BXBX NOVEL Volume 6 prologue
For her [Rebirth], I used the [King] medal which was a special medal awarded by the Creator to the [Time] Demon Lord and was then given by him to me.
In addition, I also used my [Creation] medal. Thanks to its ability to let me choose the outcome I wanted, Marcho was reborn with her abilities as a Demon Lord still intact.
Due to that and the fact that she became my monster, her dungeon and her subordinate monsters became mine.
At the moment, she was busy reorganizing her dungeon and her fighting force.
The damage her dungeon received in the recent attack wasn’t insignificant. The plan was for her to take about 3 days to finish reorganizing her dungeon and the chain of command of her fighting force before heading out to Avalon.
I was reluctant to part with Marcho but I couldn’t be away from Avalon for too long. And so, I led my monsters and began our trip back.
We boarded the gigantic containers that were to be carried by the Darkness Dragons. After some time, we landed on the [Plain] room of my dungeon.
My monsters then exited from the containers, looked toward Avalon, and marveled at it.
"We’re finally back."
"As Kuina thought, Avalon is the best!"
"Mhm. It’s calming."
"We’re finally back. I wanna go to the orchard right away. I’m worried about those children. I have to give them lots of care."
I was in the lead and was followed right away by my [Monsters of the Covenant] and each of them—Kuina the Celestial Fox, Rorono the Elder Dwarf, and Aura the Ancient Elf—voiced their amazements.
I was gone for only nearly a day but I sure missed the place. It seemed my monsters all felt the same. To each of them, this city was their home where their life and work was.
"Master, I have to repair these children who worked hard."
Rorono was fired up as she carried a big sack which contained many golem cores.
In the last campaign, aside from the ones that carried our trump card, the MOAB, all golems were destroyed.
It was through their efforts acting as our shields that my monsters didn’t suffer any casualties.
Even if their bodies were destroyed, so long as the central part of them, their golem cores, were alright, they could be rebuilt.
"Rorono, I know it’s a lot of work but do your best, okay?"
"Of course, these children are very important to me, after all. ...but there’s not enough stock of orichalcum left. I used them up when I made the first batch of Avalon-Ritters. It will probably take time to gather all the necessary orichalcum to fix everyone."
The quality and quantity that could be gotten from a [Mine] was proportional to the strength of the Demon Lord that owned it. In my case, only a small amount of orichalcum could be mined.
The Avalon-Ritters were made using the few orichalcum that we gathered from my dungeon and from Marcho’s dungeon when I still lived there.
However, that stock was now all gone.
The Mithril Golems aside, it would take a very long time before the Avalon-Ritters could have new bodies again.
But as I am right now...
"I’ve gotten stronger from the last war. I think that, maybe, the amount of orichalcum that could be mined have increased. Plus, because we can dig in Marcho’s dungeon again, we actually have more sources of orichalcum than ever before. So, don’t make that face anymore, Rorono."
When Rorono heard me, Rorono brightened up. She cared greatly for the golems and the possibility of repairing them sooner than expected made her happy.
The golems, including the Avalon-Ritters, were an important part of our fighting force. Having them repaired as soon as possible was obviously very beneficial to us.
Next, I’d like to give everyone a reward but it seems everyone’s tired right now.
I thought so and then turned toward my monsters who were all lined up.
"My beloved monsters! Thanks to your efforts, we’ve won. It is because of all of you that we’ve managed to seize victory despite the difference in fighting force with the enemies. Most important of all, we managed to return here without losing anyone. I truly am proud of you all. And, everyone, thank you!"
My monsters cheered.
Everyone that had gathered there were the very same individuals as when we left. The fact that we hadn’t lost anyone after all those fighting was proof of their tenacity.
"I don’t intend on only offering my feelings of gratitude though; I fully intend on giving everyone actual rewards. Save for those who can’t be away from their jobs, everyone will have no work for today and for tomorrow. Furthermore, everyone will also be given plenty of bonus money."
When I said so, the monsters’ cheers grew even louder.
Some monsters even began making plans with the ones they were close with.
My monsters were mostly humanoid monsters and could therefore spend money without issue. As of the moment, Avalon offered various alcohol and cuisines from all over the world so, as long as a monster of mine had money, they would be able to have plenty of fun right here.
For that day and the next, I wanted my monsters to have plenty of rest, lots of fun, and have many opportunities to broaden their horizons.
"I will also be giving special rewards to the two individuals who have contributed greatly to our war efforts: R’lyeh Diva and Rorono. R’lyeh Diva was the one risked her life to guard the other dimension, the one who first joined up with Marcho’s monsters, and the one who guided us to victory. Whereas, Rorono was the one who developed and gave us both the MOAB and the Avalon-Ritters."
When I announced so, my monsters pushed both R’lyeh Diva, the other world songstress, and Rorono the Elder Dwarf until they were in front of me.
Despite looking somewhat embarrassed, the two still looked delighted and proud.
"First, to you, R’lyeh Diva. I’d like to grant you a name. As part of my top brass, I want you to be closer to me from now on."
The moment R’lyeh Diva heard the word name, she smiled from ear to ear.
But she immediately tried to conceal it and act like it wasn’t anything impressive.
"W-well, if you’re offering, patron, I’ll accept. I can’t say no, anyway."
She turned away her face but I knew full well that it was only due to her bashfulness.
She might appear rebellious but at her core, she was someone who was diligent and thought about her companions.
For those reasons, I had decided to give her a name.
"Oh, but forgive me, it’ll have to wait until next month. I still have to name Wight, the greatest contributor in the war before this. Wight, I’ve made you wait quite a long time, haven’t I, Wight? But rest easy now: in three days, I’ll give you your name. I’m hoping for your continued service as my right hand man."
The others approved of what I said; none of them objected to him receiving a name.
He was a very popular guy, it seemed.
Actually, I wanted to give him a name much earlier but doing so meant not having access to my magic power for about a month and a situation where I could afford to lose my magic power hadn’t come until recently.
As of the moment, the ideal time to give him a name was when I have reunited with Marcho three days later so that things could settle down. Truth be told though, I would have wanted to complete making another MOAB to serve as our defensive trump card first but Wight obviously took a higher priority than that.
And then, once he has been named and I have gotten my magic power back, I was going to name R’lyeh Diva.
"My thanks, my lord. I dedicate my entire being to you."
Wight, who took on the form of a dragonewt, smiled, saluted, and then said so.
In response, I nodded to him.
Okay, onto the next one.
Rorono had contributed to our efforts time and time again. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that without her, Avalon wouldn’t be what it presently was.
"Rorono."
"Mhm."
Rorono triumphantly puffed out her chest.
I found such a gesture to be quite charming.
"Rorono, I’ve said this to you before: so long as I can grant it, ask me whatever you wish and I will give it to you. However, you didn’t ask for anything back then and still haven’t. I don’t know if it’s because you’re being shy or just being reserved but if I don’t give you a reward for your distinguished services this time, my reputation as a Demon Lord would be tainted. So, here’s the deal: take a break today and tomorrow and then after that, give me an answer. If you still don’t have one by then... I’ll give you one that’ll make you blush."
"W-wha? Father, what are you talking of?"
Perhaps it was due to her great surprise but she referred to me as Father, a term she used only when she allowed herself to act like sweet child.
"It won’t be any fun if I tell you that, will it? If you don’t want to risk it, then come up with a reward for yourself, alright?"
Red-faced, she opened and closed her mouth repeatedly.
Meanwhile, the other monsters teased her, making her even redder.
It was such pleasant scene.
Having said so much, I was quite confident that she would eventually ask me for her desired reward without holding back.
I really do want to give her what she wants. Well, now that it’s settled, there’s no more reason to hold everybody here.
"Everyone, your bonus money will be distributed later. So, with that said, let us disband. Enjoy today and tomorrow to the fullest!"
My monsters then produced quite a hubbub as they chatted with each other, making plans on what they’ll do for their holiday. Many of them were so excited, they returned to Avalon immediately.
However, among the monsters there, one girl approached me and grabbed my hand.
".........I’m looking forward to those more amazing things."
It was the girl with pure-white hair and wolf ears: Fel. The [Time] Demon Lord had entrusted to me this daughter of his but apparently, during my usage of [Awakening] where I wasn’t myself, I had carelessly promised her something.
And so, cold sweat ran down my spine.
"Today is fine, right? Fel would like to go to your home tonight so that you can pleasure me more than before."
"Y-yeah, okay, look forward to it."
Intimidated, I thoughtlessly agreed.
"Absolutely!"
With a satisfied look, she nodded and then left.
How do I get out of this? I only have ’til tonight to come up with something good. In a way, I have to wrack my brain for this than any other battle we’ve had.