Villain in a Fantasy World; I Level Up by Conquering Villainesses-Chapter 37: Zaratul’s Demon Army [1]

"L-Lord Zaratul?"

The Harpy froze as a perplexed expression appeared on her face, it made her look cute.

Seeing this, Julian sighed. ’As expected, I can’t hide completely from an A Rank powerhouse’.

He was not too disappointed though.

Elena noticed him only due to his scent!

This meant that the combination of his Psychological Invisibility and Partial Invisibility was a great success, for an A Rank Warrior to take so long before detecting his presence meant he had terrifying stealth as a mere Level 20 D Rank Mage.

Julian was extremely satisfied, and finally he deactivated both abilities.

With her keen senses as an A Rank Warrior, Elena detected him immediately after he left stealth and then the look on her face stiffened even more as she stared at him with an emotion that Julian couldn’t quickly put an adjective to.

"Lord Zaratul!" She flinched. "You’re here!"

Julian chuckled at her reaction, thinking of what to say.

But Elena was already overthinking as she felt a sudden urge to hit her head against the wall. ’Dammit! It’s the Lord! What is he doing here? Why didn’t I know? Ah... what am I even thinking? He’s awake and this is his training hall!’

’Dammit!’ She cursed, feeling like dragging and pulling her hair till it cut. ’Why am I dressed like a boy?’

’Dammit, there’s no mirror!’

She felt instant regret. ’Why didn’t I dress like Pandora or Ms. Lilith?’

’Dammit! Will he think I look like a boy? Will he treat me like a boy because of it? Do I look ugly?’ She felt like crying. ’Dammit, do I even have any charm looking like this?’

’F*ck you Elena!’ She cursed in frustration. ’F*ck you and your complacency! F*ck you for not dressing appropriately like a woman!’

But then she paused in a daze. ’Can I train in a gown?’

’Dammit!’

Julian had an amused expression on his face as he looked at the Harpy, wondering what was going through her mind that made her so quiet.

In the end, he finally broke the silence. "I woke up this morning and decided to do some exercise, I’m slowly recovering my power".

Elena finally snapped out of her daze as she nodded vigorously. "Yes, of course, you look so healthy and strong!"

The look on Julian’s face turned weird. ’What’s going through her mind?’

Julian didn’t think too deeply about it though. His original intention after completing his training here was to go straight to the library, but in hindsight, he suddenly had a new idea.

’Elena is the Commander of my Demon army!’

One of the core memories that he got from Zaratul was the Demon army of the powerful Demon Mage.

Elena was not just the Commander of the airforce but the entire army.

And yes, Dreadmoor has an airforce comprised of Harpies and Succubus, and an army comprised of Demon foot soldiers and Bruno’s zombies and skeletons.

Julian’s new idea was to explore and see his army for himself.

His Demon army was another expression of his power and wealth, and he was eager to savor the sight with his own eyes.

Julian looked at Elena and inquired. "You intend to train right now?"

His question immediately made the Harpy stand at attention like a proper soldier as the expression on her face became serious. "My will is insignificant before the will of my Lord!"

Julian’s face turned even weirder. ’Uh... you’re this type?’

Well, he wasn’t one to complain so he went straight to the point. "I’ve been in a coma for 10 years, it’s been a while since I saw my army".

"Take me on a tour".

"With pleasure". Elena responded and immediately discarded her weapons as they disappeared into thin air.

Julian raised his eyebrows. ’Are there spatial storage gadgets in this world?’

He didn’t ask though as once Elena looked at him for confirmation, she led the way outside the training chamber and Julian followed.

The Demon army was located in the second underground level of Dreadmoor.

Elena led Julian to another spiraling staircase that led to the second underground level of Dreadmoor, and the moment they arrived, Julian experienced a sensation that he just stepped into another world.

Certain evidence already made him suspect previously that Dreadmoor had advanced spatial magic in its creation like in the library and other chambers of the Demon castle, and now Julian confirmed it.

Elena led him to an open grand square in the second underground level that was far too big to fit inside a castle.

Coming here, Julian wouldn’t have believed that he was still inside the castle if he didn’t climb a staircase down.

There was a sky filled with blue clouds above.

The grand square was vast enough to swallow entire cities, a titanic expanse of black stone fused seamlessly together as if the earth itself had been melted and flattened by hellfire.

The sturdy flagstones were etched with ancient sigils that served as wards of obedience, blood, and dominion.

They pulsed faintly like a slow heartbeat beneath one’s feet.

The air here tasted of iron and ash, heavy with the weight of over a century of conquest and preparation.

At ground level, the foot army dominated the square.

Julian saw endless ranks of Demon soldiers standing in disciplined formations, their armor jagged and organic, grown rather than forged, with horned helms and blades that seemed to drink the light around them.

Some of them were pale-skinned just like him, but most had thick red skin that fit the Demon race title better.

Demon Commanders radiating powerful qi energy stood in front of them as drill commands echoed like thunder.

Under the commands, the soldiers marched in perfect unison, their claws striking stone with brutal rhythm.

Most of the Demon soldiers were shorter than Julian’s own towering height, just a bit taller than regular humans but the Commanders were towering, their shadows stretching unnaturally long as their eyes burned with baleful intelligence.

At the far edges of the square lied massive, fortress-like structures of obsidian and frost-black metal.

These were the cold chambers, sealed vaults where death itself sleeps.

Inside, the temperature were at unnatural extremes- cold so deep it stills decay and locks time in place.

Inside was Bruno’s undead army- rows upon rows of zombies and skeletons frozen in rigid formation, preserved in eternal hibernation.

The skeletal bones of the skeletons gleamed pale blue under frost-light, while their flesh-bound brethren were locked in perfect stillness, awaiting a single command or the lifting of the seals to rise once more as an unstoppable tide.

Above the square, the airforce claimed the sky.

High spires formed rings around the plaza, their peaks shaped like talons clawing at the heavens.

From these perches launched the Harpies, shrieking as they took to the air in tight, lethal formations.

Their wings blotted out the light as they practiced dives and strafing maneuvers with talons extended, moving with terrifying precision.

Their cries echoed across the square, a constant reminder that the sky itself belonged to the Demon Lord Zaratul.

Interwoven among them glided the Succubus, their movements graceful and controlled, their wings beating slowly as they hovered and circled in elegant patterns in the sky.

They trained differently, coordinating aerial formations, signaling with gestures and arcane flashes of light, practicing rapid descents and psychological warfare drills.

Their presence exerted a subtle presence on the mind, a hum of temptation and dread that seeped even into the stone below.

Observing all of this, Julian didn’t feel like he was inside Dreadmoor at all, he felt like he was inside a large battlefield camp.

And then, something else caught his attention at the far Western end of this grand square.

’Wait, is that... Puck?’