【The Rise of the Ugly Monster】 The Threat of Lightning and the Clue to Victory

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Now, let us shift our perspective back inside the Land Whale's body!

<<<S-so, eat thisssss!!!>>>

BZZZT! BZZZT! BZZZT!!

The lightning monster who called himself the "Thunder Yellow Emperor Dragon," Piriribichi Ragi Ubagire, bellowed vulgarly via 【Telepathy】... and unleashed a bolt of lightning from his mouth toward Dokugegon!

(Uhiii!?)

It was far too fast.

It was incomparable to the lightning balls fired by Ragi's subordinates!

Dokugegon could not react to an attack flying at such a terrifying speed.

At this rate, the lightning would reach him in the blink of an eye, and Dokugegon's body would be incinerated!

...However!

BZZZT!!

It was a stroke of luck that Dokugegon had been letting several spheres of poisonous liquid float around him.

Ragi's lightning was drawn to the poison spheres, striking them directly and instantly evaporating them into nothingness.

A harmful mist of poison spread through the air... and Ragi's subordinates clinging to the nearby stomach wall began to writhe in agony.

<<<Don't give me that useless resistance!!>>>

Ragi clicked his tongue and fired bolt after bolt of lightning.

He didn't care if the Land Whale's stomach wall was damaged in the process!

However, they didn't hit Dokugegon.

Since he had been pecking at the Land Whale's stomach wall earlier, his magic power reserves were in perfect condition!

Though terrified, Dokugegon desperately continued to create poison spheres, using them as a defensive wall against the lightning attacks.

As a result, the poison mist spread further, beginning to cling to the "Kodoku Organ" where Ragi was perched.

Seeing this, Ragi... screamed even more frantically!

<<<Aaaaah!? Don't screw with me, you piece of trash!! The Kodoku Organ is the grace of the Monster God, which allows one to absorb and store the magic and grudges of the defeated beyond the capacity of the soul, promising infinite growth!! It's the source of the Land Whale's strength, and it's the precious, precious, precious thing that keeps my own life tethered to this world!!!>>>

Screaming all the while, Ragi scurried around the Kodoku Organ, moving his countless legs in a blur. After confirming that Dokugegon's poison mist had not yet dealt fatal damage to the organ, he glared at Dokugegon!

His expression was stained with fury... and Dokugegon shrank back, terrified by that horrifying face!

<<<And you... YOU!! A half-dead parasite like you, who's barely survived by clinging to the strong!!>>>

Then, while hurling insults, Ragi began to accumulate lightning energy in his mouth.

Compared to his previous attacks, the amount of energy was on a completely different scale!

Dokugegon's feathers, enveloped in poisonous liquid, bristled as they sensed an even greater danger!

<<<Don't you DARE scratch it...!!!!>>>

BZZZT! BZZZT! BZZZT!!!

In the next instant, what erupted from Ragi's mouth was, naturally, lightning.

No... it was the Thunder Yellow Emperor Dragon's 【Breath】, a violent mixture of lightning, murderous intent, and magic power slammed into the enemy!

The attack dyed the surroundings yellow as it roared from Ragi's mouth, and Dokugegon had no way to evade it.

It was only natural; he had been unable to dodge even the normal attacks, barely managing to run for his life by using poison spheres as shields.

But against a 【Breath】, lining up poison spheres was meaningless.

It would pierce through every single shield of poison and instantly evaporate Dokugegon's body!

The Emperor Dragon's 【Breath】 possessed that much power and speed!

But... however!

"N-N'EEEEEEEEH!?"

Dokugegon had cheated death once again!

Though he wept in terror and let out a pathetic scream, he had survived!

Why was that!?

<<<Wha... Whaaat!? What is this shaking!?>>>

The answer was simple.

Just before the 【Breath】 was fired, the Land Whale's body began to shake more violently than ever before!

Right, left, up, and down—the stomach where Dokugegon and the others were located shifted drastically.

Because of this sudden upheaval, Ragi lost his aim... and fired the 【Breath】 in a completely wrong direction!

Consequently, the 【Breath】 merely scorched and damaged the Land Whale's stomach wall for no reason!

The Land Whale: Heavy Damage!

Dokugegon: No Damage!

(This shaking...!)

Unlike the bewildered Ragi, Dokugegon instantly understood the identity of the shaking that had saved him.

This, too, was Emi.

Emi had done this!

And that conviction was correct; in fact, outside the Land Whale's body at this very moment, Emi had steeled her resolve and begun her reckless, all-out rampage!

(Do your best... Emi!!)

In the eyes of Dokugegon, who had been trembling in the fear of death... fighting spirit ignited once more!

(I'll... do my best too!!)

"N'EEEEEEEEH!!!"

Flapping his poisonous wings and crying out powerfully, Dokugegon began to fly through the stomach, which was being churned into a mess!

Around him were countless poison spheres.

One after another, he continued to launch them toward the Kodoku Organ!

<<<Gyaaaaah!? Stop it, stop it, stop it!!!>>>

However, while screaming in a panic, Ragi continued to fire lightning, accurately shooting down the poison spheres one by one!

<<<What is it, what the hell is it!? You're just a bird with no brains!! Why won't you run!? Just how well-trained of a damn pet are you, huh!?>>>

...And then, hearing that scream that had accidentally slipped out.

(Ah.)

Dokugegon suddenly realized.

(I see. To this guy, I'm... just a tamed pet.)

In other words.

Ragi didn't understand.

That inside this Purple Poison Magic Bird flying before him...

Was a human soul.

And a high level of intelligence!

(I see... I thought he'd been blabbing things that were disadvantageous to himself this whole time... but those were just monologues. Well, I guess that makes sense since his opponent is a bird. He wouldn't think I could understand the meaning of his words.)

Dokugegon chuckled inwardly, and then.

He suddenly realized.

The enemy thought he was just a pet.

That he was just a bird who had been trained and wasn't particularly bright.

Since he was being underestimated right now.

(...I might actually be able to do this!)

Dokugegon slowed his flight speed slightly.

However, he generated a volume of poison spheres that was incomparable to anything he had produced until now.

And then, in every direction... he fired them all at once!