Every monster on the battlefield received their master's words straight into their souls.
The words of their absolute ruler — the one who accepted all of their loyalty and trust.
Joy flooded the monsters' hearts, and surrendering to the surging impulse within, they unleashed their magic.
The Magicules they had suppressed while living in town to avoid affecting the environment now poured out, raising the ambient Magicule concentration by another level entirely.
There was nothing left to fear.
They charged across the battlefield, guided only by the inner impulse driving them.
On this battlefield, moving as a group would only make them a bigger target.
After observation and consultation — with the Wisdom King, as always — they had concluded there would be no leisure for visual aiming when it came to the enemy tanks' main cannons.
In other words, the enemy was treating their formation as a single monster, predicting its movements, and lining up shots accordingly.
The very precision of their coordinated maneuvers had become their undoing.
"From now on, each squad is free to attack at will. The Star Wolf Demon Corps will serve as squad leaders and command the Green Corps. Always keep your telepathic links active — maintain coordination even while acting independently."
"Understood. What about you, General Gobta?"
"I can't afford to just hang around anymore, y'know. Our master is watching us. Can't afford to look pathetic, so I'm going all out from here on."
One look at those eyes, and the adjutant understood his superior was serious.
The rare, genuine seriousness of their general.
He simply wished him a safe battle and immediately issued orders to the corps.
And then—
"Don't get caught in the crossfire! General Gobta is going all out!!"
He made sure to relay that warning.
Those in the Star Wolf Demon Corps who were Gobta's peers already knew, and anyone under his command was well aware of his genius-level talent.
His leadership ability was abnormally high, and under Gobta's instruction, everyone's growth speed was extraordinary.
And when it came to Gobta's individual combat ability, calling him a genius didn't even begin to cover it.
Gobta's command ability in large-scale engagements was admittedly terrible, but his intuition was so sharp it didn't matter.
There were even times when, as if someone were whispering advice in his ear, he would read the battlefield and make the right call at exactly the right moment.
So if Gobta had determined that a unified army-wide formation was a bad idea, then dispersing was the correct choice.
And the "Wolf-Monster Fusion" enabled by Gobta's Unique Skill, "Beast Monster Summoning," was so powerful that even the entire Star Wolf Demon Corps attacking together couldn't compare.
Knowing that full well, they moved swiftly.
Gobta charged straight toward the enemy lines, all on his own.
Spotting a tank turret turning in his direction, he grinned.
"Now then — time to go wild! Wolf-Monster Fusion!!"
In an instant, black fog enveloped Gobta.
*(I've been waiting for this, Gobta. Let's show Lord Rimuru what we can do!)*
Responding to
"I'll put on a good show. Here I go!"
He released the magic power within.
The black fog was sucked into Gobbody as if drawn by a vortex, and when it vanished, a single goblin warrior clad in a black wolf emerged.
An ominous, humanoid black wolf with two vicious horns jutting from its head.
Its hardened black fur deflected even incoming tank shells.
With a single roar from Gobta, "black lightning" rained down from above the tank formation, interfering with their defensive barriers and producing blinding flashes of light.
Observing the results, Gobta realized the lightning strike also had an EMP effect.
But the tanks' electrical resistance apparently wasn't perfect — the strikes were causing significant damage to their precision mechanical components.
Gobta smirked.
*(Not bad at all, y'know.)*
Now then — let's get started.
Gobta joyfully dashed across the battlefield.
His speed broke the sound barrier. The Imperial tank corps could no longer track him with the naked eye.
Thunder roared as the tank formation descended into total dysfunction.
And then—
"All right — let's see if you can keep up! Gale Demon Wolf Dance!!"
A black gale swept across the battlefield, and supersonic shockwaves battered the Imperial tank corps.
Soon, those shockwaves grew into a tornado, spawning a "Catastrophe Tornado Storm" that dwarfed the earlier "Catastrophe Storm."
Through meticulously calculated movements, he annihilated the enemy forces with devastating efficiency.
This was Gobta's terrifying army-obliterating technique: the Gale Demon Wolf Dance.
A corner of the battlefield had collapsed in this manner.
While Gobta was dominating on the ground, changes were also unfolding in the skies above.
This was the Third Corps, led by
The moment Gabiru heard Rimuru's "voice," he declared:
"Listen up, everyone! From this moment on, we enter the path of carnage!!"
The monsters' expressions hardened in unison.
Gabiru continued:
"Blue Corps — you lot are still green. That's why your job is to support the ground forces! Don't overextend — just execute your training as planned."
"But those flying enemies — the airships — there are still too many of them—"
"That is not a concern! Leave everything else to us and fight with everything you've got!"
Gabiru regretted that they hadn't trained for aerial combat, but there was no point dwelling on that now.
Everything would have to wait until after this war.
The Blue Corps withdrew from the aerial battlefield as ordered.
Breaking away from Gabiru's command, they operated independently to provide ground support.
With air support, the ground forces' momentum would only accelerate further.
Having confirmed that, Gabiru turned his glare toward the Imperial aerial combat squadron ahead.
"Dragon Corps — who rules the skies?"
*"We are the Tempest Dragon Corps!!"*
"That's right. Those who defile our skies must be eliminated. These are Lord Rimuru's orders. Everyone — give it everything you have! Don't let the instincts consume you! All units — Dragon Warrior Transformation!!"
*"ROAR!!"*
The Dragon Corps answered Gabiru's command.
Dragon Warrior Transformation — their trump card.
It boosted combat power to overwhelming levels, but proportionally increased their ferocity.
It had remained sealed until now because they couldn't suppress the destructive impulse it awakened.
But Rimuru's order was to fight with everything they had.
There was no reason to hesitate.
*"Dra... gon... Shift!!"*
In unison, the Dragon Corps released their true power.
This was the moment the Tempest military's strongest unit unveiled its true combat capabilities.
Red-black muscles swelled explosively, and their surfaces were immediately covered head to toe in pitch-black dragon scales.
Their height increased by roughly 1.5 times, and their volume and mass grew enormously.
Attack power. Defense power.
Needless to say, the comparison to their pre-transformation state was laughable.
If they had lost their minds in the process, they would have been nothing more than vessels of raw power — but they successfully maintained their consciousness.
It was the moment true dragon warriors were born.
"One ship per person. Can you do it?"
*"Without question!!"*
"Good — go!!"
At Gabiru's command, the dragon warriors surged into action as one.
The Empire's prized aerial combat squadron was reduced to nothing more than helpless lambs.
The reason was simple: in Dragon Warrior Transformation state, a special effect rendered all magic completely ineffective.
Even the natural effect known as "Wrath of God" ceased to function.
A barrier generated naturally around each warrior's body negated all magical attacks and natural effects.
In terms of Magicule count, they were now equivalent to A-rank or above (EP: 40,000–60,000), surpassing even high-ranking monsters.
And for someone like Gabiru, who was already powerful to begin with…
He had transformed into an extraordinary warrior boasting absurd levels of Magicules.
And with that power—
"Here we go! Take this — my ultimate technique!
Air currents spiraled inward, drawing atmospheric moisture to a single point, and a massive vortex of magic power swallowed an entire airship whole.
A magical barrier maintained by over a hundred mages shattered without putting up any resistance.
It was a spectacular sinking.
Gabiru, getting carried away:
"Ahahahaha! Onward, then! Anyone who fails to sink a ship will answer to me later, understood?"
The Dragon Corps' faces went rigid at his words.
Fewer than a hundred enemy ships remained. Some of them had no targets left.
The moment they realized this, the dragon warriors simultaneously lunged toward whichever airship they had set their sights on.
Major General Faraga was stunned by the scene before him.
Aerial fortresses constantly protected by magical barriers, with Barrier Shields deployed across their front hulls.
And one of those airships had just been sunk by a single monster's strike.
They appeared to belong to a rare species — Dragonfolk — possessing combat power equivalent to humanoid dragons.
When only about a hundred of them had remained in the sky, he'd felt a twinge of unease…
And then the observation team reported that their power had surged dramatically.
Right after the ones piloting the wyverns had retreated, the anomaly began.
It could only be described as a transformation.
The remaining Dragonfolk displayed combat power that surpassed even wyverns, hurtling toward the airships.
They were amplifying and firing magic, but it was completely useless.
As if magic itself simply didn't work.
*(Impossible! How can that be?!)*
Magicule Disruption Radiation was supposed to impair monster mobility.
Using that principle, they tried to weaken the enemy, but the targets moved too fast to track.
However, the individual who had fired the first shot — likely their commander — seemed immune to the weakening effect entirely.
He understood then: they were on different levels.
Unless all Magicule Disruption Radiation generators concentrated their wavelengths on a single target, stopping that individual would be nearly impossible.
Perhaps…
*(Could that individual be… "Veldora"?!)*
Faraga found himself convinced by his own reasoning. So the rumors were true — after the seal was broken, Veldora had weakened — but to the point of changing his very form…
No — even in this diminished state, possessing that much power meant the pre-seal Veldora had been beyond imagination.
But if the current one was all that remained, then bringing him down should be achievable.
Just as Faraga reached that conclusion and was about to issue a concentrated fire order—
"Hey? Isn't anyone offering a guest some tea around here? My throat is dry, y'know?"
A beautiful girl with deep purple hair tied in a ponytail was sitting in the adjacent officer's seat, having appeared out of nowhere.
Her body was wrapped in a military uniform, an outfit that didn't match her age at all.
*(Where did she come from?! No — more importantly—)*
"Who are you?"
Faraga's challenge made his subordinates turn and notice the girl.
No intrusions had been detected inside the ship.
And yet she sat there as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
"Who am I? My name is
She said all of this with an innocent smile.
But Faraga felt an indescribable sensation looking at this girl.
If he had to compare it to something… yes — like facing someone ranked above the Emperor's personal guard, the ones who embodied absolute strength…
No — worse than that, potentially.
*(Am I… am I actually afraid? Afraid of a girl like this?!)*
And yet, this girl had infiltrated the ship entirely on her own.
Faraga drew his military saber and took a fighting stance.
He had considerable confidence in his swordsmanship. Still active duty, and he prided himself on never having lost to even A-rank adventurers.
The quality of the air around Faraga shifted, and an invisible thread of tension stretched between him and the girl.
"What do you want to know?" Faraga asked.
The girl — Ultima — nodded happily.
"The workings of this ship, operational methods, the Empire's military strength. How many powerful individuals exist — everything, even outside the current corps. And well, other things too. Don't worry. Even if you don't talk, I'll just take the knowledge myself."
She said it all with a carefree tone.
"Foolish girl — you're out of luck. The one standing before you is one of those very powerful individuals!"
Faraga seized the moment Ultima was still talking, raised his saber high overhead, and brought it crashing down.
A master-class slash from a swordsman skilled enough to instruct his own troops in blade techniques.
A killing blow that even monsters couldn't dodge and would split them clean in two.
"Then let me start by asking you!"
"Eh?"
A voice sounded from behind him.
Faraga's decisive strike didn't merely miss Ultima — it didn't even come close. She should have been sitting right there in the chair, yet the blade cut through empty air.
And impossibly, despite having been right in front of him moments ago, she had somehow moved behind him.
"What the—?!"
Faraga spun around in a panic, and something round sailed past his head.
*Splat!* It hit the wall and left a stain.
One of the mages — now missing everything above the neck — twitched reflexively before crumpling to the floor.
"You don't really know much, do you? Onward we go~"
With that, Ultima casually began the cycle of ripping off heads, fiddling with them for a few seconds, and tossing them aside.
The bridge had transformed into a hellscape painted in screams and terror.
"A-A-all units — activate the Magicule Disruption Radiation!! Concentrate everything on the demon in front of you!!"
The mages, who had been paralyzed by panic, regained their composure at Faraga's command.
In a frenzy, everyone aimed their portable Magicule Disruption Radiation devices at Ultima.
"Ohh, so this is the Magicule Disruption Radiation thing? It's a new weapon, right? They say it's devastatingly effective against monsters. But does this actually do anything?"
Ultima tilted her head adorably and murmured the question.
"Ha — it's over for you, creature! Don't think you can bluff your way out of this!"
Faraga regained his composure and signaled his subordinates.
Soldiers drew their sidearms and aimed them at Ultima.
"Use the anti-demon annihilation rounds! She's at least a high-ranking Demon Lord class. Don't let your guard down!"
Following Faraga's order, the soldiers rushed to swap ammunition while the enemy was supposedly immobilized by the Magicule Disruption Radiation.
But—
"Hmm, I don't really get it. The theory is that it disrupts Magicules and inhibits existence, right? The more Magicule-based your body is, the stronger the effect? But if you've incarnated, like me, then it's pretty much useless. Besides, it might work on low-level demons, but for higher beings, it means nothing. Just like how you breathe without thinking, we generate magic naturally when we will it. Like this."
The instant she finished speaking, Ultima's figure vanished and a soldier's head flew through the air.
She had moved in the blink of an eye and killed one soldier to demonstrate.
"See? All I did was move and take off one guy's head. By your standards, that movement exceeded the speed of sound. But there was no shockwave, right? Because that movement was magic. And then—"
She flicked her wrist lightly, and for an instant, the tip blurred.
Immediately after, with a heavy *boom*, another soldier's head exploded.
"I can also follow the laws of physics and produce a shockwave, just like this."
Faraga's mind finally began processing Ultima's words.
It felt as though someone far away were speaking a foreign language — an uncanny, disorienting sensation.
His instincts were refusing to understand.
High-ranking Demon Lord? Was that really what she was?
Based on his own ability, Faraga believed he couldn't necessarily defeat a High-ranking Demon Lord, but he could at least buy time.
If several people of his caliber were present, the enemy was certainly not unbeatable.
But…
No matter how he looked at it, there was no chance of defeating the girl before him.
"H-H-Help!! Monster!!"
Soldiers and mages alike collapsed into complete panic.
Death itself had materialized before their eyes — their reaction was entirely natural.
"Well then — let's resume the questions!"
That cheerful voice was the last thing the terrified souls heard.
A few minutes later.
Having extracted every last piece of information, Ultima departed the bridge with a satisfied air.
She was an intelligence officer, and her mission was to bring back information.
She believed she had achieved outstanding results, but the one who would judge that was their master — not Ultima.
And just as she was about to leap from the flagship—
"Oh, right. I was supposed to use my full power, wasn't I."
She murmured, as if remembering something, and activated a single spell.
The moment Ultima took flight, the spell activated, and the flagship was engulfed in a fireball.
A type of magic classified as a nuclear strike — the Flame of Annihilation.
It reduced the ship to nothing, leaving not a trace behind.
The fireball swelled enormously before detonating.
Superheated flames from the primary impact and shockwaves from the secondary explosion.
The flagship, blown apart by the blast, turned its own hull into a rain of shrapnel that pierced the surrounding allied ships.
Ship fragments flying at supersonic speed inflicted devastating damage on their own.
A catastrophe had erupted in the skies, yet the damage to the Dragon Corps was, as calculated, zero.
Well, a few who failed to meet their quota would suffer indirect consequences afterward…
But that was hardly Ultima's concern.
This massive explosion decided the course of the battle.
The Imperial Air Force, which had already been unable to fight on equal terms, was now defeated under the inglorious record of a total fleet annihilation.