PROLOGUE
FLAME DRAGON AGAINST STORM DRAGON
For Veldora, the day could not have gone much worse.
It was an empty field of grass. The city, well-prepared for the imperial invasion, remained isolated in the labyrinth, and that was why the beauty flying in from the sky above stood out so much against this backdrop.
“Ah, my sister…,” Veldora muttered despite himself. There was no strength in his voice. For those who knew how Veldora normally carried on, the sight was unthinkable.
“Is…is it possible,” stammered Charys, “that this is…Lady Velgrynd, the sister I have heard rumor of?”
“I-indeed…you are correct. She is Velgrynd the Flame Dragon, one of the all-powerful True Dragons…and my sister, yes…”
Everyone in the Control Center, upon hearing this, leaped into action at once. An emergency alarm rang across the labyrinth, advising all within earshot to exercise maximum vigilance against the enemy on the outside.
“Wh-whoa, Master?! Rimuru’s not even here! What’re we gonna do?”
Ramiris was in a panic already. She wasn’t exactly someone to rely on in normal times; right now, she could do little more than shout and carry on. In a scientific laboratory she was a valued resource, but in battle, there was basically no role for her.
But Ramiris was smart enough to have some powerful friends—Treyni’s sisters administering the labyrinth and the dryads working under them, all beavering away to make sure things kept functioning properly. She had declined a position in the Ten Dungeon Marvels, but she was still the overall supervisor of the labyrinth. However, a good half of the Marvels, those figures who’d be relied on the most right now, were in the midst of an evolutionary sleep. Beretta, their former leader, had the important job of guarding Ramiris.
“It wouldn’t appear that she’s going to be too friendly with us. Let’s intercept her in the labyrinth.”
Beretta kept an eye on the situation, as Treyni and the others checked on the situation labyrinth-wide.
Out of the Ten Dungeon Marvels, only the four Dragon Lords were currently awake and available. Gadora was conscious as well, but he had already been sent out with the Demon Colossus to help out the Armed Nation of Dwargon. They were thus less than ideally prepared for Velgrynd, but if they made full use of the perfect, flawless fortress that was the labyrinth, even this reduced force should be enough to buy some time with. Beretta thought so, at least. So he made the proposal, and Veldora nodded his agreement.
“I don’t know what she’s here for, but if she came alone, she truly deserves nothing but my laughter. With all of us together, we have nothing to fear! Kwaaah-ha-ha-ha!!”
He grinned assuredly, but his expression was noticeably strained. He was scared.
Just a couple of days ago, Veldora had been in hard combat with Velzard, his elder sister—and with that incident fresh on his mind, now here was Velgrynd, his second-eldest sister. Not only that—she was staging an invasion of Rimuru, capital of the Jura-Tempest Federation, all by herself. This was simply outrageous in Veldora’s mind, and now his head was racing, trying desperately to find a way out of this situation.
That’s why he was so eager to jump at Beretta’s proposal. But just then:
“Veldora, be a good boy and come out for me, all right?”
Velgrynd, right up there on the display, addressed him out loud. Even her eyes, oddly enough, were fixated on the screen, boring right into Veldora—and her voice echoed directly into his mind.
“Sir Veldora…?”
“D-do not flinch at this, Charys! This is a trap. If I go out there without a thought in the world, it’s bound to be awful for me!”
“Er, yes…”
Veldora had no qualms about sounding this pathetic. Charys couldn’t help but find it bewildering.
“Huh? Well, if her target is my master, then it’s got nothing to do with us—mmph?!”
Ramiris, trying to save her own hide and doing a commendable job at it, was immediately silenced by Veldora’s hand. Now, whether she wanted to be or not, she was part of this.
So the labyrinth staff decided to hold their ground, but…
“Oh, you’re not coming out? You always were a little slow on the uptake, weren’t you? But all right. In that case, I’ll give you just one gentle warning.”
The image alone didn’t reveal what Velgrynd was saying. But everyone present understood that things were rapidly changing with her. And Veldora, who still had her voice being channeled into his brain, knew full well she was about to do something. But:
It… It’s fine. Ramiris’s labyrinth is made of incredible stuff that can shut off dimensions. Even I would have difficulty breaking through it, and as long as we remain inside, even my sister won’t be able to touch us.
He was right. As long as they stayed in the labyrinth, they’d continue to remain safe from Velgrynd. Maybe she could smash her way down one or two floors, but Ramiris could restore it quicker than she could destroy it. With Veldora powering everything, keeping Velgrynd safely away should be doable.
“Do not panic! With you and I working together, no adversary can—”
Veldora attempted to calm Ramiris, but he couldn’t finish his sentence. On the screen, he had caught sight of Velgrynd producing a pure-crimson spear.
“M-Master! That’s real bad news up there! I’m not even sure Mazecraft can block that!”
You don’t need to remind me, Veldora thought.
“I know that! All hands, brace for impact!”
Nobody doubted Veldora’s words, each of them assuming a defensive posture. Just a few moments later, a severe shock wave rocked the labyrinth.
“Oh, no way…”
“D-damage confirmed down to Floor 50… The upper levels are all but destroyed.”
Alpha, Beta, and the rest of the staff were producing a flurry of damage reports. At that moment, the myth of the labyrinth’s purported safety was practically destroyed.
Then, just as Veldora was panicking over what to do next, he received a Thought Communication from Rimuru.
(Hey, how’s it going?)
He deeply resented the cheerful voice.
(You fool! Now is not the time for casual greetings! Things are, um, rather hectic in here! My sister… My sister is pursuing me! She is outside the labyrinth right now, but at this rate, she is going to storm inside!!)
Veldora waited for an answer. Rimuru… Yes, surely Rimuru could do something about this. Instead, however, came the concerned reply: (You gonna be okay?) Instantly it made Veldora realize the truth. Rimuru was just as strained right now. If he wasn’t, he’d be right back here immediately—and since there was no sign of that, it’d be unwise to wait further for him.
And maybe that was why Veldora could feel the false hope from before draining away. If he couldn’t rely on Rimuru, he had no choice but to go out himself.
(I will have to come out for her. That would beat her laying waste to the labyrinth to reach me.)
Veldora thought he might be able to make it, although this was backed by zero evidence. It was easy to forget at times, but Rimuru had been quite a suitable trainer. If he had been able to withstand that, Veldora thought, surely Velgrynd wouldn’t defeat him that easily.
(All right. I’ll take full responsibility for the fallout, so just do something about Velgrynd for me. Can you manage that?)
Rimuru sounded like he didn’t expect Veldora to lose, either. And if he was taking “full responsibility for the fallout,” that meant he couldn’t complain, no matter how much destruction was wrought from this. Taking that into consideration, Rimuru was all but asking him to show off the fruits of his training up to now. Besides, this was Rimuru asking. What he wanted, he got.
(Oho? Well, in that case, allow me to handle everything for you! Kwah-ha-ha-ha!!)
He turned his attention back toward Velgrynd. The chat with Rimuru did wonders for his stress level. Suddenly he felt supremely calm and serene.
“I will need to go out myself,” he said, sounding fully relaxed.
“Master?”
“Sir Veldora?!”
Ramiris and Beretta stared at him in shock. Veldora gave them a refreshed sneer, like all his problems were behind him.
“Kwah-ha-ha-ha! I too have little interest in fighting my sister—but if using the labyrinth to stall for time won’t work, we have no other option.”
“But…”
“It’s all right, Charys. Immortality within the labyrinth only works because it exists in an isolated space. Now that we know it won’t work against my sister, the best way to minimize further damage is for me to leave.”
As long as Rimuru was alive and well, Veldora was de facto immortal. If he wanted to prevent any more sacrifice, Veldora’s only choice was to leave.
“Then let me join you.”
“No, stay here. You’ve become stronger, but it is still nothing comparable to me. Perhaps Zegion is another matter, but anyone else would just be a hindrance.”
It was harsh, but true. And Veldora was already prepared for what was to come. There was a gallant air to him now, nothing at all like the pathetic fear of a moment ago.
“Will you be okay, Master?”
“No, I won’t be okay at all! I don’t even want to think of the horrid abuse my sisters put me through…but enough of that. I, too, have become stronger. Encountering Rimuru has helped me grow. I, too, am a trainer now, and I’ve learned just how immature I have been. I am nothing like how I used to be. Kwaaaah-ha-ha-ha!!”
Veldora forced out a laugh. He had mentally uplifted himself so much that he was back to his normal tone.
“So do not worry! Just sit back and watch as I heroically stride into the scene!”
With that, he left the labyrinth by himself.
Now Veldora recalled his battle with Velzard. He hadn’t seen the older of his two sisters in quite a while, and she seemed far more powerful, her defense much more impermeable, than in the past.
It wasn’t something the old Veldora would ever have picked up on. Running into Rimuru had helped him grow beyond recognition, and nothing symbolized that more than his acquiring an ultimate skill. Being sealed away inside Rimuru’s Stomach gave Veldora the chance to observe Rimuru and learn a great many things. It was there where he realized that power is only meaningful when used in the right ways. He had an enormous store of magicule energy, the largest among all the True Dragons. It outclassed those of his two sisters, and it allowed him to be one of the world’s strongest presences without working very hard at it.
But that was naïve, and Veldora knew it. He knew that some would struggle to win until the very end, no matter how weak they were. Rimuru was one of them, and he knew that many who opposed him were the same way—Hinata, Granville, and the demon lord Luminus. They relied on more than just their power, using every possible trick in the book to earn their victory, and he knew never to let his guard down against them.
Now that he understood that, Veldora was a different creature from before. And he could prove it. Even during combat with Velzard, he could hold his own and go on the counterattack instead of just getting beaten up as usual. To him, Velzard was a kind of natural enemy, an extremely unfavorable opponent given how incompatible his strength was with hers. She had been born first, the upper limits of her powers all but a mystery to him. He may have had a larger magicule store, but they were so close to each other in nearly every other way that it wasn’t that much of an advantage.
In a proper battle, he couldn’t hold out much hope for victory. He had challenged her several times since being born, but was beaten back terribly each time. Velzard’s Eternal World skill was both an ironclad defense for her and a weapon that hampered Veldora’s movement. Gales, destruction, corrosion, ruin—all potential effects were nullified before this absolute wall.
This was the kind of terrifying sister he was up against, but much to his surprise, Veldora found that he could actually hold his own. Wow, he thought, I’m doing great! Velzard, after all, had learned how to fully control the magical force she released—something Veldora only noticed because he could control his own as well. The difference, however, was just way too big to compare. That was thanks in no small part to the nature of Velzard’s powers, letting her stop kinetic energy with so much ease, but the yawning gap between them was still obvious even without that.
But despite having that kind of skill, Velzard was unexpectedly honest in her praise of Veldora’s growth.
“Mmm, yes, it’s quite a surprise. You used to only act out like a spoiled child, but now you’re using your brain to fight as well, aren’t you? At this rate, maybe we don’t need to destroy you after all.”
There was a disturbing word or two in there, but the rest of it was unmistakably praise for Veldora. Considering he felt nothing but fear for her before then, it made him very happy to see. He still couldn’t beat her, but regardless…
So what about Velgrynd?
Well, Velzard and Velgrynd were about an even match in ability. To Veldora, they were both big sisters he had problems dealing with, and if he was honest with himself, he didn’t really want to fight either of them. But that wasn’t an option right now, so he had no choice but to step up.
“Velgrynd is as formidable as ever. Not even I could unleash an attack reaching across multiple labyrinth floors like that…”
Perhaps he could just use brute force to twist the dimensional layers enough to destroy one or two floors. But even if he used up all his magicules, not even he could smash through multiple floors with a single blow.
“The ultimate skill must be the key. If I want to hold my own against her, I will need to exercise Faust, Lord of Investigation, to the fullest.”
He was right. Veldora outclassed Velgrynd in magicule count, and he hoped that put him in a slightly better position with her than Velzard. That hope helped overcome the trauma of having this encounter in the first place.
The key to victory here lay in how well he used his powers. They had never seriously fought each other, but there was no doubt that Velgrynd was the stronger of the two. But that was a tale from the past. Velzard was hard to beat because her skills worked particularly well against Veldora, but that wouldn’t be the case with Velgrynd. What’s more, thanks to Rimuru, he had acquired the ultimate skill Faust, Lord of Investigation. That power worked against Velzard as well, and having it in hand made him think that even Velgrynd would be nothing to fear.
Now Veldora felt ready to take this mission on.
Kwah-ha-ha-ha-ha! Nobody’s doomed me to defeat yet, have they? I needed to test the extent of this power anyway—why not do it against my own sister?
With a new determination, Veldora appeared in front of Velgrynd.
The siblings stared each other down in midair, both in human form. They were perfectly still in the sky, which was natural for them as True Dragons.
“I’m glad you were intelligent enough to understand the meaning behind my warning. So you’ve decided to cooperate with me now?”
Velgrynd looked quite happy to see Veldora. She wouldn’t be for long.
“I refuse, my sister. I am not a tool for you to use as you see fit, and I’d much appreciate it if you’d stop involving me in your sisterly quarrels.”
“Involve? Such a mean word to use. What I’m saying is that if you willingly cooperate with me, I would welcome you as a close friend. Then I could teach you how to use your powers, allowing you to run wild as much as you want…although I’d ask you to let me choose the times and places for you.”
“Kwah-ha-ha-ha! My answer remains no, my sister. I have already fully perfected the use of my powers…and further, I no longer enjoy violence for violence’s sake. I have grown, you see. I am a grown dragon!”
“…I wouldn’t be so brazen if I were you. Perhaps we’ve spoiled you a bit too much? But very well. Let me see, then, just how much you’ve grown!”
With that light back-and-forth over and done with, Velgrynd was ready to duke it out. Veldora wasted no time, shoring up his position. From the start, his sister didn’t expect to recruit him strictly through verbal negotiation. She’d display her strength, and it would make him obey. And if that didn’t work, she’d just rough him up enough that Ludora could take control of him. Her taking the persuasion route was just Velgrynd’s way of showing a little kindness.
So, feeling mildly annoyed at this breakdown of negotiations, Velgrynd made her first unhesitant thrust at Veldora. She wanted to make this quick, incapacitating him enough that she’d have time to wait before Ludora showed up. But her right-handed chop was lightly parried away, rewarded with a kick from Veldora. Velgrynd, rapidly growing frustrated, caught it with her left hand, but:
…What?! This force! This doesn’t feel weakened at all!
Velgrynd thought that Veldora had yet to fully recover from three hundred years of being sealed away. The Veldora she knew would always throw 100 percent of his power around, so she assumed his current, weaker front was just an aftereffect of the seal. That back-and-forth just now made her realize the error of her ways.
“You’ve improved a little, haven’t you? Now I see that all your bragging is more than just words.”
“My Veldora-Style Death Stance is as invincible as it is undefeatable! And even you, my sister, will realize just how powerless you are before my—wh-whoa, whoa, whoa?!”
Velgrynd hadn’t come here to listen to Veldora smugly explain why he was so strong. Instead, even more annoyed than before, she launched into a more vicious attack. Crimson flames gathered around both of her fists, as well as the supple legs stretching out from her dress. Then a flurry of attacks came as a wild dance, searing enough to burn to death anything that touched it. But Veldora could withstand it.
“Ow! Hot, hot, hot!”
He sounded like a child and was fleeing at full speed from her, but it did not exact serious damage upon him.
“I’ve given you a great deal of discipline over the years, but it appears your head is just as immature as it always was. All that talk about being invincible and undefeatable is nothing short of ridiculous!”
Velgrynd was as furious as a raging inferno, but still she remained calm. Now she saw that Veldora was not only recovered from his prison, but far stronger than she ever expected.
This could be tricky. I can’t exercise my full force in this form, and I can’t deal much damage, either. Ludora will never be able to dominate him when he shows up…
The reason she came here wasn’t to rough Veldora up a bit and teach him a lesson. It was to dominate him. Once Ludora emerged victorious against Guy, they planned to give him his freedom back—but right now, he could be a very important pawn for them, and they wanted to procure him. From Velgrynd’s point of view, there was no point in keeping this a penny-ante game—and Veldora seemed to agree.
“Gwaah?! M-my clothes… The precious outfit granted to me by Rimuru! Now they’re all burned because of you, my sister!”
The outfit he had on was a gift from Rimuru, a token of his gratitude. It actually was precious to him, and now Velgrynd’s attack had ruined it. Given enough time, it would have been influenced enough by Veldora’s aura to become a literal part of his body…but expecting that much of a transformation in just a few days would be asking too much.
Veldora himself was largely unhurt, but this was a severe blow to his heart. It was wholly his fault for showing up to this wearing flammable gear, but still, he felt justified in taking his frustration out on his sister. And that was fortunate for Veldora, actually. Anger, after all, has a way of replacing fear in your mind, and no matter how motivated he was for this, he still had a fear of his sisters ingrained in him over many, many years. The two of them were a symbol of fear in his mind, and the idea of confronting either one with his full might would normally seem outlandish. Now, however, the fetters had been lifted.
“Sister or not, I will offer you no more mercy. Prepare to face my wrath!”
With that shout, Veldora released his powers. In his place, a mighty, majestic dragon, jet black in color, revealed himself. Velgrynd snickered at the sight. It was too convenient for her.
“Huh? All that nonsense… You truly are too unintelligent for your own good. It seems you’ve forgotten some very important facts. You cannot defeat me, and I suppose it’s time to teach you that once more.”
Velgrynd transformed as well, into her beautiful, limber, crimson dragon form—and so the epoch-making kaiju battle began.
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