Lewd Dungeon Master: This Orc Is Too Damn OP!

Chapter 391: My Value as a Human is Spent

Just before visiting Levis Ann.

I’d made a brief detour to Ras Vegas to summon Gray.

"Gray, good work. I’m grateful just for the fact that you carried out the mission without betraying us."

"...But I have no value anymore."

Gray was drowning in self-doubt. Time-wise, it would have been more efficient to give Levis Ann another round first and then talk, but the sheer gloom in Gray’s eyes piqued my curiosity.

"What are you talking about? Your value is immense."

"My job during this operation was to stay at Dame Levis’s side and extract as much information as possible. But I failed at that. And I know I’m nowhere near good enough to call myself a proper knight. At best... I’m about on par with the elves in combat ability."

"That’s true."

In our legion, the only way for humans to grow stronger was by fighting and gaining experience. Having been deep undercover in Raspica for so long, Gray naturally had no good way to raise his level. There was the option of leveling up through demonic essence, but...

Since Gray’s a man, consuming demonic essence would be next to impossible.

No matter how badly he wanted to grow stronger, it was physiologically out of the question, and something I wouldn’t permit regardless.

"But listen, Gray. Having strength on par with the elves through human ability alone already makes you plenty strong."

"But I want to be stronger. If you’d allow it, I’d like to enter the sub-dungeon for a while and grow through hunting."

"What’s making you so anxious? I can see the urgency in you."

"...."

Gray fell silent. If he simply lacked strength, he could build it over time. There was no telling what enemies lay ahead, but there should be plenty of time to train.

"...It’s an embarrassing story, but I’m personally acquainted with the heir of the neighboring Leo Marquisate."

"Oh?"

"He, the legitimate heir of the Leo Marquisate, and I, and... she, we were all close since childhood."

"Ohh."

I could smell some juicy gossip brewing. Eila, still pinned beneath me up front, let out a little ’ah’ and started glancing at me nervously.

"She was..."

"Hold on. Let me guess. You and her were lovers, but the Leo heir stole her away?"

"...How did you know?"

Gray’s eyes went wide. I was just as dumbfounded.

"I just threw that out there and it was right?"

"What goes through your head on a daily basis, Legion Commander... no. I suppose there’s no point asking. Yes. She was taken from me. ...In truth, she might have preferred the legitimate heir of the Leo Marquisate over a low-ranking successor of House Cancer."

"You want revenge on him?"

"Not quite revenge. It’s just that he’s an incredible sword prodigy, so he’ll be a major obstacle. If the legion ever has to deal with him... I want to face him personally and break his blade."

Gray’s eyes blazed with resolve. Deep in those eyes lurked an unspeakable fury. Come to think of it, I didn’t know much about Gray’s background.

"Hmm... is that so? Gray. I have a plan in mind. It’s a method that could make not just you, but the entire legion stronger."

"Such a method exists?"

"Yes. But it’s riddled with problems, which is why I’ve been hesitant to try it. Hear me out."

I laid out my plan to Gray without holding anything back. Gray spent a long while with his head bowed in thought, and in the meantime, I stroked the rear of Eila, who was sprawled face-down in front of me, and enjoyed her warmth while waiting for his answer.

"I’ve decided."

"Well? What will you do?"

"I’ll do it."

"Wait, really?"

I was more surprised than anyone when Gray readily volunteered. It caught me off guard that a human, not a monster, would choose a path that meant cannibalizing another being’s existence to grow; a path that could turn him into a full-fledged ’monster.’

"You sure? You don’t want to die as a human or anything like that?"

"My value as a human is already spent. Gray Cancer’s greatest utility to the legion, his role as a spy behind enemy lines, ended the moment the barony fell."

Gray smiled bitterly and hung his head. He’d been fairly well-known within the barony, but in House Cancer or anywhere else, he was just an ordinary knight.

"If I stay human, I might end up falling behind. That’s why I want to become stronger. Besides, the legion is part of the Demon King’s Army right now, isn’t it? One or two humans turning into demons wouldn’t be anything strange. And..."

Gray chuckled softly and thumped his own chest.

"I need to be strong enough to protect myself and my family."

"I see. I understand your resolve. ...But Gray, there’s truly no telling what the result will be. There’s no predetermined outcome here."

"I’ll do it. Even if... I end up as a goblin, it would still be far more valuable than what I am now. I hope my synthesis proves useful to you, Legion Commander."

"...Saying that is a bit dangerous. Fine. Follow me."

And so.

The man known as Gray Cancer gave up his humanity.

"By the way, Eila, do you two know each other?"

"M, Master! Asking something like that while I’m in this state, hyaaah?!"

"...Yes."

***

Monster synthesis could be classified into two categories based on the subjects involved.

The first was synthesizing two or more already existing monsters. Like combining a slime dragon and a naga to create Slamia; merging fully grown beings into one was the first type.

The other was synthesizing with an ’egg.’

The prime example was the Andras. I could have simply hatched the Andras eggs, which were guaranteed 5-star births, but instead I gathered enough subordinates to total five stars and synthesized them.

I’d rarely attempted the latter. Merging sentient beings into one was problematic in many ways. In fact, I’d barely used monster synthesis at all outside of non-sentient creatures like ghouls.

But things were different now. After several rounds of practice and experimentation, I’d mastered a method that someone, somewhere, might have deemed ’forbidden.’

I boldly used the eggs laid through Levis Ann for monster synthesis.

Fortunately, there was nothing saying only monsters could be used.

I’d suspected it might work, and my suspicions were confirmed. As long as the egg came from a monster, the base subject didn’t necessarily have to be a demon or monster.

Thump, thump.

Gray’s body inside the cocoon was changing by the moment. I asked Flauros how long it would take for Gray to fully emerge. Flauros raised a root and displayed the time for me.

"Two hours?"

Only two hours until Gray was reborn as a new being. I couldn’t help but marvel at how much faster the transformation was than expected.

"Is it because he’s human? Is a human body easier to convert into a half-dragon?"

What the cocoon would produce was still unknown, but conveniently, the timing lined up neatly at two hours.

"Levis Ann, hehe, look. The egg you discarded is being reborn as a new... she passed out."

Levis Ann had fainted, her head hanging limp. She seemed to have suffered a severe psychological shock, but I didn’t feel particularly sorry.

"Two hours is enough time to step out for a bit. Lucifer. Wake Levis Ann just before she lays the egg. She needs to see Gray’s reborn form with her own eyes."

"So you’ll be back in two hours?"

"Yes. I need to go recruit the next candidate after Gray, and there are still other matters to resolve."

I tugged the reins. Along the way, I dropped off Eila, who’d peaked during the ride, to rest in Ras Vegas, then guided Slaberus toward Raspica.

"Hehe, what a mess."

Raspica upon my return was utter chaos. People were holed up inside their homes, trembling, and the streets were littered with all manner of odds and ends. Our legion’s soldiers, working in pairs of one orc and one Andras, were going door to door managing the populace.

At a glance, it looked like the monsters were searching houses and confiscating property, but in truth, all the belongings scattered on the streets were things people had stolen but couldn’t carry home.

Typical humans.

They’d snatched up everything valuable and left behind only things not worth selling at any price. The ghouls worked like sanitation crews, using their long arms to sweep the roadside junk into sacks on their backs.

"Lime. Gather those old clothes in one place. They might come in handy later for disguising people as beggars or refugees."

"Worst case, we could just eat them."

"Wouldn’t that be a stretch? It’s not like we have that many slime dragons."

"It’ll be fine, Master. We love eating."

Clian and Nifran, whose base was naga, looked a bit uneasy at the idea, but Lime, a slime to the core, was already eyeing every morsel the city had to offer.

"The eating can wait. We’ve arrived."

I stopped Slaberus and reached my destination. I’d arrived at the basement of the baronial castle, a secret underground facility that even the baron’s own family hadn’t known about. I slowly dismounted and walked on my own two legs.

"Lime. Transform back into the Baroness and return to the office. Clian and Nifran will assist you."

""Understood.""

The slimes departed for the surface. I took a slow breath against the sting of divine power pricking my skin and made my way deeper inside.

Hummm.

An intense wave of divine power washed over my entire body. The vibrations were deeper than even a woman’s shuddering climax during egg-laying; powerful enough to make the very air tremble.

"There it is."

"You came?"

The basement where countless women of the baronial family had been devoured.

There sat Meri, her hair a fitting blend of silver and pink, squatting on the floor and greeting me with a little grin. I slowly approached her and checked on the progress.

"How is it going?"

"It’s holding up pretty well, actually. But it seems like the capacity is running low. Daddy, give me some of your stuff."

"...That sounds extremely dangerous if anyone overhears. I’ll send you some demonic essence."

"You take my jokes way too seriously. Pfft."

Meri giggled and pressed something down with her bare foot. A handsome-looking hilt that had been poking out sank with a plop into a thick, sticky, red pool.

[KYAAAAAAAH!!]

The trembling in the air was like a woman’s scream. Not a scream of fear, but an uncontrollable cry of climax.

"Didn’t expect a holy sword could get off, too."

"It’s easier to handle than I thought. Can I pull it out now?"

"Of course."

Meri gripped the hilt with her bare hand, still thickly coated in demonic essence. Slowly emerging from the pool in the floor, the holy sword Virgo still flaunted its beautiful form. Its pink blade was drenched in demonic essence, but otherwise intact.

"Hehe, good progress. Meri, how does it look?"

"Just as expected. It says it doesn’t want this, but it’s greedily absorbing the mana from the demonic essence into itself. Separately from the existing divine power, mana is taking root inside it."

Hummmmm.

The holy sword Virgo had not lost its strength. Formidable divine power still dwelled within the blade, but we had devised a plan to make the holy sword even more powerful.

A Holy-Demonic Sword.

Having marinated the blade in a pool of demonic essence concrete, the holy sword Virgo was steadily growing as it absorbed the mana within. The proof was in the hilt; its once fresh, pale pink was gradually deepening into a sensual scarlet.

"If we keep this up, no one will even recognize it as a holy sword. Its shape has already changed since I took hold of it, and if you only draw on the mana, anyone would assume it’s an ordinary enchanted sword."

"Good. Hehe, holy sword Virgo. Can you hear me? If you can, hurry up and change form. Into your human shape."

The holy sword Virgo trembled its blade, trying to flinch away from my touch. But thanks to Meri’s contract, I was able to hold the sword without issue.

"Hmm... as expected, if you’re not the owner, it’s just a ceremonial blade."

I’d hoped I might be able to use it too, but I couldn’t draw out either the divine power or the mana stored within.

"Hehe, so it’s just an unbreakable sturdy sword, then."

"Want to use it, Daddy?"

"Don’t be ridiculous. The owner is you."

"I’m not a swordswoman, though. If it can’t be broken, doesn’t that basically mean it can cut through anything?"

"Meri. A sword like that is all the more reason for you to keep it. To me it’s just a hunk of scrap metal, but for you it’s a trump card that can get you out of any crisis."

I handed the holy sword back to Meri.

"Besides, don’t I already have a holy sword of my own? Hehehe."

"...Even though you can’t even use it on me."

I had no comeback for that.