Chapter 165 [Mana Transfer]

After the issue with the Grand Commander was over, Quinn asked Dray if he was okay and Dray nodded while smoothening out his shirt. Dray thanked her for helping him with a smile and Quinn smiled back at him.

"I don't have many supporters around this place so I have to at least look out for the one person who cares about me. Let's just say we're even now for you saving my life,"

Dray nodded and Quinn waved as she left to do something else. Quinn was used to always paying back her debts. She really thought that Dray saved her life because he didn't want her to die so she got the impression that Dray was on her side and she saw him as a supporter. She had no idea that the only reason Dray saved her life was because he needed her alive for him to be able to take the rest of her Mana.

Dray just dusted himself off properly before he went to join the other soldiers that were busy gathering the bodies of their dead comrades. Dray knew that he just came very close to death but he was happy that he kept his cool even in the face of that much pressure. And now he was closer to the hero so his mission would become even easier.

The soldiers continued gathering bodies even after the sun had gone down from the sky. There were so many bodies around that they filled up twenty wagons and it still wasn't enough to carry all the bodies. They had to start hacking legs and arms away from the torsos of the dead men in order to make more space to put more bodies.

It was filthy work and after they were done with it the soldiers were all dirty and tired. Their morale was down and the Grand Commander knew that it would be bad to send them back to the kingdom like this. The Grand Commander told everyone to set up camp in a shallow Valley so they would be able to rest for the return journey. They have been working all day and it would be bad if they were attacked when returning to the kingdom when they are this weak. It is best to replenish their strength before they go back.

The Grand Commander hoped that the soldiers would gather and talk amongst themselves to raise morale but everyone just went straight to their own camps and went straight to bed to rest. No one was interested in talking after cutting the bodies of their comrades like animals! The Grand Commander thought it was for the best since they would get more rest so he just allowed everyone to do what they wanted and he also went to rest.

That night, Dray was lying awake in his tent. He was thinking about what his next action should be by tomorrow. Dray knows that he already had a bad reputation among the soldiers because of what he did, but at least he still hasn't lost the trust of the hero. I can still get close enough to activate the [Mana Transfer] spell, but I know things will be difficult for me in the army from now on.

Flap!

There was a rustle from his tent door and Dray grabbed a knife that he always keeps under his pillow and sat up quickly in case it was an enemy, but he was surprised when he saw Quinn there. She was wearing simple trousers and a shirt and she looked surprised by his sudden movement. She noticed the knife in his hand and she grinned.

"Please don't stab me,"

Dray released a sigh and he dropped the knife back. It wasn't surprising for people to have knives under their pillows so Dray wasn't worried that she would suspect him. He knew that she probably had one under her pillow as well. But what the hell is she doing here? It's too late at night for people to have a conversation.

"Can I help you with something? The Grand Commander won't be very happy if he sees you moving around like this,"

Quinn moved deeper into the tent and she made Dray shift to give her space to sit down. She didn't give a damn about what the Grand Commander thought and she used some very colorful words to tell Dray exactly what she thought about what the Grand Commander wanted. Dray just scoffed and he asked her again what she wanted. Even if she didn't care about the Grand Commander, it was still very late and it wasn't a good idea to move around this late at night. Quinn just shrugged and then she gave him a look that Dray has only seen on one other person before. It was the same look that Willow would give him whenever they were alone together.

"I just didn't want to be alone. I don't know if priests are allowed to do this in your kingdom... I mean...I'm sorry, I'm just not used to how things are done around here and there isn't anyone else,"

Dray knew exactly what she meant and Dray could feel a lot of conflicting emotions inside him. Dray knew that Quinn wanted to get closer to him. Dray was the only person Quinn trusted in this camp now because he saved her life. Dray didn't think that she would go this far to get close to him but for Dray, this was a good thing. The skinship they would have during sex would allow him to use the [Mana Transfer] skill at its maximum range and he might even get all her mana in this might alone! It was going to reduce the mission time by a lot! And since Dray now knows that Pyra and Andromeda are also after the hero, he can't afford to waste any more time.

But on the other hand, Dray didn't feel like he was ready to lay with another woman after Willow. Dray still loved her and he didn't want to sleep with another woman without even feeling anything for her at all.

These two emotions clashed inside Dray, but at the end of the day, Dray's rational side won over his emotional side. Willow was dead and the only way he could honor her was by ending the demon lord once and for all. Dray knew that this was the fastest way to avenge her death.

When Quinn noticed the conflict on Dray's face, she thought she might have moved too fast. When Quinn was a businesswoman back on earth, she never really had the time or energy for relationships! There was never any romance in her life since she was always so busy trying to become better than her brother! For her, sex was just a way to relieve stress. Quinn also just wanted to relieve stress now and the only person that she could trust around here was Dray. She knew he was not like other priests that only believed in chastity and all that shit. He was the sort of person who could get his hands dirty when he needed to. And Quinn couldn't deny that Dray was very handsome so she felt attracted to that contrasting image.

Quinn knew that even if she sleeps with Dray, they won't have to talk about it tomorrow. It will just be a one-time thing that helps them both to calm down after the stress of the day. But Dray's conflict made her rethink her advances and she thought she should not have asked at all.

Dray finally came forward and he took her lips in his own.

Quinn's eyes widened in surprise and when they separated, Dray told her only one sentence.

"Just this once, and we will never speak of this again,"

Quinn nodded. That was exactly what she wanted as well. Once Quinn nodded, Dray kissed her again and they both fell to the bed together.

[Mana Transfer] has been activated.

......

Rizi was humming a simple folksong as she fiddled with one of her inventions in her underground lab. Ever since the demon lord left the castle, Rizi has felt very lonely in her lab because she was used to Floid coming to see her most of the time. Floid and Rizi were always working on her inventions together and Floid would always have some interesting ideas to give her about how to improve what she is making. The most important invention they were working on before the demon lord left was a weapon that would help them with the invasion of Uta and Rizi was able to finish it in the time that Floid wasn't around.

Once she finished it, her first thought was that she wanted to show it to her lord and hear him praise her but then she remembered that he wasn't around and she became sad. So instead of dwelling on that invention all the time, Rizi decided to work on the cannons that their battleships used for their attacks. Rizi was sure that she could improve the effectiveness of the cannons by at least three percent if she increased the size of the mana stone in the core by five percent or more.

p Rizi would have made it even bigger, but if she makes the mana stone any bigger than five percent, it could lead to a self destruct whenever they try to fire the cannon because of too much power relapse. If only the demon lord was here, he would have given me some ideas about how to improve it even more.

[Rizi, come. It is time for you to have your dinner and I won't let you have it there.]

Rizi looked up in surprise when she heard a voice talking through her communication circle. It was obviously Rosavellt and Rizi groaned in annoyance once she heard it! Ever since the demon lord left the castle and left Rosavellt in charge of her, Rosavellt has been treating Rizi like a child that needs to be cared for at every turn! Rosavellt still allowed Rizi to work on her inventions in her spare time but Rosavellt kept Rizi on a very tight schedule and Rosavellt didn't even allow Rizi to skip a single meal! Even the demon lord allowed Rizi to skip some meals because he didn't want to break her concentration when she is working but Rosavellt had no such reservations! If Rizi didn't answer the summons, then Rosavellt would come down here herself and drag Rizi out from the lab like a child!

Rizi waved to the other dwarves that were working at her lab and she told them to take a twenty minutes break to rest and eat. Everyone immediately stopped working on the cannons and they started to chatter amongst themselves as they headed out from the lab. Rizi cleaned the oil on her hands using a rag before she tore open a portal in front of her and she walked through to see Rosavellt standing with her usual regal attitude and stoic face in the servant dining room.

Rosavellt scowled the moment she set eyes on Rizi's dirty appearance.

"You are late and dirty. Take a bath and make sure you come back in three minutes. Ensure you don't miss a single spot because I will check. I don't know how you can stay in that state for any length of time,"

Rizi scowled! What the hell!? I didn't even waste up to two minutes so how am I late!? And I'm not dirty! Rizi raise her hand and leaned down to smell her armpit and she suddenly recoiled in disgust at the intense odor that hit her nose! Shit! I reek! Have I always smelled like this when I'm in the lab!? Wait, does that mean that the demon lord always smelled me like this when I'm in the lab!! Ahh!! Just kill me!!! Rizi put her hands on her face in embarrassment as she thought about how the demon lord must've perceived her all this time!

Rosavellt saw the despair forming on Rizi's face and she could somehow tell that it was because of something stupid so she just grabbed Rizi by the hand and dragged her towards the bath before leaving her there! She didn't have time to handle the antics of her younger maid. Once Rizi was in the bath, a longing expression came over Rosavellt's face as her mind went towards the demon lord once more. Rosavellt was sure that the demon lord was doing fine because Alucard and Dragonnek were both with him. Rosavellt didn't trust Dragonnel to be able to do any servant work but she trusted Alucard to perform his duties to the utmost of his abilities. Rosavellt was sure that the demon lord was being properly cared for.

"I just wish I could have been with him as he destroyed those pigs in Trad. There would have been nothing better to witness,"

Rosavellt put a hand on her cheek and sighed! She heard all about the demon lord's exploits from the last message that Alucard left for the servants and she got so excited that she had to masturbate to the demon lord's image just to calm herself again! She couldn't believe how amazing her lord was! She wished she could have been there to bask in his presence and to see the ease with which he destroyed an entire empire from the inside! How magnificent he must've looked!!

But the demon lord gave Rosavellt orders to remain here and she has to listen to her lord. Rosavellt was sure that her lord knows best so there is no need for her to feel bad that she wasn't there to witness his greatness. I'm sure there will be even better feats to come in the future.