Leaning forward, Aella sighed. “This is why I’m going to keep calling you a cult. I’ll warn you outright. Demon Lords are beings that Gods failed to control. Whatever you have that makes you think it will work, you should scrap that idea.”
Aella tried her very best not to laugh. Mind control. It was clear to Aella that this girl knew a thing or two about it. Their eyes met, yet Aella’s [Charm] didn’t activate at all, much less tried taking control of her. Luminastra had some means of blocking any mind control attempts.
If she had such an ability, why did she think that Demon Lords wouldn’t? Ignorance was an answer, but Aella didn’t believe that was the case.
Luminastra frowned at Aella’s words but didn’t contest or retort them. Instead, she nodded in agreement, causing Aella a great deal of confusion.
“You’re right. It’s not possible. Not right now, at least. But what if something dangerous is coming? Something far more dangerous than all of the 13 combined? We’ll need power that transcends the SS; no, we’ll need power that can transcend the SSS-rank.”
Suddenly, memories of her past shot to the front of her mind. Visions of all the steps she took to protect her own world from all those threats. Some of them… weren’t much more ethical than what the [Children of the Lost Sun] were doing.
Foxin were capable of a lot of things. Some might say, too many things. Lie detection wasn’t one of them, but Aella knew that Luminastra’s words rang true.
“And how long do we have until this threat appears?”
Standing up from her chair, Luminstra looked out her window. At some point, it had started raining, storming, even.
“I don’t know…” She said bluntly, her tone defeated.
“Anywhere from 3 years to 10. With how inaccurate my readings are, perhaps far sooner than that. We’re running out of time!”
‘3 years. System, what is she talking about?’
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Standing up herself, Aella let out one final sigh.
“Thank you for the tea. It was delicious. Unfortunately, I cannot allow you to do something so stupid.” She said before beginning to walk away.
“Wait!” Luminastra called out, “You’re just going to doom this world, then? You’ll die, too! You know!”
Turning to face Luminastra, Aella gave her a genuine smile. “I’ve decided. This world won’t stop turning until I kill Velfius. And for that matter, the Divine Council as well. So be a hundred years or a thousand—perhaps a million or a billion. Nobody will ever take this world from me. Not again. A war will begin, and this world will forcibly grow stronger. With your foresight, I suppose you’ll have no trouble surviving the turbulent times in front of us. After all of it ends, I hope we can become comrades in protecting this world after.”
Luminastra looked at Aella through the reflection of the glass. She had never expected this meeting to be fruitful, but it was worth a shot.
“Fine then… You may leave under one condition.” Luminastra said, “Prove to me that you’re worthwhile. That you can add to the survival of our world! Visiogon! Show her your hospitality.”
A roar echoed out, reverberating through the entire room with no apparent source as Aella turned around. Before she could identify what it was, she was engulfed by a massive breath attack.
Silence filled the room as ashes now occupied the spot where Aella once stood. Luminastra turned and narrowed her eyes as the ashe. She wasn’t so naive to believe such an attack would be enough to deal with Aella, but…
‘Her Mana… It’s completely gone. An illusion? No, Kitsune shouldn’t unlock Illusionism until their fourth tail. Where did she go?’
You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.
Worried, she quickly pulled out an odd-looking idol with a talisman on it. As soon as she placed it on the table next to her, a thin layer of Mana covered the room—an item to reveal all life within a specific area.
One minute passed, then 10. That ten quickly turned to 30 and then an hour. No matter how long she waited, she felt a looming sense of danger, as if one wrong move would get her killed.
‘Am I being paranoid? Even an anomaly like her couldn’t survive an attack from Visiogon… Unless…’
As Luminastra turned back around to face the window, she was greeted by an ethereal sword flying straight toward her head! By the time she noticed, it had already smashed through the glass! Even Aella, with her wind, wouldn’t be able to dodge the sword, much less a native of this world.
Then he appeared—the one known as Visiogon. In less than an instant, he appeared only to vanish with her in tow, reappearing several meters away. They weren’t the only ones to vanish, however. Or, only things. The sword that attacked them also disappeared into thin air.
A medium-sized black and gray western dragon with purple energy flowing from its wings and body, forming crystal-like constructs. It had countless weapons, from swords to spears and battle axes, piercing its body, allowing this energy to flow out more freely.
“Visiogon… Thank you…” Luminastra said.
From the window, Aella ominously flew upward to reveal herself, the usual dress which she wore nowhere to be seen, replaced by a thin undershirt.
“I liked that dress, you know. Now I’m gonna have to create another one from scratch!” Aella complained, stepping back into the room, a manic smile slowly forming.
“Well, I needed an excuse to create a protective variant anyway. Once Grayson finishes his book, I’ll have him make me one.” She continued, looking at the newly appeared Dragon up and down.
“You… Just what are you? To survive Visiogon’s attack unscathed.”
“Me? I’m just a little girl who was forced into this world. What about you?” Aella asked as she activated her [Apprasial] skill, the result only making her smile grow larger, splitting her face in twain.
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“AhahahahaHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH! TO THINK! YOU YOURSELF WERE A [DEMON LORD CANDIDATE]! Interesting! You’re so interesting! Indeed, if you are also a Demon Lord, it might just be possible to mind-control one! This world is so fun! SO SO FUN!”
First, it was the ability to manipulate the universe’s four fundamental forces freely, and now it was the ability to manipulate Imagination itself! What was next? Was the third Demon Lord going to be able to erase matter from existence?
Aella failed to hold back her laughter at the situation. To think that the sub-leader of the cult that was trying to awaken the Demon Lords was a Demon Lord herself. The killing intent she subconsciously let ooze due to excitement paralyzed both Luminastra and her Draconic partner briefly, but it only took them a few seconds to free themselves from the fear effect, causing Aella’s manic laughter to increase by several decibels.
Snapping her fingers, Aella’s blades manifested around her like a halo, and her aura flared up. She also grabbed the pill she had made earlier and bit down on it without hesitation.
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What… Sanity? No, never mind. Just like that, Aella vanished from her spot, striking at Luminastra with fervor, sending her flying out of the building and into an endless storming expanse.
“Ever since the trial with Skadi and Boreas… I’ve been wanting to see if I could truly rival an S rank already! YOU BETTER ENTERTAIN ME, LUMINASTRA!”
As the two recovered themselves, Aella took her time to leisurely leave the building as she admired the place that Luminastra had brought her to. It was a pocket dimension, a space not so different from an [inner world]. Usually, pocket dimensions mirrored one’s inner world, which, if that was the case here, made Aella sure…
A single, luxurious mansion in a permanently storming void, alone and devoid of all life. Luminastra wasn’t a child who had lived less than a decade. She was someone who had reached a point of loneliness that her inner world manifested as a lifeless husk of an endless abyss.
She was lonely… She believed that she had a task that would be impossible to achieve, yet she kept moving forward to accomplish it. The similarities Aella saw in this girl made her want to vomit.
She couldn’t let someone with her kind of resolve live any longer… For their own sake.