The blaze settled, and Lilith turned back to a humanoid form.
Lilith walked towards one of the Werewolves who were bleeding on their shoulders. They were twitching, incapable of even moving the tiniest bit.
Sighing, she then sneakily downed a Potion she bought from the Store to recover her MP and then turned to the beaten Werewolves. Using (2,500 MP), Lilith decided to cast a spell, "Solar Healing."
A golden light appeared overhead, and their injuries were healed. The Werewolves felt their bodies lightening, and then, they began getting up from kissing the ground.
The Werewolf nearest to the loli lifted his head only to see Lilith smiling. For a moment, he became afraid… but that feeling was overwritten when Lilith reached out her hands with a worried expression, "I apologize; I may have been too energetic. I want to heal you and the others more, but… I am already pushing myself with this much alone."
When the Werewolf heard of this, he instantly became flustered and quickly stood up with energy, "Pl-please, that is enough, Priestess… we are fine."
"Really?" Lilith asked as she looked up to the tall Werewolf. Her voice, weaker than before. Her concern was easier to see.
"We are fine, thank you."
"That's right! We are all healed now!"
The defeated Werewolves gathered around Lilith with such words upon hearing their conversation from afar.
"That is good to hear." Lilith heaved a sigh of relief.
The defeated Werewolves all knelt down. They lowered their heads as they said with pride, "We who have been defeated now see the Priestess, our new Leader. We who had doubted you shall accept any punishment."
Seeing this, she placed her hands on one of the Werewolves' shoulders and then spoke, "Lift your heads, you did nothing wrong for I provoked you and the others to prove my worth; you need not act like this."
The Werewolves heard this and only felt worse… she was too kind. But, the Werewolves did not condemn her for such a thing. They knew their future with her would be bright, and as they raised their heads, they only saw a sight that drove this fact into their hearts.
Taking in a deep breath, Lilith looked at them with a smile as she put her dainty hands on her waists, "That was a good fight. Though you failed to get to me because of my magic, you still managed to almost drain my mana." She was as bright as the sun.
With this, 234 Werewolves joined Lilith's Village, elevating their numbers from 310 to 544 daemons. The Werewolves now numbered 220, making them the second largest race in the Village.
'That was easier than I thought. These Werewolves have high levels, but they need to be trained some more by Dhampy.' Lilith was somewhat disappointed that she didn't get any EXP because she had to spare them, but what could she do? This was the fate of a Leader.
In hindsight, Lilith didn't actually need to fight these Werewolves. She had already gained the [Loyalty of the Werewolves] reward from the system…
It should have already made the Werewolves somewhat loyal, though not totally subservient to her. Lilith runs a multicultural and multiracial village. Many have different perspectives and thoughts.
Several even have firest of past conflicts remaining in their heart.
However, they were being held together by the faith they had in Lilith, their Priestess. All of them have zealousness that stemmed from being saved, accepted, and reborn.
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This new batch of Werewolves did not have that. They only knew Lilith as some low-leveled daemon, nothing more, nothing less. If they were forced to follow someone like Lilith, then it would be nothing short of disgraceful, and the loyalty gained from the system might even crumble.
'I do not know how the system can do that, but I don't believe it can truly capture their hearts.' Lilith simply did not trust it for something so serious.
Lilith was walking on a tightrope of leadership. She had to grab their hearts and drag them to the point of no return, and with so many kinds of daemons under her, she needs to be assertive with these kinds of daemons.
She fronts a saint-like smile to show the kindness of a Priestess and then a domineering attitude to reinforce her rule.
'In the end, a charismatic leader's downfall can be his lack of strength and his inability to properly take hold of the follower's every move.' Lilith wanted nothing more than to make them lower their heads and revere her.
This fight solidified Lilith's position as a capable fighter and tactician while still keeping her image as a benevolent leader.
The shadow of their doubts was cast away with her flames. But not only did Lilith kept the Werewolves in check, but with this, she reminded everyone she's not just a Priestess but also a warrior.
The Villagers rejoiced her victory.
Three days after, the Werewolves managed to integrate themselves into the Village. They were not treated differently; they were allotted to different [Units] and were given appropriate tasks. 45 Werewolves joined the Workers, 23 managed to meet the requirements for the Shadow Troops, and 145 joined the Army where they met Dhampy, who graced them with much love… and by love, that would mean Hell on Earth.
The remaining 21 were the Werewolf cubs ages 0 to 9. They were made to join the rest of the younger generations of the Village, numbering 38.
Village Status:
Children: 59
Workers: 173
Army: 273
Shadow Troops: 39
Like the other Children, the Wolf Cubs would be tested for their aptitude by sending them to the different Units.
After they helped around the three Units, they would be asked what Unit they would wish to join in the future then receive corresponding education and training at an early age.
Of course, shifting from one Unit Education to another was possible. Such an education system still has flaws, but that was all right.
This was but Lilith's prototype of an education system.
The Workers were handled by Muska alone. He made sure to separate them into foragers, weavers, cooks, and other relevant branches except for the Gardener Branch.
The Pixies had the Gardeners covered, and actually, the Majority of the Werewolves opted to become Foragers.
The Army Werewolves were brought to their knees as they received the standard combat training. Chief was enjoying himself, much like the other Army Troop Members.
The Shadow Troops' new members didn't found themselves in Hell but in another plane altogether where they suffered and wished for actual death. Eve oversaw the training, and because she did not want to show any embarrassing sight to the Priestess, the newcomers experienced Hell.
Eve made use of what she learned from both Dhampy and Lilith. To say the least, it was effective.
From afar, Dhampy watched, proud of Eve's evolving ways.
But they couldn't go against them because the 16 current Shadow Troop members were sneering at them and telling them, "Heh, can't even take this much? How are you going to serve the Priestess like this?" they all gloated, and this fueled the Werewolves' determination.
On a side note, The Werewolf Leader gained the name [Red] for her fur.
Red thought she got the name because it was the color of blood, so she took it with pride.
"I am Red, the one who bathes in the blood of my enemies... that's amazing!" Red said as her tail wagged from one side to the next. She was excited.
"...Sure." Lilith stopped talking before she officially destroys Red's fantasies.
Lilith took all the credits for this misunderstanding, even somehow making her believe she had good making sense. Other than that, Giathe got the approval to take Red with her to the Bi-Weekly Assembly.
Everything was going well for the Village. The Werewolves managed to assimilate with the Villagers, and Lilith didn't suffer any chronic headaches and now had 24 Meat Cores in total.
While everyone won, Lilith got a Grand Slam.
All of these were good, but something else got the Village trembling in anticipation.
The Village gathered outside a house, with only Lilith, Luna, Dhampy, and Cerberus entering a particular house.
"What is happening?" Red asked Chief.
"Sister Sylva is awakening." It was Seris, the Persian, who answered.
Red growled at Seris' interjection while Chief yawned.
Inside the House.
00:00:00:45
Lilith watched the clock go down.
00:00:00:25
00:00:00:00
The cocoon showed cracks on its surface. Light from the inside illuminated the room before shooting up to the skies.
From an Azure to an orange hue, the very room was enveloped in its subtle light.
The light caused the people outside the House to smile. They celebrated a Follower's evolution with cheers of delight!
Cerberus' ears perked up, interested at the smell and aura the being inside the cocoon projected.
Much like Dhampy, Luna smiled in anticipation of her Sister's evolution. Sylva may dislike her, but Luna could hardly care about such trifling matter.
The light slowly subsided into the cocoon.
Crash!
As if it was glass, the cocoon shattered and from inside the balled body of a beautiful lady appeared.
Long glowing golden hair, skin spotless and pure like the highest grade of jade.
Sylva felt the air touching her skin and opened her eyes. The two golden gems that were her eyes surveyed the surrounding. Her rosy lips opened and close as her slender fingers let go of her knees.
Sylva extended her legs outward, touch the ground with untold grace. She seemed as though she was floating. Exhaling, she recognized her sense of being.
She had no clothes whatsoever, but others who could have seen her now may think covering her body was a crime.
Sylva came out of her cocoon, blossoming into a perfect lady, yet as she approached Lilith, she smiled at her and got on one knee.
Lilith looked at Sylva and smiled, "It is good to finally see you again, Sylva."
Graciously, Lilith floated and ruffled Sylva's silky smooth hair, eliciting a giggle out of the child.
Lilith's smile did not waver.
But inside her mind, she was asking, 'Are you some kind of protagonist? Why are you outshining me?'
Lilith was jealous as Sylva now had a sexy body while the Apostle of the Goddess was still stuck in a child's body.
'…I want my breasts back.'
Lilith wanted to cry.