110 Chapter 36

With several sparring matches lined up, including Milim fighting Sebas, it was paramount to Momonga that the shielding barriers for the battle arenas be tested further. This importance was reinforced by the previous tests with Milim sparring with Gargantua and Aura. And while Buku and Pero did not share the same level of concern compared to the undead, they still shared his sentiments as Milim continued to exceed everyone's expectations with her brutish strength.

Milim's previous mock fights with the Floor Guardians served as a strong indicator that the shields would hold without a hitch. But since there was still the possibility of the shields being targeted directly with an ability, there was no guarantee of complete protection.

Right after sunrise on the day after the banquet, Momonga asked Albedo and Buku to test their shields in a match between Veldora and Ayin. As the strongest of the four dragons on the eighth floor, Ayin had the honor of going all out against the Storm Dragon himself. Both of the ferocious dragons were well aware of each other's strength, so they were itching for the opportunity to fight each other.

"Why do you keep doing this to me, Momo?" Buku asked with a grumble, observing both dragons assuming their immense natural forms. She took a large gulp of coffee from a pint-sized mug and yawned. The ground under her shook from the sheer weight of two dragons exerting themselves on the arena floor.

"You promised to help and provide a shield during the sparring matches. We only have a few hours to ensure it holds." Momonga replied, ignoring his friend's grumpiness.

"Yeah, yeah, let's just start." Buku grumbled again, and together with Albedo and Momonga, encased both dragons in the triple-layered universal barrier.

{ You can begin. } Momonga messaged both dragons.

Ayin instantly sprang into action, hurling her gargantuan body towards Veldora with the intent of spearing him. The distance between herself and her target was not ideal for this move, but she was still able to gather up enough momentum in order to deal a devastating blow.

Soaring through the air, Ayin's mouth unhinged to great lengths, and a torrent of dark red flames spewed out. Combined with her Unique Skill |Unmaker|, her attack successfully broke through all of Veldora's defenses.

As of now, none of the eighth-floor beasts- including the dragons- had ultimate skills but since all of them were more or less similar in nature to Veldora their mere existence could be considered comparable to an ultimate skill.

Momonga and Buku were not surprised to see the red dragon employing this straightforward strategy, however what caught their attention was how Veldora dealt with this fiery onslaught.

Right now, Ayin continued to unleash more of her crimson flames. What started as a trickle soon grew into large swathes of fire that engulfed her draconic scales.

This was done intentionally, as Ayin was determined to collide with the Storm Dragon. However, Veldora was unwilling to retreat despite the powerful meteoric strike hurtling towards him at increasing speed.

Veldora burst into roaring laughter. "Is that all? Very well, I'll face your attack head-on!" he exclaimed. Despite the devastating potential of Ayin's attack, his own skill |Faust| possessed a sub-ability called |Probability Manipulation|. Its defensive capabilities would minimize the damage inflicted upon him as much as possible.

He unfurled his wings and adopted a commanding stance, attempting to tower over Ayin, who held her body straight like a spear.

Immediately after his statement, thunderous echoing noises reverberated in an instant. A surge of pain rushed through the red dragon's head as she gnashed her teeth.

Having patiently awaited the opportunity, Veldora intentionally slammed his head into Ayin's. While a full collision with the Storm Dragon was partially averted, the two now clashed heads amidst a raging tide of Ayin's scorching flames. With both of them refusing to yield, their eyes remained locked in a fierce standoff.

"Grk…so, this is what it's like clashing heads with you, Lord Veldora…!"

"That was truly an impressive move, but you'll have to do better than that, Ayin!"

However, the red dragon's charge was not as futile as Veldora tried to portray. Ayin had still endured significant damage, but the Storm Dragon emerged from the collision with noticeable tears in his wings and burn marks scattered across his colossal body.

What was no surprise to everyone was that in the next few seconds, those tears had already regenerated in the blink of an eye. A snarling sound escaped the red dragon as she charged at Veldora once again, swiping her massive paw at his head. Engaging in close-quarters combat, Ayin intensified her attacks, determined not to let any further opportunities slip away.

Veldora anticipated the attack from a mile away and successfully blocked Ayin's slash by raising his arm. The collision resulted in an explosion of dark red with an inferno engulfing them. Veldora instantly recognized this as an opportunity and countered her attack with a jab toward Ayin's face. However, to the red dragon's credit, she agilely evaded the Storm Dragon's attack despite her massive size.

Since the beginning of the fight, it was evident that Ayin was the underdog and struggled to keep up with her opponent. Nevertheless, the fight remained a spectacle to behold. Despite the presence of multiple barriers shielding the arena, traces of their unleashed energies managed to seep through and damage the sandy floor.

"Man, when he goes all out, Veldora is a force to be reckoned with." Buku remarked.

"He has already made that known to us, so I am not too surprised," Momonga replied, his gaze fixed on the escalating fight that intensified with each passing moment. "What worries me is that despite the shields, the magicule concentration is still steadily rising."

"I mean, yes we know that he is a force of nature, but also knowing what a goofball he is in everyday interactions, it throws me for a loop to watch him fight seriously." Buku said. "If he ever became seriously furious with me, it likely wouldn't end well for me despite my |Invulnerability|".

Then again, a similar situation arose with Pero during their upbringing. In his mid-teens, he was a head taller than her and it would have taken one outburst from him to seriously harm her.

Luckily, despite her rather domineering nature, she never pushed her brother too far and always respected his boundaries.

As impressive as the battle was, it eventually reached its end with a predictable outcome. Having exhausted most of her energy, Ayin's reflexes started to become sloppy. She was unable to dodge a powerful kick in the chest that sent her flying towards the barrier.

She collided with the wall and rolled on the now glass-like ground. While she struggled to get back on her feet, Veldora brought his palms together and shouted, "Kamehameha!" He unleashed a ball of lightning at his opponent, finally knocking her out.

He then struck a dramatic victory pose and let out a triumphant roar. Paying no attention to Veldora's theatrics, the trio dispelled the barriers, allowing the intense concentration of magicules spread throughout the eighth floor. Momonga hurried over to Ayin to provide her with a surge of magicules so she could wake up and regenerate. Her unconscious form transformed into a human one and all her wounds slowly disappeared.

Despite Veldora's careless boastfulness during the match, he was careful to not overexert his power. He used just enough to knock her out and secure his victory.

Ayin regained consciousness with a pained groan and slowly stood up. After taking a deep breath, she lowered her head and said, "Thank you, Lord Momonga. I gave it my all, but it appears my strength is not enough to surpass Lord Veldora."

"Don't worry. You were a formidable opponent. I haven't had such an enjoyable fight in a long, long time." Veldora said, appearing alongside Ayin and Momonga in his human form.

"You gave it your all, and that's more than enough. The test was a success. If you two didn't accidentally break the shield then I'm confident Milim and Sebas won't either." Momonga said and then turned to Buku. "However it seems you'll need to drain all the energy from within the shield before we dispel it outside."

"Sure thing. We don't need another incident." Buku replied, recalling the chaos caused by Veldora's release. Even now, the mental damage that had been inflicted upon the ordinary citizens remained an everlasting scar.

With the test completed, it was time to prepare Tempest's arena.

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Using the pretext of needing to return to his domain for a few hours, Clayman made his way to the designated teleportation area just outside the city and returned home for a meeting with his master.

Kagali used the guild's spatial motion disk multiple times a day to travel between her branch and Ingrassia. She didn't even need to provide an excuse for her absence. Yuuki had officially left Tempest, allowing both of them to await Clayman's return to his domain.

With no prying eyes upon them, the instant he laid eyes on his former master, Clayman knelt down. "I am truly grateful to witness your return once again, master," he said, barely controlling his enthusiasm.

"I know, and I'm happy to see you too, but time is of the essence." Kagali replied, gesturing for him to rise.

Clayman stood up and quickly took a seat on the chair beside the sofa where Kagali and Yuuki were seated.

"Did you find any opening for us?" Yuuki asked.

"No, I couldn't find any weak link. All minds were protected better than I anticipated. I suspect that either Veldora or one of Tempest's leaders possesses a skill that safeguards their subordinates' minds against tampering. I made sure to not be forceful or delve too deeply to avoid giving any hints of my attempts." Clayman dutifully reported.

"Something weird is going on there. I suspect that Veldora blindly reached out for a solution from his prison and brought something beyond his control into our world. I think it would be best to leave Tempest alone until we have a clear picture of their capabilities and not play with fire." Kagali said.

"So you seriously believe they are in control of Veldora and he is subservient? It's clearly nothing more than a show concocted by the leaders of Tempest. Our main threats are still the True Dragons and Milim. Once we have a solution on how to deal with them, the world will be ours." Yuuki said. "I'll work on a skill to remotely assist Tear, and I have no doubt we will be able to infiltrate Nazarick with ease."

"And what if you are wrong? What if Nazarick is something beyond everyone's control? Never before has anything similar just emerged out of thin air. Veldora sat in his prison for hundreds of years and once the leaders of Tempest showed up, he was released from his prison within a two-year timeframe. A dragon that was known to be a destructive and reckless monster is now docile and composed. You may be way above me in terms of raw power, but you lack the experience to look at such events on a broader scale." Kagali said while looking at Yuuki with concern.

"I have to agree with the President. It takes but one moment of carelessness to jeopardize our plan. I am living proof of that. What if we step aside and let the Eastern Empire initiate the first strike? Given their history of conquest, we should anticipate their attempts at expansion within a decade. We already know they are devising plans to confront Storm Dragon Veldora." Clayman said.

"We will use the Eastern Empire when the time is right. Both of you have become excessively cautious to take any action. Tempest is a threat for sure but nothing we cannot deal with. My plan still stands. I will develop a skill to aid Tear in infiltrating Nazarick and discover what secrets they are hiding. Those shadow creatures are not as impressive as she makes them out to be." Yuuki shot them both down.

"And what if she gets caught? You know only authorized visitors can utilize |Teleportation| and |Spatial Movement| within Tempest. Unless you can break past the skill that does this, Tear won't be able to escape. I will not allow you to recklessly endanger her life for your plans!" Kagali raised her voice.

"I already told you I will develop a skill to help her. First, I have the plan to create something similar to the veil Nazarick uses to completely conceal her, and second, provide her with a temporary opening to use |Spatial Movement| in case she is spotted. If you are so concerned about her safety then we can switch her out for Laplace." Yuuki said.

He turned his head to look her in the eyes and said as his smile faded. "And do not use that tone with me. I understand you are worried, but I am still your superior."

"…Understood, sir. We will continue to follow your lead." Kagali said politely, meeting his gaze.

"Good. I'm going back to headquarters to avoid raising too much suspicion. Do not prolong the reunion." Yuuki said as he stood up and walked out of the room.

Kagali waited for Yuuki to leave and summoned the remaining three members of the Moderate Harlequin Alliance: Laplace, Footman, and Tear.

Laplace materialized, sitting on the sofa with a puff of smoke while Tear emerged from a pink glowing circle on the ground and plopped down next to Laplace. Footman's arrival was the least flashy as he simply appeared sitting next to Clayman, and settled back on the sofa with a creek.

"Meeting without the client? We haven't had one of those since… well, before ye kicked the bucket, boss." Laplace remarked with a laugh.

"So, how's life with your head screwed back on right?" Tear asked Clayman cheerfully.

"Gives me a lot of additional work to do for the foreseeable future, but I'm glad it was resolved before I did something beyond foolish." Clayman replied in his usual calm tone.

"Good to see us all together once again." Footman said.

"Let's get to the reason why I called you here. Time is of the essence." Kagali interrupted their banter.

"Sure thing, boss." Laplace said. "Let's hear what ye have in mind."

"First of all, this conversation stays between us, so not a word to the client. Considering what we know about Tempest, I prefer to exercise utmost caution but Yuuki seems unconcerned with the consequences of failure." Kagali said.

"Wouldn't it go against our principle of staying loyal to the client?" Tear asked.

"We are not betraying Yuuki, but our organization must prioritize the safety of its members over the client's reckless actions. What I'm saying is if Yuuki gives you orders that you deem too dangerous, run them by me first. If the client disregards our safety, we can break the agreement."

"Ye know the client would hold a grudge if we just packed up and left. Even the four of us are not powerful enough to stop him." Laplace said.

"I am well aware of that fact!" Kagali hissed. "But I would rather have him as my enemy than lose any of you."

"Yuuki as an enemy is an unpleasant thought. But sometimes I do want to wipe that smirk off his face. Maybe, if the opportunity arises, I can give him a good present from our side." Footman said with a joyous laugh.

"Patience. The future's not set in stone and maybe we can continue working with him and rule the world at his side." Kagali said.

"No matter what path we choose, we must tread carefully. Unless we can develop a method to control either Milim or Veldora, I don't think we stand a chance against Tempest. Most of the high-ranking members are wearing an artifact that prevents us from gauging their power." Clayman said.

"Look who got all careful." Tear teased him.

"You won't get a rise out of me, I'm afraid." Clayman smirked at her.

"You're no fun. But I prefer you being careful over a reckless jerk. My hands are too full with navigating around Tempest to worry about you doing something stupid."

Kagali listened to her children with a smile on her face. Out of all her creations, these four were her true family, the ones she was willing to risk her life for. 'If Yuuki tries to take them away from me, I'll find a way to deal with him. I will not lose anyone over his reckless actions.'

To avoid raising suspicion of her long absence, she said her goodbyes and returned to Free Guild's Tempest branch. Sitting in the lion's den was a huge risk on its own, but as long as she didn't reveal any cards, Tempest would not catch on.

However, there was now a need to prepare a backup plan in case she or Yuuki got caught. They needed a sanctuary to retreat to and regroup, but Clayman's domain likely was out of the question for such a purpose.

If their connection was not known, then running back to him would only reveal it, and if discovered, the nation would likely face the wrath of the Storm Dragon and his allies.

Edited by Zirmeister

Proofreading by Sad_Smiles, Alassandro, Tophrel, I AM THE STRING CUTTER, SwissChocolatess, Rage_001, Ethal07, and RottenPizza.

AN: Thank you for reading the story, and if you have caught up to the latest chapter, you can check out my other work or join my discord server (Link is in my profile) where additional chapters are available or if you are interested in becoming a beta reader.