Up in the most northern continent,there float an iceberg, being lifted up and down repeatedly while the oldest of the red lineage of demons Guy Crimson and the True White Ice Dragon Velzard watch from a distance
Guy: Nice to see the newbie is finally able to get a hold of an iceberg. It only took over a dozen times of getting crushed
Velzard: He hasn't even been a demon lord for a while year but he's already making progress in strength
Guy: I wouldn't give him too much credit. Sure he's putting in the effort early on, but it's still a great distance between him and the likes of Leon or Luminous and even if their raw power were to match, his skills are clearly more on the younger side. A fight between either of them would would lean against him
Velzard: True, he can't even reach the bottom of the ocean as he claimed he would
Guy: Given the water is cold from your aura, I can't entirely blame him for struggling
Velzard: True, but given he's Veldora's kid, I expected him to be more closer in strength to milim even if that power was shared with his sister
Guy: Oh! I forgot to mention this back at the festival but the three of them actually consider eachother as siblings rather than father and children
Velzard: . . . Wait are you serious!?
Guy: Yeah, I heard it from Dagruel as we were having our drinking contest. I guess it would explain why neither of them are on a similar level of True dragons like milim if they're not his actual birth children
Velzard: Why am I only hearing about this now!?
Guy: I dunno!? I guess it was just misinterpretation that went on for too long I guess
Velzard: Seriously!? I've been referring to them as my neice and nephew this whole time!
Guy: Well I guess that's that. but hey, this actually does connect some dots
Velzard: *sigh* I suppose it would also explain how he isn't completely drained of his power. I initially thought that was the case when I first sensed him after his release but seemed more like he was intentionally suppressing his aura. Even my big brother, Veldanava lost his strength when he had milim with Lucia
Guy: I kinda miss that girl
Velzard: what do you happen to mean by "miss"?
Guy: I meant she was the only one to get Rudra to shut up from time to time
Velzard: Oh . . .Yeah, she was a smart one for sure. Her Knowledge King Raphael helped a lot from time to time
Guy: Do you think anyone else was able to get Raphael or a skill like it since then? Ever since Lucia, I don't recall anyone else inheriting the angelic skill
Velzard: I doubt it, just like Uriel, it's as good as gone
Guy: such a bummer it is. Although with tricky it made Lucia to be, maybe it's for the best no one else gain an ultimate skill like Raphael
Velzard: Imagine if it would end up in the wrong hands, now that would be concerning
Guy: Yeah . . . Looks like Kaijuno is starting to slow down a bit
Velzard: I think the cold is starting to get to him
Guy: I'm considering getting him to eventually lift two icebergs eventually. If his progress goes smoothly, he'll be able to fight in space without even shivering
All of this while the Newbie Demon Lord was screaming from the weight of the iceberg along with being submerged in horrifically cold water. Air bubbles were not formed as slimes have air capacity
On a side note, Raine was on her 28th painting of Rimuru in a petite and feminine dress. It was only at this point that made her question if Kaijuno was secretly a siscon, but she was getting paid in booze to make these paintings so it didn't really concern her on whether or not if it's true
Kaijuno's Pov
After finally being freed from my recent session of hellish training, I spared no time to teleport back to the comforts of tempest where I had to let my body adjust and regenerate from the torturous environment I foolishly set myself in.
Once I had recovered, I was escorted by Cameilla to the Blacksmiths where the Kijin Brick along with the Dwarf brothers had finished a commission requested by me
Having a moment of idle chit chat among group until we were brought in view the finished product
What was presented was a pair of weapons built to be far more sturdier in order to support my raw power of an awakened demon lord as my previous arsenal was noticeably starting to wear down
One of the weapons was a short blade, the length of a wakizashi. The blade itself was pure raven black and was intensely sharp and constructed to easily cut through metal and included a handle covered in purple ribbons. Thanks Kaijin's expertise as a blacksmith, the sword can also have it's form altered and enchanced by the aura and desire of it's master so it doesn't solely have to be a short blade. The total length of the blade is up to the power of it's master
The other weapon was a bit different from the first. While the short sword was more intentionally to be used offensively, the other was constructed for defense. The handle was noticeable longer than the sword's and was covered pink ribbons. The metal piece itself wasn't a blade but was a tough dark metallic grey shield made up orichalcum and just like the short sword, it too can be altered and enchance from the power and desire of it's master
Most noticeable part of this hand held shield was that it was curve- it's a frying pan. No way of trying to put it off as something else, it was literally just a frying pan.
Turns out during the design faze, they decided that best structure for a tool of defense that also matches my swift style of arsenal. What they ended up with was a shield on a handle, or aka literally a frying pan
Definitely far from what I was expecting to be what I would use in a fight but admittedly I also didn't really consider a compatible defense to wield.
Also within both handles were hole sockets. These were core holes that they were still working on and these weapons were one of their first to implement this feature although they have yet to craft the cores to be planted on the handle
I think recalled this was something that they did for Rimuru's sword too. Although I'm not sure if that did led up to anything. I thought like having Veldora be used as a power up for the sword but I forgot if that was a webnovel thing or that it happened in the light novel. I think it was eventually possible but I don't remember if it did actually happened
The craftsmanship overall is really phenomenal. Both are on the level of unique grade, which I know isn't the highest especially when there's still god grade weapons but unique grade in itself is not something to scoff at either. It's really a massive miracle that we were able to get these guys to crafts gears and weapons for us
On a side note, for my previous pair of blades, I decided to keep them in my trophy room in my house. Ever since the orc disaster, I've been keeping relics of what once belonged to my major enemies. It was there where I stuff kept Clayman's mask along, Edmaris's crown that he dropped, a scale of charybdis, even the cleaver handle that I melted off from the orc disaster.
Even a King gotta have his hobbies
After claiming my new pair of weapons, we finished off any remaining chatter and went on with our days.
It was a short time later was when I was finally set to head out with Diablo. I had packed a couple of stuff in stomach mainly multiple sets of clothes and especially multiple King robes but in different colors. As a slime I didn't actually need any food but I got some snacks for the journey anyways for the heck of it
Besides Diablo and me, I decided to have Willfla come along too. He was a reliable partner from my previous adventure in Dragon's Peak, also I wanted to finally try out that unification skill that Gobta did back at the founder's festival but I didn't want a destructive dragonoid wrecking me while I'm trying to get the hang of it
I also had a feeling that Diablo was feeling a but depressed right before we head off. Not sure on whether it was because out of the two slime that there is in tempest it was the one he didn't care about or that he won't be able to spend time with Rimuru, likely both
I'm regards to how we can enter the demon realm, Diablo had us covered. With a snap of his fingers, he tear open a Spatial rift to the demon realm
Guessing as it was by a primordial demon of all kinds of demons, it was no wonder he could've done it so casually
Beforehand we discussed though on which order of the three we'll be going after, although it was more me suggesting and Diablo not caring to object as it didn't really matter to him which order we choose to go with
Gears in hand, fluff in tact, and primordial levels of loyalty driven, we stepped foot in the dangers that is the demon realm
Narrator's Pov
*A short time later at Tempest*
Within the residential section of Tempest lies the communal parks for the residents to stroll through as they please. Two of these residents are Cameilla and Lavandra who decided to enjoy their lunch break with eachother as they're not only coworkers but childhood friends as well.
Cameilla: I don't think there's anything wrong with your usual suit
Lavandra: I just feel like I kinda want to go for a different color. With my purple hair, it comes off as too much purple. I'm thinking more like dark blue but that's already Leonardo's think so no
Cameilla: how about beige?
Lavandra: No, I get elderly vibes from beige suits. I'm actually considering to go with a black and white suit, it helps show the formality
Cameilla: If you say so
Lavandra: how about you try a suit. I always see you in kimono but I think you could look good in other formal wear
Cameilla: hmm, I'll consider it but kimonos just feel too natural for me to trade in for a suit full time
It was then they encountered or more like witnessed a familiar face in a unusual position. It was not everyday you get see a battle maid clenching onto a tree
Lavandra: Benjamin?
Cameilla: Big Brother? Why are you hanging onto a tree?
Benjamin: Um . . . No particular reason
Cameilla: uh huh, no particular reason?
Benjamin: uuuuuuuh, actually I'm trying to get Leonardo's cat unstuck from the tree, they're pretty high up so you probably can't see them
Lavandra: Benjamin, I'm not the sharpest horn oni there is but even I know there's no cat on that tree
Benjamin: . . . Alright, I'm hiding okay
Cameilla: from what?
Benjamin: from the two you both knew
Lavandra: Albis and momiji?
Benjamin: Yes! I swear ever since this whole love dramatic thing happened, I've been some sort of prize everyone is in a competition to win
Lavandra: I guess being popular has its on down sides
Benjamin: like I need to hear that from you of all people. Like last I checked both of you have your own fan clubs
Cameilla: So are you really just gonna sit there all day?
Benjamin: I'll leave once the coast is clear
Lavandra: I really don't see why you're so fixated on avoiding them. Personally I say Albis could be a good wife for you. A mature and especially strong lady is nothing to scoff at really
Cameilla: Personally I'm leaning towards momiji. She's also strong but she also comes from a culture similar to ours so I can see more of a connection develop between him and her
Lavandra: yeah but I don't really like how she just came out of nowhere and confessed her love to him. I like the idea that Albis went head over heels in the heat of a war more honestly
Cameilla: I'm more inclined to believe love could be developed overtime
Benjamin: Hey can you not have this type of debate when I'm around
Cameilla: We wouldn't have this debate in first place if you didn't squash our dreams by choosing to only accept one woman
Benjamin: How is it my fault that I only wanted one!?
Lavandra: Have it your way but I'm personally on team Albis!
Cameilla: I suppose I'm on team momiji then
Benjamin: (Why has my lord forsaken me like this)
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Back at the demon realm
In the broad and deserted field, a ginormous figure runs through at high speed. It resembles a tempest star wolf with the exception that instead of four legs, it runs on two legs instead like some sort of werewolf
This figure is Kaijuno and Willfla unified into one singular form
Kaijuno: (WOW! This freaking amazing! I'm practically running faster than the speed of sound)
I can see why gobta liked using this transformation, fusing with a tempest star wolf really gives a good boost. Generally an increase in raw strength but most noticeably the high increase in movement speed. I wasn't exactly the slow type especially with thought acceleration multiplying my thinking speed by a whole million but given how good runers even direwolves were, gap in and out of unification can't be dismissed
Thankfully the demon realm doesn't really have any structures for me to crash into. I could see why gobta ended up crashing straight forward into the wall back at the tournament, the initial movements felt intense.
There's still the matter of fighting in this form. The bigger size does take away the nimble style of fighting I take advantage with my smaller stature so I can see myself becoming an easier target to hit. Not sure about the big horn on my head but I guess I can use it to stab someone with it.
Although it's not like I intended to use this form for Jaune anyways. Infact, prior to this, I had Yagami assist me in making cool magic technique finishers to use against each of the demonesses. To be frank it was more of Yagami constructing the technique
Also it seems as though I have complete control of the werewolf body. Sure I need Willfla to do the transformation but it looks to be I'm the only one with the steering wheels on this body. I wonder if that is the case for gobta or its just that Ranga chooses to let gobta have complete control. Well as Willfla's master, I guess it would make more sense for me to be the sole user of this body. Kinda expected to be but I can use Willfla's skill while in this form but given that I can already do that with food chain, it's practically meaningless, although the shadow conjures resemble werewolves rather than tempest star wolves so I guess that is a plus
With all this open space, I question if there is any settlement at all in the demon realm, as far as I saw, it's basically one big desert.
During my little test run, Diablo had no trouble keeping up with his wings, all while keeping a neutral to a bored expression. It was easy to get the idea that he was already not having it with me. He really isn't all cheery cherry when he isn't in Rimuru's presence
Honestly the beginning of our journey was just mindless travel with nothing to see for a good while. It was until we spotted a lone demon out in the open. Literally was some fell hanging out in their own lane
I asked Diablo if it was true that if I were to beat a demon to pulp, they would become my servant to which he confirmed
Diablo had no care for the random demon, about how no small fry would be worthy for Rimuru. But for me? I'm not one to be picky in this situation. While Diablo was ignoring the demon, I made a sharp turn right towards it and immediately crashed onto the demon in a belly flop position, slamming it into the ground. This bruised up the demon fairly badly given the intense speed I rushed in.
Without giving the demon time to resist, I gotten up to immediately stomp on the demon to ensure it's submission. After an awkward moment of silence, I plainly asked the demon if they'll be my servant to which the demon immediately submits. I was pleased to see that demons are way less stubborn than dragon lords
While all of this occurred, Diablo was giving off a deadpan expression. Likely hinting at the regret they have for inviting me in the first place
*At the labyrinth*
Within the labyrinth, plenty of adventurers had wasted no time to explore and traverse deep within it
One specific party of adventurers are currently taking camp, The Hood of Robins
Some of the members are are taking rest after a long while of exploring and slaying magic beasts. Others were keeping watch in case of any monster around the area. One of these members was the cleric Murt.
Murt is the youngest member of the party at 18 years old and was the most recent member to join prior to Gaiye. While the age requirement to register as an adventurer is 16, most would register by the age of 19 to 20 years old. Registering so young is considered by many as reckless and arrogant but unfortunately this wasn't a choice out of arrogance but out of determination
For the majority of his childhood prior to his teens, Murt used to live in a small village with both of his parents and older sister. It was a small but tight knit community where everyone is familiar with eachother. It was nothing dazzling but it was all they know and need. Although unfortunately by the time his became 12, his life took a sudden turn for the worst
On a day that was looking to be no different from no other. But suddenly out of the blue, a horde of knight spider appeared and rampaged through their small village. Village walls and the guard post that most village posses was useless to defend against the magic beast. The villagers were helpless against the rampage.
They were at the mercy of the merciless monster, they were getting crushed and stabbed by the legs of the spiders. With very little time to respond, his family was only able to hide him only before the knight spiders broke through the walls of their home. While under the debris, Murt had open cracks to partially on the carnage that was ensuing.
The villagers were thrown around from the force of the knight spiders. While he couldn't see it, he heard the cracking of bone nearby him and the screaming of his sister before her life was cut short. Murt eventually passed out at the tragedy of the situation
By the next day he was awakened by a group of paladins of Luminous as this village was set in further in the west where Luminism is highly influential and turns out there has been a spike of the appearance of knight spiders around the area for a while and this wasn't village wasn't the first to be destroyed
In the end, there were a handful of survivors, mainly children who were set to be raised in orphanages in the larger cities. As for for Murt he was set to reside in Luminism church. Due to his new religious setting, he began to be educated under the teachings of Luminism and from those teachings he had discovered his affinity for holy magic and capabilities to use support spells
For years he would train his skills with tirelessly to the point that the strength he wields was above the average for someone of his youth to posses. Eventually with skills he obtain under the teachings of the church, he set his sights on becoming an adventurer through the freedom guild. Thanks the honing of his magic and his education under the church teaching him to wright, he was able to pass the entrance exam and was labeled with class of cleric
Murt had one thing on his mind to focus, the reason why he went on to become an adeventurer instead of continuing his time in the church, to slay monsters. As an adventurer, Murt wasn't stationed to any particular area nor nation, practically free to travel to where he desires. To ensure he could be available to stop any sudden rampaging monsters like he wished someone was able to back then
The first few ranks were more manageable to get through as it went from herb collecting to lesser monster slaying quests like walking skeletons which he can just rely on the spell turn undead. When he reached c rank though was when he was stumped as prior the lesser monsters were enough for him alone with his holy magic and mace to take on alone but the monsters labeled as c rank and onward would take a team effort which Murt hadn't taken to account for
As Murt felt like a he hit a stone wall on his progress he was scouted by traveling adventurer party the Hoods of Robins who scoped out Murt after hearing of his reputation for being a lone adventurer who ranked up all the way to c rank in just 2 years. As steadily competent as they seem to be, they were still lacking a member that was a support class so the likes of Murt was all the more appealing to them. Seeing as continuing as a lone adventurer would no longer work, he decided to accept their invitation to join their party
Thanks to joining a party mostly consisting of A ranks, Murt was able to accent to B rank. While their time in the party is short compared to the other members, Murt had grown close to rest of the party and had been made to be the little sibling of the group due to being the obvious younger member. He especially looked up and admired Daniel like a sort of older brother figure. Murt didn't completely comprehend Daniel's power to move instantaneously but did got a grasp that it was due to this power that he was able to reach S rank. He thought that someone like Daniel could've been the one to save his village from horde of knight spiders instead of the day resulting in carnage
Nowadays, Murt is a reliable member of the Hoods of Robins as with his support magic like Aid and Haste the party was able to pull through tough situations. While his class is not primarily a combat one, he is considered to be a valuable member of the party as their primary healer
As for the other member keeping a look out was the party's archer, Darvo the dwarf. Prior to becoming a member, Darvo formerly resided in Dwargon in a family of blacksmiths which is common for the industry focused nation. Throughout the years, Darvo has worked around the workshop but at most as a lesser assistant position. Unfortunately unlike for most dwarves, Darvo didn't hold the natural talent of craftsmanship. His skills weren't enough to craft fine weaponry nor armor. Its not he doesn't have general idea on the crafting process but the best he was able to forge were simple jewelry much to the disappointment to his peers.
He was constantly badgered for his less than ideal quality. It was commonly tensed in the workspace, with open displeasure and irritation. Darvo was kept to only preform janitorial task or any spare tedious work much to his frustration.
Eventually Darvo decided to quit his job as a blacksmith. This caused problems in his home life as dwarves, they take pride in craftsmanship and a dwarf who was not only poorly skilled but reject it all together brought shame. With things not looking to change, Darvo ended up having to leave Dwargo all together, practically disowned by his family
Having been to fend for himself, Darvo needed find a way to get income. He was only taught in craftsmanship but given how unsuited he was for it, he doubt anyone would really want his work in that department. It would be difficult to find work outside of Dwargon as many of the human dominate nations in the west aren't completely accepting of demi humans. With such difficulty and on such short notice, Darvo decided to apply to become an adventurer
The lowest rank quest thankfully didn't require any expertise. It was mainly material collection and communal work something more doable for Darvo. After some years have passed Darvo was requested by the guild after his extensive time as an E rank.
By this point Darvo had been able to keep himself afloat but if he were to start doing higher paying quest to help put food on the table, he'll need to be prepared to take on more dangerous quests. It was decided that he would officially assign himself to a class as it wasn't required prior as an E rank.
He wasn't sure about doing close combat but he wasn't skilled in magic either, so for the time being for him, he settled for archer as with Dwarv3s have shorter legs, he'd rather have distance between him and his target. He wasn't taught in archery but he at least had a grasp on pinpointing focus in his time as a craftsmen but he more or less had to self teach himself on how to use a bow but given he was still only a D rank, he wasn't expected to be capable of much anyways.
Many more years went and gone as a D rank adventurer, given how dwarves have a longer lifespan than humans, so Darvo wasn't in a rush to get promoted. He continued to hone his archery skills over time becoming a more standard archer. By the end of his time as a D rank, he started practicing techniques to stay hidden and even learned the stealth spell to help hide his presence to avoid close quarters combat with his targets. It wasn't an issue of what monsters he would need to slay as he make sure to attack only from afar without endangering himself. It also helps that he has good arm strength too, so his arrows were prone to do critical damage
This progress eventually led him to be promoted to C rank which got him to be more financially comfortable so he settled with the rank for a fair amount of time. Later on he would do quests with different parties or large party quests requested directly by the guild itself but he never stayed with any particular party
Given his extensive time as an adventurer, he gained a reputation among the guild as a veteran archer who's skills were reliable for rear guard and long range snipping. Although this brought some questioning among the guild, why an archer? Despite their shorter stature, dwarves hold stronger muscle strength than the average human, so wouldn't a berserker be a better choice? Regardless of what others thought, it was with this reputation that led him to encounter the people who he would form an official party with. Two C rank men with more youthful appearances, one was Minyel the elf who wore a hat and robes, looking to be more of a mage. While the other was a human who went by Daniel and looked to be in his early twenties but was noticeably equipped in combat
They didn't seem to have been a pair of adventurers for too long. For a veteran, he seen a good number of folks come and go but this was the first he seen these two. They were apparently looking for a third member to finally establish a party, they even come with a name for the party too. He wasn't so sure initially as he was used to doing solo work as a C rank but after some insistent persuasion although it felt more like the two being stubborn, Darvo agreed to go on a few quests to see if he's willing to join the party, just to get them off his back.
They mainly went through different dungeon crawling quests, seems the two made sure their time was dragged, much to his dismay. Through their initial time, they established a linear three person formation, Darvo in the rear guard, Minyel in the mid guard, and Daniel was in the front.
Darvo could tell from the get go that Daniel is skilled in close quarters combat, more than what an adventurer would normally be for his age, he definitely must have been taught by an expert fighter previously but Darvo wasn't concerned to pry about it. It was no secret either of Daniel's special ability. To Darvo, it seems that for a brief time, Daniel becomes intangible, preventing any opponent to harm him during the period.
The Minyel has a fair arsenal of spells to cast like Erupting Earth and Wall of Water. Although the spell they are prone to cast the most is Fireball. Like Darvo's arrow, it can reach long range but had a combustion area effect. With Darvo covering for the monsters outside of the area range, Minyel didn't need to worry about continously using fireball to clear out the remaining targets. They were able to save themselves some dexterity because of that.
Daniel would be the front line attacker or hold the attention of boss monsters, Minyel with provide attacking spells from behind but also focuses on conjuring defenses, and Darvo would target any that the other two have missed while from a distance. So while their numbers are limited, they seem to be able to cover for eachother in a triforce of unity.
Darvo would surprisingly get along with the pair eventually. Aside from their effective work as a team, they didn't judge him because he happened to be a dwarf. They complimented him on how he reliable he shown to be as an archer or simply tell tales of their recklessness prior to meeting Darvo, which made him chuckle a few times, much to the pleasure of the other two
In the end, Darvo decided to form a party with the two. With the three finally made it official, they established the Hoods of Robins. Over time, they recruited more members into their party and Darvo was established to be the mature elder figure of the group despite that Minyel was actually the oldest.
Encouraged by the ambitious Daniel, Darvo went out to be promoted to B rank and then to A rank, which helps that he gotten better gear over time
With both Murt and Darvo beign a pair of good eyes and able to cast light, they were kept on watch duty. Merely some small bantering to help pass the time
Murt: it's ridiculous how massive just a single floor is. I know some our prior dungeons took days as well, but I see no end to this
Darvo: I get what you mean, but its not like we particularly need to reach the end to achieve anything. With the loot we already found, I'm sure we can sell it for a good price
Murt: I guess so. Can't say I actually want to face off against the storm dragon of all people
Darvo: Tell me about it. We're tough and all, but not all storm dragon tough. Also we would have to go against the demon lord right after too. Nope! There are just some things better calling quits on
Murt: Although, I wouldn't say everyone would agree on that
Darvo: You're talking about the new guy right?
Murt: Yep!
Darvo: Ugh! I swear I don't know why we bother keeping that guy around, he's been nothing but trouble
Murt: Actually why did we invite him in the first place?
Darvo: I-. . . I don't specifically recall why. When did we even met him again?
Murt: Uuuh, I think right around the time we arrived in tempest. Wasn't Gaiye also with some girl? Whatever happened with her?
Darvo: I don't think I ever got her name. Although, is it just me or something had felt off since then?
Murt: I think I know what you feel. Ever since we started exploring this labyrinth, we kept drifting off and seeking many treasures instead of traversing further down the floors
Darvo: Yeah, I felt as though we've grown increasingly gree-
Before either of the two could delve further, a roar of a sudden of a nearby magic beast erupted. Alerting the entire party, they all rushed to formation in this never ending jungle of a labyrinth
At the demon realm
Kaijuno's Pov
It's been a solid while since I began my ensla- I mean recruitment of the local demons populace. After my first encounter, it was no rarity to encounter greater demons and it was especially common to find the lesser demons. Once I finished bul- I meant to say persuading the greater demons, they surprisingly submitted absolutely, seriously no questions asked. I was actually taken aback how demons completely bend over backwards for their master in anyway even more to an extent than the people of Tempest.
Although the lesser demons haveless intelligent egos and were more animalistic. So I had to tie them up in my bloody threads in the mean time until I name them to evolve into greater demons, I'd rather save that consumption of magicules til after this is all over rather than in the middle of the journey
After a while I decided to reverse my unification with Willfla as it was looking like I didn't need the unification to take on the demons. This did brought up something that I didn't realized prior though. When I unified, Willfla was immediately back to my shadow and he wasn't able to leave, the only way out was with merging with me. I'm sure he can still travel around get back to Tempest through shadow movement but he really can't seem to join me demon realm
Yagami had analyzed our environment and came to the result that the demon realm was a higher dimensional plain of existence than that of the Cardinal World. It was suited for spiritual beings in contrast to the Cardinal World being suited for beings with physical bodies.
So just like how spiritual beings have some trouble or restrictions residing in the Cardinal World, the same could be said for physical beings in the demon realm. It would explain why I can step foot here quite fine but not someone like Willfla who hasn't evolved into a spiritual being.
This info also gave me realised something in regards to my evolution to a spiritual life form. While the evolution to a demon lord isn't exactly exclusive, it's a really grander kind of evolution compared to the usual type. The usual training to evolve or getting named is just simply becoming a superior race to what you previously were.
An evolution to a demon lord or generally a spiritual life form is really something different. It's not just upgrading your spirit along with your physical body, but raising your standing in existence entirely. If it's true about what yagami said that the demon realm is a higher dimension than that of the Cardinal World then it would likely mean that becoming a true demon lord means becoming a being that transcends dimensions
At first it sounds like a massive stretch of power. But back then in my time at El Dorado, Leon Cromwell mentioned that Jaune would throw nuclear magic that he would describe as "world destroying" and I doubt Leon is the type of guy to casually exaggerate the strength of another, about to someone who bothers him everyday.
Would it also mean anything for the Cardinal World as well? If there are people like Jaune and milim running around, any normal planet surely wouldn't truly have stayed intact. Especially for milim's case, just her dragon buster alone easily surpassed the destruction of the atomic level. Especially the case for drago nova, that attack is just pure absolute destruction, planets wouldn't be the limit the of what she can destroy
Especially if she's meant to be on par with true dragons, I wouldn't put it past her to destroy a universe if she intended to do so. So if the Cardinal World can really withstand multiple beings that can definitely destroy planets with ease, then maybe there must be some sort of possibility that the Cardinal World is tougher than a usual planet. Shouldn't be the case that it's just bigger as the gravity is basically the same as in my previous world.
It's a shot in the dark theory but there's a guess that maybe the Cardinal World is a higher dimension than that of my previous world with it's extreme magical properties. That idea could help explain how the Cardinal World didn't get destroyed long ago lile Guy's fight against a rampaging Milim. Maybe that could connect to how people who are summoned likely get higher than average abilities
Back to the demon realm, at first it was just barren waste lands, but further into our journey there were more interesting scenery. There were whole mountain biomes above us as if there was a whole planet right next to another.
Areas where gravity is completely distorted and unpredictable. Many clusters of stones floating around the air while there were piles that were sitting on the ground. At random, stones any other pieces of the ground could ascend or descend at varying speeds and can be pulled and pushed in any direction not just up or down. I just refer to these areas as the Gravity Paradox Zones. Guess that higher dimension statement is really looking to be true if even the laws of gravity is naturally belittled
There were also forest in the demon realm although were full of aggressive plants like piranha plants. Also these forests can apparently move through the burrow and movements of the connected roots, unlike what you expect of a forest to stay stood as it is. It's like a sort of hive mind of plantation or a turtle with a forest on it's back but without the whole turtle thing. Safe to say, these forests are purposely avoid by the demons, it's not like they need to eat any of the fruits anyways
It was an exciting experience to travel the demon realm, there were some fantasy creatures within the Jura forest and interesting cities like the steam punk themed Dwargon but the demon realm really feel like a world beyond what I'm familiar with.
While I was feeling joyful, Diablo was quite woeful. He definitely had a presence of annoyance when I make a sudden turn towards any demons we encounter. Unlike with rimuru, I don't think Diablo is really much of a fan of me.
Even I know the only reason why he's bothering to tolerate me was solely because we were assigned by rimuru to travel together and any orders from rimuru is absolute to Diablo. Despite this, Diablo is openly wishing he could just abandon me but it would go against the command of his master.
He probably also realizes how Guy feels when he does something problematic to the primordial red.
Yeah, Diablo might just not like me I general
After further explorations and recruiting magically horned bipedals, we arrived at what looks to be a traditional desert although it was filled with pillars throughout the lands. I didn't take long for my find my newest victi- possible recruitment.
I repeated my usual act to quote on quote persuade the greater demon. The process went on as usual but unlike the others before, this demon kept refusing to submit. I continued to insist but the demon was being stubborn and refused repeatedly.
The demon revealed that they already have a master, in spite of their aggressive nature, their loyalty for their master is unwavering even if another comes and attempts to subordinate them, they'll stay loyal regardless. Honestly, kudos to that. It's true they fit in the idea of the demonic, but they still have some respectable aspects.
In the middle of my frustration, Yagami suggested I just go challenge their master for dominance. Taking Yagami's advice to my non existent heart and asked the demon to take me to their leader.
While hesitant at of being an inconvenience for their master, the demon begrudgingly agreed to lead us to their boss. It was during this casual travel was when I began to notice some details about the surrounding environment. While it mostly was a normal looking desert, the distortion and motion of the sand felt more like sludge and semi liquid rather than grainy, which is a MASSIVE relief for my boots and clothes
Also the color of the sand was more of a vibrant yellow rather than a dusty beige. Speaking of yellow, while the previous regions had demons in various looks or were just goat people, the majority of demons in this desert were blonde or had another noticeable feature that was yellow.
What was really different here in comparison to the previous places I've been in was that the demons were far less aggressive. Infact they basically lazed around and seemed far more chill than the usual demon seems to be, it was overall a far more laxed atmosphere in this yellow desert. It looks like who ever was in charge of this was way less torturous than what demons would usually be or maybe they just didn't care enough to abuse their servants and get away with it
Eventually we were led to a pillar significantly bigger. What appeared in response to our appearance was an archer demon. I immediately recognized the arch demon as they had very specific choice of clothing, a purple and red skirt but her entire body was practically covered in her oversized sweater with a black tank top underneath. I recognized it to be the demon that becomes esprit in canon. If esprit to be is here, then the master the greater demon was talking must've been- before I realized the hierarchy that I walked into, the head of said hierarchy appeared in a boom, literally.
One moment the arch demon was questioning what the greater demon brought in, the next the entire area suddenly combusted. All the greater and lesser demons that I collected were immediately wiped out including the greater demon that was leading us to them. Even the arch demon was suddenly blow away as well. I myself took it point blank and had to focus on my regeneration as soon as the smoke began to form. Diablo with no concern for my safety, evaded as he would naturally be used to the explosive temper. Speaking of temper, the one who ignited the explosion was none other then the primordial yellow herself, Jaune, who definitely didn't look all that happy to see me
Jaune: YOU KEPT ME WAITING!!!
Turns out, partying for multiple days and then taking brutal training in the north pole was not what we agreed to apparently. Better hope Velzard's frost is worst than nuclear magic that can destroy planets