Dealing with Kagali’s party was starting to seriously rile Jahil. He had thought they were wimps, but he still hadn’t been able to land any decisive damage on them, a fact that made him wince with anger.
But his thoughts were calm. He was well aware of what was happening around him.
This is insane… I can’t believe the Dragon Princess had that much power the whole time… No, but more than that—
Zarario’s betrayal was a real problem. Jahil didn’t know how it happened, but Zarario was helping keep Milim captive—a distressing twist. Jahil didn’t care about loyalty to Feldway or anything like that. For him, the problem was that he had no other allies left in this region to count on. If it was just Kagali’s party, he could probably trounce them in time, but if Zarario was his enemy, too, escape could prove pretty difficult.
(This isn’t what I was promised, Feldway!!)
He shot off an enraged Thought Communication to blow off some steam. After a short silence, Feldway muttered back at him.
(You’re saying Zarario betrayed us…?)
(Stop acting like a doddering old man! I’m in danger, too, if this keeps up! I’m going to retreat, but do you mind that?)
He was polite enough to ask, but Jahil was already preparing his escape. It was humiliating, considering how inferior his opponents were, but taking that extra caution was how Jahil had survived. Otherwise Milim would have obliterated him long ago.
So Jahil held his Demigod’s Bloodspear tight…then unleashed a power he never had before. The Bloodspear had a lot of power; he had forced it to accept him as its master, but its rejection instinct made it dangerous to use too much. It was an ultimate weapon, though, one he could trust in a pinch—and when combined with Jahil’s own skills, it could conjure up Evil Bloodwaves that could vaporize even the largest of nations.
This worked the same in principle as a thermobaric weapon. By scattering magicules across a wide area, then setting them aflame, he could generate an explosion. And he hadn’t been fighting at random, either. While keeping Teare and Sylvia at bay, he was also secretly spreading magicules around. They now filled the battlefield, ready to transform into murderous hellfire at Jahil’s will.
These guys would likely withstand my Evil Bloodwave, though.
This was a wide-range skill meant for use against whole armies, so it wouldn’t be a decisive blow against a strong enough opponent. Anyone below a high-level magic-born, though, could never survive.
The magicules Jahil dispersed covered Thalion’s Magus corps. They’d engulf and burn Zarario’s forces to the ground, too, but that was none of Jahil’s business. It’d be the perfect distraction to save his own life with, so he wouldn’t hesitate to use it.
“Prepare to see just how great I am, you maggots!”
Then in a single burst of combustion, Jahil detonated his Evil Bloodwave.
The sacred tree was covered in flames, its outermost layer exploding from the super-high heat. The Magus deployed in all directions to protect the tree were similarly engulfed. Sylvia and Teare, standing in front of Jahil, and Kagali, a little behind them, were too caught up in the flames to react.
“Ha-ha-ha-ha! Take that and die, you bastards! May you wail in despair in the afterlife, forever trying to stop me!”
Jahil laughed hysterically as he sneaked away, hiding in the flames.
………
……
…
The blazing fire was threatening to consume the very atmosphere itself. But the moment Jahil left the picture…
“Boy. Good thing he wasn’t paying attention.”
With those words from Benimaru, all the flames were extinguished at once. It looked like it was going to be a catastrophe, but the next thing everyone knew, there was only minor damage. Sylvia, Teare, and Kagali didn’t even suffer any burns. The Magus, who had been in the greatest danger, were all safe. Some of the magic mounts were stuck where they were, damaged by the sudden wave of intense heat, but all their pilots were protected, so there were no serious injuries.
The sacred tree, the one thing everyone thought would be a maelstrom of flames, remained fresh-looking down to the last twig, although there were scorch marks here and there. The tree wasn’t as damaged as it looked, and in a few days, it would likely be good as new.
“I tell you, it sure was hard manipulating the air so Jahil wouldn’t notice!” said Elmesia.
“You’ve done well, Emperor Elmesia,” Benimaru said. “You made the perfect decision, just as I expected.”
Benimaru flashed a hearty smile, consoling the grumbling Elmesia.
As may be inferred from this exchange, the minimal damage from Evil Bloodwave was thanks to Benimaru’s behind-the-scenes work. The job he was doing made him a literal jack of all trades—and master of them all, too. While proceeding with his operation to stop Milim, he was assisting Kagali’s party with Jahil—and also working with Elmesia to foil Jahil’s plot, preventing damage before it occurred.
The magicules Jahil’s skill spread around were actually a special flammable type of matter called bloodmist. Vampires occasionally used this for their spells, but wrangling this matter was one other skill of the Demigod’s Bloodspear. Bloodmist had a slightly different aroma from natural magicules, which Benimaru recognized through some precise Control Magic work, making him realize Jahil was up to something.
But Benimaru wasn’t the only person to spot this. Sylvia immediately sensed the danger, but she had no idea how to deal with it. If she made any untoward moves, she feared Jahil would speed up his spell, causing even more damage. So she asked Benimaru what to do—and since he had noticed it, too, he already had a full grasp of the situation. That alone was impressive, but it didn’t bring them any closer to a solution.
No, the answer came down from the heavens.
You must use Elmesia’s ultimate skill Vayu, King of Heavenly Wind, to gather the bloodmist alone, then the ultimate skill Amaterasu, Lord of Shimmering Flame, to burn only the demonic blood.
Upon hearing this revelation, Benimaru immediately sprang into action, asking no further questions. Some things in the world were better off not being examined too closely. He’d heard that voice back when Rimuru connected that Void Collapse circuit to him, too, but Benimaru freely accepted what it told him, pretending nothing was amiss.
Everything in accordance with Sir Rimuru’s will, you could say. If this heavenly voice is working in his favor, I’ll just go along with it.
So with that resolve, Benimaru stayed busy both in public and behind the curtain. With the help of Elmesia and the others, he made it through another crisis.
So Jahil’s plan was foiled, thanks to the efforts of Benimaru, Sylvia, and Elmesia. Jahil himself had made good his escape, but given their lack of backup, Benimaru thought it best not to take any more chances. This was really the best outcome possible.
Then as soon as everything settled down, Benimaru collapsed. Seeing Jahil was gone made every bone in his body give way at once. Soei, perhaps anticipating this, quickly steadied him.
“Can’t blame him after all he’s done for us.”
Elmesia’s eyes were as gentle and respectful as her words as she watched the fainted Benimaru. To her, Benimaru was a national hero who’d saved Thalion from its greatest crisis. She knew how hard he worked for it, and it was only natural for her to react that way.
Still, she had a lot of work left to do, mainly dealing with Zarario and his legion, who were all alive and well. The task concerned her. With Jahil gone, there was a lull in the battle, with both sides waiting to see what the other would do. Should she get this battle roaring again? That was the question on her mind.
Since Benimaru stepped up to stop Jahil’s attack, none of Zarario’s forces were damaged. It wasn’t quite an even match anymore—they actually had a slight advantage over Thalion’s army. Their baseline forces weren’t much of a threat, but those two generals were a menace. There was so much to worry about, and what was worse, she wasn’t sure if the enemy would even agree to a ceasefire.
Elmesia pondered at super-speed, simulating all the possibilities that came to mind. But her worries would soon be over, long before she could work out any answers.
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