Hello my little meats~ ...Yeah sorry, I've been watching Boku wa tomodachi ga sukunai as of late. Shameless plug is shameless XD Eh whatever, a little ecchi anime never hurt anyone...right..?

So yeah, last chapter our heroes had gotten themselves into a spot of trouble... Also, ragin' Tink was ragin'. Enjoy ^3^

Chapter 3: Rise of the Beauty Queen; Of Slimy Gits and Ideals

Aqua Demons: Aqua Demons are bloated and magic saturated demons that come from the icy depths of the Netherworld's oceans, though they are considered somewhat uncommon in Veldime. Their appearance mostly resembles large blue snails with yellow tendrils on their backs, though the stronger varieties tend to have different colors. Their tendrils enable them to generate electrical charges which they use to incapacitate their prey before drowning them.

Location: Murderer's Vault; Corpse Garden

Adell, Rozalin, Tink and the siblings were being surrounded by a group of Aqua demons. The slimy, snail like monsters appeared from all around them, leaving the party no room for retreat. Keeping their distance, the monsters leered at the group.

"What's up with these freaks!" Roy exclaimed as he held his staff at the ready in front of him.

Celeste also readied her staff. "They appear to be very aggressive towards us…" ("...Might these creatures be friends of the one we encountered the first time we were here?")

Adell looked around excited. "If they want a piece of us, all we have to do is kick their asses first!" Roy stared at Adell amused. "For a human, you sure like to fight, boss."

"It's not like that. They're attacking us, right? So we gotta defend ourselves." Adell said, only partly concealing his excitement for the upcoming brawl. Roy shrugged with a smirk and readied himself for combat.

"Stay close to me sis, I'll protect you." He said confidently as he stepped in front of Celeste.

"What are you saying, Roy? You should stay behind me, of course." She said it as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"What're you talking about? I'm plenty strong now!" Roy said irritated. "You're still just a child, Roy. Just stay close to me."

Roy spat on the ground in frustration. ("You still can't trust me, sis?")

"Pay attention you two! They're coming!" Adell called out to the siblings as the monsters started marching towards them.

{-}

Still following the directions left behind on the trees, Marc made his way past the many small swamps and finally found his way to an area he recognized. "Ah, I definitely know this place." He mused to himself as he noticed a leftover arm of one of the zombies they took out earlier. "If I'm right, they'll probably have headed straight ahead from here."

Marc took off running towards the affirmed direction.

("I've got a bad feeling for some reason... maybe it's because of the weird atmosphere that's been here ever since we've entered..?") he sped up and leapt against the side of a tree and used it as a platform to jump past one of the larger swamps.

("I'd better hurry. Be safe, guys.")

{-}

"Mega Fire!" A large fireball seared through the air and hit one of the attacking monsters dead on. "Hell yeah! Take that, ya fish freak!" Roy cried out victoriously. But even as the snail-like monster was set ablaze, it kept on trudging forward.

"'The hell? These slimy gits are damn tenacious! (Though these monsters don't seem to be the level 100 variety…)"

"Nail Bat! Nail Bat! Nail Bat!" Tink was smashing into one of the aqua demons with his patented 'Nail Bat'. Having conked it over the head multiple times, the monster had been succesfully knocked into the ground. "...Hah... How iz zat!" Tink yelled slightly winded.

Just as Tink was doing his victory dance, two new aqua demons took it's brethren's place and started chasing Tink around in a slightly comedic fashion.

Adell and Rozalin were also having trouble keeping the many advancing aqua demons down. "Tri-Burst!" Rozalin fired three consecutive shots at the monster closest to her and successfully knocked it back, only to have it continue its advance mere seconds later.

"Wha-!"

"Don't let up! Keep pushing!" Adell jumped towards the monster and planted his fist square into its face, hurling it backwards against a tree with a loud thud.

"Magic Wall!" Celeste cast the defensive spell just as a black thundercloud formed above Adell and Rozalin's heads and shielded them from the impact of the lightning strike. "Whew, that was close, thanks Celeste!" Adell called out gratefully.

"Of course." Celeste said with a slight bow. "However, please remain vigilant; these monsters can attack from great distances."

Adell nodded as he looked over the approaching enemies. "There doesn't seem to be an end to this…"

"Heeey! You guys!" Marc's voice called out to the party from atop a hill.

"Marc! Are you alright?" Celeste called out relieved.

"Yeah, I'm fine! But you guys seem to be in a tough spot!" As Marc looked over the field he noticed a lone, darker colored, aqua demon keeping its distance. "Yo! I think I found the ringleader!"

As Marc called it out the darker colored monster noticed him as well and started raging. "Whoa! What's up with that thing all of a sudden?"

"Hey, blockhead! If you take out the leader the others might retreat as well!" Roy called out to Marc. "I don't really get it, but we should win this fight if I beat that darker one right?" He readied his axe. "You guys hang tight, I'll finish this quickly!"

*One awesome fight of epic proportions later.*

The leader of the pack of aqua demons had been slain and the rest had fled the scene, leaving Adell and the others to catch their breath.

"Whew, that was close…" Rozalin sighed in relief. "We were fortuitous that they were just a bunch of babies. That may have just saved our lives."

"Huh? You knew about these monsters?" Adell had walked next to Rozalin and Tink without them noticing.

"W-Well, yes…Of course." Rozalin said, trying to play off her surprise. "After all, it is common knowledge that the older ones grow as strong as level 100 or higher."

Roy glanced at the nervous princess. ("So they did try to get rid of the boss here…") He nodded to himself. ("Well, I suppose the idea itself wasn't bad… Though I get the feeling the princess's heart wasn't in it.") He smirked deviously. ("If it were me, I would have made sure that my victim would run into the stronger ones.")

"Level 100, huh? We better be careful the next time we see them." Adell turned around and cautiously made his way past the many small swamps. Tink and Rozalin followed him from a small distance, so as to not be overheard by their nemesis.

("Princess. Ze buffoon was lucky zis time, but he will not survive ze next time eh. Oh-ho-ho-ho!") Tink whispered to Rozalin encouragingly. ("…You do not look very happy. Did you not plan to kill him from ze start?") The floating frog asked her as he noticed the peculiar look on her face.

("…I suppose.") Rozalin said in thought. ("But, he trusts me and he is trying to keep his promise to me, his enemy. I cannot understand why he is doing this. Therefore, I wish to observe just how far he is willing to take this.")

Tink sighed and looked at Rozalin with pity. ("Princess… Do you feel all right? Has being in the outside world for ze first time clouded your mind?")

Rozalin shrugged. ("…Perhaps. I may indeed be acting irrationally at the moment. But, please forgive me, Tink. You will have to put up with my madness for a little while longer.")

{-}

Location: ?

"…Overlord Zenon…" The masked woman appeared once more before her master.

"Have you found the princess…?" He did not turn to face his servant and his tone of voice was more of a command then a question.

"…No. Not yet…" A dark aura exuded from Zenon's very being, as if in reaction to his anger. "Fool… Why have you returned then?"

Now, the masked man also appeared next to the masked woman. "…We uncovered an interesting bit of information during our hunt for the princess…" Zenon turned his head slightly towards his servants.

"Well..? Tell me what you found." The masked man nodded in comply to his masters question. "The palace near Holt Village was attacked…"

"Could this be the doing of that Demon Lord who is rumored to be hiding out there…?" The masked woman nodded. "…That is the most likely scenario…"

The Overlord scoffed at the notion. "Hmph… A mere Demon Lord trying to oppose an Overlord… They do not know their place…"

Zenon turned to face his servants. "Fine… Lure that Demon Lord out into the open…" The masked man and woman bowed deeply. "…We understand… It shall be as you wish, my master…"

{-}

Location: Murderer's Vault; Tragedy land

In the middle of the area known as the Tragedy land; the home of the strongest Aqua demons, stood a tall pile of black skinned, powerful looking Aqua demons, stacked on top of each other in a careless fashion.

A few meters from the pile of dead monsters sat a seemingly young girl surrounded by a group of prinnies. The girl used one of the prinnies as a seat as she heaved a sigh due to boredom.

"Hmph. killing all these stupid things was just a waste of time." She complained loudly. "Is Overlord Zenon even on this worthless mud ball? No one's even seen the bastard."

One of the prinnies stepped forward in order to answer the girl. "He must be hiding, dood. They said Overlord Zenon lived on Veldime on yesterday's news." Another prinny stepped forward in turn. "And we saw Overlord Zenon's daughter, so he must be here, dood."

The girl shot the prinnies an irritated look as she flew up with her small bat-like wings and landed on her feet. "Then why didn't you catch her? Don't tell me a spoiled little princess beat you up."

The party, led by Adell, Rozalin and Tink entered the Tragedy lands and stumbled across the girl and the prinnies.

"Heheh… We'll catch her next time, dood!" The prinny reached into its pouch and pulled out a pile of photographs. "We bought these provocative photos of her from a talking frog. And they weren't cheap either. We can pass them around to help find her, dood."

Rozalin turned towards Tink and stared at him. "…Tink. You are a shrewd businessman."

Flustered, Tink hovered next to Rozalin and started making excuses. "I-It is some kind of trick, Princess. Zeir cunning trap to sabotage our perfect chemistry, eh? You mustn't be fooled." ("…Who does he think he's fooling?") Roy thought to himself amused.

Noticing the party, or more specifically Rozalin, one of the prinnies started yelling. "Doooooooood! It's her! That's Overlord Zenon's daughter!" the prinny jumped up and down on its peg legs and pointed to Rozalin excited.

"That's her?" The girl wondered out loud. "Isn't it a bit convenient that she's with the first group of people to pass us by, just as we were looking for her?"

"Isn't it great?" the prinny holding the photo's said smirking. "We found her, and we get to keep all the photos!"

"Hey, aren't those… Aren't they the lackeys of some Demon Lord who wants to oppose Zenon or something?" Adell recalled out loud.

"The ones we fought back in the town fields? Yeah, I think you're right." Marc answered him, recalling the easy fight.

"Are they truly Demon Lord Etna's…?" Rozalin wondered as she inspected the opposing group. "This is convenient. I shall rid you all at once." She said smiling to herself.

Tink backed away nervously. "Perhaps you should not, Princess. For, I cannot bear to see you turned into a frog as well."

"But, if I defeat Etna, I may be able to return you to your human form." Tink swooned at the thought of Rozalin restoring him to his true form and looked at her with eyes filled with gratitude. The princess stepped forward and called out to the group in a commanding tone.

"Listen, you all. Which one of you is Demon lord Etna? Show yourself at once. For I am Rozalin, the only daughter of Overlord Zenon, and I challenge you to a duel."

"Hey, what are you doing?" Adell asked Rozalin. "How is you losing a duel gonna help me find Zenon?"

The girl standing by the prinnies kicked the prinny she was using as a seat into the swamp mercilessly and stepped forward. "Oh, so you're Overlord Zenon's little girl? I guess you really do exist."

Rozalin also stepped forward in turn. "Woman and children should stand back. Now, where is this Demon Lord Etna?" The girl stared at Rozalin blankly and shrugged. "Um, helllooo! I am Demon Lord Etna. But, you can call me Beauty Queen Etna."

Tink switched to his red form and also floated forward. "Sacre bleu! Lies! You do not look anyzing like ze one who turned me into a hideous frog!"

"What?" Rozalin exclaimed surprised. "Demon Lord Etna was not the one who attacked my father's palace and changed Tink into an ugly frog?"

Adell looked at Tink bugged. "…Hey, I thought you said Demon Lord Etna did all that stuff. What's wrong with you?"

Tink started flailing around angrily and began to yell. "Well, someone powerful did zis to me and it wasn't Overlord Zenon, so it had to be Etna! Or, so I zought!"

"You were wrong all along, and now you're mad at us? Your red personality really bites." He said sweatdropping.

"But, there is some truth to what Tink said." Rozalin said as she looked at the girl claiming to be Etna. "How can we be certain that she is Demon Lord Etna?" Rozalin examined the girl from top to toe.

She had dark pinkish hair and red piercing eyes. Her entire outfit was made of black leather; a choker around her neck, a short skirt with openings on the sides accompanied by a belt with pockets in the shape of prinnies, and a small top that, barely, covered her less than impressive bust. Furthermore she wore earrings in the shape of skulls and had small leathery wings on her back and a pinkish tail with a heart shaped tip.

Finishing her observation, Rozalin nodded to herself as if she understood something. "Also, I find it difficult to imagine that a Demon Lord would have such a flat chest…"

("Ah, she went there…") Marc thought to himself half amused and half pitying the girl.

The atmosphere around the girl changed as she cracked her knuckles and turned to the nearest prinny. She punched the unsuspecting prinny so hard it blasted off into the sky, not to be seen again. A faint twinkle could be seen where the prinny disappeared.

"…Flat chest, huh?" the girl said in an indescribably angry, but icy tone.

"Aahhh! You are indeed a Demon Lord!" Tink creamed out loud. "I am your loyal servant, master! Please, I am yours to command!"

Adell looked at Tink and sighed. "Damn, that was a quick surrender… Don't you have any pride?"

The girl now confirmed to be Etna, once again turned to the party. "So? I proved I'm who I say I am, but what about you? Are you really Zenon's daughter?"

("All you really proved was that you're strong, though…") Roy thought to himself blankly.

Still a bit shaken up from the display of sheer brute strength, Rozalin puffed up her chest. "Y-Yes, I am. I am Overlord Zenon's only daughter."

"Great. Can you take me home to daddy then? Like, right now?" Etna said with a smirk. "…For what reason?" Rozalin asked the Demon Lord.

"Why? So I can kill him and make myself the new Overlord, silly." Etna said bluntly as she cracked her knuckles once more. "Well, chop chop. I don't have all day."

She stared at the frozen party. "Or, I could amuse myself by killing you all, one at a time."

"Whaaaaaattt!" Tink screamed in fear. "Who ze hell brought us out here! Oh damn it! It was me!" Tink self-destructed out of pure fear and dropped to the ground completely burned out.

("Oh my. Sir Tink sure can't take a joke.") Celeste thought to herself, not realizing Etna's seriousness.

Rozalin took a step back. "…I, I won't help you. I, Rozalin, will not be coerced." Etna took another step forward. "Aww, are you trying to protect daddy? You're so adorable. But, if you won't help me, then I'll just have to kill you first!" Rozalin started backing down, visibly intimidated.

"Princess!" Marc called out to Rozalin. "It might be wise to make a run for it. All jokes aside, this woman is probably incredibly strong."

Rozalin was visibly in conflict with herself before she finally stepped forward. "…I won't do it! I won't be bullied by a flat chested fornicatress like you!" She yelled loudly while pointing at Etna. Everyone stared at Rozalin baffled as Etna boiled over with irritation.

"Ugghhhh…! You really wanna die, huh!" The air around Etna began to distort as an aura of pure energy surrounded her. She put up her hands as a giant ball of fire was created above her head. Etna threw the mass of energy straight at Rozalin and the others.

The impact of the fireball was powerful enough to vaporize part of the swamp and due to the swirling dust and smoke op the impact nothing could be seen.

"*Cough, cough* Ugh…" Roy slowly stood up and looked around for the others. The first person he found lying on the ground was Celeste. "...Sis! Sis! Are you okay!"

Celeste opened her eyes to find Roy standing beside her. "…Ungh… Roy..? -! Is everyone alright?" Celeste also got up and tried to look around but her vision was being obscured by the dust.

As the visibility gradually got better, the air cleared enough for Roy and Celeste to see what had happened. Blocking the brunt of the impact from the attack, Adell had jumped in front of Rozalin and Marc in front of the siblings, shielding them from the impact.

"…Whew…You okay back there..?" Marc called out to the siblings winded. "Marc!" Celeste gasped.

"You blockhead! What were you thinking!" Roy yelled at the warrior.

"Y-You…!" Rozalin let out in shock.

"That's a good determination!" Adell called out to Rozalin. "I don't really like demons or girls, but I respect that you're risking your life to protect your family."

"Agh, what's your problem? Why'd you get in the way?" Etna asked Adell annoyed. "I promised her that I would return her to her father! So I can't let you kill her! I must protect her!" Adell yelled back determined.

"W-What is this nonsense! She was attacking me! Why didn't you run!" Rozalin yelled at Adell exasperated. Adell looked over his shoulder at Rozalin. "I made you a promise! I'm going to keep that promise, even if it kills me!"

"You…you are that devoted to your silly ideals? You were actually going to keep your promise to me, Overlord Zenon's daughter…?" Adell turned to face Rozalin surprised. "What? You didn't believe me? Sonuva-"

"Fool! You are going to get yourself killed!" Rozalin yelled at him angrily. "You may not care if you die or not, but won't Taro and Hanako be sad if you do!"

"…Don't worry, I won't die. I still have other promises to keep." He jabbed his fist into his palm. "I won't die 'till I defeat Overlord Zenon!"

"I don't understand…! Everything you say and do is contradictory!"

"You don't need to understand it. All you gotta know is that this is just my style!"

Behind Adell, Etna was once again enveloped by an aura of powerful energy. "…You guys are completely underestimating me, aren't you! You're either really brave or really ignorant. Mmm, my money's on ignorant…"

She cracked her knuckles as she pulled out a spear out of nowhere.

"Prinny Squad! Sic 'em!"

So yeah, I intended to finish up chapter 3 this time around but it was getting a bit too long for my taste so I'm gonna make one more separate chapter. Next time, the thrilling conclusion to our showdown with Demon Lord/Beauty Queen Etna!

'Till next time~