…” With sighs that sounded like their souls escaping, whether from joy or resignation, the undead vanished. Laira and Ruilala, now free, were watching me. Laira was looking at me with admiration… but Ruilala’s gaze, filled with glee, was unsettling. The undead were being purified by our combined technique. However, a new force emerged from the Necrotic Castle. Cursed Dragon People warriors! A large number of Dragon People warriors appeared, each wielding a sinister weapon, clad in armor that visibly marked them as cursed, their eyes glowing red. By the time I spread the dragon energy throughout the Necropolis, I had grasped their existence and the presence of the captive Dragon People. It was a strategy to draw them out by causing a disturbance outside, and it seemed to have worked. “Everyone, let’s move on to the next operation!” Although my shout couldn’t reach them directly, it was conveyed through our dragon hearts to Lily. Lily quickly came over and had the Twin Princesses dismount. Mistral also descended, observing Lily’s actions. “The prisoners are on the third basement level of the Necrotic Castle!” As soon as I conveyed this, everyone moved at once. They clashed with the cursed warriors who had emerged from the Demon Lord’s Castle and attempted to infiltrate the Necrotic Castle. I need to continue performing the Dragon Sword Dance. I have to purify the entire Necropolis. The rescue operation will be left to everyone else. However, the cursed warriors are strong and numerous. Exploiting a gap in everyone’s fierce fighting, multiple warriors lunged at me. I have no choice but to dance while fending them off. “Let’s involve them in the Dragon Sword Dance!” Just as I thought that and focused my attention on the approaching cursed warriors. A chill ran down my spine, and I felt a sharp presence of death behind me. I hastily swung the Spirit Tree wooden sword. “Hahaha. Good, Elnea-kun! I can no longer control my desires!” “What!?” The one pointing a sword at me from behind was the demoness Ruilala! By clicking the heart, you can easily convey your feelings of support. (Login required) Support If you have an account, log in. Learn more about the reading experience available on Kakuyomu.
