Ch.12 New foe?

From massacring the village and from the adventurers we captured, I've gained enough DP for turning the entire mountain into the dungeon area.

Coincidentally, when I did, I found spring that creates one of the most important rivers on the western side of Snowy mountain range, the Yallo river.

The Yallo river was in the past territory of Great Ogre demon lord's territory. All that remains from that previously powerful empire is the Small ogre kingdom that is spread on the western mountinside to south from here.

Alongside the river spring, I found Steam mephist and brought it in the dungeon as an area master of the Bath house, naming it Steaen.

"Sir, the report I have for you is that I found mithril vein and I started digging it out. I belive we could get a lot of ore from it within next few days," Gobura bowed as she made her report.

"Good work. Azer, tell me how fast can we start processing the metals?"

"I belive in next three days I should have ready first ingots. Additionally, I managed to smelt the gold you've so gratiously provided for me master, and the bars from it, were stored in. Also, regarding the mithril, if you allow me, I should be able to process it into [Dark mithril] to make better equipment for the undead army," the Azer said while kneeling before me with his head deep down.

From what I remember from human countries I traveled through, mithrill is reserved only for the highest ranked holy knights called Paladins. Sword that guild master Tongu uses is made from mithril and I still remember her obliterating hordes of undead we run into on a special quest we did together way back when I was starting out in Astenna kingdom.

'I wonder how long will it take until I will have to fight a paladin...'

"Alright, I shall allow it. Renzir, pick the best fighters and have them equiped with this Dark mithril. Azer, use only half of the mithril we will have on hand. The remains will be used for money reserves. We will one day need it. Now, from the other hand, Renzir tell me what you learned from the adventurers."

"Yes! Aparently, they just came here to pillage the village of elves. Becouse it's not the time for mass demon lord appearance yet, they thought that it was just a rouse. Also, please accept this," Renzir handed me cut of hands of the Bug warrior we captured days ago.

"Let's have it absorbed in the core."

<You've unlocked Locust type monsters. New summoning possible: Ice devil, Orblock, Psyroh, Devourer bug...>

"Damn that's a long list... but at least I understand how to unlock monsters."

When the core absorbed Giants I got the ability to summon humanoids. The bones at the entery of the cave gave me ability to summon undead. The spirits I summoned are a little tricky to understand, but I belive it's becouse I have contracted a lesser spirit before.

As far as Quaggoths go, they are considered humanoids so it kinda works.

"Now that I think about it... I haven't summon that little guy ever since I became demon lord. I should at least try it. (Summon lesser spirit: Zipzap light)"

As I chanted a ball of sparkling light appeared in my palm.

"Heheh, I can still summon you partner," I smiled to myself looking at the ball of light above my palm. "I quess I should give you a name too, after all, you were with me the longest... hmm, you need a good name... Sparkling light... lightning... thunder... I've got it, you shall be Tempest!"

The ball of light made quick circles around my hand and then landed on my palm, taking a humanoid shape. Tempest looked like a blond haired woman around my age, she had two pairs of dragonfly-like wings on her back, adorned with sparkling blue light of electricity. But still, she was barely palm sized.

"M-master's ignoring me... I never knew this would feel so good..." I overheard Renzir.

"Shut it pervert!"

"Ah!"

'Why are you happy after being called a pervert?!'

Just as I thought about hushing her back to the first floor, a red window appeared before me and I saw an interesting sight.

An six legged spider with humanoid body fixed on top of it was walking through the destroyed elvish village.

"Arachne Draider... Demonic arachne. Renzir, go to the first floor and when that one appears at the gates, take her in here without delay."

"Uh, understood master," Renzir jolted up and bowed.

There are two types of monsters that have lower body of spiders and the upper of humans. First are those who evolved from special spider monsters like Kesugi. The other type is usually called Draider and those evolved from a demihuman variant called Arachnoids. Many years ago, the Arachnoids were hunted as spawns of demons. The hatred the Arachnoids felt back then, gave birth to a demon lord Arana. She created a massive dungeon called The Nest. At present day, the Nest is capital city of Demon spider queendom which is ruled by demon queen Arana the Arachne.

The Demon spider queendom, or DSQ for short, is located on the other side of the Astenna kingdom and is considered the strongest demon realm on this contintent (mainly becouse the members of Seven sinful, the strongest demon lords in the world, have not crossed ocean to come here, well, except for one, but that one left years ago).

"Yuki, could you call Lizzie, Kaen and Haba for me? Skaly, I would like to ask you to bring that bug warrior here."

"Yes!" both of them nodded and run from the Throne room in two different ways.

***

About an hour later, Renzir and Arana came in the room. The bug warrior was silenced with ice made by Skaly who was standing by my side with broadsword made from ice on her back.

"Welcome to my dungeon, Arana the arachne, queen of nightmares," I smiled at her from the throne.

"Huh? Zaru?!" Arana got taken aback.

"You know each other?!" Lizzie got worked up.

"We run into each other back in Mutasa kingdom, it was gruesome."

"That's all you say?" Lizzie looked doubtful.

"Back then, one of my generals went of rails after he evolved into semi-demon lord class monster... Well, he tried to attack Albea back then so we had to defeat him."

"What do you mean 'we'? I beat him up before you even showed up."

"If you went to public with that you wouldn't have easy time back there, no?" Arana sneered back at me, showing of her breasts by pushing them up.

"Tsk, just like your daughter."

"Hm? What was that about?" Lizzie picked up on what I was hiding deep in my embarrassing past.

"Both Albea and Arana tried to sedduce him, and failed," Hestia showed up with a tea in her hands.

"S-sedduce?"

"Yep, and he resisted both of them. One demon lord and one succubus. That little girl was crying for five days after that," Hestia added, "Although, I never knew charm of Succubus can be deflected."

"Yeah, after her magic failed she tried to use her body to maximum. Even trying to enter my bedroom in academy's dormitory. So I once changed room with a friend... that was a bloody night for sure."

"Huh? You went to academy?"

"Back then I was adopted by a noble and worked as guard of his only son. Well, that's not important now," I waved my hand to dismiss the conversation.

"You became a demon lord? How? I mean, the season of Darkness is supposed to start in five years not now," Arana got a little confused, "Also why is that idiot of a subordinate just a torso?"

"One of my subordinates, Renzir, was extracting informations from him. He was really stubborn, y'now, Ari?"

"Don't call me that!"

"But that's the name you introduced to yourself to me, Ari."

"I SAID STOP!!!!"

"Fufufu, you are like siblings," Hestia laughed.

""Take that back Teach!""

Interestingly, not only me, but Arana too, yelled out.

"She was your teacher?"

"Same question."

"Yeah, I though Arana thread control and presence sencing before she became a demon lord."

"I see... That would mean—"

"What? Zaru-dear?" dark lightnings appeared behind Hestia.

'I stepped on a landmine,' I thought panicaly.

"Well, that you are amazing, teach!" I smiled little worriedly.

'Can't say that makes you older than tenth generation of demon lords. That would result in training session and I don't want that.'

We are currently about to start nineteenth season of demon lords, that starts every 150 years. Which would mean she was around for at least ten seasons of demon lords. There is a theory that the time between first and second generation of demon lords is much greater then just 150 years, but it's not confirmed. Also, something simmilar is said about fourth, fifth and sixth genetations.

Due to the strenght of demon lord there is also limited numbers of them. Only between five to nine appears on each continent. Additionally, for every demon lord, a hero appears around the same time, so that means a new hero appeared somewhere when I became a demon lord. Heroes are always accompanied by an angel from Holy mountain in Holy empire, which is located to south from the High elvish empire. Interestingly enough, the so-called Holy mountain is last mountain of one of a smaller branch of the Snowy mountain range.

There is also one more, much larger branch called Appalute mountain range, which divides Appalute kingdom from DSQ. The land between the two mountain ranges is home to the DSQ, Astenna kingdom, Armed kingdom Djano in the north and several smaller nations in the south.

"So why did you came here, spider-boy?" Arana whispered to her subbordinate, while picking him up by the head, taking out the piece of ice from his mouth.

"I just wished for my master to become stronger after presenting a dungeon core!" he whispered back.

"You idiot! Even I couldn't defeat this guy! And that was before he became a demon lord! Just apologize and hope he won't take your life for the offence. Your life is no longer in my hands!" Arana glared at the bug warrior and droped him on the ground. The warrior fell on the ground and slaped his face on the stone floor.

"Well, I was suprised in the begining. Will you tell me when you became demon lord?"

"Not even two weeks ago."

"That's so short... Did the goddess shift the time?"

"I just got stabbed to death little sooner then she expected I guess," I laughed it of to bewildered face of Arana.

"Well, just remember that Demon lord and hero appears in pairs. Your hero might be on his way here right at this moment. Urgh—" Arana warned us, but a sudden wave of gray-ish light made her succumbed in pain.

"B-BOSS!" The limbless warrior tried to crawl towards Arana who fell to ground.

"Don't touch her!" I yelled out, while using «Identify» on her.

"She have curse on her."