Point-of-View: Ariella Velle

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"Hey, Vice-Guildmaster, we're back! Another easy raid done and dusted!" Grinned Brid, as he stepped into the office, along with the rest of the party he'd been assigned to.

"Welcome back. Any trouble?" I responded, as I lifted my gaze.

"Nope, it was super easy."

"I see. Good work. Submit your report, and then you can go home and rest."

It's now been about eight and a half months since Kai ended up in the Monster world, today's the 21st of August, 2170.

And over the last few months, the number of Dungeons appearing has significantly decreased, not only that, but they've been a lot easier too.

We haven't encountered any Calamity Level Monsters in quite a while, even Critical Levels have been relatively rare lately, it's mostly been High Levels and below.

As a result, there haven't been any casualties in a while, and all the Dungeons that've appeared have been conquered without a problem.

The only change that has stuck is that the Boss Rooms seal the entrance when entered, until the Boss is defeated...but the recent Dungeon Bosses have been so weak that it doesn't matter.

This is probably thanks to Kai's efforts in the Monster world. We've been exchanging letters every night, so I've kept in touch with what he's upto there.

On the bright side, he's fine, he hasn't had any trouble surviving there...but on the other hand, I really, really, REALLY miss him, damn it.

But at the same time, I don't want him to put himself in too much danger by trying to rush back here. He basically only has one shot at getting back, he can't afford to screw it up, so I know he has to play it cautious.

Even so, despite knowing that, I can't help but want to see him again as soon as possible.

How much longer do I have to wait? How much more time is going to pass before I finally get to see him again?

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Point-of-View: Kaivel Intrix

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"<F-Fuck! H-Holy shit, that was unpleasant>!" Gasped Invidia shakily.

"<Come on, stop being dramatic. Our sense of pain is dulled, so-...>," Began Luxuria.

"<Fuck you, bitch, I'm not being dramatic! It wasn't painful at all, but it felt like my very soul got jolted like crazy, I'm still feeling it>," Responded Invidia with a grimace.

"Nice, looks like this could be a pretty handy weapon," I smiled, patting Acedia on the shoulder.

"<I suppose>."

"<All the pieces are in place on our end now...all that's left to do is find and capture Fenelza>," Remarked Superbia.

"Yeah, our only real option is to keep attacking different Monster territories and hope that we eventually run into her. There's no telling how long that'll take, but we can't afford to get impatient and reckless," I sighed in response.

"<Perhaps we should just attack the Demon Lord's castle>?" Suggested Ira, as he clenched his fist.

"No, that's way too risky. The Demon Lord's abilities are a complete unknown to us, and there's his Generals too," I shook my head.

Not gonna lie, it is a pretty tempting idea, but it's probably not the smartest move. I have to stay patient, this'll all be for nothing if I end up getting captured or killed.

"<So, what's our next move, Boss? Split up and attack again>?" Invidia asked me.

"Mhm, yeah. Let's wait a day or two, though. Attacking too frequently carries a fair bit of risk too, after all," I responded prudently.

"<This really sucks...I wanna go back already, I miss Earth's entertainment, especially porn>," Luxuria sighed wistfully.

"<We'll get back, sooner or later. So long as we maintain the current status quo, it'll only be a matter of time before we get the opportunity to execute our plan, but we have to stay safe in the meantime>," Stated Superbia objectively.

I really hope it's sooner rather than later, I miss Aria so much. While I have kept in regular contact with her, it isn't enough, I want to see her.

Based on what she's told me, the Dungeons have been appearing a lot less, and they've been much easier to conquer too, so if nothing else, at least I know she's safe.

Maybe it's because the Apostles and I have killed so many Monsters here, the Demon Lord might be trying to minimize his losses by sending mostly weaker Monsters to Earth, and less frequently-...

Hm?

What's that smell?

"Hey, guys? Is it just me, or do you smell smoke?" I frowned, as I stood up and sniffed.

"<Oh, yeah, that is smoke...it is pretty hot today, so maybe a forest fire>?" Suggested Invidia uncertainly.

"<No, considering that it rained last night, the forest is too damp for a forest fire to have naturally occurred. It could be-...>," Began Superbia, before trailing off as she turned her gaze to the east.

I followed her line of sight, my eyes widening as I spotted a plume of smoke rising up in the distance.

"Invidia, use Stealth and fly up, try and get a look at what's going on," I instructed him with a frown.

"<Got it, Boss>."

He propelled himself up into the air with jets of Negative Energy, turning himself invisible as he flew up past the treetops.

A couple of minutes went by, before he suddenly reappeared before us, a wary grimace on his face.

"What is it? What's happening?" I inquired, feeling a sense of dread.

"<It's bad, Boss. I flew around a bit, and I spotted a few hundred Fire and Lightning Wyverns, plus a few Dragons too. And almost everything surrounding about a one-kilometer radius of this spot is on fire>," He answered grimly.

"<No...don't tell me they've realized that the forest has been enchanted! The Enchantment is likely why the area in our vicinity has not been set ablaze yet, but they are brute-forcing through the Enchantment by burning the place down like this...they have narrowed down our position>," Surmised Ira with a tense look on his face.

"<A lot of smoke is starting to flow this way. What's the plan, Kai>?" Superbia asked me, the air around us slowly but surely turning more and more smoky.

"Damn it...looks like they've left us with no choice. We're going to have to fight our way out."

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