In front of me stood four figures prepared to fight. My partner drew his sword and I could feel his bloodlust burst forth, ready to fight to the death for Lilly, the kind, warm, and soothing child that I've sworn to fight for.

"Lilly!" Ferra Exclaimed.

"Is that Mana Exhaustion?! I've never even heard of a case this severe" Kaithe recognized the symptoms.

"Get your hands off her, you fiend!" Varen growled.

I stood on the smoldering side filled with ash, whereas they stood where green vegetation and life was. The river had since replenished what has evaporated away.

I step forward looking back to Onyx, he's the only one with the power to save Lilly so he must go forth. I will show these youngsters what the strongest Lord in this world is.

[Servant's Loyalty] Activating one of my abilities I'd recently gotten, it makes me immune to any fear-based and intimidation abilities.

[To the Death] I remember winning my challenge with the Dragon Lord to get this. It boosts all my abilities so long as I intend to not run away if I do I'd be weakened and lose this ability until I redeem myself

[Imperial Slayer] It took slaying ten thousand holy knights to get this, their final gambit was a holy bomb, their only problem was that I was not weak to the holy element. I gain massive boosts to knights that paladin is going down first!

[For Master's Sake] Another one I got from Lilly. So long as I fight for the sake and safety of Lilly all my abilities are boosted.

Last but not least is [Call of the Storm], with a howl I call out to the clouds.

"Don't even think of dying little one, she'll get upset" My partner said. I just gave him a knowing smile.

The Storm had arrived, and the first lightning struck. [Lightning leap!] riding a lightning bolt to the storm above I absorb all the lightning above then struck down in the middle of my foes releasing all that electricity in a shockwave.

"Uwaaaa!"

Onyx wasted no time and was already well past this battlefield.

I gave a smug smile as the adventurers stood up. My [Foe Sense] telling me that they are formidable adversaries, but ultimately still weaker than me.

[Bloodlust: Oppressive]

They flinched at the sudden burst of murderous intent.

[Dominating Aura: Oppressive]

They took a step back at the oppressive aura of my magnificent form.

[Rule of Fear: Oppressive]

Their legs trembled as their hearts filled with fear, yet they did not run away, commendable.

[Lion's Heart!] The wite robed half-elf cast a bravery spell. Good, this will be funner this way.

"T-this is no S rank..." The paladin trailed off

"This is... this is impossible! No monster can this... this powerful! How did we not know of its true strength!" The archer said

"... An X rank monster. It's thought to be only a myth leftover from the age of deities and calamities" The mage said.

[Call of the Storm: Cyclone!] I howled and a circular cage of wind descended from the storm above, sweeping up ash and dust. The stage had now been set.

"Rock crumbles away, the rivers dry out, the sun dies, all that lies at the end of time is a [Frozen world!]" Ice spread out at sonic speeds, glaciers shooting out to stab me with their pointed tips, but no problem for me. With a jump, I ride lighting from the earth back to the skies and aiming my horn down at the battlefield shoot down a lighting bolt before jumping back down behind the paladin

"Behind you, Varen!" the white-robed woman shouted

with a burst that left shocks trailing behind I jump at the paladins back. [Aegis!] just in time a shield had appeared but I broke through that, ramming the paladin. The paladin flew through the air hitting the cyclone and being swept up into the air.

[Feather fall!] The white-robed woman was doing all she could to keep that paladin alive.

[Bulls Eye], [Hold Breath], [Powershot], [True shot]. I Ignored the archer as he powers up his attack.

The archer released the arrow. Flying at blinding speeds the arrow flew through the air leaving behind a wind trail that tore up the ground and kicked up dust, yet I had the speed of lightning, such a shot was slow to me. I lazily jumped in the air and with a kick that sent out a shockwave, batted away the arrow and snapping it in two.

"It's just toying with us!" The archer said with despair.

With a burst of speed that left an afterimage behind I kicked the archer into the cyclone. Two ring outs, two left to go

I turn toward the other two, [Aegis!], the woman cast a shield in front of her and the mage.

"May the eternal glaciers of winter-"

[Crisis Perception] blared, warning me of a really powerful spell while [Attack Sense] told me that the nature of the spell was a sealing spell.

"-hold my foe in time-"

[Aegis] [Aegis]

Layering shielding spells over each other the woman places her hope on this gambit.

I leap forward to interrupt the spell, I break through the shields but it gave the woman enough time to take the hit for the mage. She was kicked to the edge of the arena but wasn't knocked out.

"-Eternally locked in ice-"

An arrow clad in empowering chi shot out of the cyclone, I had no choice but to deflect that arrow.

[Lightning Strike] A bolt raced down from the skies toward the mage.

[Element Attraction: Lighting!] the bolt turned toward the white-robed woman shocking her

"-Until the end of time [Ice Priso-]"

[Phase: Mana Layer] I disappeared from the prime realm and into a subspace. It was serene here, a place saturated with mana. The ground was a large island of solidified mana surrounded by an ocean of liquid mana. I could just wait here and replenish my mana, time here does run ten times faster here.

______________________________

Varen POV

I fell. After being swept up and tossed around for too long I was finally launched above the cyclone. Now I was falling. I safely landed with the effects of [Feather Fall].

"Did you get him?" I asked Kaithe. Looking at the pillar of ice, I didn't see the beast inside.

"He got away at the last second, forgot about his damned [Phase] ability"

Tallen landed next to me, his quiver was empty; having lost his arrows to the cyclone.

"We are way too unprepared, we need so many countering magics and items that we don't have," I said. We need a phase anchor to prevent that. We need a countering weather item, of which none currently exists so we'd have to find a way to make one. We need powerful lightning resistance, I want to kick myself that we once thought we could take this beast on with only moderate level lightning resistance spells and potions.

Jackalope, a low tier monster, naturally, that means that it'll be a low tier S rank; unlike a phoenix, or dragon that would need weeks of preparation. Never again; no matter what, no matter how weak, we prepare for the worst; if we somehow survive this.

We start casting buffing spells and Empowering ourselves to be ready for when he'd appear.

"What's it waiting for?" Tallen said. Indeed, the Lightning Lord has been gone for too long now.

The storm above rumbled and light flashed. Rain started pouring and quickly turned into a downpour like we were standing under a waterfall. The smoldering ashes nearby instantly quenched.

A howl echoed behind us. We quickly whipped around to see the Lightning Lord Standing behind us, it's yellow-tipped fur seemingly untouched by the water.

[Holy Smite!] With a charge I run toward the beast, splashing in the water that now reached halfway up my foot. I cut the beast but too late it had already phased out. The next thing I know I was kicked in the head. The blow was so powerful I saw stars and was slammed into the ground that gave way, water pouring into the crater.

He's not fighting seriously yet?! Is this the power of an X rank? It's almost like that Demon Lord. Are there other such monsters roaming around the earth, unknown to us?

I can't give up! I stood trying to get the world into focus. I hear spelling being cast and flashing of light, Tallen flew past me as a shockwave blew the rain away. The visibility was almost nonexistent, the only source of light now was the frequent flashes of lighting. The rain, the darkness, us being exhausted due to the forced march and casting all those spells for that airwave. we are not fit for this battle right now.

Ferra ran toward me and cast a healing spell. The world came into focus again.

"Kaithe is starting to suffer from mana exhaustion, we can't keep this up" Just then Kaithe landed next to me from being kicked, flakes of crystalized mana was starting to form on his skin in broken swirling patterns. Tallen had arrived, wobbling, He had his arming sword drawn. Ferra healed him to cure his dizziness. That beast hit fucking hard!

As we looked on, the Lightning Lord hopped into view as if saying "Is that all you got?"

Cheeky Bastard!

"Tallen, Take Kaithe and run away. Ferra try to make a path through that cyclone, there is no way we are beating this bastard" I ordered

"We stay together, Varen," Tallen said.

"You guys are idiots..." I replied with a sigh.

The Lightning Lord just stood there smugly.

"It's not going to attack?" Kaithe asked.

"It had many chances to kill us yet it doesn't, maybe this is Lilly's influence?" Ferra guessed.

"Still, what's with her? Why was the Blood-Soaked Oni carrying her?"

The Lightning Lord turned around to leave.

"Wait!" Why? Why did I stop him? Was it because I can't stand losing? No, I just want to know why Lilly is with the Blood-Soaked Oni.

The Lightning Lord turned back toward me and howled to the storm. The skies rumbled then struck the ground; then again it struck, and again. Lightning fell all around us, the thunder deafening me. Hundreds, perhaps thousands of lightning bolts rained from the skies all around us.

The beast's words were loud and clear. "Just leave her to me, I can keep her safe" The Lord leaped back into the skies, trailing sparks.

____________________________

Usagi POV

I rode a lightning bolt across the skies rushing towards the city. I usually don't travel like this, I just wandered from place to place. Ever since I reached the pinnacle to monsterhood I had ran out of challenges. In a way I am glad to have met Lilly, I have a new purpose; one I would have never considered.

In the span of just a day, I have met someone who had beaten me... In a way. Deep down I know she is weak but that's fine, it may actually be better. Then there's Onyx. He's close, I respect his strength and he treats Lilly well.

I wonder if Onyx had saved Lilly yet? Her mana exhaustion was quite severe. Down below I saw Onyx locked in a fierce battle with another man in platinum plate. Just then a group of people rushed out of the city gate, one of them cast a spell just as Onyx overpowered the man and sent him flying through the city wall.

Impressive, Maybe I should seek a challenge from these people, Perhaps I've been underestimating them too much. Onyx still hasn't healed Lilly, and he's being delayed further, guess I'll help him out and play with that group in his stead.

I land between Onyx and the group, a shockwave of lightning spread out. Thankfully the ground is a slight slope, otherwise, I'd be half-submerged in water.

"Hey, Isn't that The Lightning Lord?" A mage woman asked. "Does that mean Lilly is nearby?"

I look around to locate Lilly.

"How do you know her?" Onyx asked.

"Why do you care!" The woman snarled.

Ah! There she is

"None of your business" Onyx replied.

I looked toward Onyx, giving him a nod to which he understood, sheathing his living sword.

"What's the big deal? Scared of us or that S rank monster?" one of the adventurers said

If only he knew. I charged my body up with power, sparks flowing through my fur

"Why should I be scared of him? You, however, should be" Onyx retorted

"Huh?"

[Call of the Storm: Lighting Rain] With a howl, fury rained down upon the adventurers who could barely respond in time. I purposely held back, I wanna see if this group was as good as the last, at least they managed to threaten me with that seal spell.

Unlike the thousands of bolts from the storm, just a few dozen fell upon on them, a simple teaser.

"Wha-! I thought this beast was tamed!" The dragon skull knight shouted

"Its master is unconscious, it'll likely attack anyone it sees as a threat to Lilly!" the mage woman said.

"The Blood-Soaked Oni must have known this, that's why he withdrew"

Did they not see Onyx pick Lilly up? Oh, right these manlings have poor night vision and the rain is not helping. Speaking of Onyx, a bunch of people are attacking him, not good, he'd have to kill them which would waste their lifeforce.

With a burst of speed I maneuver so the adventurers lined up with those attacking Onyx. [Lightning Chain] Lighting struck my horn, I channeled the electricity past the adventurers who dodged. The bolt hit the first man then jumped to the others, leaving them barely alive.

[Grasping Vines!] [Wind Blades!]

Vines sprouted up from the ground to wrap around my legs while four pressurized wind blades flew toward me to block my escape routes.

The dragon skull knight charged toward me in the blink of an eye while the twins appeared as if teleporting behind me. With no way to escape the vines started wrapping themselves around my leg.

These guys have good teamwork, but lightning isn't the only thing I can do. [Aerokinesis] I take control of the wind blades and turn them towards the knight and twins. Two flew towards the knight who blocks them both while the twins dodged.

That's not all I can do! There should be enough water by now! [Tsunami!] with a long drawn out howl I call to the waters of the overflowing river. A wall of water overshadowed us.

"What the!"

The water washed over us and swept away the adventurers. I, being tied down by vines, remained in place.

As I ripped the vines out, the inch of water I was standing in froze over trapping me again. Shurikens flew towards me then an arrow followed not far behind. They are looking to trap me again. No matter [Phase]

Again the world shifted and I was in this mana filled place. This time I was on the shore of the mana island. I rested for about ten minutes, absorbing the mana and letting my body relax from using mana to prevent mana exhaustion. Only about a minute of time would have passed for them.

I phased back in reality, to a different place so I am not stuck in the ice

"Now M'vera!"

"-To lock in time [Temporal Stasis!]

Shit! My danger sensing skills don't work if I'm not on the same reality layer! Sealing spells are the worst! No matter how strong I am I'm still susceptible to them!

[Final Battle!] nanoseconds after I used my Skill the spell went off. In exchange for massive boosts to my skills and abilities, and for gaining immunities for most debilitating effects and seals I have about one minute of reckless abandon before I suffer a week of exhaustion.

The spell was completely resisted. Normal sealing spells have a duration anyway, it's just a way to buy time, what I really need to worry about are sealing items and rituals. Like the djinn sealed in a lamp, or ritual sacrifices to keep a powerful beings prisoner like the Yamato no Orochi that requires one virgin sacrifice every year. Not even I would dare to challenge these beings; maybe the weaker ones, if I can find a way to release them.

With rage filling me I howled my spell [Call of the Storm: Blizzard], Again I called out to the skies. [Call of the storm: Fire Tornado] and again I call down fury [Call of the Storm: Lightning Rain].

This is my declaration, "I am the Lord of the Storms". Dozens of fire tornadoes touched down all around me. Tearing up the nearby houses and setting them ablaze. The air froze and snow and hail pelted the ground, threatening to freeze anyone left out in the open. Thousands of lightning bolts struck, blasting apart trees and people.

[Lightning resist] [Fire resist] [Cold resist] [Dome of Safety]

"Shit! Why didn't the seal work?!" The knight shouted. The protective dome above them was struck by lightning and cracks formed all over it like a spider web. Then another bolt struck shattering the dome which fell like glass before disappearing mid-fall as if turning into mist.

[Call of the Storm: Apocalypse!] I howled again. The waters churned forming columns and freezing into spires from the blizzards, more tornadoes touched down, more lightning struck, and the hail grows in size to the size of a man's head.

You have been inflicted with: Mana Shock: Minor

Oops, used too much mana too quickly. Flakes of crystalized mana began to form on my fur. [Phase] I phased back into subspace then the exhaustion hit.

You have been inflicted with:

Burnout: Major

Exhaustion: Major

Spell Cooldown: Major

Mana Fatigue: Major

Congratulations! For displaying your unparalleled mastery over storms and destroying a third of a city your Storm Lord title has improved to Storm Emperor

Congratulations! For showing those weak manlings what a true Lighting Lord is, your title has improved to Lightning Emperor

Congratulations! You have earned the Enemy of God's title for having a divine bounty placed on you. You really should have laid low, you arrogant showoff!

Just tell me what those titles do...

It's not like I wanted to show you or anything! It's just my job.

Lightning Emperor: In addition to lightning magic access and lightning empowerment, your lightning bypasses all lightning resistances

Storm Emperor: In addition to the Storm Call ability, and Weather Magic access, you gain the ability to call a superstorm.

Enemy Of Gods: You gain the ability to hurt deities and always know when one is in your presence

__________________________

Onyx POV

Goddamn! That fucking rabbit nearly killed us! What's with that fucking beast?! Where did he learn how to conjure such storms from?! Was that really the Lightning Lord?!

I stood on top of a hill overlooking the city. Rub- Lilly is draped across my back. Snow fell gently as the blizzard is clearing up. The fire tornadoes have dissipated and the gentle rumble of lightning could be heard safely above the clouds.

A third of the city lay in cinders. I am happy to see those Thymians burn and can only admire the destruction. I turned away from the city and walk down the hill.

Now, where to go? East? West? Or perhaps north, into the charred wasteland?

North is the safest direction. No one would want to go north for a while.

East is Gallanor, the city wherein that hero lives. If I go there the guards won't likely expect me to be in a city. On the other hand, I've got wanted posters in every city, but we need to find Lilly's friends if they came here. Isn't Ruby's friends dead though? Wait, These ones are different. That's right, Lilly isn't Ruby.

Lilly is not Ruby. I told myself this but when a gust of wind blew Lilly's ruby-colored hair in front of me I couldn't help but see Ruby's crimson hair instead. Ruby, my sword, glowed worryingly.

"She's going to be fine Ruby, she just needs some rest" I talked to my sword, I know she cares for Lilly.

To the west is the sleeping forest. Past the sleeping forest is the ocean and the port city of Olinport.

The outskirts of the sleeping forest are rather tame. E and D rank monsters roam that area, but in the heart of the forest, Dreamshade grows. That colossal flower is considered an A rank threat. Its scent has a charming magical effect that lures any and all beings toward the flower. After the animals get close enough it's pollen will induce sleep to any who breathes it in. They will fall asleep under the gargantuan flower, breathing in more pollen leading to a permanent slumber until they die about a day later; their rotting corpse fertilizing the ground for the enormous plant.

Most just go around in the outskirts of the forest, or even just around it and never step past the tree line. A few attempts have been made to burn the dreamshades but none were successful, the plant itself is immune to fire.

Hiding within the forest could be a smart move, if need be I can lose any followers within it but no matter how strong I am I can't fight the dreamshades.

To the south is the capital of this kingdom, not a place I want to be but a place where I can find Lilly's friends. Past the capital a few more cities and towns can be found; after that lies the mana wastes, no one goes there, except for when they slew the demon lord.

The mana wastes Is a place full of corrupted magic that mutates creatures, often making them incredibly powerful in exchange for shortening their lifespans. Most creatures in the wastes are B rank or higher.

Demons are the exception. They don't mutate in corrupted mana, instead, they thrive in it and use it for magic. Most demon slayers end up becoming mana mutants as taking hits from demon magic will slowly bathe you in corrupted mana.

So, North. East. South. Or West. Right now we need a safe place to rest so South and East are out. That leaves West, the sleeping forest or north, the charred wastes. In the charred wastes, life isn't expected to return soon so food will mostly come from the river. With the forests burned down and limited food supply hiding will be hard.

So that just leaves the sleeping forest. We can arrive at Olinport when we're ready and can stick to the outskirts of the forest.

It was morning by the time I reached the forest. It was a seemingly normal woods, with the trees spread out and easy to traverse. The forest gets thicker farther in. By the time you start seeing the bioluminescent plants and insects, you've gone too far in.

Pixies and Fairies call the inner forest home. They are immune to the dreamshades and love the nest in them. Fairies are the nice ones, Pixies are trickers and a nuisance. Then there are the Moxies. These ones could only be described as evil.

I plan to get near the glowing plants in case I need to hide but I don't plan on going in. I readjust Lilly and take the first step in the sleeping forest.