Epic of Caterpillar
chapter-448

[Day 237]

[Kireina] gained +49 Skill Points and Subclass Skill Points due to the prayers of your believers!] (Added!)

[Kireina] gained 91.622.236.000 EXP due to the prayers of your believers!]

[LEVEL 079/250] [EXP 309.502.619.520/850.000.000.000]

Today we woke up quite early, the sun was still slowly approaching the horizon to mark the beginning of a new day with its bright yellow light.

For breakfast, we had more of Geggoron's vessel delicious flesh, sliced into thick slices, and then grilled. Which was seasoned with a lot of herbs and other sauces afterward. An unlikely breakfast with a lot of octopus… or whatever this tiger beastmen became after mutating due to Geggoron's split soul possessing it.

I gave a quick scan to my surroundings using my Mystic Eyes and then created a mental map with 'Mental Mapping'. Everything seemed quite clear, Geggoron was making sure to not approach me while scheming new things, it seems. He had been eliminating my spying slime clones as well, even the ghost ones were found dead when I woke up...

He really does not want me to mingle on his stupid cliché schemes. I just want to be done with this and go back home.

Anyways, Mohini woke up inside of Maeralya's Divine Realm and was reprimanded by her mother. She was very weakened from Geggoron's split soul attack but was recovering slowly, thanks to her mother giving her a bit of her soul and a lot of Divine Energy, alongside different healing techniques that only gods know about.

We decided to go aboard Led Zeppelin again as we ventured through the skies of the outskirts of the Moonfang Kingdom. We moved to the north, where a few congregations of villages were.

I had decided the simplest of plans, thanks to my Inner Realm and how I can connect portals using it with my divided bodies, I will just find the people and immediately send them to my Empire without much talk. It will be way safer for them this way.

Also, it seems that Geggoron is trying to diminish these small villages, perhaps to nourish his brainwashed pawns and make them stronger by gaining easy Experience Points and Levels, he is sending these bandit and mercenary groups to destroy villages aimlessly.

He is certainly forging a whole army of brainwashed puppets. Is he planning on creating a chaotic war to distract me? Wait, is that it?

So at this point, he's just imitating what I did in Athetosea… very original, living fart.

Is Geggoron a living fart? I remember his appearance as a giant black cloud in Vudia's dream… demon gods have such bizarre appearances.

Anyways, as we moved through the skies, we reached the congregation of villages, the people were hiding from monsters inside long walls erected by using what seemed to be Earth Magic, perhaps they had some talented mages in here?

We decided to descend from the sky as fast as possible, but it seems that even when we tried to act normal, we were found out.

"W-What is that?!"

"Another army of the Demon God?"

"No… Or could it be?"

"Call Cathin-sama!"

The villagers began to freak out as they called three people that rushed towards the entrance of the walls, surrounding a large village.

A young lion beastmen boy with emerald eyes, long and golden hair, and a girly appearance, alongside a beautiful black cat maid and a burly white tiger guard appeared before us.

I had decided to go down with only Rimuru, Brontes, and Zehe. Going with those like Nesiphae would have called too much attention.

The young lion boy raised a short sword, seemingly a Legendary Rank item as he glanced at me with a bit of concern on his eyes.

"Cathin-sama… could it be, the army of Geggoron?" asked the white tiger, as he raised his long battle-ax, enhancing his body with several buffing spells.

"They're four… we should have a possibility, Cathin-sama… though, if things go to the worst-case scenario, please, run away," said the black cat maid, raising her two long daggers, coated in deadly poison, seemingly of Legendary Rank as well.

"No…! I shall support you from behind with the magic that Mohini-sama has granted to me through her blessing!" said the young lion boy, named Cathin.

Wait… Mohini? Could this boy be the one that Mohini was looking for, 'his blessed child'?

Well, I also have to state to them that we come in peace, I suppose.

"With that magic… we might have a chance…" muttered the white tiger man.

"Cathin-sama, please, be wary…" muttered the black cat maid.

"Yes… but why are they standing there watching us? Are they mocking us? Hey! State your business here!" shouted Cathin, raising his golden sword.

All of the villagers were trembling, hiding inside their houses.

"Ah, we are being mistaken by Geggoron's army?" asked Brontes.

"She talked!" said the white tiger man.

"Is she… a cyclops?" asked the maid.

"Are you not… from Geggoron's army?" asked the young boy.

Rimuru, Zehe, and Brontes waved their heads.

"No, young boy, we come from the outside. We were sent by your goddess to save all of you. Could you please enter this portal here? Everything should end pretty soon" I said, as kind as possible, opening a dark portal leading to my Inner Realm.

The three glanced at the portal, a dark world, filled with eerie and crying souls…

"You witch! We will not fall in your schemes!" shouted Cathin.

"Cathin-sama, stay in here, I will distract her! Kamuris, you go for the cyclops, she's strong!" shouted the black cat maid, rushing towards us with her daggers, while enhancing her body with endless shadows, her black eyes gleaming with killing intent.

Flash!

"Wait, what's wrong? I thought I was being very kind" I said.

"No, Masta. That sounded very creepy, guu" said Rimuru.

"I-I see… It is hard to deal with normal folk…" I said.

"Honey, that sounded very selfish, like a royalty princess," said Zehe, laughing.

"So are we stopping the black cat?" asked Brontes.

��Well, you can, Brontes. Don't kill her though" I said.

"Alright," said Brontes, rushing towards the black cat maid like a spark of thunder.

Flash!

"S-So fast!" shouted the black cat maid, trying to intercept Brontes's with her daggers, releasing a series of slashes in the form of techniques, arts, and magic spells.

Brontes evaded most, but the ones that she managed to receive made bleeding wounds in her muscular body… although they healed not much afterward.

"You're strong…" she said, using her bare fist to stop her attacks while releasing Thunder-Attribute spells.

The Black Cat Maid was even faster, jumping and evading as if she were speed incarnate, however, she was sweating heavily.

"I guess it would be better to incapacitate them and send them to my Empire instead of trying to convince them…" I said, telling Rimuru and Zehe to do the same with the young lion boy and the white tiger.

"Alright, masta," said Rimuru, flying towards the boy.

"Hm, this shall be an easy task," said Zehe, controlling countless shadows.

However, as they were about to clash, I felt the presence of a moderately large group of… beings.

Their presence was oddly similar to Geggoron… another split soul?

From within the forest, grotesque monsters filled with tentacles and eyes were being commanded by gigantic knights, wearing dark and heavy armor, while wielding sharp and black weapons. Leading them was a beautiful lioness Beastwoman, with scarlet hair, and fur. Her lion ears and tail were crimson red, and her eyes aquamarine. Wearing a revealing dark armor similar to the dark knights she commanded.

"Hm? Am I interrupting something? Cathin-kun, who are you fighting? You should only fight me~! Geggoron-sama has been patiently waiting for you to appear in the open like this! Now, come, become one of Geggoron-sama pawns!" she shouted, commanding her large troops to go against us.

I commanded Rimuru, Brontes, and Zehe to come back with me.

Cathin, the Black Maid, and the White Tiger man were stopped in their tracks as they saw me differently.

"It's my sister!" shouted Cathin.

"Wait, so those weren't Geggoron's pawns?" asked the Black Cat Maid.

"Then who are you four?" asked the White Tiger Man.

"So stubborn. You should really hear people out when they talk. I am Kireina, the Empress of the Dark Moon Empire of the Grand Forest. I have come to save you and your people, in name of Maeralya, your goddess" I said.

"T-Then why did you four attacked us?" asked Cathin.

"Because you attacked first," said Brontes.

"You also called masta a 'witch'!" said Rimuru.

"We also thought that it would be faster to knock you all unconscious and carry you to a safe place," I said.

"T-That's… we apologize… Please, Kireina-sama, assist us in this battle…!" said Cathin.

"Sigh… very well, but tell me first who's the crazy lady there," I asked.

"T-That's my older sister… Habitis, she had been brainwashed by Geggoron and his cultists! And those monsters she is taming… are Geggoron's monstrosities, former citizens that were converted into monsters by the Demon's powers!" said Cathin, his emerald eyes filled with melancholy.

"Is it okay to kill them all, right?" asked Brontes.

"Y-Yes… my sister… she is no longer the same, she is dead to me… she is now but one of Geggoron's pawns…" muttered Cathin.

"Alright, they shall be a tasty meal"

"M-Meal?"

Geggoron's split soul, which had taken Habitis as one of his vessels, stopped in his tracks when he finally realized who the woman before them was…

"A dark fairy… long purple hair… horns… scarlet butterfly wings… And that Aura, the Aura of a monster only seeking to devour! Kireina?! But how? She was not supposed to come in here! What is going on with her crazy luck? I left a ton of villages to the south ready for her to save, they're all being currently destroyed by bandits and mercenaries!"

In the meantime, when Kireina was considering what to do with Cathin and his allies, she told her wives over the floating golem Led Zeppelin to move towards the other villages in the surroundings, saving them from their current invasions.

Of course, Habitis, and Geggoron's split soul merged with her did not know about this…

Kireina had already sensed their presence approaching, and most likely thought that they would run away the moment they saw her, so she decided to decrease the power of her aura and lay low, waiting for them to come for her and this 'Cathin' that she found, who seemed to be a big shot in all of these events.

"It was quite lucky to find Cathin, now I will be able to dispose of another of Geggoron's split souls!" laughed Kireina, as she released her Aura completely and created a domain, trapping everyone inside.

The armies of monstrosities and dark knights stopped their tracks, even the crazed octopus-like beings began to tremble, as they had fallen into a deadly trap.

Habitis gnashed her teeth and stopped he tracks as well, her revealing dark armor showed her beautiful and muscular body sweating nervously.

"T-This wasn't as it was supposed to be! She is too unpredictable… just how many steps is she ahead of us?!" thought Habitis's Geggoron's Split Soul, referring to 'us' as all of the split souls that Geggoron had spread through both Kingdoms.

Brontes was the first one to jump into the fight raising her club and beginning to smash the monstrosities and the 'Nightmare Hunters', her blows penetrated the ground itself, although the monstrosities held a great strength, against her they seemed to be nothing.

Clash! Crash!

Thunder fell over the tentacle creatures, their bodies fried instantly as the armored knights rushed towards her with their eyes shining eerily in crimson red.

Swords tried to penetrate her body but quickly broke apart, unless they were to use a Legendary Rank or above weapon, they would not be capable of penetrating Brontes's skin!

"Smash of Heaven's Thunder!" shouted Brontes, moving her club as if she were playing baseball, sending her enemies flying around like a bloody mess of flesh and bones covered her entire herculean beauty of a body.

Rimuru joined in, as she used her fingers to fire powerful cannons of spiritual magic, the monstrosities barely having any time to react, being fried alive. She intercepted the Nightmare Hunters with her blades as if playing games. She seemed completely relaxed in front of Cathin and the other's eyes.

"Incredible… they are killing these fiends as if they were mere ants!" said the White Tiger Man, Kamuris.

"Indeed… They were really sent by Maeralya-sama?!" said Cathin, excitedly.

"There might be hope… but some of them are slipping off their grasp, let's take care of them," said Cassamia, raising her daggers and rushing through the battlefield like a shadow, her blades slicing the knees of the Nightmare Hunters and the tentacles of the monstrosities.

As this happened, Kireina glanced at Habitis, trying out her Mystic Eyes curses against her.

Flash!

"Ugh…! The curses of a mortal do not affect me… Worm!" shouted Habitis, quickly healing the several status ailments that Kireina had tried to inflict in her with her mere glance.

"Oh well, I was just playing around. Alright, let us make a good show for the young prince, shall we?" said Kireina, flying with an immense speed towards Habitis, leaving a trail of crimson and dark shadows behind her. Her hands waved as countless swords, spears, and axes appeared out of thin air, falling over Habitis from all sides!