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Composed purely out of mana, the Blazing Lion held the natural advantage in terms of agility. It had initially tried to use its strength to suppress the Dracolich, but found its opponent much too strong for that. Thus it decided to adopt a new style; a hit-and-run style reminiscent of an Assassin.

It leapt at the Dracolich before pulling back to prepare for the next strike. Each time it did so, it prioritised making contact with the Dracolich instead, leaving a wound wherever it could, whether by claw or fang, or simply just bumping into the Dracolich. Being a creature of pure fire, even simple contact would leave burn wounds on its targets. Furthermore, flames left by a powerful being such as itself would burn for a significant period of time before being extinguished. If the next strike were to hit that exact same spot, the flames would spread even further and re-ignite. Thanks to that, the Dracolich was quickly covered in horrific burn wounds. Had it not been for the Veil of the Dead and its own regenerative abilities, it probably would have been destroyed already.

The battle was definitely in our favour at this point. Strong though that Dracolich might be, its zombified state dulled its senses to the point where it was half as reactive as a normal creature. My Blazing Lion could easily toy around with such a dull construct, though it couldn’t finish the job thanks to the Dracolich’s immensely sturdy body.

Hmm… now’s about the time…

Ferti’nier, do you have any method of taking out the Dracolich quickly?

“I sure do. If our little brother wants to learn it, his big sis would be more than happy to teach him.” Unlike her usual flippantness, she cut right into teaching me the spell right away. “Focus your mana into your left hand, then by using Lion’s Majesty as a medium, start pulling and twisting the mana as if in a whirlpool…”

I followed her words and soon a mass of flames burst to life, startling me in the process. Fortunately, I quickly recovered from the shock when I realised that this flame wouldn’t hurt, and began twisting the mana once again.

As time ticked by, my left hand became wrapped in a whirlpool of flames. This same phenomena was reflected on the Devil King Idol’s left hand as well. Faster and faster it spun till, finally, a sharp tip began to emerge out of the whirlpool, like the pointed end of a tornado. On the outside, the much larger flame whirlpool had stretched out into a spinning, drill-like, appendage!

The rapid rotation on this flame gave my Golem a much higher level of armor penetration than it ordinarily would have.

“Go then, let that brute over there have a taste of your Blazing Spear!”

Can you stop coming up with middle school names already?

“Should I call it the Hyper Giga Drill Break then?”

…

“Or maybe the Flaming Drill That Will Pierce the Heavens Drill?”

…

“Or…”

Blazing Spear is fine…

“Huhuhu, it’s your big sis’s victory then! Now. Go forth, and tear my enemies asunder, my faithful hound!”

Who are you calling a faithful hound?!

Even though I did not want to do as she said thanks to that bit of tomfoolery, now wasn’t the time for willfulness. The Blazing Lion couldn’t finish off the Dracolich itself, and letting that monster roam free for long was just inviting further trouble.

Blasted Ferti’nier… I’ll remember this!

Having to deal with the Blazing Lion was enough of a headache for the Dracolich already. It did not even have the mind to try and avoid me. When I stabbed my Blazing Spear in its direction, it met my attack head on, jaws opened wide, spurting out a water jet-like stream of its pesky green mist. Because of the abruptness of its attack, I wasn’t able to dodge the stream. I could only use the Blazing Spear as I would an actual drill, and try to drill apart the oncoming Veil of the Dead…

Hah. You’re still trying to struggle even at this juncture? Pointless. I’ve already foreseen your defeat, now die, monster!

Strangely excited by the sight of two giants duking it out with each other, our resident she-Devil, Ferti’nier seemed to have gotten into the mood as well. “Gou(dog), gou(dog), gou(dog)! Slam it right in the front, don’t be afraid!”

Gou, gou, gou? You mean ‘go, go, go’! How is your English even worse than mine? Geez!

(TL: Something inside of me died when I typed that out. Google Docs autocorrected me four times when I tried to type gou out.)

Flames being the bane of all Undead, the moment the Veil of the Dead touched the tip of my Blazing Spear, it instantly evaporated. Like a hot knife through Undead butter, I easily broke through the enemy’s high-density stream of particles, viciously stabbing into the Dracolich’s undefended chest. As the Blazing Spear sank in, it broke off from the Devil King Idol, continuing to drill itself further downwards till it finally disappeared from sight. All that remained from it was the red hot glare seeping through the ever-extending tunnel,reminiscent of a blacksmith’s furnace.

Severely injured for the first time ever, the Blazing Lion immediately pounced on its prey, sinking its teeth into the Dracolich’s neck…

It was at that moment that I realised something was wrong… Why does it feel like my Blazing Spear is starting to lose control… don’t tell me it’s going to blow up?

With that in mind, I quickly retreated. And not a moment too soon as well. The Dracolich suddenly exploded after I had taken a couple steps backwards. Yet it wasn’t just my spear that exploded, the Blazing Lion had also exploded at the same time.

“Boom! Boom!”

The explosions ended up not causing much damage to the Devil King Idol. The Dracolich, on the other hand, was torn apart. A wave of black blood and rotten flesh flew straight for the Devil King Idol, bringing along with it a horrific stench.

Crap. That stuff is going to be a pain to remove if I let the Devil King Idol get stained by it… I hurriedly set up a barrier in front of the Devil King Idol. It didn’t have to be a particularly sturdy barrier, it just had to block that wave of gunk.

And now… to walk away from the explosion like an action hero!

With the Dracolich taken care of, I unsummoned the Devil King Idol, and returned to the rest of the Assassins. The remaining Undead were all low-starred and weren’t even worth mentioning. We easily broke through their encirclement without losing a single person.

However, now that we were in the clear, I had a whole host of problems to consider. For one thing, should I try and harvest those Undead souls by ourselves or just go get help.

It wasn’t that we couldn’t wipe the floor with them, it was just a bother. Furthermore, the villagers were now all dead, so there really wasn’t an urgent need to clear the Undead either. As long as we contained them within the village, it shouldn’t be a problem.

“Sister Mo Na!” Neneth immediately came flying into my arms, a wide grin on her lips. She tried to rub her face in my chest a little but stopped after a couple of spins. “Sister Mo Na, your chest is really hard!”

Don’t give me that look… What’s wrong with my chest being hard? Isn’t that the norm?!

Even though I desperately wanted to poke fun at her words, I still had an image to uphold in front of Nicole. Having no proper answer to her question, I brushed it off with a quick “haha”.

“Sister Mo Na, that big fellow was awesome! Is your summon as well? Neneth wants to learn some magic too!” Neneth kept tugging on me as she prattled on and on. Suddenly, she stopped. She rubbed her belly a little then looked at me with a sad face. “But Neneth doesn’t have any talent with magic, and she’s hungry…”

Why did you even lump the two together? That’s a really huge leap in logic there…

Next, I slowly carried Jezsere and a visibly shell shocked Ann off Mo Ning. The two of them were still traumatised by the destruction of the village by that Dracolich, even after its death.

Honestly speaking, I wasn’t sure myself how to react to the village’s destruction. Even though they were more than happy to lob insults our way, just watching them get wiped out like that was… upsetting.

While we might have escaped as planned, everyone was in low spirits. Something that had to be remedied fast. We just needed an outlet of some sort.

Another point of note was that the Dracolich’s death meant the Veil of the Dead would soon dissipate. Once that happened, the Undead would be weakened by the sun once more. Though that would also stimulate their thirst for blood and flesh.

“Those Undead will soon start wandering around, now that they’ve lost their leader. We need to prevent that before more casualties appear.”

The Devil King Idol was thoroughly exhausted after that fight, and shouldn’t be operable in the short term. My only trump card left was the hundred or so Assassin assigned under me.

“Everyone, get some rest first. Assassins, once you’re done resting, I need you all to track the Undead and their movements. Try not to come into contact with them, but make sure they do not bother the neighbouring settlements either.” I took this opportunity to leave a better impression on Nicole.

Shameless Self-promotion

Announcement: I’ve re-opened my Patreon in case anyone wants to sponsor more chapters. Every end of the month, those chapters in early access will be released for free for all to read. If you sponsored a chapter, you will gain permanent early access to these chapters. Essentially, everyone gets more chapters to read, but those who donated get to read earlier. More chapters will then be translated at the start of the month. Explanation on the Patreon itself.

LINK HERE

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Responding to my summons, a twenty meter tall Fallen Angel Golem appeared out of thin air!

The Veil of the Dead immediately rushed to fill its innards, but the golem wasn’t even a living creature so it had no weakening effect whatsoever.

Even so, I could feel a distinct hindrance as I piloted the Devil King Idol from within. While the Veil of the Dead wasn’t able to weaken the Devil King Idol, its sheer thickness meant that even its surroundings were changed. Trying to maneuver through the fog right now was like swimming in a pool of water… poison water, to be exact!

“Zurnalin and the rest of you, fall back for now. Leave the rest to me!”

“Your Holiness?” A little battered, Zurnalin was confused when she heard my voice but did not see me. Thankfully, the Devil King Idol was obviously modelled after a Fallen Angel so she quickly grasped the gist of the situation. “Many thanks, Your Holiness.”

“Now’s not the time for idle chatter. I need all of you to fall back first.” In order to avoid the situation where I accidentally hurt the Dark Elves below I chose not to clash with the Dracolich right away. “The coming battle isn’t one where you all can participate; I do not wish for any of you to be hurt in the crossfire…”

However, before I could even finish my words, the Dracolich came colliding into the Devil King Idol. I hurriedly stuck out my hands to try and hold it back, each hand grabbing onto one horn. Yet the force of its charge was truly terrifying. Even though the Devil King Idol managed to hold up in the end, the landscape beneath had been changed. A ten meter long trench was dug beneath us, finally ending in a giant pile of earth at where both my feet were…

This clash of titans ended up being a tie on the surface. But in actuality, it was the Dracolich who came out short. After all, my Devil King Idol was stationary when it received that blow, while that Dracolich had running momentum behind it. Anyone could tell who was the real winner here.

The resulting collision had caused a massive shockwave to blanket the entire area. The Assassins who were still trying to land a strike in on the Dracolich ended up being blown away, without exception. The sheer size difference between them and the Dracolich had decided their fate long ago.

Even now, the Dracolich was trying to ram its horn at me. In all likelihood, its zombification had left it without much intelligence. Other than ramming and casting its Veil of the Dead, it did not have many tactics left to employ. It was still strong, no doubt. But its lack of variety doomed it to mediocrity.

As of right now, I was like a matador and his bull, except that I had the strength to match said bull. In such a match, there was no way I would lose!

Finally, after much struggling and exertion, the Devil King Idol was able to completely cancel the charge of the Dracolich. No matter how much it struggled, it was no longer able to advance even an inch.

“Hold it steady like that, Your Holiness. We will take care of the rest!” Seeing an opportunity to attack, Zurnalin confidently rushed into battle, Fighter’s Aura in full burst. “Divine… ah…”

She tried to activate her ability once more. It was a powerful ability she had employed before that honestly would have been able to damage the Dracolich, had it not been for the Veil of the Dead. However, the moment she tried to swing her sword, a five-meter tall solid skull, formed entirely out of the Veil of the Dead, charged at Zurnalin, and before she could unleash her attack, exploded in front of her…

“Boom…”

The explosion sent her flying away immediately, halting her ability mid process.

However, that was only the beginning. All around the Devil King Idol, skull after skull began to coalesce out of thin air. Then came the explosions. Powerful explosions. Ones that endlessly rocked the battlefield around us.

Yet such tactics were meaningless to my Devil King Idol. Even if I couldn’t activate its full strength, an Overlord would still find it difficult to leave a dent on my Devil King Idol, let alone this Dracolich.

Paying no heed to the exploding skulls beneath, I commanded the Devil King Idol to reach out and grab one of the Dracolich’s horns with its left hand. With its right, I formed a fist and punched down hard on the monster’s head. To those watching, the scene must have looked like an adventurer bullying a little monster.

The Dracolich’s own defenses weren’t bad as well, but my Devil King Idol’s strength was nothing to scoff at either. After several full-strength punches, its head finally caved in a little, fracturing and spurting out black blood from the wound.

Down below, the skull’s explosion wasn’t strong enough to harm Zurnalin. She was covered in a green layer, but otherwise fine as she climbed to her feet and tried to rejoin the battle once more. Seeing the stubbornness in her eyes, I anxiously tried to stop her. “Zurnalin, I need you to leave this area first. I’ll meet up with you all once it’s dead.”

“But Your Holiness…”

“No buts! You’ve seen it as well. I have no problems beating up this Dracolich. You being here would only serve to distract me.”

The battlefield was definitely in our favour right now. Even the advent of those exploding skulls did nothing to change that fact.

“I… Understood…” Zurnalin was somewhat depressed, but she knew now wasn’t the time for hesitation. She promptly called out to the rest of the Eight-stars, “Sisters, leave the battlefield for now. Do not get in the way of Her Holiness.”

Ever the efficient soldiers, these female Assassins easily broke free from the Dracolich, even with the Veil hindering their movements. After all, so what if it could create exploding skulls? Not like it could conjure up hands as well to bind those Assassins. Especially since they were Eight-stars.

All right. It’s just two of us now. Let’s dance.

“Don’t get overconfident now, little brother. You should summon your flames while you can.” Ferti’nier helpfully came out to knock some sense into me. “Lion’s Majesty will heed your calls even in the Devil King Idol, we just have to alter the incantation somewhat. After all, we are trying to summon the Blazing Lion this time. Now, repeat after me…”

“By my name… bestow life upon the flames… heed my summons… burn down those who stand before me… Lion’s Majesty!”

As I yelled a string of words that only the finest of middle schoolers could have come up with, I couldn’t help but get a little red in the ears, even inside the pocket dimension. Yet the moment I was done chanting, I felt an overwhelming surge of energy gush forth from my bracelet.

What’s going? Why is my mana rushing out of my body? No. Not just my mana. The Devil King Idol’s mana reserves are depleting as well, flowing in the direction of Lion’s Majesty… Don’t tell me that was the chant for summoning that Overlord-class creature in Lion’s Majesty?

“That’s right, little brother. That incantation just now was to summon that same lion. Don’t forget, Lion’s Majesty was made from the core of an Overlord-class fire lion. It should definitely be able to summon an Eight-star Peak Blazing Lion. However, our little brother’s mana is too little for so your big sis over here decided to tap into the Devil King Idol as well…”

Hah. Never knew that it could do that as well.

As more and more mana was siphoned out of the Devil King Idol, a fire vortex began forming between me and the Dracolich. At the start, this vortex was merely the size of a person’s fist, something us giants could easily snuff out with a blow. Yet a second later, that fiery vortex began to rapidly expand, all the way till it was ten meters wide.

This sudden emergence led to the Dracolich seemingly regaining some of its wits as well. It gave up on its pointless wrestling match with my Devil King Idol. It broke free and took a few steps back, all the while eyeing that fiery vortex cautiously.

As the vortex continued coalescing, it inadvertently sucked in a huge amount of the Veil of the Dead. The moment its sickly green mist came into contact with the inferno that was that vortex, it was instantly purified by the heat. Since time immemorial, Fire and Light had always been the bane of Undead, because of their innate purifying qualities. Fire as an element was more explosive with its purification, while Light was more gradual. Either way, both were powerful purifying elements.

“Roar!!!”

The fiery vortex opened up like a dimensional door to space. From within rushed out an eight meter tall lion, composed entirely out of scorching flames. Yet its features were so defined, you wouldn’t be faulted for mistaking it for a real lion.

Every bit as bold as its name, it fearlessly charged right at the Dracolich despite being several times smaller than it was.

At the same time that the two of them collided, a giant shockwave was sent out that also destabilised the both of them. It was only after tumbling about a few times that they finally got back up to their feet. The Blazing Lion was more nimble in that aspect, managing to recover with only a couple of tumbles. It immediately launched another attack at the Dracolich that was still trying to regain its balance. What was worth mentioning at this point was that wherever that lion touched, flames would be left behind. That Dracolich’s body was no exception as well!

Now that the Blazing Lion had been summoned, the fiery vortex began to shrink, finally disappearing into the void a while later. Yet when I finally got a good look at the lion I summoned, I realised something earth shattering…

Why? Why does that lion not have a mane?! I’m not blind, am I?! There’s no mane on that lion! No mane!

Some things were important enough that it warranted three repetitions. So why did it not have a mane?

Ferti’nier… what’s going on here? That’s clearly a lioness!

“Ahahaha… don’t sweat the small stuff, little brother.”

You aren’t getting away that easily! You clearly said Blazing LION. So why is it now a lioness… don’t you have any shame at all?

“But your big sis remembered it was a male as well, why is it a female now? Wait…” While I might not have been able to see the expression on her face, I could tell that she was looking at me strangely right now. “Maybe the problem has to do with our little brother?”

…

My problem? What am I? The king of scapegoats? Don’t try and dump this on me! Let’s be clear here: we are two souls in one. If it’s my problem, it’s yours as well!

“Oh. That’s true.” I could feel her snap her fingers at that point. Then, as if she had just come to a realization, she said, “Your big sis almost forgot but… we really are in the same body, aren’t we?”

Bah… now’s not the time to talk about its gender. Lion or not, as long as it can get the job done, it’s a good lion in my books.

“Hehe, that’s that then.”

So it was on purpose! If there was a table in my head right now, I would flip it. I would flip an unending domino chain of tea-laden tables if I could.

“All right. All right. Simmer down. As compensation, how about your big sis teach you a couple of new tricks?”

Hmph!

“Don’t be like that. Come on, give us a little shake.”

I’ll shake your stinking bottom…

I meant every word of that. I really wanted to give her a good spanking right now, but the Dracolich took precedence.

“Anyway, your mana has stabilised, hasn’t it? It’s time for fighting then! Like a cruel angel, go forth, young girl, become a legend!”

Hey! That’s copyright material right there! Also, it’s young boy, not young girl! Curse you!

The Blazing Lion and the Dracolich were both creatures at the peak of Eight-star. However, my Blazing Lion was more akin to a bug. It was a purely elemental creature, meaning it wouldn’t die until all its energies had been expanded. Furthermore, it was leagues above the Dracolich, in terms of speed. By the time I had recovered from the enormous mana usage of summoning it, the Blazing Lion had already dominated the battle.

Shameless Self-promotion

Announcement: I’ve re-opened my Patreon in case anyone wants to sponsor more chapters. Every end of the month, those chapters in early access will be released for free for all to read. If you sponsored a chapter, you will gain permanent early access to these chapters. Essentially, everyone gets more chapters to read, but those who donated get to read earlier. More chapters will then be translated at the start of the month. Explanation on the Patreon itself.

LINK HERE