Chapter 177

Gufadgarn remembered the very moment he came into existence.

He was born as a result of the instinctual behaviors of the beings that were equivalent to ‘parents,’ and as he continued living on while following the same instincts, coincidence after coincidence brought him to the status of a god. That made up half of Gufadgarn’s life.

Gufadgarn was born as a race that could be compared to Earth’s spiders or perhaps its antlions. The difference between his race and these Earth species was that his race could instinctively manipulate space-attribute magic, distorting space to create traps for members of other species that they would then feed upon.

They were a primitive race that possessed almost no ability to think, simply obeying their instincts. Gufadgarn was the first of his race to become a god. But the moment he became a god, he lost his instincts.

Because his was a race that simply set traps and waited for their prey, he had weak instincts for battle or hunting, and as they reproduced by binary fission, he had no sexual desires. And by becoming a god, he even lost his need to eat and sleep.

What he gained in return was abilities that his original species did not possess – the ability to think and remember, and the power of a god.

But Gufadgarn could not make use of these. His servants, those of the species that he had once belonged to, were unable to understand his desires. He found no meaning in bringing them prosperity or even in toying with them.

Despite having become a god, he could not think of anything else to do with them, and so he simply spent his days doing the same things that he had done before becoming a god. The only difference was that his traps became larger and more complex.

Before long, Guduranis became the new Demon King, took control over the world and began the invasion into other worlds. Not even understanding the concept of disobeying, Gufadgarn naturally obeyed the Demon King and joined the invasion of Lambda.

In Lambda, with the circle of reincarnation system created by the Demon King and the monster generation that utilized that system, the traps created by Gufadgarn functioned effectively as Dungeons.

But there were already others who possessed such power, far more powerful than Gufadgarn, such as the evil god of demon castles. In addition to that, many evil gods gained the ability to create Dungeons due to the Demon King’s influence.

Thus, Gufadgarn simply remained forgotten among the other gods.

That was when the champion Zakkart called out to Gufadgarn. Zakkart accepted Gufadgarn, acknowledging him as a desirable and necessary ally.

Gufadgarn remembered that moment as the moment that he had truly been born.

Now, he was looking directly at Vandalieu. He realized that Vandalieu was the soul created by combining the soul fragments of Zakkart and the other creation-oriented champions.

“This is the place that is the equivalent of this Dungeon’s treasure chamber; it is Zakkart’s workshop, brought here in the exact same state that it was left in,” he said, remaining calm on the surface as he guided his new master and his companions.

But his master’s party stopped in front of the treasure chamber.

“Why are there countless Ghosts gathered around this place, letting out groans of anguish?” asked Vandalieu.

Indeed, the reason they had stopped was because for some reason, there were over a thousand Ghosts, groaning in anguish as they drifted about the treasure chamber that Gufadgarn had led them to.

It was an orchestra of anguish performed by over a thousand human souls that only vaguely resembled human faces, having lost their original appearances. Ghosts were merely Rank 2 monsters, but their presence was dreadful.

“These are what remains of those that believed in the gods of Alda’s faction and perished in the trial,” said Gufadgarn.

This was an even more dreadful truth to Alda and his believers.

“In order to prevent them from delivering information regarding the Trial of Zakkart to the gods of Alda’s faction, and in order to prevent them from becoming a part of the enemy’s forces as familiar spirits and heroic spirits, I am imprisoning them here and using them as a source of power,” Gufadgarn explained.

The power of gods came from religious belief, but fear and awe counted as religious belief as well. Gods would gain less power from this than prayers, but every little bit counted.

This swarm of Ghosts was one of the things that allowed Gufadgarn to maintain the Trial of Zakkart, a unique Dungeon whose difficulty was matched by no other.

But now, they had already served their purpose.

“My apologies. I will banish them into some empty space and dispose of them right away,” said Gufadgarn, with the air of someone telling their guests that they would quickly clean their dirty room as he began his task of exterminating the Ghosts.

The Ghosts trembled with dread and despair.

“Wait a moment, I might be able to use those Ghosts. Please leave them as they are,” said Vandalieu.

“Very well,” said Gufadgarn, canceling his space-distorting spell.

The Ghosts let out sighs of relief and, under the influence of the Dark Demon Creation Path Skill, gathered around Vandalieu.

They had no hair, but it was just barely possible to tell that they were human souls by the black holes where their eyes and mouth were supposed to be. Eleanora and Iris, who had regrouped with Vandalieu, grimaced as they watched them surround Vandalieu.

“What an amazing scene… Do you think you can tell them apart?” asked Eleanora.

Eleanora and Iris were accustomed to the presence of Undead, but the Ghosts Tamed by Vandalieu appeared the same as they had while they were alive apart from the fact that their bodies weren’t physical. They had never seen Ghosts whose forms had weakened to this extent.

“Hmm… It’s almost impossible,” said Vandalieu as he stroked the neck of one of the Ghosts, causing it to let out a moan of pleasure.

He wasn’t sure that he could even make out what their race, age or gender was, let alone their individual features.

The Ghost of Martina, the female Elf spiritual mage who had once been Heinz’s companion, should have been among them, however.

“Is an Elf by the name of Martina present?” Vandalieu tried asking them just in case.

But the Ghosts simply groaned, unable to answer with words that could be understood.

No, there was one Ghost who had died relatively recently who answered.

“I don’t knoooow…” it said.

“… Thank you,” said Vandalieu.

It looked hopeless.

“Is there a Ghost that you are searching for? I apologize for this,” said Gufadgarn.

He had noticed what Vandalieu and his companions were doing, but he still didn’t seem to know the details. He had been sure that they had been looking at the stone statues and ice statues earlier in the Dungeon because Vandalieu wanted to choose corpses to use as materials for Undead.

Of course, he knew that Ghosts such as Princess Levia were among Vandalieu’s companions, but they were high-Rank Ghosts the likes of which Gufadgarn had never seen before. He had never thought that Vandalieu would need these Ghosts. Some of them had been A-class adventurers when they were alive, but they were nothing more than Rank 2 Ghosts now.

“Could it be that even Gufadgarn cannot tell them apart?” muttered Gizania, a citizen of the region within the Boundary Mountain Range.

Gufadgarn heard her and his shoulders trembled. “I am terribly, terribly sorry,” he said, lowering his head to Gizania to beg for her forgiveness. “They blinded themselves to their own shortsightedness and their hatred grew. Being in contact with my Mana, they became Ghosts. I wanted to ensure that they do not do anything unnecessary… that they did not try to destroy the relics or give advice to the other challengers. Thus, I induced them to quickly lose their personalities and memories,” he explained. “I do remember hearing the name ‘Martina,’ but I am no longer able to tell which of these is her. This is all because I lacked the ability to manage them properly. Gizania-dono, please punish me as you see fit.”

“P-punish?! Th-that’s unthinkable; please raise your head! Even now, all races within the Boundary Mountain Range, including those of Zanalpadna, are receiving your blessings! It is I who should apologize for making such a thoughtless remark!” Gizania said in shock, shaking her head so violently that it looked like her head would be torn off.

But Gufadgarn remained as motionless as a rock, still bowing. “I am grateful for your words, but the things that I accomplished in the past are unrelated.”

“Why?! You have performed many great deeds over the course of history!” Gizania exclaimed.

Gizania was not the only one; the Empusa Myuze and Iris, who had become the adopted daughter of the King Godwin by becoming a Majin, joined in to try and stop Gufadgarn’s gesture.

“That is right!” said Myuze. “You are the one who created the Dungeons around the Kijin nation, the Drakonid nation and the Majin nation to preemptively suppress the contaminated Mana, containing it in a state that can be managed! And you created ‘Vida’s Resting Grounds!’”

“Father has told me that Zantark is our father, that Xerxes is our uncle and you, Gufadgarn, are our master! Please raise your head!” Iris insisted.

Their flustered behavior made it clear just how much respect and emotion the people living within the Boundary Mountain Range felt towards Gufadgarn.

But it seemed that Gufadgarn himself did not intend to take that into consideration. “No, before I am a god, I am Vandalieu’s servant. You are my senpais. Is it so strange for me, the newcomer, to bow to you? Everyone, please think of me as a newcomer servant or attendant.” He raised his face for a moment, saw Eleanora and Legion in addition to the other three who had been protesting, and quickly looked down again.

“Wait a moment! Are you talking about us as well?!” Eleanora exclaimed.

“No, that does not bode well at all…” Zadiris murmured.

The rest of the party had been watching nervously, but their faces stiffened now as they realized that Gufadgarn was talking about them as well.

“Of course, Eleanora-sama, Zadiris-sama,” said Gufdagarn.

“Why are you adding -sama to our names?!” Eleanora demanded.

“It is only natural for Vandalieu’s servant to show respect for those who will become his future wives.”

Though Vandalieu’s companions were disturbed by this, Gufadgarn truly considered them to be higher in the hierarchy than himself. The only ones who weren’t were the Ghosts of the previous challengers.

He was a newcomer who had only been accepted as Vandalieu’s subordinate a few minutes ago, while the others had been serving him since before they faced the trial of Zakkart. It didn’t need to be said which of them had more seniority.

The matter of being a god or a mortal was meaningless… though everyone but Gufadgarn might have disagreed.

“E-even if I am a Vampire who once belonged to a faction who worshipped an evil god, a close aide of the Pure-breed Vampire Ternecia who betrayed you?!” said Bellmond.

“Of course, Bellmond-sama,” Gufadgarn replied.

This applied to not only those of Vida’s races, but the mysterious Legion, the humans as well as Bellmond and Eleanora, who had once been Vampires belonging to a faction worshipping an evil god.

Vandalieu had acknowledged them as allies and had them at his side, after all.

In Gufadgarn’s eyes, the only being in this world with any value was Zakkart, and right now, that was Vandalieu. With that being the case, his way of thinking, his basis of good and evil, his philosophies and his preferences needed to match Vandalieu’s.

“Ah, I think almost all of the women here are going to marry the kid. Are you really going to add -sama to all of their names?” said Borkus.

“Is that so? Gizania-sama, Myuze-sama, Iris-sama, please forgive my insolence,” said Gufadgarn.

“I would prefer if you did not say unnecessary things, Borkus-dono!” said Gizania.

It was a chaotic situation; the men of Legion were troubled by this development as well.

“… What do we do if he calls us with -sama, Shade?”

“… I get the feeling that he’s trying to get rid of all of his obstacles. Am I just imagining it?”

“I’ve been thinking recently, isn’t it easier for us to just go with the flow?”

Meanwhile, Darcia was appealing to Gufadgarn. “Gufadgarn-san, I am different,” she told him. “I am his mother.”

“Yes, I am aware of that,” Gufadgarn said.

Vandalieu remained silent, at a loss for what to do. I thought that he might have conflicts with Eleanora and Bellmond, but I didn’t expect things to turn out like this. What should I do?

To think that Gufadgarn would be even more humble than Fidirg, the dragon god of five sins… Vandalieu would have never imagined a god that was this unwilling to be intimate.

“Umm, I would like you to be more frank. Stop using -sama; please use -san, -kun or no honorific at all. Also, don’t kneel,” Vandalieu said finally, knowing that he couldn’t just stand there and say nothing.

He intended to repeat this request until Gufadgarn accepted it.

But Gufadgarn accepted it immediately.

“Very well. I shall do that from now on,” he said, standing up. “Now then, what shall we do with these Ghosts? They have already served the purpose that I intended for them, so I will leave the decision in your hands.”

His stance towards the Ghosts seemed to have softened as well. As the Ghosts had been charmed by Vandalieu, Gufadgarn acknowledged them not as enemies to be made use of, but as junior servants of the same master.

“… For now, let’s take them with us. They don’t need to be fed since they’re Ghosts, and I don’t mind taking them with us even if we don’t know which one of them is Martina,” said Vandalieu. “But you can identify her corpse, right?”

“Yes,” said Gufadgarn. “I may not remember the insignificant ones that died immediately after entering the Dungeon, but I have not forgotten those who progressed a certain amount. The one that you are searching for was a part of the party of Alda’s believers that made it the furthest into the Dungeon, so I remember her clearly.”

“Then there are no problems,” said Vandalieu.

An Undead made from Martina’s corpse would be sufficient for tormenting Heinz and his companions. They wouldn’t be able to tell whether the spirit inside the Undead was really Martina or not, anyway.

And since she had already become a Ghost, she could Possess the corpse, but it wouldn’t be possible for her to become a Zombie.

Vandalieu decided that he would pick a suitable spirit and have it pretend to be Martina.

“Now then, I shall guide you to Zakkart’s workshop,” said Gufadgarn.

Vandalieu nodded, and Gufadgarn resumed his task of leading the party to their destination.

Zakkart’s workshop was a place with a strange atmosphere, a combination of a craftsman’s workshop and the research laboratory of a mage or alchemist.

There were magic circles of all sizes with pentagrams and hexagrams drawn in them, and the workshop was equipped with Magic Items modeled after machine tools like drills and grinding machines. There was even a furnace for melting metal and a plentiful supply of materials like metal ingots, clay and wood.

And in an open space was a pile of countless treasure chests, overflowing with gold and silver treasures and Magic Items.

“Are those Zakkart’s relics, too?” asked the Ghoul war-chief Vigaro, casting a doubtful look over these treasures.

It seemed that he had already started getting used to the company of Gufadgarn, who had gone from being completely reserved to polite and a little friendly.

“Those are the treasures naturally generated by the Trial of Zakkart after I created the Dungeon. They are entirely unrelated to Zakkart,” said Gufadgarn.

It was a fixed law of Dungeons that each floor would generate treasure chests, and that treasures would be generated in their deepest chambers. It seemed that even Gufadgarn, a specialist in Dungeon creation, could not change that.

But knowing that they would interfere with the trials if he left them as is, they had gathered them all in one place and simply kept them there.

They were of no value to Gufadgarn whatsoever, but it was possible that they would be of some value to the new Zakkart. And the previous Zakkart had always emphasized a mentality of not letting things go to waste.

“They are the traditional rewards for conquering the labyrinth. Like those who have been turned into stone and ice statues, please use them as you see fit,” said Gufadgarn.

“That can come later, so please show me the relic that could resurrect Mom,” said Vandalieu, not even glancing at the hundred years’ worth of treasures of the Trial of Zakkart, riches that could not be spent even if one bought a castle, furniture, servants, a castle town with fields and a life of enjoyment and luxuries up until their seventies.

Vandalieu would certainly be able to earn this amount of treasure within a hundred years. But Darcia’s resurrection was not guaranteed to happen within a century.

“Yes, this way,” said Gufadgarn.

He gave a wave of his arm, and one of the workshop’s walls moved aside, revealing a concealed space. This space was filled with science-fiction-like objects – mysterious devices, metal pipes with hazard marks engraved on them contained within barriers, several guns that were presumably prototypes and numerous other pieces of equipment whose purpose even Vandalieu and Legion couldn’t guess.

Among these pieces of equipment was a group of transparent, cylindrical capsules, large enough for people to fit inside.

Gufadgarn pointed at the white, mud-like substance floating in the fluid that the capsules were filled with. “This is the ‘root of life’ that was created by the great Zakkart himself.”

The way it pulsed with its shape undetermined and constantly changing resembled the Lump-of-flesh-chan, the origin of Legion… the ‘base form of life.’

“The root of life…?! Is that different from the base form of life?!” Luciliano blurted out.

He had been busy writing notes and making sketches, but he was unable to contain himself from speaking at the revelation of this object.

“It is extremely similar, but different,” said Gufadgarn. “Zakkart referred to this as pluripotent cells. It is an object that makes regenerative medical processes possible.”

“Pluripotent cells?!” Legion’s Minuma Hitomi repeated.

“To think that he was aiming to practice regenerative medicine in another world before it even came into existence on Earth. The previous era’s Zakkart went above and beyond anyone’s expectations,” Vandalieu remarked.

Research into regenerative medicine to restore lost organs had been ongoing both on Earth and in Origin, but it seemed that the champion Zakkart had completed this task a hundred thousand years ago.

Many had become injured or ill during the battle against the Demon King’s army. But at the time, gods had existed on the world’s surface. Even those with damage to their limbs or organs could quickly be restored to good health with the gods’ treatment.

But as the state of the war worsened, the gods had become unable to continue treating all of the wounded.

Treating cuts and bone fractures or reattaching severed limbs could be done by saints that served the gods, but they were unable to return warriors with incinerated limbs or significant damage to their brains to a state where they could fight.

Zakkart had received power from Vida, the goddess of love and life, and already possessed a reasonable amount of medical knowledge as he had once been aiming to become a forensic scientist. But there were limits to what he could do. And most importantly, even though he was a champion, he was still just one man. There was a limit to the number of people that he could treat at once.

That was why Zakkart had created these pluripotent cells, named the ‘root of life.’

Based on Zakkart’s knowledge, these pluripotent cells had been reproduced not through science, but by magic and alchemy. The complete product was a set of truly pluripotent cells that could adapt to become any body part, inducing regeneration in any patient.

If transplanted where an arm was missing it would become a new arm, and if they were injected into an organ that had ceased to function, it would regenerate that organ. They could restore bones, nerves, eyeballs and even brains to their original states. It was more fitting to call it regenerative magic rather than regenerative medicine.

It didn’t actually have immediate effects like real magic, and the memories and personality contained within damaged brain tissue would not regenerate, but even so, these cells would enable the heavily wounded to return to the battlefield within a matter of days.

While creating the root of life was only possible for Zakkart, the cells had the advantage in that transplantation into patients could be conducted for anyone who knew the procedure.

Of course, it was not only the warriors of Lambda but the champions themselves who had relied on this root of life.

“Regenerative medicine is indeed appealing, but in Mom’s case, her entire body needs to be regenerated. Is that possible?” asked Vandalieu.

“It is possible,” Gufadgarn replied. “This root of life changes shape in a way that is adapted to the patient’s soul, and then regenerates the damaged body part. It does not adapt to Undead, but it should regenerate the physical body without any problems as long as the spirit is an ordinary spirit containing the soul… In fact, that is why its use was stopped in the past.”

One day, the root of life had produced a warrior who was supposed to have died. Unable to perceive spirits, Zakkart and his companions had failed to notice that a wandering spirit had entered the root of life.

If that was all that had happened, it would have been a miraculous resurrection of a dead man. But the resurrected warrior had lost his sanity from the fear and despair that he had felt as he died.

He had gone on a rampage inside Zakkart’s workshop and tried to kill the injured people waiting for treatment, mistaking them for monsters. In the end, Zakkart himself had been forced to grant him a second death.

Alda, the god of law and fate, had seen this as a great problem and insisted that the use of this regenerative medical technique be halted until a way to stop this from happening again was discovered.

But before it did happen again, Zakkart and his companions had fallen at the hands of the Demon King.

Nobody had known how far Zakkart had progressed on creating a measure to make sure that it would not resurrect the dead, so the root of life was preserved in the workshop, in case the remaining three champions were heavily wounded and needed treatment. And when Vida separated herself from Alda and the other gods, Gufadgarn had brought it with him, along with Zakkart’s entire workshop.

“I can see that your mother’s spirit still bears damage and has become weakened, her sanity has been preserved and she has not become an Undead. I believe that her resurrection will be possible. But when this root of life was created, Dark Elves did not exist. Some complications could arise,” said Gufadgarn, warning Vandalieu of the risks.

“I see… What should we do, Mom?” Vandalieu asked, looking up at Darcia.

“I’ll ask you to do it, of course. I mean, everyone has been working with you so that I can come back to life, Vandalieu. There’s nothing for me to be scared of,” said Darcia. “Besides… You’re going to use that, right?”

“Yes. Gufadgarn, I’m going to have Sam come out here. Everyone, please help me with this,” said Vandalieu.

With a noise that was difficult to describe, Vandalieu let out Sam’s carriage into an open area. From inside, he began taking out the various things that he had prepared in order to create a new body for Darcia – an Orichalcum skeleton, monster organs and the Demon Eye of Destruction that he had surgically removed from Gubamon.

“It’s finally time, isn’t it, Bocchan!” said Rita.

“I’m looking forward to Darcia-sama’s resurrection!” said Saria.

“Thank you, Rita, Saria,” said Darcia.

“OOOOOOOOOHN!” Knochen roared in happiness.

“My lord, you are finally achieving your great ambition… I am filled with emotion,” said Bone Man.

“Knochen, Bone Man, please make sure you don’t accidentally pass on to the next life from your happiness,” said Vandalieu.

“Master, I am proud to be present here in this moment!” said Luciliano, ready to record the event by making sketches.

“… Maybe I should have Luciliano removed from the area,” Vandalieu muttered.

“WHY?!” Luciliano cried.

But Vandalieu decided that having Luciliano removed wasn’t necessary and he would allow it this time.

“Vandalieu, those things… I do not believe they will fit the root of life,” said Gufadgarn, politely trying to stop him.

Though they had been kept fresh and altered to match the size of human organs, the organs were those of monsters, and the skeleton was made of a metal that wasn’t even an organic substance. There were no past records of such materials being used.

“It’s alright,” said Vandalieu, showing Gufadgarn the object that he was carrying with him. “I received this, the blood of the goddess Vida.”

Gufadgarn let out a noise of astonishment as he saw the crystallized, crimson sphere of Vida’s blood. “That is Vida’s blood. It is not blood spilled by a hated enemy, but a blood crystal that she has personally given to one as a symbol of her favor! Blood is a symbol of life; with this, there is no doubt that your mother will be resurrected no matter what you put in her body!”

“Stop it, Gufadgarn-san! Don’t stir up Vandalieu any more than this!” Darcia said hastily.

Meanwhile, Eleanora, Bellmond and Isla were talking quietly amongst themselves.

“… I wonder what Darcia-sama will become when she is resurrected?” whispered Eleanora.

“I get the feeling that she will not be a Dark Elf,” Bellmond whispered back.

“She could become a new race like an Absolute Elf or Unlimited Elf,” said Isla.

“Waaah! That’s amazing! Darcia-mama is going to transform too!” said Pauvina, clapping her hands together in joy.

“She may transform, but she will not become a magical girl,” said Zadiris.

“If you are a magical girl, I think that Darcia-san can become one as well,” said Isla.

“That is not the problem here,” said Zadiris.

“Now that I have your approval, I kind of feel like I should be more particular about the materials, but… well, it would take a lot of time to gather more materials,” said Vandalieu. “Let’s begin.”

At those words, Gufadgarn opened one of the cases containing the root of life and added the various materials into it.

Even as the root of life absorbed them, it seemed rather confused, as there were too many materials being placed inside. But when the crystallized sphere of Vida’s blood entered it, all of the materials immediately dissolved, diffusing inside the root of life and fusing with it.

“Now all that is missing is your mother,” said Gufadgarn, beckoning Darcia forward.

“Alright… Vandalieu, I’ll be back soon,” Darcia said.

“Yes, Mom. We’ll be waiting for you,” said Vandalieu.

Darcia patted Vandalieu’s head with her ethereal hand, then disappeared into the foundation of life along with the bone fragment that she resided in.

At that moment, the foundation of life gave a loud, thumping pulse.

• Name: Kühl
• Rank: 10
• Race: Satan Blood Slime
• Level: 0

• Passive skills:
  • Blunt Damage Nullification (Awakened from Blunt Damage Resistance!)
  • Hunger Resistance: Level 3 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Predator’s Restoration: Level 10 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Body Form Manipulation: Level 10 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Venom Secretion: Level 10 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Magic Resistance: Level 5 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Superhuman Strength: Level 7 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Physical Resistance: Level 2 (NEW!)
  • Self-Enhancement: Guidance: Level 3 (NEW!)

• Active skills:
  • Silent Steps: Level 7 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Bloodwork: Level 7 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Surpass Limits: Level 8 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Grow: Level 6 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Unarmed Fighting Technique: Level 5 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Coordination: Level 4 (NEW!)
  • Charge: Level 3 (NEW!)
  • Parallel Thought Processing: Level 4 (NEW!)
  • Long-distance Control: Level 5 (NEW!)
  • Infest: Level 4 (NEW!)
• Unique skills:
  • ■■ン■■■’s Divine Protection (NEW!) [Katakana is “n”]

Monster explanation (Written by Luciliano):

【Satan Blood Slime】

Kühl has become this monster after increasing its Rank multiple times and going through the stages of Huge Deep Blood Slime, Black Blood Slime and Dark Blood Slime. It is a Slime made of the Demon King’s blood.

It can be assumed that the cause for it becoming this monster is because it consumes Blood Potion like Princess Levia and because Master sometimes provides it directly with the Potion’s base ingredient… his own blood.

Its appearance is that of a black-red slime, but lately, it has often been using the Body Form Manipulation Skill to take the form of humans and animals. Perhaps because of this, it has acquired the Unarmed Fighting Technique and Charge Skills. In addition, perhaps in imitation of Master, it is capable of controlling parts of its own body that is separated from its main body using the Long-distance Control Skill.

… If one comes across a black-red-colored Master or Legion, it is safe to assume that it is Kühl, though there are some rare occasions on which Master completely covers himself with the Demon King’s blood, disguising himself as Kühl.

It is capable of using the separate parts of itself to enter its prey’s body through open wounds and Infesting them, attacking them from the inside or absorbing all of their blood to instantly kill them as it sees fit.

Due to this special ability, it was only natural for Kühl to become in charge of the task of draining the blood of our prey.

It does not fare as well against enemies such as Golems, Undead and spirits that do not have blood, but it would undoubtedly be a fearsome predator when facing human enemies.

Incidentally, I no longer have any comments regarding the divine protection. I myself have also received it, after all.

• Name: Pete
• Rank: 11
• Race: Great Roaring Lightning Metal Demon Centipede
• Level: 0

• Passive skills:
  • Hunger Resistance: Level 3 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Self-Enhancement: Following: Level 10 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Venom Secretion (Neurotoxin): Jaws: Level 10 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Wind Attribute Resistance: Level 8 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Enhanced Body: Exoskeleton, Horns: Level 10 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Monstrous Strength: Level 1 (Awakened from Superhuman Strength!)
  • Self-Enhancement: Guidance: Level 3 (NEW!)

• Active skills:
  • Silent Steps: Level 1
  • Charge: Level 10 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Transcend Limits: Level 1 (Awakened from Surpass Limits!)
  • Armor Technique: Level 7 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Roaring Lightning: Level 1 (Awakened from Lightning!)
  • Coordination: Level 4 (NEW!)
• Unique skills:
  • Dragon Devourer: Level 6 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Zanalpadna’s Divine Blessing (NEW!)
  • ヴ■■■■■’s Divine Protection (NEW!) [Katakana is “v”]

Monster explanation (Written by Luciliano):

【Great Roaring Lightning Metal Demon Centipede】

… Can this even be called a centipede anymore?

It is larger than a dragon, and the force of its charge would likely be enough to penetrate an entire fort, never mind a single wall. The lightning it releases is more powerful than lightning that falls from the sky, and its skeleton is as solid as Adamantite. It even possesses three Unique Skills.

Lower-Rank Dragons do not even dare approach it. I suspect that even a Hurricane Dragon would avoid a frontal charge from Pete. According to Master, Dragon meat is one of Pete’s favorite dishes.

Unlike Slimes and plant-type monsters, which operate in groups, Pete is a centipede monster, a kind of monster that normally acts alone. Despite this, it has acquired the Coordination Skill.

Well, he has always acted as a representative for the insectoid monsters tamed by Master, and as a mediator for the Cemetery Bees that are his seniors (though they are now Gehenna Bees). Perhaps these tasks have improved his communication skills?

Incidentally, he was well-received when we visited the Drakonid nation. The Drakonids offered him a feast and asked him not to go on a rampage inside their nation in return, so he was in a good mood. It was the first time I have ever seen an entire roasted Wyvern.

• Name: Eisen
• Rank: 11
• Race: Skogsrå Empress
• Level: 98

• Passive skills:
  • Monstrous Strength: Level 3 (Awakened from Superhuman Strength!)
  • Rapid Regeneration: Level 10 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Status Effect Resistance: Level 8 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Magic Resistance: Level 9 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Physical Resistance: Level 9 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Augmented Vitality: Level 10 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Enhanced Physical Ability (Bark, Branches): Level 10 (LEVEL UP!)
  • High-speed Fruit Production: Level 3 (Awakened from Fruit Production!)
  • High-speed Sap Production: Level 3 (Awakened from Sap Production!)
  • High-speed Branch Production: Level 3 (Awakened from Branch Production!)
  • Allure: Level 8 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Self-enhancement: Subordination: Level 7 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Self-Enhancement: Guidance: Level 5 (NEW!)

• Active skills:
  • Unarmed Fighting Technique: Level 6 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Throwing: Level 7 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Armor Technique: Level 6 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Spirit Siphon: Level 9 (LEVEL UP!)
  • No-Attribute Magic: Level 4 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Earth-Attribute Magic: Level 5 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Life-Attribute Magic: Level 5 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Shrink: Level 2 (NEW!)
  • Mana Control: Level 2 (NEW!)
  • Commanding: Level 1 (NEW!)
  • Coordination: Level 5 (NEW!)
• Unique skills:
  • Zozogante’s Divine Protection
  • Invigoration: Plant (NEW!)
  • ■■■ダ■■’s Divine Protection (NEW!) [Katakana is “da”]

Monster explanation (Written by Luciliano):

【Skogsrå Empress】

Can this still be called a Skogsrå…? No, I suppose Skogsrå itself was a new race of monster to begin with.

Eisen has progressed from Skogsrå Widow to Witch, then Queen and now Empress.

Her appearance has not changed significantly; she still has green skin, clothes made of bark and several branches growing from her back. But she now has a crown of leaves on her head.

Perhaps because she has acquired the divine protection of Zozogante, the evil god of the dark forest who is the guardian deity of the Ghoul nation, she now produces vividly-colored flowers, sweet nectar and all kinds of other fruits in addition to her iron-like apples… such as Gante fruits that resemble human eyeballs.

The syrup that she produces truly possesses the sweetness of the heavens; I can understand why Cuoco Ragdew and his entire family are still obsessed with it. Her popularity has been increasing lately; it appears that she even has fans in the Legston family of earls now.

She does not appear to be particularly happy about this, however. Could it be that she thinks of them as cockroaches or something similar…? I think not… probably.

But apparently, she welcomes bees that come to gather her nectar. Perhaps it is because they assist her with pollination?

Furthermore, the effects of the ‘Invigoration: Plant’ Unique Skill that she has acquired causes plants around her to be stimulated just by her being present near them. No matter how delicate the plants are, they grow vigorously like weeds… and sometimes become monsters.

Of course, the Skill’s effects also affect plant-type monsters.

Thus, the Immortal Ents and the other plant-type monsters in the Immortal Ent forest of Talosheim have increased in Rank, becoming Skogsrå and Leshi (Monsters that are like male versions of Skogsrå). Naturally, Eisen has become a mediator for these monsters.

• Name: Quinn
• Rank: 12
• Race: Gehenna Absolute Queen Bee
• Level: 0

• Passive skills:
  • Status Effect Resistance: Level 8 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Rapid Regeneration: Level 4
  • High-speed Egg Spawn: Level 1 (Awakened from Egg Spawn!)
  • Endless Sexual Stamina: Level 5 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Mana Enlargement: Level 7 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Automatic Mana Recovery: Level 7 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Deadly Poison Secretion: Stinger: Level 2 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Enhanced Physical Ability: Exoskeleton: Level 2 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Strengthened Attribute Values: Under Servitude: Level 7 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Self-Enhancement: Guidance: Level 4 (NEW!)
  • Allure: Level 3 (NEW!)

• Active skills:
  • Mana Control: Level 2 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Space-Attribute Magic: Level 4 (LEVEL UP!)
  • Bee Swarm Coordination: level 10
  • Bee Swarm Commanding: Level 10
  • Limited Alchemy: Level 3 (NEW!)
  • Sewing: Level 3 (NEW!)
  • Construction: Level 5 (NEW!)
• Unique skills:
  • High-speed Bee Swarm Development
  • Zanalpadna’s Divine Protection
  • ■■■■■―’s Divine Protection (NEW!) [Katakana is the vowel-lengthening katakana, this is present at the end of Vandalieu’s name]

Monster explanation (Written by Luciliano):

【Gehenna Absolute Queen Bee】

A monster that Quinn has become after progressing from Gehenna Queen bee to High Queen Bee, then Great Queen Bee and now Absolute Queen Bee. There are no significant changes to her appearance, but her sense of presence, or perhaps it should be described as an aura, has become greater.

Quinn’s own personal ability in combat is low for her Rank (though she would still be able to beat a B-class adventurer to death with nothing but brute force). However, she possesses more than enough ability to swarm her enemies to make up for this.

Even if she is separated from her swarm for whatever reason, she is able to expend a large amount of Mana to immediately lay eggs from the bee-abdomen that protrudes from her waist like a tail. These eggs immediately hatch into adult insects in the next moment. She is apparently able to do this up to ten times in the space of a minute.

She does not use this ability except in emergency situations, due to the fact that it consumes a large amount of Mana and although her daughters that are born this way have the same Attribute Values as her daughters that grow up normally, they have lower Skill Levels and shorter lifespans.

Unlike ordinary queen bees, she makes Magic Items, does sewing with silk and gives directions to her workers in the construction of the nest. But she is only able to use Limited Alchemy instinctively to create Magic Items with honey or beeswax, and the ones who actually work in nest construction are the worker bees.

She has become able to have conversations, but… there are times when she and Master gaze silently at each other. Apparently, they are communicating to each other through their antennae. Master’s is the Demon King’s antennae, not antennae that he possesses naturally, but apparently there is no