For Sale. Fallen Lady. Never Used.

The Boiling Silence, having suffered greatly at the hands of the Levantin Empire, now struggled to appoint an apostle or descend from their seal.

Although essentially out of the picture, this nuisance disrupted our strategy because they wouldn’t stay out of the way.

Had we known that the Grotesque Proliferation’s army would gather to this extent, we would have first called all the elves living along the travel routes to Yggdrasil.

Then, we would have concentrated all the spiritual energy that was being supplied to various places for maintaining infrastructure on defending Yggdrasil.

Yggdrasil, with the full blessing of the World Tree, would become an impregnable fortress that wouldn’t fall as long as it had an apostle or its spiritual energy wouldn’t run out completely.

Of course, even if the World Tree couldn’t leave its place, it was still guarded by a god, so it was only natural.

Additionally, elves, while not as numerous as beastmen, had superior physical abilities and, due to their longevity, had learned many things.

Although few reached high levels, most could handle basic magic or use aura, meaning they could perform adequately with just basic military training.

While we hold out persistently at Yggdrasil to block the army of Grotesque Proliferation, the knights from the Levantin Empire and warriors from Crasius could strike at their rear.

If the enemy could take down a nation single-handedly, then we needed to mobilize all corresponding forces on our side.

The army of an Evil God without an apostle, though bizarre, was a fightable opponent.

Of course, a prolonged war would mean a certain defeat, but that was true even now, so there was nothing much to lose.

Grimhill, having heard up to this point, tilted his head in confusion.

“But haven’t we already missed the timing? Why bring this up now?”

“Because it’s not too late yet.”

“Hmm?”

“Or rather, we must make it not too late.”

The core idea was the same as mentioned before. Since elite forces weren’t enough and we needed national-level power, there was no other way.

The only issue was the lack of time… but then, we just needed to buy time.

“Whether it’s fortunate or unfortunate, the Grotesque Proliferation is obsessed with me. To the extent that they said they would completely withdraw from this world if I willingly became their apostle, though I don’t know if it was sincere.”

“Master! Surely you don’t mean…!”

Carla, who was massaging my shoulders from behind, started trembling in shock. There was no need for such worry, though.

“There’s no guarantee they’ll keep their promise even if I become their apostle. Even if they did, I have no intention of complying… but they desperately want me.”

Then things would become simple. There was no better way to draw aggro than something just out of reach.

“I’ll be the bait to buy time. While I’m doing that, go back to Yggdrasil and make all the preparations.”

“That’s…”

“Ah, of course, I’m not saying I’ll stay alone. Sir Grimhill and Cardinal Tumila, please stay and help. From our side, two high-level mages and the Saintess will remain as well.”

High-level mages were strong. They were on par with senior members of a Magic Tower, so their prowess was unquestionable.

However, if you ask if they could escape unscathed from the Grotesque Proliferation’s army, then it wasn’t quite that level.

So, this was the right approach here.

“…Then there should be no problem escaping for a few days.”

“Leave the healing to me.”

Expressing gratitude to the two who nodded, I then gathered my women.

“Did you all hear the gist of it? Since that’s how it is, Carla and Elisha, please go back with the others.”

“Master, I…”

“…”

Carla hesitated, ultimately unable to speak, but Elisha, seemingly in deep thought, looked at me with a grave expression.

“I understand that we’re not much help right now.”

“Conversely, in situations other than this, you’re more than helpful, so don’t worry.”

“…Hmph! I’ll soon be a high-level mage like you, so no need to worry. But let’s talk about something more practical.”

“What’s that?”

“How long can you hold out?”

Ah, that’s certainly important.

I ran some simulations in my head. Fortunately, having faced the Grotesque Proliferation’s forces enough in H&A, estimating wasn’t too hard.

“Five days. More than that would be tough.”

Stamina and mana could be restored with potions. Even sleep could be managed with vitality potions and divine spells.

But the accumulating lust debuff was something we couldn’t do much about.

While Helena and Tumila’s divine spells could mitigate it to some extent, they couldn’t completely remove it in a short time. It was still a divine power, after all.

This wasn’t something that could be relieved by masturbation or sex; it actually accelerated it. It was only natural since it was a power meant to make one eternally frustrated.

The only way to deal with it was to neutralize it over time or to become a follower of the Grotesque Proliferation to turn the debuff into a buff.

While I, with high resistance, or Iona, with a different structure of sexual desire, could manage, others wouldn’t.

Moreover, Iris was a High Elf, and Grimhill and Tumila were elves.

Since the Grotesque Proliferation’s power affected elves more strongly than other races, five days was the limit. At least, according to my calculations.

After hearing my explanation, Elisha nodded.

“Alright. Then we’ll go ahead and wait. Should I share the story with the others?”

“Yeah, that would be great.”

With that, Elisha, holding onto Carla’s wrist, who was still stammering, led her toward where everyone else was gathered.

Carla shouted as she was being dragged away.

“Master! Don’t overdo it, and make sure to come back safely!”

“If it seems dangerous, I’ll pull back no matter how much time I’ve bought, so it’ll be fine.”

I waved lightly at Carla and pulled out a communication magic tool from my inventory.

It was a crystal orb connected to Milone, prepared in advance. When I infused it with mana, a voice filled with fatigue soon came through.

After briefly explaining the situation, she immediately sent Nidhogg. Since it wasn’t far from where we first landed, it arrived quickly.

Watching the root-made ship carrying Carla, Elisha, and others of intermediate mage rank sail towards Yggdrasil, I felt Grimhill quietly approach and whisper in my ear.

“By the way.”

“Yes?”

“Is it true that you’re such a potent lover that even an Evil God acknowledges you?”

“Well, yeah?”

“…What’s the secret?”

Right, if all elven women were potentially erotical, then elven men were innately quick to finish, wasn’t it?

If he was curious about this at a time like this, it seemed that despite his outward composure, he must be quite desperate inside, typical of an elf.

I shrugged my shoulders and answered with a voice full of pride.

“Just born with a lot of mana?”

“……”

Grimhill’s face contorted in frustration.

But no matter how much he glared, the truth was the truth.

After taking a brief rest, we rode Nidhogg to land in a suitable spot, and then sought out the army of Grotesque Proliferation once more.

This time, there was no need for a stealthy approach, so we freely utilized Iris’s wide-area detection.

When the enemies felt the magic wave and rushed towards us, it was exactly what we wanted.

As soon as they entered our attack range, we unleashed the spells we had prepared.

However, maybe because they almost got hit once before, they came well-prepared this time.

They carried the corpses of dead goblins tied to wooden boards as shields, and peculiarly, half of each corpse was covered with tentacles.

Or rather, more accurately, tentacles were emerging from inside the bodies, like a bird hatching from an egg.

Given a bit more time, tentacle monsters would be born from there. A quite twisted birth, but this was exactly what the Grotesque Proliferation excelled at.

By the way, tentacle monsters could mate with all kinds of living beings.

The offspring produced would always be tentacle monsters, and when they would try to reproduce with males, the fetus would burst out, making it a one-time use, but…

Still, they were favored as automatic minion production factories because they tirelessly engaged in reproduction for 24 hours.

…We must never get caught by them.

No matter how broad my defensive range, I’d rather not deal with tentacles.

While I was thinking that, the magic we cast had already reached above their heads.

Now, all that was left was to sweep them away. But, as was often the case in life, things didn’t go as smoothly as planned.

They raised the tentacle-covered goblin corpses above their heads as meat shields.

At the same time, the high priests, who had been observing from the back in the previous encounter, started to actively use their powers.

“Get hard!”

“Grow, yeah!”

“Penis fighting!”

Though their cries were varied and uncoordinated, the effect was the same.

The tentacles half-protruding from the goblin corpses started to grow wildly as they received blessings from the high priests.

Crack!

In an instant, the tentacles grew thick and solid, intertwining to form one massive entity, which then absorbed the magic we had cast.

Boom!

A vibration that echoed through the bones. Flesh fragments flew in every direction. That huge mass of tentacles was torn to shreds in a moment.

But what does it matter? We only hit the shield, not the main force.

Of course, the magic cast by high-level mages at full power was strong. Moreover, we had three.

No matter how sturdy the meat wall, it wouldn’t completely block it, allowing some impact to pass through, which would still yield a decent result.

…That is, under normal circumstances.

Through the falling chunks of flesh, I saw a familiar figure.

A cute appearance with tiny bat wings, contrasting with the grotesque lower body—the Cardinal of Grotesque Proliferation.

The Enchanting Triana.

A key figure significant enough to appear in H&A, she stepped forward with several other hermaphrodite demons.

Triana extended her hand towards the fierce torrent of magic with a contrasting gentle motion.

Following her, various demons reached out toward the sky.

So, they’re going for that, huh?

While I clicked my tongue inwardly, Triana licked her lips and shouted,

“Everyone! Are you ready to take it properly?”

Then followed an energy absorption… or something closer to energy drain. The magic, which had been like a small typhoon just from its aftermath, suddenly calmed down.

This is maddening.

Before they could fully absorb it and counter with an even stronger attack, I turned to the remaining group.

“Let’s run!”

Whether we hit them or not, the plan was to strike once and escape from the beginning.

That was how we managed to hold out for a day.