Devouring Monarch: Rebirth of the Profane Phoenix - Chapter 423

Chapter 423: The First Time

Hours passed, with the four units of 500 troops splitting apart, each covering a certain area.

Danos, Vergil and Belial, each with their unique skills and experiences, all went with the right flank, while Alexander, Manfried and Louis were in the central unit along with Noir and Helia, each with their reasons for being there.

‘This way, Helia won’t get into combat easily; I can keep her from fighting.’

The sound of the troops clearing the forest was deafening, transforming the once peaceful woods into a land destroyed by the machine of war. Logs, branches and dry wood were swiftly collected by the non-combatants, who were responsible for the troops’ daily needs and logistics.

‘She’s carrying a fertilised egg, after all.’ Asura’s thoughts continued.

On the left Flank, it was a mixture of the knights from Lyndwrym and Gaius leading them and then for the leading unit was obviously Sigurd, Ignis, Asura and the Valkyries.

Their speed slowed considerably due to the number of workers that joined each group of 500 troops—the plan was to build a small camp in each direction, roughly five miles apart.

However, the worker’s stages were far too low to both travel, clear the way and endure the horrible monster forests.

Though clearing the leftover phantoms of low stages didn’t take much effort, the mental and physical strain on the workers showed after the first day came to a close.

More than ten miles from Helia, Gaius and Danos, Asura felt a strange sense of uncertainty. He could easily teleport and reach each group in a moment of minutes.

Nevertheless, his feeling of unease didn’t pass.

“Are you alright, Asura?” Shizuka asked while sitting on a fallen tree in her beautiful and fluffy spider form, her webs weaving into small silk threads.

These were the ones used to make unique clothes and items using the arachne technology after soaking them in a honey and oil barrel to remove the thick scent that would drive all other men but their mate to vomit.

“I’m just a little concerned there was no pushback. Hmmm, What are you making?”

“Fufu~ this is the silk that will eventually form a man’s kimono, a very special man.”

Asura walked closer, and although it seemed a little erotic, watching her treat the webbing that came from her behind, then forming it into fine, snow-white threads. Somehow, he couldn’t bring himself to leave her side.

‘Her silk, when not being used to attack me, is rather beautiful—in the sun, it looks like snow, yet in the moonlight, it shines with a slight silver glow, like a direwolf’s mane.’

“Oh my, do you find it interesting to watch? Or are you a pervert getting turned on by this?” Shizuka liked to make jokes, especially when it became quiet.

However, Asura didn’t mind. Shizuka was an attractive woman, just like her daughters.

Yet, he enjoyed the creation of new things, from the dwarves creating walls, cannons and various crazy items in his lands to the small webbings spiders make in the garden overnight.

“Maybe both, if it’s you I’m watching.”

“Eh?”

Her voice seemed to turn inside out, for a moment losing her mature composure as her thread spurt across the air and landed in the distance. She looked back, her gem-like eyes all blinking before she turned away, clicking her tongue.

“Hmph!”

‘That’s where Rasha got it from!’

“Will you make something for me one day?” He asked a simple question, imagining the eastern fashion that the arachne supplied to most tribes and the Empire in return for their acceptance and protection.

A beautiful silver and white kimono with black highlights and a silky finish.

While imagining that, he watched Shizuka’s actions for hours, the crackle of the fading flames around them slowly running out of fuel as they burnt to the limit.

Heading towards the fire, Asura tossed on a few more logs, a fierce crackle, and the flames hissed back in anger. Before they calmed down and returned to the darkness, the shadows began to shrink, returning to their natural size.

“You don’t need to stay up, rest, Asura.”

“No, I want to sit here. It’s relaxing… Hmm? What’s that!”

A distant sound, that of screaming, agonised cries and the faint clash of steal and quaking of the earth. Asura’s eyes narrowed before he closed them, focusing himself as his magic began to swell in a dome. It started at ten metres, one hundred, one thousand until the enormous dome of magic covered over ten miles.

‘There’s fighting… at the east and west, Grom seems fine. However, Danos and the others are struggling.’

“Enemy Attack!” Asura bellowed, his voice almost ringing through the entire forest, like a dormant bear waking mid-winter because of hunters.

The calm before the storm had finally disappeared, and the battle had begun.

…

The leader of the Valkyries, the spear maiden Ignis, rushed to Asura’s side. She had been training in the forest, unable to understand why her chest felt strange for the past few weeks.

‘Whenever master is close, I cannot help but feel a tight… heavy feeling as if someone is sitting on my chest, then my heart races as he smiles or compliments me.’

Ignis didn’t like the feeling. It was too strange and interfered with combat, so she was trying to forget about it and avoided Asura as much as possible. However, the moment his voice called out, her legs, wings and body moved on their own.

Within seconds, she was kneeling before him, that feeling once again throbbing, like a dull ache inside her chest upon seeing him sitting with another woman.

“Master, what’s happening?”

“Ignis, take the valkyries and support Grom to the west. His group is under attack from some monsters and beasts.”

“It’s not a trap?”

“Unlikely, go now! Don’t waste time.”

She stood, bowing, and her armour and weapons transformed. She flew high into the air, her voice echoing through the dark sky, a few rays of moonlight shining through the canopy, before over two hundred of them all shot towards the west. Her heart wanted to ask, ‘Who is that woman? Why do you sit so close.’ Yet Ignis thought those questions to be an act of betrayal towards her commander and master.

The Valkyrie were a race born from magic. Their reproductive instincts and feelings beyond combat and loyalty were limited. The only thing they could comprehend was the man before them was their master.

However, after meeting him, they began to change. Was it the effect of having a male master? For as long as their kind existed it was only women they served, now… many of the Valkyrie began to change, evolve and started to ask questions, seek hobbies and new goals after meeting this strange master.

‘These thoughts are stupid… I fly to battle for my master and Silvara!’

Ignis couldn’t think about the future, nor did she care for it. All she could do was fight, kill and serve Asura.

‘My chest…’

Yet the aching pain in her chest returned, and as if an invisible hand reached into her core and tore her apart, her body cried, and tears leaked from her eyes, staining the air and falling into the forest.

Battle in the west was fierce; the orcs and knights formed a tight wall; however, the enemy was a mix of monsters, beasts and men; the men seemed to control and organise the beasts while using magic to support them.

Dozens of magic circles formed in the eyes of Ignis as she watched from above, her sisters all looking down, the enemy’s troops oblivious.

“Ready your magic. Aim for the strongest beasts and monsters first, then the weaker humans.”

Ignis ordered, yet…

“Lady Ignis… should we not take down the humans casting magic first?” A beautiful Valkyrie with long silver hair and a mature figure spoke out; her name was Beltra.

“Hmm…?!” Ignis felt confused and realised that because of the pain in her chest, her thoughts weren’t clear. Yes, the monsters and beasts were causing more damage, but why did she ignore magic when she was born to know magic is dangerous?

‘What is wrong with me today?!’

“Beltra is right! Valkyries, kill the mages and wizards first. The rest, leave them to the knights and orcs. They can handle them.”

Despite having accepted Beltra’s view, frustration, anger and jealousy built up, her teeth grinding as she flapped her wings aggressively. Ignis could not understand her feelings yet…

‘My chest, it’s a heavy and painful feeling as if someone is tearing my insides apart.’

The strange feeling was increasing, and the more she thought back to the woman beside Asura, the way their atmosphere seemed so peaceful and calm… beyond anything she remembered in the past, it made her angry… Silver light flowed from the tip of her lance and billowed from her wings like stardust.

“HAH!”

A blow filled with anger, lacking her usual finesse.

‘Why am I so… so…’

“I’ll kill the leader…”

An order. A single command.

Yet, it was given to herself.

A Valkyrie who had lost control of her emotions and was being driven by feelings of envy and frustration, she began to slaughter the humans, abusing her magic and overworking her core, and nobody even noticed.

They only thought…

“As expected of our Captain!”

“Lady Ignis will guide us all!”

However… the enemy wasn’t stupid or weak.

“LADY IGNIS LOOK OUT!”

The world became silent…

A bolt of lightning cut through the air, and a thunderous explosion followed, the entire sky shaking as the blast reverberated.

Ignis, who was consumed by a sense of anger, looked toward the magic, her body slowly falling. Her right wings were destroyed… nothing but burned feathers remained after a new unit appeared.

A unit she would have noticed if not fighting without her head.

The Empire’s ambush was a success…

From over the hill, hidden by the thick greenery and trees, over 2000 troops in heavy armour appeared wielding powerful anti-air weapons.

It was Asura’s first large mistake since he began to command his troops.

However, within those troops, there were several knights from the Lyrndwrym fortress who were supposed to have been in the rear central unit.