(No difference of T or M versions of this chapter)

CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE: Journey start

"Hmm, where's Mare?" Peroroncino looked over his group and noticed mare had yet to arrive.

"I'm here!" A girlish voice called out. Mare was awkwardly running to them with his staff clutched in both arms. Peroroncino was in his true form, which almost felt odd seeing as how much time he spent as a Dark Elf these days, well his bird form was known as a dead criminal to humans he thought, so many that was for the best. he waited for Mare to catch up, giving him a head pat once he did.

"Glad you could make it!" Peroroncino jokingly said. Mare looked up at him with intensely remorseful eyes.

"I would never intentionally disobey you Lord Peroroncino! I really wanted to be with you for this!" He cried out. Zesshi came up behind him with a bored expression. Peroroncino smiled and turned to look at the rest of the group. Shalltear, along with Clementine and Queen Rodusk was also present. Kilistran also was with them as she would be the general guide.

"Well, we're all ready. So I was thinking about paying those Dwarves a visit that Kilistran mentioned. Kilistran, can you elaborate on what you mentioned to me earlier? Kilistran was in her [POLYMORPHED] human body.

"We ruled over a Demihuman species call Quagoa. They were always attacking a large city of Dwarves somewhere deeper in the mountain." She explained... from what I understand the Quagoa would eat the Dwarves.

"Quagoa? What are those?" Peroroncino asked. Kilistran thought for a moment before answering.'

"They sort of look like furry beasts that walk upright, they have naturally bladed hands and their fur can grow harder than metal, usually they were scattered in separate tribes but a leader recently rose among them and united them... it'll just be a matter of time until they take the Dwarves completely." She said with a shrug of not really caring.

"Hmm... conflict between two nations makes this easy, we simply need to approach the ones who need help the most," Peroroncino said to himself, but loud enough so that the group would hear it.

"Then, is Lord Peroroncino planning to put these Dwarves to heel?" Shalltear asked as she spun her umbrella playfully behind her shoulder. Peroroncino caught a glance Shalltear gave Kilistran and frowned. There was still some animosity between them, mostly from Shalltear's side... this might be a good time to deal with that he thought to himself.

"Okay, so is there anything else anyone would like to say before we leave?" Peroroncino asked looking around.

"Um..." an unfamiliar voice spoke up but very softly. Peroroncino looked at the voice, it was Queen Rodusk, former Queen, but he liked to call her that out of irony. Shalltear glared at her angerly but Peroroncino rose his hand to let her speak.

"What is it?" Peroroncio asked. Rodusk cleared her throat a bit first then spoke.

"Well... if you're looking for nations to conquer... there is one I know of that might be useful to you." She said now a bit more boldly. She straightened up her posture a bit and spoke clearly.

"Oh? Not the Minotaur nation right? I heard Demiurge is going to deal with them..." Peroroncino said shrugging but Rodusk shook her head.

"No, in the forest to the east of the minotaur nation that my... that my daughter's nation now controls... there was a small nation of human, fox-like creatures called Kitsune... we were unable to conquer them because of their strong magic, that is, WE considered their magic strong," Rodusk informed her captors.

"There's also the Skin Walker tribe... but I have no idea where they actually are, just I know they inhabit that area as well, right?" Clementine said as she butted in. Rodusk scowled at that mention.

"Yes... there is that as well, but they won't listen to reason, they are just wolf-like Demihumans that can turn completely human when they want, after a certain age. But they are savage beasts that infiltrate human tribes and... well I'm sure you can guess the rest..." She told him with a pitiful look on her face.

"Wait... those sound a lot like Werewolves..." Peroroncino said in surprise.

"So... we have Quagoa and Dwarves... or Kitsune and werewolves... this is a hard one alright... wait, what do Kitsune look like exactly?" He asked Rodusk.

"They are human-looking but with fox ears at the top of their heads and foxtails, sometimes more than one tail. Also, the entire species looks female, even the men look like women so it might be..." she was explaining but was interrupted.

"Yeah, I'm going there! Oh, wait, if we're going to see Werewolves... Lupusregina should come with us as well..." He said excitedly. He cast [MESSAGE].

"Lupu, get your sexy butt to us, you're coming along on my next mission," he said.

"Of course, Lord Peroroncino. I will be there as fast as I can!" She replied and he ended the spell. He thought and decided to let Momonga know the change in plan. He cast another [MESSAGE].

"Hey Suzuki, little change of plan, we're going to look in on some Demihuman tribes that interest me, they are east of the Whyven Rider nation's control."

"Oh? I see... well I've sent Demiurge and his... friend to work out some things over there, so he will be in the area if you need his help." Momonga said. hearing that was a huge relief to Jin, Demiurge was the most reliable person he could think of.

"Wait... you mean that loli he was walking around with at the party right? What's her deal anyway?"

"She was the former Queen of The Dragon Kingdom, he said he has a use for her." Jin thought for a bit at the words Momonga had just said but decided he was probably wrong about what Demiurge wanted to use her for.

"Oh just so you know I'll also be taking Lupusregina with me, I'm looking for some werewolves so I figured she'd be a good addition to my group."

"Alright, I'll remove her from my maid duty... is there anything else?"

"No, just an update... oh as we won't be going to the Dwarves now, maybe you could check them out?"

"I'd like to... but I have to get the ball rolling on my revamping of the Adventures Guild... so I'll be taking a trip to the Baharuth Empire soon..."

"Ah, well that's important too. Well, good luck with that then." Jin said to his friend as the spell faded.

"Dwarves will have to wait." He said.

"Um, should we put the Dwarves off? It sounds like they could use our help the most." Mare said but Jin did not hear him as he was already talking to Shalltear. Soon Lupusregina came running up with a huge smile on her face.

"I am here as requested!" She announced with a salute.

"At eases soldier, I'll tell you why you're here when we get to the place we need to... Shalltear?" He realized he'd have to [POLYMORPH] himself to his human form as the Wyvern Riders knew him as such. After finishing his spell and becoming human he turned to Shalltear.

"Alright, so [GATE] us to the Wyvern Riders nation, we'll ask around there for help finding these tribes," Jin said and Shalltear bowed as she cast [GATE]. They stepped through and were suddenly standing in the throne room of The Wyvern Riders. As they all finished crossing they saw Esmelie Rodusk, the current Queen of the Wyvern Riders that was appointed by Peroroncino. Next to her was Demiurge who had apparently told them they were coming as nobody was surprised to see them all appear in the throne room like this. Behind him was the loli he'd been seen with lately.

"Welcome back to The Wyvern Riders Nation Lord Peroroncino." Esmelie Rodusk said with a nice smile.

"Hey Esmelie, so how is everything going?" he asked. She nodded.

"Well, I've executed my sisters, so there is nobody left to challenge me for the throne, to that end all is well. Your emissary Demiurge tells me you are looking for the Kitsune and Skin Walker tribes?" He nodded.

"That's right, we're looking to bring them in... or eliminate them if they are hostile..." She thought for a second or two.

"The Kitsune will be willing to talk, however... the Skin Walker tribe will almost certainly attack you on sight." She warned but he rose his hand as to show it was fine.

"I have a plan to deal with The bad doggies... but is it true the Kitsune as all-female looking?" He asked with hopefulness in his voice. She tilted her head but nodded.

"Yes, the only way to tell them apart, with clothes on, is the chest, the women will have breasts and, as expected, the men will not, but their voice, looks, body structure, even mannerisms will be feminine.

"So half the tribe are hot fox girls... the other half are hot traps... man, I wish I discovered this place sooner!" he squealed in delight, catching a few strange glances from his party and the room.

"Traps? Wait... like me?" Mare asked suddenly. Jin nodded.

"Yeah, you'll probably even see lots of boys your age that also are traps..." a lecherous look crossed his face but was quickly gone. Mare smiled and seemed happy with that answer.

"There is a forest east of The Great Minotaur Nation... you will be approached by them as soon as you enter their territory." She explained.

"Oh yeah, how is The Minotaur nation campaign going?" Peroroncino directed to question to Demiurge who bowed as he answered.

"Exactly as Lord Momonga has seen it would go... that is to say, "all according to plan," Demiurge said with his usual smile. The loli next to him smiled slightly but kept her gaze locked onto Demiurge.

"Alright, that's good to hear... what about the Skin Walkers?"

"You will find them hidden deeper in that forest, where the forest meet the line of the hills behind it they may attack or simply flee, but as you said, you have a plan to deal with them... So that's all I can tell you, unfortunately." The new Queen said as she held a large golden lance next to her. She smirked at her mother who only cast her eyes to the floor.

"And how are you enjoying my mother?" Esmelie Rodusk sneered as she looked at her mother.

"She had a bit of an attitude, but we've worked that out of her, other than that she's a fine sex slave," Pero said with a laugh. A wicked smile crossed Esmelie Rodusk face.

"Well, she is finally serving her greater purpose I see... so is there anythign else The Wyvern nation can assist you in?"

"Nope, I just needed to be pointed in the right direction. Thanks." He said as he motioned for his group to follow him.

"Would you like an escort of Wyvern Riders?" The current Queen asked. Peroroncino looked behind him at his sex slave.

"You know where these tribes are, right?" The former Queen nodded. He turned back and smiled at Esmelie Rodusk.

"No, that won't be necessary so long as your mother knows how to get there.

"In her youth, my mother was a very strong rider and fought with the Kitsune a few times as well as the Skin Walkers, she should be a good guide for you all." Esmelie Rodusk said with some smugness in her voice.

As they now knew where to go, they prepared for their destination. Peroroncino, Mare, Zesshi, Clementine, and Rodusk flew on the back of a Dragon Kilistran. Mare scrambled to sit in Peroroncino's lap and smiled brightly up at him as Kilistran beat her large wings and took to the air. Shalltear used [FLY] magic to stay behind them and keep a rear look our as they flew.

"So, tell me more about these Kitsune, It seems you have a history with them," Peroroncino called back to Rodusk. She noded with an unpleased look.

"They come from a far off kingdom... nobody knows where it's at, but as some point, a large amount of them were exiled from their kingdom for some reason... Those exiled took refuge in the forest east of the Minotaur nation. With their magic, they easily dominated the whole forest and hills surrounding it."

"So what lead to you fighting with them?"

"When they showed up their presence worried all the surrounding nations... most decided to just wipe them out and be done with it... my mother was one of those that thought that way, thinking some exiles would be easy pickings. But they held off every invader that set foot in their Forrest."

"Okay that's certainly interesting... and a way to learn about the lands beyond our current knowledge." He nodded then looked forward again as they flew east.

They passed over The Minotaur Nation, as they did so some long javelin arrows were shot at them but they were too high up top even reach, however...

"You scum dare take potshots at My Lord?" Shalltear shrieked and dove down at the towers that had fired at them. She was gone before Peroroncino could say a word. She was wearing her red armor and had the lance he'd made for her. As she crashed intot he large wooded towers, all they could see were huge plumes of smoke where Shalltear was attacking. Kilistran looked back at Peroroncino.

"Should we assist her My Love?" She asked. Mare was already readying his staff with a determined look. A few more series of explosions ripped the ground below them as Shalltear had now moved on to destroying the fort that the towers were housed in.

"I'LL KILL EVERY LAST ONE OF YOU!" Shalltear cried as she swung her lance back and forth. Each attack she made would rend several bodies of the Minotaur to shreds.

"Hnnnng! DIE! DIE HAHAHA!" She cried as she felt the warm blood splash across her face. With each devasting attack, she unleashed her blood frenzy drive her further into madness.

"Uh... no... she'd got this... we'll just wait for her to finish, best nott o get too close to her when she'd like this," Peroroncino said looking down at the carnage.

"HA! So easssy!" Shalltear yelled. She was holding the impaled body of a Minotaur above her, letting it's blood rain down upon her. She hurled its body at the fortresses' walls and it exploded into shards of meat and wood. A loud horn-like alarm rang out as the fortress sounded an attack. As Shalltear mindlessly tore the members of the fort to shreds they could see the gathering forces coming to stop this sudden intruder.

"Well, I guess I can help fro up here..." He waited till they had formed up in ranks. They were not running blindly one by one, instead they were gathering and waiting to push in one huge surge... this showed training and tactics beyond normal Demihuman. However, as they grouped up lager and larger they only made Peroroncino's job that much easier.

"[EXPLOSIVE SHATTER SHOT]" He unleashed several volleys of exploding fire arrows that rained down over the reinforcements. The explosions of the arrows incinerated them in an instant. If any had survived a crazed vampire tearing out of the base would be put down immediately.

"Um, were we not on a diplomatic mission to the Kitsune? Why are we razing this city?" Zesshi asked annoyed at all the fess they were making.

"Well... this is just... damnit Shalltear... She drew us into this fight, let's support her... but stay far away from her..." he turend to his real bird form and jumped off Kilistran's back. Mare jumped onto his back.

"Let's get them Lord Peroroncino!" He cried. Peroroncino nodded and dove down at another section of the gathering troops. As she weaved between arrow and javelin bolts Mare rose his hands in the air.

"[MOVE EARTH... WAVE]" At his command, a huge torrent of dirt and earth rose tens of meters into the air and crashed down on the grouping forces. the huge pile of dirt and earth kept sliding across the area and crashed into a city next to it. the impact completely shattered the barricade and opened up a clear path for Shalltear to rip and tear as every minotaur in several miles before her now lay buried underneath feet of soil and rock.

"That should do it... um..." He realized this would not end... she'd tear down this entire city, which could take days unless they helped.

"I'm gonna try and calm her down... everyone else just keep a lookout." He ordered as she streaked toward Shalltear.

"Alright, Shalltear, that's enough!" He called out. She spun around and for a few moments glared angrily at him until she realized who it was.

"But... they... ugh.. they dared... hnng... I want to kill them so bad... let me kill them Lord Please! Let me kill them and then we can mate on their dead bodies!" She cried out, turning around to continue her slaughter.

"Shalltear stop! We don't really have time for this..." and he didn't want to step on Demiurge's toes as he knew he was handling this front. She stopped, heaving and panting heavily.

"Come on Shalltear... this is an order, let's get going..." he put some sternness into his voice. She slammed her lance into the ground, trying to relax...

"F...fine..." She said between pained heaves.

"And don't do this again... only attack when actually under fire, or if I ordered to, understand?" She nodded.

"Alright then... let's get going." He could already hear more and more alarms going off, soon the entire city would be coming to attack. They flew off before anyone else could show up and continued their flight to the Kitsune Forrest.