Seero had to delay her arrival slightly in order to find a dungeon capable of deploying the new fleet. It turned out that access to slime summoning had proven extremely valuable after all.

Monsters were innately creatures more magic than matter, and so had significantly more diverse ways to grow when compared to the intelligent peoples of Aelea. They could, of course, grow via combat and achievements. But they could also grow by absorbing mana or consuming matter. They could grow in response to their environment, or by interactions with each other. Some even grew via normal aging, rewarded for merely exisiting.

This was one of the motivations for the Aesdes’ assistance in the first place. And, in fact, the Aesdes provided no assistance to wild monsters at all. The only interaction those monsters had with the Aesdes’ system was to provide information on them.

Which meant that normal monster growth methods were not impacted by the loss of the Aesdes’ boons whatsoever.

And slimes, in particular, had very simple methods of growth. All they had to do was absorb things. Mana, water, food, minerals, metals, even each other. As long as they could digest an object, they could absorb it, and they could grow from it.

Which meant that if Seero created an area of the Primary Home Base where she leaked and condensed her dense and plentiful mana and then supplemented with the constantly regenerating resources of her world…she could grow her slimes very large very quickly.

Which is exactly what she did. Seero now had a number of Giant Cyborg Slimes at her disposal. Mostly Metal, but including representatives of all the attributes Seero had access to. And what that meant were slimes that, as long as they had access to sufficient material, could fabricate entire ship hulls in record time. Melion had quickly put them to work.

This new fleet was the result.

New developments sped up the fleet’s deployment even more. The ships originally required crews, after all. That meant summoning, training, and deploying monsters capable of operating the ships. Even using drone-golems as crew members or drone-golem cores to automate the ship itself was insufficient, as a more independent unit was still required to direct them.

But that had changed thanks to 00B-Beta.

As long as all of a ship’s systems were electronically accessible, 00B-Beta could now take control of a ship and pilot it remotely. And while 00B-Beta was not experienced in airship operations themselves, they could link to other CELIU units, such as drone-golem commander Snuan, who could guide them. As a result, the airships could now be fully automated and required no crews whatsoever, though Seero still deployed some humanoid drone-golems to each for emergencies. Melion could now focus the majority of their production on combat units.

Seero now disembarked from the lead ship, along with Amulius, Agedia, Ateia, Taog, and Estrith, and approached the two leaders of the East.

“Greeting: Hello, this unit is designated Seero, official Imperial designations: Queen of the Dobhar, Amicitia Populi Elteni. It is nice to meet you.”

Emperor Julius nodded in a daze.

“Emperor Julius Numerius Gregorius. I greet you, Your Majesty Seero, Queen of the Dobhar and Friend of the Empire. Thank you, for coming to our aid.”

Meanwhile, the Maior Generalis stepped forward and extended her hand towards Seero with a grin.

“Maior Generalis Maximia Tetrica. Nice of you to join us. And nice fleet you got there. I look forward to seeing it in action.”

“Acknowledged.”

The battlemage who once traveled with the Hero of Elteno slumped her shoulders. Three magic circles formed in front of her, launching massive torrents of flame in front of her. A huge forest of vines and branches paused briefly as it caught fire, but additional plants behind fed upon their burning kin and continued creeping forward.

“Ugh. It just had to be another Overgrowth dungeon! Why can’t these stupid plants just die already?”The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

The recovery knight who also traveled with them shrugged as he buffed the line of his fellow knights trying to cut through the branches.

“I thought you always complained there was never enough to burn? Shouldn’t infinitely growing tinder be like your dream or something?”

The battlemage just threw her hands forwards towards the encroaching forest as the last of her flames were extinguished by the sheer amount of mass twisting around them.

“If they actually burned! Do you know how annoying it is to pump half your mana into a spell and then watch it do nothing?”

The recovery knight stared into the air with a faraway look.

“I’m a battlefield healer. All too often.”

The battlemage sighed and prepped another spell. The battlefield ahead of them was littered with shattered walls and broken landships. The remaining landships had pulled back for repairs while the legions of the east were withdrawing to yet another set of fortifications further up the mountains. But the monsters of corrupted dungeons didn’t take breaks, so someone had to hold the line for the army to fall back. A job made all the more difficult ever since the Necrotorum was pulled off the front. Something about a big undead dungeon acting up.

Because of course it would, now, of all times.

“Ugh. And where is our fearless leader in all this?”

The recovery knight shook his head.

“You know something happened with his daughter back home. Have some compassion, he made a great sacrifice leaving her behind for as long as he did.”

The battlemage ducked and fell to the ground as a wave of thorns shot overhead.

“And now we’re about to make a great sacrifice! Everyone’s daughters are going to be in trouble if we die here, you know!”

The recovery mage stepped in front of her with a shield while she stood back to her feet.

“I am aware.”

The battlemage sighed, and then narrowed her eyes. A horn sounded across the battlefield. The knights at the front broke off and began to retreat. The battlemage reached into her pocket and pulled out a mana core that was glowing bright red.

“That’s the signal. Cover me, it’ll take some time to set up the strategic spell.”

The recovery knight nodded and stirred up his mana, creating a powerful barrier. The battlemage got to work, using her flames to burn a magic circle into the stone around them. It took her several minutes to set up, then she placed the mana core at the center. She knelt down and placed both of her hands on the core, and channeled as much mana as she could into it. The core’s light intensified, and then it began to melt and fill the lines of the circle. The battlemage grunted and groaned but her work continued. The spell completed just as the vines and branches were wrapping around the barrier.

“Now!”

The recovery mage leapt back as he dropped the barrier. A wall of fire shot up to the sky and began to surge forward. The entire forest caught flame. The battlemage held her hands out and began to cackle madly.

Until a gust of wind blew her and the recovery knight off their feet. They looked up to see powerful winds whirling around, and forming a cyclone that reached up to the sky. The flames were drawn into the cyclone, burning bright and then fading away. The cyclone then vanished, leaving a Sun Elf floating in the sky, with his eyes fixed upon them.

The battlemage grabbed her hair.

“Oh come on! Now there’s an Archon here?! This is seriously not fair!”

The recovery knight grabbed her and ran as the Overgrowth forest started growing towards them once again.

“Less grumbling, more fire.”

The battlemage shook her head as she began to run.

“I don’t have any more fire! I just solo-casted a strategic spell, in case you didn’t notice!”

The recovery knight glanced back at the Archon, who was forming a massive magic circle of his own. The knight frowned.

“I’m pretty sure he did.”

At that moment, the wind picked up once again, and something passed up and above the two. The recovery knight grit his teeth and glanced up, expecting to see their doom approaching.

And then blinked, for nothing was above or in front of them.

A moment later, a loud explosion shook his ears. He turned behind him and his eyes widened. The Sun Elf Archon was staring forward with wide eyes.

And a massive hole where his torso should have been, left by something that had split the sky on its approach.

More projectiles then began to stream from overhead as the Archon fell from the sky, small tubes with trails of fire and smoke following behind them. They fell upon the forest creeping towards the pair and exploded. A massive inferno engulfed the forest…and the recovery knight’s eyes widened further. He could see golden and silver light flickering at the edge of the flames.

But the biggest surprise was yet to come.

Holy mana suddenly began to swirl from the ground beneath his feet, and filled the recovery knight. He felt his wounds close, his mana refill, and fatigue fade. He caught a glimpse of a young girl in shining armor and with wings with feathers of pure light. Her face…was suspiciously familiar to a certain Exploratore he knew.

She smiled and he could hear her voice in his head.

“Don’t give up!”

And then…

Protocol assistance is now available. Engage skill and spell assistance protocols?