First Demonic Dragon

"My lady, it seems most have begun to return." Hakon said respectfully.

Lailah looked up from her journal and nodded before following the tall demon outside.

Waiting in front of the manor were about half of the sex demons that had been sent out by Exedra with the goal of getting stronger.

At a glance, she could tell they'd all been successful.

Every demon in front of her was now stage 1.

"You all have done well." Lailah smiled warmly. "My husband would be pleased."

One man timidly raised his hand to ask a question.

"My lady, did something happen while we were away? Our connection to the lord has grown a bit faint and when we returned there were traces of a devastating battle."

Lailah's lips suddenly turned upwards into a helpless smile.

"I can assure you, your lord is fine. He simply got a bit too carried away in a spar with his master and is now resting."

The sex demons all nodded and let out simultaneous sighs of relief.

If something had actually happened to their lord while they were away, they wouldn't know how to live with themselves!

Though they were also a bit upset that they could not have seen their master embroiled in glorious battle with their own eyes.

"The three of you. Tell our lady what you told me." Hakon ordered.

Three demons stepped forward, two succubi and one incubi.

"My lady, these demons have some information on the approaching armies."

Lailah's gaze immediately became more serious.

This information would prove vital in the battle that was to come.

The incubus was the first to speak.

"Lady Lailah, the phoenix are on their way leading an army of around two thousand. They are traveling by land for what I can only assume is an effort to conserve energy. Among them I sensed ten first stage warriors and one in the second stage. The rest appear to be unevolved."

Lailah was surprised but truthfully, it made sense that the phoenix would be coming here.

Their power had declined significantly in recent years ever since Helios went on a rampage on their continent.

Dragons and phoenixes have been locked in a bitter hatred for centuries.

As the beings closest to dragons in terms of magical power and beauty, phoenixes believe themselves to be their equal.

For a prideful race like dragons, there can be no greater insult.

'It's a shame he'll be asleep for the battle.. I would have liked to see his reaction.' Lailah thought inwardly. However, she quickly forgot her disappointment when she realized this would be a great opportunity to present her husband with an exquisite gift.

'I just hope that stage two warrior is powerful enough...' Lailah soon turned her attention back to the incubus and gave him a polite smile fitting of a ruler's wife. "Thank you for the information. It is much appreciated."

The demon bowed deeply before stepping back, outwardly calm but inwardly elated that he'd received praise from a member of the king's own family.

One of the succubi was next to speak up and her report was even less surprising than the previous one.

"My lady, it appears as though the army of greed is moving as well, led by lord Mammon himself."

The knowledge that a 6th stage being was on their way to her doorstep should've horrified Lalilah but it didn't for a few reasons.

For one, Mammon coming was expected since, as the demon king of greed he seeks to horde all that might be considered valuable to living beings.

He would never be able to resist the allure of something as powerful as a legendary grade treasure.

However, that wasn't why Lailah was unconcerned.

The demon kings have a very sacred and serious pact and that is that they do not antagonize each other.

If one of them were to get upset and then kill the other, they would weaken the power of the group as a whole, leaving them susceptible to attacks from outside enemies.

This was a fact that none in the world were aware of except the demon kings themselves. But because Exedra had anticipated the appearance of his uncle, he'd given his wives special instructions not to panic when he arrived.

Lailah thanked the succubus for her report nonetheless and she smiled and stepped back.

She informed the demons that there was nothing to worry about from Mammon and his army and they all relaxed slightly.

The last of the trio stepped forward and Lailah could already guess who her report was about, though she did not understand why she appeared to be so nervous.

"Lady Lailah, the humans are the furthest behind but it appears that the nearby kingdom has dispatched 5,000 soldiers with 500 stage ones, twenty stage two's and three stage three commanders."

Immediately, a hush fell amongst the crowd.

The knowledge that multiple third stage beings were coming was enough to demoralize them slightly.

Previously they felt as though they were on top of the world with all of the new power they'd acquired, yet now it seemed as though all of their effort would end up being for naught.

Ultimately, the demons were worried about disappointing their master.

Because of the training they'd undergone with Bekka, these formerly ordinary humans were now warriors that did not fear death or injury.

Due to Exedra's blood imbuing them with a strange fanaticism, they were now constantly concerned with representing their master properly and not doing anything that might bring him shame.

Could they still fight in a way that was befitting of their great king?

Lailah was about to offer the crestfallen demons some words of encouragement when Hakon suddenly beat her to it.

"My lady, may I speak?"

"Ah, sure." Lailah nodded, curious about where he might be going with this.

The rabisu general bowed respectfully before turning to the crowd with a glare.

"What pathetic fools. I had thought lord Abbadon had already cured you of your human weaknesses, but it seems I was mistaken."

His eyes suddenly became entirely black and lifeless as he returned to his original monstrous form.

"You are demons. That means that you do not hold such foolish worries as 'what if I fail' or 'what if my efforts are in vain.' You need only do what must be done, everything else is inconsequential."

Maybe it was the menacing appearance of one of their leaders.

Or it could have been that his words stirred them from the deluded dreamworld in which they had not completely left behind.

Whatever the case may have been, the fact is that Hakon's words had served their purpose of motivating the masses.

Lailah could now see a brilliant determination in the eyes of the demons that was not there before.

Despite the massive number of approaching enemies, Lailah felt as though the future was going to be incredibly bright.

-

Yara was currently sleeping the way she did best.

Curled up under her beloved husband while clinging to his arm as if she were afraid that he would disappear again.

Yara spent the first few days alternating between crying and staring obsessively.

Eventually her turbulent storm of emotions exhausted her thoroughly and she simply lay next to him and entered into a deep slumber.

She'd slept so well that she didn't even know that her daughter in law made her son a legendary grade item or that they were a few days away from being attacked.

Though her father's unexpected arrival did bother her, she was glad that she was finally able to convince him to give her the freedom she deserved.

After Helios left Yara promptly slipped back into bed with a giddy expression before falling back into a blissful sleep.

As Yara slept happily next to Asmodeus, she completely missed the scene of his eyes fluttering for almost a minute before his red and black eyes finally opened.