The two simultaneous dragon roars filled the world with color incomparable to anything before. A wave of red and black light covered the battlefield and coalesced, swallowing the demon generals that could only helplessly watch its progression.
The Kraken phantom they had erected melted away due to the extreme mana and heat, and even the barriers they tried to erect were burned away without problem.
It was especially troubling for the female demon general, who managed to regain a semblance of reason in the face of a fatal threat. But it was all too late.
Boooom!
The raging torrent of mana didn't stop its movements for many minutes, causing even the normal geniuses on the ground below to retreat in apprehension. The demon captains they had been facing were directly incinerated without even knowing how they died.
After many minutes of such pandemonium, the brilliant light finally faded, giving way to the now scorched land outside of Astoria city.
"Wow!"
An enthusiastic yelp was the first sound that was made after the passing of the storm. That mysterious black-haired girl was staring at the aftermath with shining eyes, scanning for traces of the demon generals.
Damien grinned lightly at her response before spreading his awareness to do the same. And it didn't take him long to find what he was looking for.
Hundreds of meters away, the charred body of the female demon general was slumped on the ground. Although he could sense lifeforce from her, it was obvious that she had been knocked unconscious.
Teleporting a few times to reach her body, Damien did a deeper scan. "Wow, it looks like the heat did most of the damage on her, huh."
Despite saying something so obvious, Damien had a surprised expression on his face. His dragon's breath was blisteringly hot, sure, but the heat didn't compare to the penetrative power and sheer destruction that was provided by the black lightning.
But, he had to acquiesce. The sunflames seemed to be exhibiting more and more power as he learned how to use them. And perhaps one day when he had enough mana to sustain them, they'd become an integral part of his arsenal.
Snapping out of his thoughts, he grabbed the body of the female demon general and slung it over his shoulder. He debated whether or not to put it in the Sanctuary, but there was no way he'd do so with little Xue'er happily exploring it.
'I should make a private area so I can move with more freedom in there.'
A wry smile decorated his face as he realized how troubling it was to keep a little kid around him, but he quickly shook it off. He was the one who made the decision, so he'd see it through to the end.
His gaze soon traveled to the rest of the battlefield. The corpses of the two other demon generals weren't too far away, but it was evident that they hadn't been as lucky as the female. Their bodies didn't even resemble humans anymore, being more similar to lumps of charred meat.
"So? How was it? I helped right?"
"You know I could've done it on my own either way, it was your choice to step in."
"Still still! I helped didn't I!"
"Aghh, fine! You helped! Are you happy now?!"
"Hehehe, miss Flame Queen herself is praising me, how can I not be happy?"
"Tch!"
The mysterious girl and Feng Qing'er happily bickered, acting as though the battle from before hadn't happened in the first place.
And on further observation, Damien could see that this was basically the case. The mana in their bodies was as rigorous as ever, and he couldn't see any signs of exhaustion on their faces.
Even if they had to fight another ten generals, these two would probably still have the stamina to continue fighting.
Silently admiring the physical body of beasts, Damien did a light stretch. And then, while everyone was busy, he quietly teleported away.
Or at least, he tried to.
"Oi! Where do you think you're going?!" A loud yell came his way.
Turning his head slightly, he saw Feng Qing'er and that mysterious girl approaching him.
With a wry smile, he responded. "Yo, rank 3! Haven't seen you in a while!"
"Why do you insist on calling me rank 3, huh? I have a name, you know."
"Eh? It's too long and I'm too lazy. Rank 3 is a lot more fitting."
"Bastard!"
When it looked like Feng Qing'er was ready to pounce on him again, another voice chimed into their conversation.
"My, my! Mr.beam attack seems to get along well with the princess!"
Damien looked over to see that mysterious girl smiling slyly.
"Ah, right right I guess I should introduce myself." With a cordial curtsy mimicking princess even though the girl was wearing combat clothes, she continued. "My name is Qing Tan, or I guess in your mind I'm rank 5."
"Ohh, so that's you. Mm, makes sense why you were on par with rank 3 over there." Damien nodded his head matter-of-factly.
"On par? You jest! How could I dare compare myself to the princess?"
"Grrr!" What sounded like growling interrupted them. "You bastards dare to keep ignoring me?! You're asking for a beating!"
Feng Qing'er charged at Qing Tan, smacking her forehead continuously.
"Ah! Big sister spare me!" Qing Tan screamed. If Damien wasn't standing right next to them, he would've thought she was being severely beaten from how painful she made her screams sound.
Damien chuckled. 'These two seem awfully close. Or is it just this Qing Tan's personality? She gives off that wild and carefree vibe.'
While the two girls played around, Damien glanced at the body that was slung across his shoulder. 'I shouldn't delay this.'
Thinking so, he cleared his throat. "Alright, I know you probably have some questions and I have some answers as well, but let me go interrogate this woman real quick before I answer."
"And how do I know you aren't going to run away?" Feng Qing'er frowned.
"Ah? When did I ever run away? You should know that I, Damien Void, have never run from anything in my life!"
"Damien Void, is that your real name? Did you think a stupid last name like that would fool us? Besides, didn't you run like a headless chicken when we met after the magma trial?"
"Hey! What's so stupid about my last name?!" Damien swiftly ignored the last question she asked.
"Please, as if any normal person would carry the family name Void. Obviously you're playing another prank."
Damien wanted to refute, but truthfully, even he had cringed at his last name multiple times in the past.
'Fuck, I really don't want to agree with her.'
Now that he thought about it, Damien Void, Void Physique, Void Essence, he cringed once more at the repetitiveness of Void in his body.
'Damn that old man! Did he know about my physique and purposefully name me Void to spite me?'
Considering his conjectures about his father, the reasoning behind his random thoughts didn't actually seem that illogical. Thinking that he found one more reason to beat his dad up, Damien refocused on the main issue.
"Okay, enough jokes. I need to get as much information as I can out of her before these shitty demons make another move."
With that, he flashed away, teleporting until he reached a secluded area where even beasts weren't present.
Thump!
Damien threw the woman's body on the ground without any semblance of decency. Then, grabbing one of the chairs he made with Xue'er out of the Sanctuary, he sat down in front of her.
"Let's get to work."
