Conquering The Novel



Ares returned to his room, his mind racing with thoughts of how to handle the Demon lords issue. Irethiel and Meira waited patiently, sensing his need for space and time to think.

Meanwhile, Irethiel confided in Meira about the Demon lords issue that had entangled Ares and herself with them.

"...I am sorry to voice this out, but the best option here is that we dispose of her, Master," Meira suddenly said with a serious expression, her gaze fixed on Irethiel.

But before Ares or Irethiel could respond, a projectile came flying toward Meira. But she reacted quickly, countering the attack with her dagger.

Clink—

Rose appeared out of nowhere, her claws at the ready. "Why not I dispose of you first?" she sneered.

Meira stood with a resolute expression, not flinching under the weight of Rose and Irethiel's gazes. "Do you have any other viable option? You know we're not strong enough to take on those demon lords at this point. And Irethiel's abilities as a tracker would only compromise my master's location and endanger his life."

Rose and Irethiel had nothing to say, knowing that Meira was right.

"If my master dies, so will she. Sacrificing her to ensure masters survival and allow him to gather his strength is the more logical choice than risking all of our lives," Meira stated firmly, unwavering in her conviction.

Rose gritted her teeth and turned to Ares, her body tense with anticipation. She waited anxiously to hear his decision, her claws at the ready, prepared to fight him if he chose to abandon her master.

She knew that she couldn't kill him, for her master's life was tied to his, but she could at least injure him and escape with her master.

Meira stood opposite her, her own weapons at the ready, ready to fight if needed and protect Ares.

Meanwhile, Irethiel remained silent, her eyes fixed on Ares. 'What will his decision be? Will he abandon me now to save his own life?' She thought inwardly.

The tension in the air was palpable as they waited for his response.

Ares, however, remained calm despite the commotion in the room. He let out a sigh before meeting their gazes, causing Meira and Rose to lower their weapons slightly.

"What are you two doing? Lower your weapons!" Ares spoke firmly, shaking his head. "Did you really think I would abandon what's mine in the face of difficulties?" He said with a grin, his possessiveness over Irethiel becoming apparent.

"I knew what I was signing up for when I saved you. No matter if I have to face the whole world, I would never abandon someone that belongs to me," Ares added, his grin growing wider and his left eye began to glow as he spoke.

Just then, a dark figure with wings suddenly materialized above him, and the atmosphere in the room changed drastically.

!?

Shatter— Shatter!

The windows began to shatter, and the furniture vibrated as the aura emanating from Ares intensified.

"Argghh!"

Rose and Meira held their hands forward to block the intense aura, their hair fluttering in the breeze.

But Irethiel remained unfazed, her hair also fluttering, but her eyes still fixed on Ares. She felt a strange sense of recognition towards the figure. It was as if she had seen it before, but she couldn't quite remember where.

"...I see, so that's how it is, huh?" Irethiel spoke, a small smile forming on her face as she stepped closer to Ares.

As she slowly approached him, the intense aura grew even stronger, causing Rose and Meira to take a step back. But Irethiel remained unfazed, her eyes locked on Ares as she stepped closer to him. Suddenly, she hugged him tightly, and the aura around him began to dissipate.

"Thank you for saying that. I am glad that you think that way about me, Ares," Irethiel said, tears forming in her eyes. "And I am also grateful that I have someone like you to rely on. I don't have to face this alone anymore," she added, her voice cracking slightly.

Ares wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer as he buried his face in her hair. "No need to thank me. I'll throw you away if things get more dangerous," he whispered with a grin.

Irethiel let out a soft chuckle, "Haha, I understand."

She knew that Ares was serious about what he had just said. He was a person who prioritized his own interests above all else, and if it came down to it, he would not hesitate to dispose of her.

Despite this, Irethiel felt a sense of comfort in his embrace. She had made her choice to trust him, and she was prepared to face the consequences of that choice, whatever they may be.

'But I do hope we can continue to be together for a while longer. It's been centuries since I felt like I belong somewhere and found someone I could truly rely on,' Irethiel thought inwardly, hugging him tightly, fearing she wouldn't have a chance later due to his other women.

"...."

"A-Ahem," Rose cleared her throat, getting their attention. Irethiel finally let go of Ares and wiped her tears.

"...Don't tell me you fell for it? You know I was just kidding, right?" Ares said to Irethiel telepathically.

"Yeah, Yeah! I know that very well," Irethiel replied telepathically with a smile.

"So, what's the plan, Ares? Your words were indeed impressive and could sway any woman's heart, and my master was no exception. But we need more than just words to deal with the Demon lords. Time is not on our side, but well, even they will need to gather their strength before they come after us since they were just released," Rose asked, her tone serious.

"...I think it's finally time for me to use the cards that I've been gathering all this time," Ares said with a smile.

"What does that mean?" Rose asked curiously.

Ares smiled mysteriously, "I'm not some protagonist from a novel who has taken an oath to defeat all the demon lords by myself. There are many others who also want to deal with the demon lords, just like me. It's time for me to use them to deal with those demon lords or to at least keep them busy for the time being," Ares replied with a grin.

Irethiel's eyes widened as she realized his intentions. "So you want to use Jessica to buy time?" 

Ares grinned cunningly as he took out a small fruit from his inventory. "Not just Jessica, but it's also about time I get my favor from Evica as well," he said, twirling the fruit between his fingers.

!?

Irethiel furrowed her brows in confusion. "But isn't Evica useless now? Her sister was the stronger one, and she's dead."

Ares chuckled. "You really think that's the end of it? Why do you think Evica still needs this strengthening fruit?"

Irethiel shook her head, still perplexed.

Rose's eyes widened as a sudden realization dawned on her. "Wait...don't tell me she is planning on implanting her sister's dragon heart into her own body?"

"Bingo!" Ares exclaimed, pleased at Rose's deduction.

!!

"...That explains why she still needs the strengthening fruit," muttered Irethiel, as she processed the information.

"If she can successfully transplant that dragon heart, then with the help of this strengthening fruit, she will become even stronger than her sister," added Rose thoughtfully.

Ares nodded in agreement. "That's exactly what Ivica had planned all along. She didn't want to leave her sister powerless after her death, and I think they already had an artifact needed for making this happen," he said with a knowing grin.

As Ares's eyes fell upon Ivica's lifeless body during her funeral, he immediately deduced that she had been dead for more than three days. What was even more concerning to him was the fact that her sister had not held a funeral yet. Ares couldn't sense any mana from Ivica's body, which he knew was abnormal.

Normally, a person's body held their mana for a few days after death, unless they used their soul to store mana, like Ares did. But he knew that wasn't the case for Ivica.

As a half-dragon, Ivica's mana should have leaked out from her heart for at least a month, if not more. But Ares couldn't sense any mana from her, which was odd. He knew that dragons used their hearts to store their mana, and since Ivica had a dragon heart, the same would be true for her.

That could only mean one thing: Evica had removed her sister's dragon heart before holding the funeral. It must have taken her some time to find a suitable place to remove it, which was why it had taken her time to hold the funeral. 

"Everything fits perfectly," Ares murmured to himself.

Every piece was falling into place for Ares, as an avid reader of the novel, he knew that Ivica was one of the strongest women who fought against the demon lords.

"If it really is like you said, then she will be a huge help to us, and we might even be able to deal with those demon lords all at once," Rose's eyes sparkled with excitement. "That would be amazing!"

Ares tossed the strengthening fruit to Meira. "Indeed, but it will take some time for her to fully harness the power of the dragon heart," he explained. "Meira, your task is to find Evica and deliver this fruit to her. Assist her with anything she needs during the process of transplanting the dragon heart."

Meira caught the fruit deftly. "Consider it done, master. I'll follow your orders to the letter," she said before disappearing into the shadows to complete her given task.

Swish—