Volume 4 Chapter 19 (1/2)
Through the cup of water I held in my hand, I listened in on the voices and sounds that R'lyeh Diva had deemed worthy of attention. To be able to listen to the live voices of the enemy soldiers and commanders while remaining where I stood, I could only describe it as a very useful and advantageous ability.
It wasn't just R'lyeh Diva that hid in a separate dimension but also the Ocean Singers.
If there was any third party in this battle whose goal was to see my war potential, I was sure that they would act provided enough bait was set.
To be able to catch them when they do act, I formed a group of High Elves to work with the intelligence corps. Instead of them sniping out the enemies like the other elves, their mission was to stay concealed and search for any suspicious presence.
Now then, time to set a grand bait.
”Then, my lord, please look over there as we display the might of the aerial combat corps.”
In response to Wight's finger-whistle, the Darkness Dragons came flying high in the sky.
They carried along with them the containers made by the Dwarf Smiths.
The sight of the 10 Darkness Dragons in perfect formation was indeed a spectacle. They flew at the height of 400 meters above the ground, well beyond the reach of bows and magic.
The enemy soldiers looked up and, upon seeing the dragons' majesty, cowered and trembled. The soldiers didn't know what else to do other than to keep looking up. Their strategy against the golems was for the heavy-infantry to hold the golems off while the magic users at the back casted strong magic to wipe the golems out. It was a simple yet good enough plan. However, against the dragons flying in the sky, it was worthless.
”Well, we did misdirect them into thinking like that.”
We had purposely shown them the golems to trick them into believing that the golems were our main force, after all.
”Now, show them hell.”
Originally, just as the enemies couldn't reach the Darkness Dragons while they were in the sky, the dragons also lacked the means to attack the enemies in the ground without dropping their altitude.
Their breath attacks could reach, at most, only a distance of 100 meters.
That was true though only until had I provided them their means.
When the enemy vanguard resumed rushing in, nine out of the ten containers were opened to drop down the vast amounts of napalm bombs contained within. Considering the Darkness Dragons' strength, they could carry more than two tons at a time but since we didn't have that much supply of napalm bombs anyway, it was decided that each were to only carry almost two tons of the stuff.
The dragons' targets were the heavy-infantry rushing forward.
And the result was…
”GYAAAAAAAAA!!!”
”HELPPPPPPP!!!”
”SO HOT SO HOT SO HOT SO HOT SO HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT!!!”
Each member of the vanguard burned in hellfire.
Nearly all of them were killed. The stronger ones managed to live momentarily longer which was the worse fate in this scenario for the longer they lived, the longer they felt the fire and thus writhed in agony.
The power of this bombing was incomparable to the previous one conducted by the Hippogriffs.
After all, in this world, part of the user's stats affected the power of the weapon. Darkness Dragons were B rank monsters with an A for their Physical Strength stat. They also had the skill [Miasma] which increased their offensive capabilities even more.
That wasn't all. They also benefitted from Wight's special ability, the [Ruler of Death] which he gained upon becoming a Siegwurm. This ability allowed him to drastically strengthen the undead units under his command.
Given all these, there was no way humans of just these strength could survive. And so, with none of them being able to do anything, several hundreds of lives perished.
”Amazing. Power, power is welling up within me! Ahahahahahaha!”
I unconsciously laughed out loud.
This entire Plain was part of my dungeon and thus, all the lives lost here became my sustenance; the souls of the entire enemy army, no matter who they were, were soon to become my power.
If I were to compare it, in Avalon, a gentle power flowed calmly into me. In this moment, however, the power that into me brought me a different kind of pleasant feeling. The soldiers' fear, despair, and their very lives flowed into me as violently and as incessantly as a river during a raging storm.
With each passing second, the taste of their fear developed; the taste of their despair became even more pronounced; and their lives even more vivid as it disappeared.
Oh… I just might go mad from this, this, this sensation, oooohh. More, I want more of it, quickly.
”Kill, more, kill more of them!”
More, I want more! Yes, that's it, let's burn their city down. That way, those whose homes we burned will retaliate and deliver more, a lot more, of these… food. No, that's still not enough; one city's not enough. I'll burn many, many, more cities! And more and more food will come! And then, I'll burn them all! More, I want to feel more of this sensation!
”More! This not enough, not at all!”
Once they're all gone, we'll move on to the next! We'll fight another country! More! Kill more, feel good more, kill, feel good, I, I…
”Oto-san”
I then sensed something small and soft touch my hand. Thanks to that touch, my heart didn’t fall ”somewhere”.
”Ku… i… na…”
”Oto-san, you're making such a scary face.”
Kuina was looking up at me with a frightened expression on her face.
Seeing that, my head quickly cooled. I wondered just what kind of face I was making or just what the heck I was saying, for that matter, since that wasn't like me at all.
”My bad, I got a little drunk.”
”Thank goodness, it's the usual Oto-san!”
Kuina then hugged me tightly.
My, my, what a shameful father I have been.
With that thought, I took big, deep breaths and gradually returned to my usual self.
This wasn't my first genocide; I had done so before when I fought with [Evil] and yet, nothing like this had happened at that time. I was in a party with the Hippogriffs back then so I did feed on the enemy's souls but then precisely because I was in a party, the effects had weakened. Moreover, it was just their souls that I fed on instead of their emotions as well.
Even after considering all that, it seemed to me that the most prominent factor was that feeding on humans just more delicious than doing so on monsters.
It wouldn't have been weird if a Demon Lord who knew of such a fine taste became a warmonger. Thankfully, I didn't end up becoming one. Stay strong, my heart.
”Oto-san, on your back”
Kuina said so as she pointed to my back where I had, since earlier, felt a strange, hot sensation.
”It looks like something has grown.”
What was there was a pair of jet-black wings and soon to follow it, I felt, were horns. By dining on thousands of humans, it felt as though my status as a Demon Lord had risen.
Nevertheless, I was posing as a human so this form was inconvenient, to say the least. As soon as I thought so, the wings vanished. It seemed like I could make it appear and disappear at will.
”So cool! Can Kuina touch?”
”Later. The war's still not over.”
”That's a promise!”
”Yeah but later, ok?”
And so, I turned my attention back to the battlefield.
Nine out of the ten containers the Darkness Dragons carried contained napalm bombs which they already dropped down on the enemies.
As for the activities of the last one, it had leisurely flew pass the vanguard to drop not just the contents of its container like what the other dragons had done but the container itself.
It made a deafening sound as it crashed right in the middle of the enemy rearguard formation. A few unfortunate soldiers were squashed by the container. Of course, squashing wasn't the end goal here…
”What, are those people in that box?”
”Those aren't people; they're golems!”
”Gyaaaaaa! These guys are strong and fast!”
”Magic doesn't work!? Help, somebody heeeeeelp!”